Time to Roam Magazine Issue 5 - October/November 2013 | Page 41

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on the roam macleay valley promotion

Top: The ghosts of prisoners past still haunt the ruins
of Trial Bay Gaol. Below: Slim Dusty’s original home,
Melody Ranch, near Bellbrook. Right The bluff at
Crescent Head today and as it was in the 1950s

Did you know?
Kempsey and the Macleay region
are home to three Australian icons
1. Slim Dusty
David Gordon Kirkpatrick was born in
Kempsey and grew up at Melody Ranch at
Nulla Nulla near Bellbrook.
Legend has it that Slim Dusty began
his performing career by travelling the long
route from the family farm at Bellbrook
and standing outside the studios of Radio
2MC until the station manager finally gave
him a job.
He knew his destiny – he adopted the Slim
Dusty name at age 11 and went on to be one of
our most successful recording artists, with a
professional career spanning 70 years.
Slim’s 1957 smash hit, “The Pub with no
Beer” broke so many records it still manages
to hold on to a few today.
Today the visitors can follow the Macleay to
see Slim’s childhood home. There is a story
board which tells of his life and press a button
to hear Slim talk of his memories growing up
in this picturesque location. There is a dirt
road through Millbank to a hotel today known
as the Pub with No Beer.
Or you can head to the Slim Dusty Country

Music Memories Week from October 21
to 27. Bring your caravan to one of the
five holiday parks or camp out at Kempsey
showground and enjoy a week-long
celebration of traditional country music in
the birthplace of Slim Dusty.

2. Akubra hats
A family-owned company tracing its
hat-making heritage back to the 1870s,
Akubra moved from Sydney to Kempsey in
1974. Australia’s best known hat maker
outfitted our servicemen with slouch hats
in both World Wars, while Prime Minister
Ben Chifley’s Akubras are housed in the
National Museum.
There are no visitor tours of the factory,
however there is a video and display at the
Kempsey Visitor Information Centre. You
can buy Akubras from the range at Barsby’s
in Smith Street in Kempsey. Barsby’s is
one of the few remaining family-owned
department stores in existence in regional
NSW – well worth a visit in its own right.
Akubra is the key sponsor of the Kempsey
Cup on November 8th at the Warwick
Park Racecourse.

3. MILO
The drink named after the Greek mythical
character of great strength was developed
by Nestle as a health tonic for malnourished
children during the depression.
First produced at Smithtown near
Kempsey, Milo debuted at the 1934 Sydney
Royal Easter Show and has been a hit with
Aussies ever since.
Industrial chemist Thomas Mayne
was Milo’s inventor, using industrial food
production processes that were cutting
edge for their time.
A chocolate syrup is made from cocoa,
malted wheat and barley, with liquids
evaporated out to create sweet chunks.
These are then