Products and Further Reading

Books and Products available about the Great North Road and associated topics. Any of these products may be purchased from the Convict Trail by sending a cheque to:

The Convict Trail Project
PO Box 96
Waroonga NSW 2076

Prices are in Australian dollars.

  • Explore the Convict Trail, $10 including postage (available in bulk quantities at book sellers rates)

    An A4, 24 page coloured tourist booklet with maps and pictures

  • By Force of Maul and Wedge - Talking about the Great North Road, by Bill Bottomley, 1996. $25 plus $3 p&p. (105 pp, A4 paperback)

    A set of interviews with 'Road Scholars' - experts in the historical, archaeological, heritage and cultural significance of the Great North Road. An easy-to-read but comprehensive introduction to the Great North Road and the formation of the Convict Trail Project.

  • Convict Road Gangs 1826 - 1836, by Ian Webb (occasional monograph) 2003 $12 plus $3 p&p (56 pp A5 paperback)

    This monograph outlines the organisation of and the conditions in gangs, including food and housing and the work done by convict road gangs between 1826 and 1836)

  • Four Essays about the Great North Road, by Dr Grace Karskens, (Occasional Monograph) 1998. $12 plus $3 p&p.(108pp, A5 paperback)

    A collection of four in-depth papers about various historical and archaeological aspects of the Great North Road. Written in the mid-1980s,they have until now been only available in relatively obscure academic journals. This collection makes these seminal papers easily accessible for the first time.

  • Convict Trail Forum Papers :Edited by Lorraine Banks. $12 plus $3 pp. (96pp, A5 paperback)

    A compilation of ten papers presented at the CTP Forum "Exploring the Great North Road" in September 1998. Papers cover new research findings about the Road, its byways and associated sites, the people who built it and how they built it, including biographical material on the life and times of people like Sir Thomas Mitchell, Percy Simpson and Heneage Finch.

  • William Curtin - Two Convicts, by Lorraine Banks and Bill Bottomley, (Occasional Monograph) 1997. $12 plus $3 p&p. (48pp, A5 paperback).

    This is the first monograph to come out of the Adopt-a-Convict scheme. In-depth research into the life of convict William Curtin revealed there were two convicts of this name, with similar backgrounds. Both received a colonial sentence - one to work on the Great North Road and the other to Norfolk Island. Exploring the similarities and differences of their experiences fleshes out the human dimension of two men who would otherwise be merely statistics in the colonial record.

  • A Dot and a Dash along the Convict Trail: A brief history of the North Telegraph Line, by John W (Jack) Delaney, (Occasional Monograph) 1998. $12 plus $3 p&p. (66pp, A5 paperback).

    The North Telegraph Line followed the route of the Great North Road when it was first installed, and, like the Road itself, represented a form of communication infrastructure with the North. In the context of the development of telecommunications Jack's book outlines the history of the Line from its beginnings as a vehicle for morse code messages, through the days of the telephone, to its demise at the introduction of electronic means of communication.

  • Maintaining Law and Order in the Wollombi/Macdonald Police District, by Carl Hoipo, (Occasional Monograph), 1997. $12 plus $3 p&p. (52pp, A5 paperback).

    A collection of newspaper articles from the mid-1800s, mainly dealing with law and order events in the Wollombi district, providing an insight into what was like to live there in those times.

  • XYZ GOES NORTH: 'An Account of a Trip to Hunter's River' & 'A Visit to Wollombi and the Cumnaroy', Edited & annotated by Ian Grantham, (Occasional Monograph), 1999. $12 plus $3 p&p. (80pp, A5 paperback)

    Accounts of journeys to the Hunter and along the Great North Road originally published in 1827 under the pseudonym "XYZ" - believed to have been written by William Dumaresq. They provide an understanding of places, people and life in colonial NSW in the late 1820s and an interesting perspective on the Great North Road when it was under construction.

  • Convict Trail Video: $30 plus $2 p&p.

    A 20 min video introduction to the Great North Road and its significance as a heritage item.

Also recommended

  • Blood Sweat and Irons by Ian Webb, published by Dharug and Lower Hawkesbury Historical Society 1999, (A4 paperback).

    This detailed history of the Great North Road and its construction brings together a lot of the material Ian has collected in over two decades of researching the Great North Road. It focuses primarily on the section between Wisemans Ferry and Mt Manning, although much broader context to the Road and its construction is provided.

  • Road's End: Building the Great North Road from Mt Manning to the Hunter River 1824-1836

    Comprehensively and painstakingly researched, this latest book by Ian Webb focuses on the Great North Road between Mt Manning and the Hunter. Lots of information and well worth a read, particularly those with an interest in the Hunter region and its early roads.

    Costs $20 and is available from the Dharug and Lower Hawkesbury Historical Society,PO Box, Wisemans Ferry, 2775, or from Ian Webb at 28 Boonal St, Singleton 2330 (phone 6572 1538)

    Blood Sweat and Irons may be purchased from the:

    Dharug and Lower Hawkesbury Historical Society
    Post Office
    Wisemans Ferry NSW 2775

    The cost is $15.00 plus $3.00 postage


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