History Notes - records of ambulance service in Barraba

History Notes

The ambulance photo in last week’s news immediately attracted my attention as I saw Bill Randall standing on the far right of the photo.  The two men beside the vehicle I am not so sure of but could be Bruce Smith and Butch Butler – no doubt someone will be sure of their names.  One thing for sure is the Ambulance station has been built as the car is standing on the driveway.

Records of the ambulance in Barraba before amalgamation are held by the Society but have not seen the light of day for some years.  When they first came to the museum I began typing them up and then they were recalled by Tamworth Ambulance for recording.  They came back to the museum but I had gone onto recording another subject at that time – 1944 to 1966 are recorded in the folder at this stage.  Some of the headlines are:-

Towards the end of 1948 after a meeting of concerned citizens, enquiries were made re the cost of an ambulance.  A suitable sedan type car was preferred and then a conversion to handle 2 stretchers.  Subscriptions 10/- per year were called for.

Early in 1949 a Pontiac sedan was ordered from Cliftons Pty Ltd but they were unable to supply the car later in the year.  Tenders were then called for from GR White, Harry White & Co and Roy Collins & Co.  A Dodge vehicle was delivered early in 1951 and housed in GR White’s iron shed in Alice Street.  I wonder does anyone know where that shed was?  By the end of 1951 it seems the ambulance was moved to Clifton’s Garage.

As the 1950’s passed, the meetings show a movement to find a permanent driver to live in town. There were members looking for a suitable home for both the ambulance and the driver and they considered a block of land near the Memorial Hall after the storage depot in the Scout Hall was broken into.

A new ambulance was purchased late in 1959 and Ian McGuffog became the first station officer in March, 1960.  As the photo shows the driveway of the new ambulance station I would think it would be sometime in the 1960s – we just need to find the correct newspaper. (see Graham Down’s letter below-Ed)

There are lots more pages re the 1960s and may reveal when the station was actually built but it is rather time consuming and on Monday morning I just do not have the time.  There will be more next week together with the results from the meeting this week.