By Artur Baumhammer, son of Willi Baumhammer
‘My name is Artur Baumhammer, and I am the son of Willi Baumhammer, who was one of the first 613 German tradesmen that were contracted to the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Authority (SMHEA) in 1951. 44 men arrived by plane, including my father, the rest arrived on various ships. Their contracts were for two years.
‘My name is Artur Baumhammer, and I am the son of Willi Baumhammer, who was one of the first 613 German tradesmen that were contracted to the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Authority (SMHEA) in 1951. 44 men arrived by plane, including my father, the rest arrived on various ships. Their contracts were for two years.
I arrived in Australia with my mother in 1952, joining my father on the Snowy scheme. In 1952, I was the youngest in Island Bend camp, Mt Kosciuszko, and it certainly was no holiday, no friends and no sport.
Amongst my father’s papers I found records of the compulsory English lessons issued by Immigration & Education Department, a contract document issued between SMHEA and the tradesmen and the contract stating conditions, efficiency, proper conduct and character. I also kept some on-board newspapers, as well as the daily notes of our positions latitude and longitude, weather and rough seas as we came over via Cape Town. Through an unusual incident I was able to obtain a paper clipping from 6 April 1951 edition of the Daily Telegraph, "First Migrants from Germany ", also a gold embossed pamphlet called “Souvenir Commemorating the Commencement of Works on the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Authority, Adaminaby, NSW on 17 October 1949”.
After the 65th freunion celebrations held in Cooma from 17 to 20 October 2014, under the banner of the Snowy Scheme Association, I perused the computer and other media outlets but found no trace of these 613 Pioneer tradesmen anywhere.
I wish to keep the record alive of these men and forward it to the Museum in Adaminaby. We have a first-class museum in Adaminaby that recently was runner-up out of 74 museums in NSW. We are all volunteers and the museum is open on weekends, and if an opening during the week is required, access will be arranged. All the equipment on display is from volunteers and they can relate many events and incidents.
Now, I would like to assemble information on these men and their lives while working and living in Australia for the benefit of later generations, and compile a tribute to these pioneer contract tradesmen.
I hope some of these men and/or their families are still alive and may be able to give me some information, photos or other item of interest that would be interesting to the Snowy Scheme Museum in Adaminaby, for future generations to access.’
Has anyone got a "Zimmermanns Tracht"?
Artur and the museum volunteers would dearly like to add a traditional “Zimmermanns Tracht” to their collection. Can anybody help?
Please contact Artur Baumhammer info@snowyschememuseum.com.au
Snowy Scheme Museum Adaminaby
5199 Snowy Mountains Highway
Adaminaby NSW 2629
Phone (02) 6454 1643
Email info@snowyschememuseum.com.au
www.snowyschememuseum.com.au
Further information to photos above:
1. The frames in the photo were later covered with tents, very often the tent pegs were small crowbars as the winds reached up to 160km/hr and without hardwood frames normal tents would not be able to withstand those winds. The Snowy River is behind both men, note: in a distance of 15 to 20km the tree line where the last trees grow between there and Mt Kosciuszko. Sudden weather changes killed many men.
2. Note the pressure cooker between post and gumboot! All the firewood had to be carried in from the treeline, These men erected small dams to measure the water volumes to the aquaducts & dams, blasting boulders out of the creek beds was Willi's job, some times it was half a case.
3. Typical accomodation were tents, despite the freezing conditions. Tent pegs were held down with rocks, Note: no trees! The men stayed there the whole week, and usually Arthur Baumhammer would pick up his dad with the motorbike at Seamans Hut - just below the Mt Kosciuszko summit. Most times, Arthur would take the other men to Charlote Pass where they were picked up by a land rover, Often, the land rover was late due to the extremly deep washouts. Arthur once lost a new tyre, but he knew how to help himself: "I cut my boots up to mend the tyre and pumped it up again".
Amongst my father’s papers I found records of the compulsory English lessons issued by Immigration & Education Department, a contract document issued between SMHEA and the tradesmen and the contract stating conditions, efficiency, proper conduct and character. I also kept some on-board newspapers, as well as the daily notes of our positions latitude and longitude, weather and rough seas as we came over via Cape Town. Through an unusual incident I was able to obtain a paper clipping from 6 April 1951 edition of the Daily Telegraph, "First Migrants from Germany ", also a gold embossed pamphlet called “Souvenir Commemorating the Commencement of Works on the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Authority, Adaminaby, NSW on 17 October 1949”.
After the 65th freunion celebrations held in Cooma from 17 to 20 October 2014, under the banner of the Snowy Scheme Association, I perused the computer and other media outlets but found no trace of these 613 Pioneer tradesmen anywhere.
I wish to keep the record alive of these men and forward it to the Museum in Adaminaby. We have a first-class museum in Adaminaby that recently was runner-up out of 74 museums in NSW. We are all volunteers and the museum is open on weekends, and if an opening during the week is required, access will be arranged. All the equipment on display is from volunteers and they can relate many events and incidents.
Now, I would like to assemble information on these men and their lives while working and living in Australia for the benefit of later generations, and compile a tribute to these pioneer contract tradesmen.
I hope some of these men and/or their families are still alive and may be able to give me some information, photos or other item of interest that would be interesting to the Snowy Scheme Museum in Adaminaby, for future generations to access.’
Has anyone got a "Zimmermanns Tracht"?
Artur and the museum volunteers would dearly like to add a traditional “Zimmermanns Tracht” to their collection. Can anybody help?
Please contact Artur Baumhammer info@snowyschememuseum.com.au
Snowy Scheme Museum Adaminaby
5199 Snowy Mountains Highway
Adaminaby NSW 2629
Phone (02) 6454 1643
Email info@snowyschememuseum.com.au
www.snowyschememuseum.com.au
Further information to photos above:
1. The frames in the photo were later covered with tents, very often the tent pegs were small crowbars as the winds reached up to 160km/hr and without hardwood frames normal tents would not be able to withstand those winds. The Snowy River is behind both men, note: in a distance of 15 to 20km the tree line where the last trees grow between there and Mt Kosciuszko. Sudden weather changes killed many men.
2. Note the pressure cooker between post and gumboot! All the firewood had to be carried in from the treeline, These men erected small dams to measure the water volumes to the aquaducts & dams, blasting boulders out of the creek beds was Willi's job, some times it was half a case.
3. Typical accomodation were tents, despite the freezing conditions. Tent pegs were held down with rocks, Note: no trees! The men stayed there the whole week, and usually Arthur Baumhammer would pick up his dad with the motorbike at Seamans Hut - just below the Mt Kosciuszko summit. Most times, Arthur would take the other men to Charlote Pass where they were picked up by a land rover, Often, the land rover was late due to the extremly deep washouts. Arthur once lost a new tyre, but he knew how to help himself: "I cut my boots up to mend the tyre and pumped it up again".
