Description
Authors: Wally Chitty and Jenny Edgecombe. Publication details: Toodyay WA: K. Chitty (Printed by Optima Press, Osborne Park WA), 2015. 201 p.: ill, maps, bib. Index.
Back cover: “:Like Wally Chitty’s famous conversations, this book takes many detours from telling the stories of Wally’s life. The narrative dips into the adventures of George and Mary Chitty and their descendants from Surrey, England in 1842 to Toodyay, Western Australia. Many intriguing Toodyay byways and characters are picked up along the way.
The detours reveal stories of Toodyay’s links to the Greenough Flood, the Boer Wars, the mysterious Deepdale Tramway and the Seventh Day Adventist Church. Well-known Western Australian figures such as George Fletcher Moore and the journalist, Vic Riseley, makes appearances. Fascinating episodes from Toodyay’s past include the comical tale of Jumperding School, Toodyay’s outstanding successes in rural education and untold stories behind the tragic 1931 school bus crash.
Wally’s own life is not neglected, from his childhood on a Toodyay farm to his later experiences as a stockman, farmer, family man, sportsman, tourist and local activist.
Toodyay archivist and researcher, Jenny Edgecombe, has compiled and edited this second collection of Wally’s tales, setting them in the historical context of his time.”
