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Miles of post and wire
A story of hardship and heartache in the rough Pilbara outback. This compelling memoir from Florence Corrigan, who grew up moving from camp to camp as her parents followed itinerant and contract work around remote stations, describes the harsh lifestyle they led with few luxuries.
Unknown Binding
First published January 1, 1998
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 24, 2015
‘I had no idea who I was and I didn’t have a birth certificate.’
Florence (‘Flo’) Corrigan’s memoir is inspirational. It is also testament to aspects of life in Australia which many of us would prefer not to think about. Born in the early 1930s, Flo spent her childhood in temporary camps in the rough and remote Pilbara region of Western Australia. Flo looked after her siblings in those temporary camps while her parents eked out a living prospecting, fencing, and killing wild dogs. Eking out a living did not include fresh fruit and vegetables, education, or shoes.
As a teenager, with very little money in her pocket, Flo left her family. Her abusive father told her never to return. Flo made a life for herself, and then for her own family, through her determination and hard work. She worked as a fencer and as a horsewoman, as a dogger, a roo skinner, a goat hunter and as a cook. Flo learned that she was of Aboriginal descent during her thirties when she became a mother. It was then that she discovered that her birth had not been registered.
‘In those days, I could get killed and nobody’d know who I was because there’d be no registered name. I was an alien in my own country.’
Flo set about finding the truth of her own family – a difficult task given that her parents had given her so little information. Through tragedy – her husband died of asbestosis – Flo continued to find out about herself and her family. She taught herself literacy and, well after she retired, bought her first house.
It’s difficult reading Flo’s story, reading of the hardships she endured, and the reminders of practices such as forced adoption. But her story is well worth reading, both because it reminds us that these aspects of the past are not yet only confined to history, and because Flo herself has made her own life count despite the adversities she has experienced. Flo needed to discover her past, and we need to remember it.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Florence (‘Flo’) Corrigan’s memoir is inspirational. It is also testament to aspects of life in Australia which many of us would prefer not to think about. Born in the early 1930s, Flo spent her childhood in temporary camps in the rough and remote Pilbara region of Western Australia. Flo looked after her siblings in those temporary camps while her parents eked out a living prospecting, fencing, and killing wild dogs. Eking out a living did not include fresh fruit and vegetables, education, or shoes.
As a teenager, with very little money in her pocket, Flo left her family. Her abusive father told her never to return. Flo made a life for herself, and then for her own family, through her determination and hard work. She worked as a fencer and as a horsewoman, as a dogger, a roo skinner, a goat hunter and as a cook. Flo learned that she was of Aboriginal descent during her thirties when she became a mother. It was then that she discovered that her birth had not been registered.
‘In those days, I could get killed and nobody’d know who I was because there’d be no registered name. I was an alien in my own country.’
Flo set about finding the truth of her own family – a difficult task given that her parents had given her so little information. Through tragedy – her husband died of asbestosis – Flo continued to find out about herself and her family. She taught herself literacy and, well after she retired, bought her first house.
It’s difficult reading Flo’s story, reading of the hardships she endured, and the reminders of practices such as forced adoption. But her story is well worth reading, both because it reminds us that these aspects of the past are not yet only confined to history, and because Flo herself has made her own life count despite the adversities she has experienced. Flo needed to discover her past, and we need to remember it.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
January 25, 2020
A great yarn of the Flo’s life growing up in the harsh Australian Pilbara region. Very entertaining and hard to put down.
May 22, 2018
A story of a life spent in the harsh environment of outback Australia.
Reading this is like sitting down for a chat and letting an elderly lady reminisce. Easy to read but the story itself is very moving.
Flo had a harsh and rather cruel childhood,very little contact with the world away from their campsites and the occasional visitors -the family seldom mixed with other families who had children. As the eldest child, she worked hard and her entire life consisted of working on tasks such as mining and fossicking; fencing, 'roo shooting, trapping wild dogs and later in life household and kitchen work in pubs.
The name she has chosen for her autobiography indicates vast distances travelled and much of this was alone. An independent women, she had some formal education as an adult in order to write this book. All educational opportunities had been denied to her by her father.
Florence Corrigan is a woman who came a long way to find some sort of peace within herself, but her story seeks no sympathy. She just tells it the way it was.
Reading this is like sitting down for a chat and letting an elderly lady reminisce. Easy to read but the story itself is very moving.
Flo had a harsh and rather cruel childhood,very little contact with the world away from their campsites and the occasional visitors -the family seldom mixed with other families who had children. As the eldest child, she worked hard and her entire life consisted of working on tasks such as mining and fossicking; fencing, 'roo shooting, trapping wild dogs and later in life household and kitchen work in pubs.
The name she has chosen for her autobiography indicates vast distances travelled and much of this was alone. An independent women, she had some formal education as an adult in order to write this book. All educational opportunities had been denied to her by her father.
Florence Corrigan is a woman who came a long way to find some sort of peace within herself, but her story seeks no sympathy. She just tells it the way it was.
August 24, 2016
Wow, what a hard life this lady has had! An autobiography, interesting read but not well written.
Florence didn't go to school when she was a child, her father said she didn't need to. She grew up in the Pilbara area of Western Australia and travelled with her family who earned a living from fencing, dogging, roo shooting and other odd jobs. She left her family when she had had enough of her overbearing, abusive father. Florence has battled a lot of tough times, single parent, nasty family revelations, three partners but has always loved the Western Australian bush. In later life finally doing some schooling and taught herself to to paint and become an artist. She is certainly an old die -hard.
Florence didn't go to school when she was a child, her father said she didn't need to. She grew up in the Pilbara area of Western Australia and travelled with her family who earned a living from fencing, dogging, roo shooting and other odd jobs. She left her family when she had had enough of her overbearing, abusive father. Florence has battled a lot of tough times, single parent, nasty family revelations, three partners but has always loved the Western Australian bush. In later life finally doing some schooling and taught herself to to paint and become an artist. She is certainly an old die -hard.
Want to Read
July 2, 2013Florence Corrigan looked after her siblings in camps in the Pilbara outback while her parents eked out a living; prospecting, fencing and dogging. Opportunities were scarce but this didn’t stop Flo. As a teenager, with little more than a pound in her pocket, she left her family and was told by her abusive father never to return. Flo Corrigan still carries the scars from her father’s beatings, but not his legacy. She battled the tough times and, in the face of shocking family revelations, showed her trademark courage. Flo was well into her retirement before she bought her first house and learned to read and write.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews