Thousands of readers of Recollections, the extremely popular and free South Coast history magazine, are about to have their wishes fulfilled.
Recollections is about to be published monthly, instead of being produced every second month.
‘The reason is simple,’ Peter Lacey the Editor of Recollections explained.
‘We receive lots of feedback from readers every time we produce a new edition of Recollections and, time and time and time again, we are asked to share even more of the fascinating history of the NSW South Coast with them through Recollections. So, we’re just responding to strong, ongoing demand from our local community.’
‘And we are delighted to do so. The South Coast has an enormous amount of extraordinarily interesting, often quite unique, history that deserves to be more widely known. So, issuing Recollections every month, rather than every second month, enables us to share more stories, more of the area’s fascinating history with our readers.’
‘But,’ Peter added, ‘these additional issues of Recollections will be slightly different.’
‘They will initially only highlight interesting South Coast objects and activities that now belong to yesterday – industries that have disappeared like whaling in Twofold Bay or the Talc Mine that once operated near Cobargo, community activities such as Cracker Nights and Saturday Nights at the Movies that are no longer regular significant community events, everyday institutions such as nurses’ homes and ‘Greek’ cafes on the South Coast that no longer exist, once-common objects such as milk cans and ‘silent cops’ that are now just relics of our past.’
‘Like the current Recollections, these additional issues will continue to be free.’
‘But they will only be available on-line. We realise this will disappoint some people but, unfortunately, the cost of printing six additional issues of Recollections each year is currently way beyond what the volunteer-based and not-for-profit South Coast History Society can afford.’
‘Subscribing to these additional issues of Recollections, however, is very easy. Simply email ‘Send Recollections’ to southcoasthistory@yahoo.com.’
Recollections has been one of the South Coast’s real success stories of recent years.
When it was first produced in February 2017 it was intended to be a quarterly publication with every second issue being available only on-line. ‘But the community soon set us straight about what they wanted and, with the support of a couple of very generous donors, we have since been able to produce both print and on-line versions and issue Recollections every second month,’ Peter explained.
‘The print run of that initial issue was only around 1,000 copies, but that too has steadily increased to now be regularly between 3,500 and 4,000, with an additional 1,000 to 2,000 copies being supplied to subscribers on-line. And the number of businesses that distribute paper copies of Recollections has also dramatically increased, with around 100 of them all up and down the South Coast now making it available to their customers and clients.’
‘Pleasingly, Recollections has also gained the support of some of Australia’s leading historians who have contributed articles for inclusion in it. So, for them, it has become an important vehicle through which they can more widely share the findings of research they have been undertaking on the history of the NSW South Coast.’
When asked whether Recollections might next become a fortnightly magazine that would be available in print form, Peter laughed. ‘It’s a remote possibility, I guess,’ he said, ‘but producing an issue every fortnight would be a really big ask, one that would likely be beyond the capability of our current group of volunteers. However, the printing of all issues is possible but that entirely depends on our receiving sufficient financial support from the community to pay for them…and we always live in hope that that support may be forthcoming!’
The first of the new, additional on-line issues of Recollections will be released on September 1st.
Above: Peter Lacey with the August 2023 issue of Recollections and a mock-up of a new, on-line issue of Recollections that will launch in September.
