Stories of the Oldfield River

In November 1999, the Water and Rivers Commission at Albany, contracted Angela Sanders to carry out a project that recorded the cultural and historical values of the Oldfield River using the medium of Oral History Interviews. The Oldfield Landcare Group had previously recognised the importance of their river from an historical and cultural perspective and also believed that the protection of these values was the driving force that encouraged landholders to protect their waterways. For this reason an Oral History Project was undertaken to capture, in their own words, the landholders connection with the Oldfield River. It reveals why and how they are going about its protection.

In consultation with the members of the Oldfield Landcare Group and Kaylene Parker of the Water and Rivers Commission a list of possible interviewees was drawn up. A combination of original and early settlers was included to get a broad perspective on their perceptions of the river and its care. Fourteen people were interviewed on tape between November 1999 and February 2000. All the interviews were transcribed and given to the interviewees for editing. Changes were made in accordance with each interveiwee's wishes. A release form was then signed giving permission to the Oldfield Catchment Group, the Water and Rivers Commission and the Battye Library to publish the material.

A copy of the transcribed interview and tape was presented to each participant and copies were also lodged with the Battye Library. Researchers and other interested people can access the tapes and transcripts at the Battye Library. In addition, a register of published historical material, old photographs and other relevant documents was compiled.

The account of the Oldfield River that follows has been compiled using extracts from the interviews. Please note that the views expressed are those of the interviewees and are not necessarily those of the Natural Heritage Trust or the Water and Rivers Commission.

This project was funded by the Natural Heritage Trust and the Water & Rivers Commission with support from the Oldfield Landcare Group.

The generous and enthusiastic participation of all the interviewees is gratefully acknowledged. Without their support this project would not have been possible. I thank Wendy Compagnoni for her invaluable photography of all the participants. Greg Harold and Sandra Croke spent many hours editing the transcripts and for this I am very grateful.