The HOWLONG PIONEER PARK & SETTLERS MEMORIAL

Officially opened on Australia Day, 2009, by Chloe Ferguson/Davidson, granddaughter of Lee Davidson.
Click on any image for larger view.

pioneer memorial
As you enter Howlong from Albury you will see the Pioneer & Settlers Memorial Hut to your right. Please stop, for a minute and look at this magnificent record of the people Historically involved in creating Our small Town, Howlong.
Handmade, and engraved Commemorative plaques adorn the Reg-Gum handmade poles, and you can sit at the Red-Gum, handmade benches enjoying a drink or snack you have with you.
This task has taken the small group of volunteers four years to produce.
the hut from another angle
The Monument depicted honours Joseph Hawdon, "The First Overlander" who drove 340 head of cattle from Howlong to Adelaide in 1838.
Ron Wilkins, Howlong's local Historian, applied to the Australian Government Department of Environment & Heritage for assistance and was awarded a Grant in 2004 to design and build a Monument to Joseph Hawkins. It was decided to expand the Heritage of the Monument to include a tribute to the early providers and settlers of Howlong.
KISMET
Ron approached Lee Davidson and slabs of sandstone were purchased from Bundanoon quarry and aided by Peter Welsh, the three volunteers hand-engraved the stone before it was placed as seen today. The overall plan developed to planting trees, erecting the hut and generating the 150, hand-engraved plates adorning it, including a horse hitching rail and hand-carved horse trough! The finishing touch is the pathway, hand-engraved with the information of local businesses, and organisations generously contributing to the Project. The pathway has wheelchair access. Corowa Shire Water Services Team worked with the other volunteers to produce this magnificent result. A time Capsule is buried there to be opened in 2037.
plaques