A Pioneer Family on the Murray River by Dorothy Roysland

Book Description

Secondhand. Good condition. Wear to book corners and edges, particularly the tail edge. Dust jacket has light creasing at edges and spine. Fading to spine and top edge. Interior and binding are still excellent. Signed by author.

The Patey family, consisting of a father who ran river steamers, mother and ten children, lived near the South Australian river town of Renmark. In this book, Dorothy Roysland (1899-1991), the eldest child, gives a fascinating description of daily life at the turn of the twentieth century.

Like many families, the Pateys lived in a primitive bag-walled house with electricity or any other modern convenience. Motor-cars were almost unknown, and entertainments consisted of dances and, on rare occasions, a magic lantern show held outdoors on the riverbank.