Harrietville Museum was abuzz as community members gathered to hear Stephen Whiteside speak about his latest book, 'Pearl Bradshaw, Princess of Hotham', last Wednesday evening.
The Harrietville Historical Society hosted a 'Wine and Cheese Night' to pair with the book launch, with 14 members of the Harrietville community braving the cold to enjoy the cosy warmth of the museum.
With appetising snacks and delicious wines on offer, the Melbourne-based author with a passion for Mt Hotham's high country and history, spoke about Pearl’s life in the often harsh alpine conditions of those early days.
Pearl was the manager of the Hotham Heights Chalet from 1937 to 1945, and Mr Whiteside's book covers her life as an early pioneer of Mount Hotham and its development as a ski and tourist resort.
Pearl's experiences included transport up the Bon Accord Track to Hotham on a horse-drawn sled made by Harrietville’s Eric Johnson.
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Eric made ‘snow shoes’ for his horses to enable them to walk in the snow all the way to Hotham Village, and the Harrietville Museum even has one of these original horse shoes on display.
"We had a nice turn up," Harrietville Hall Society president, Robyn Downey said.
"Everyone enjoyed the night and the wine and cheese went down really well.
"It was good to learn about Pearl Bradshaw's life, which was pretty hard for everyone in those days.
"The book sounded interesting and thankfully Stephen managed to sell quite a few of them.
"All are welcome at our next Wine and Cheese Night, scheduled for Wednesday, 13 August, from 6pm, to host local lady Ronice Goebel who will talk about her fascinating Geo-caching project."
The Harrietville Historical Society aims to provide interesting historical information nights to offer different entertainment for local folk during the cold winter months.
