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Christmas Island Archives Christmas Island (Indian Ocean) - Ruins, relics, stories and other interesting things

Christmas Island (Indian Ocean) - Ruins, relics, stories and other interesting things

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About

I love social history – how ordinary people lived, forgotten stories, ruins, relics, mysteries – Christmas Island (Indian Ocean) has the lot!

I have visited Christmas Island six times now. The first trip was in 2016 with my husband, some family and several friends. For them it was a very special and emotional trip. A return to their old home; the place where they had grown up. Some hadn’t been back in 31 years; others even longer. Our family’s tie to the Island started in 1973 when my father-in-law left Penang to work on “the rock” and we have family and friends living on the Island.

On that first trip my husband and his sister were very fortunate to be able to walk through the front door of their childhood home and explore inside. Their house in Settlement, opposite the CLA (Chinese Literary Association), had been converted into a museum; a plaque on it’s wall showing its opening date sharing the same day and month as my husband’s birthday!

For me, I was a newcomer. 30 years of hearing stories about Christmas Island made it feel familiar to me. Yet I carried no expectations other than to share the happiness of my travelling party returning to their young past.

What I didn’t expect was for the island to cast its spell on me almost immediately. I was mesmerised by the lush jungle, stunning land and seascapes and wildlife. The locals were lovely, and I made new friends. (You can read the various personal stories of Christmas Islanders at christmasislandstories.org.au) The hectic and chaotic outside world just melted away. I spent the next 10 days visiting and exploring and along the way discovering that the Island is also a very spiritual place.

The early history of the Island, coupled with ruins, old sites, an exciting find and stories from friends and family piqued my curiosity to an all time high. So on my return, I started researching for more information about this tiny dot in the ocean and sharing my findings with an online group of over 600, mostly former and some current, Christmas Islanders.

After some time I realised that it was a shame that my findings were restricted just to the online group. I decided I had accumulated enough material to populate a website so the information could be more widely available. This is how the ever growing and unique “Christmas Island Archives” website, has come about.

Fran Yeoh
Perth, Western Australia
Author of “Christmas Island Archives” and
“The Roebourne Bank Murders” websites.

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Christmas Island Archives was selected for preservation by the State Library of Western Australia. It is now listed in perpetuity on PANDORA, Australia’s website archive established by the National Library of Australia.

Grant acknowledgement

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The base ruins of the Assistant Manager/Chief Engi The base ruins of the Assistant Manager/Chief Engineers house. It was once a substantial colonial home from the 1930s with beautiful gardens. It was still being occupied in June 1965 but by the 1970s it had been abandoned and neglected and fell into decay. The decision to demolish it was taken by a meeting of the CI Club members in 1977.
#christmasisland #ruin #ruins #history #historicalruins #colonialhouse #jungleruins #jungle #christmasislandarchives
A sound from the past Footsteps upon the stair I A sound from the past 
Footsteps upon the stair
I turned around quickly
But no-one was there.
#christmasislandarchives #ruins #steps #ghost #christmasisland
When exploring this old ruin at South Point on Chr When exploring this old ruin at South Point on Christmas Island with my sister-in-law, she noticed a bracket type fixture. It is located in the back corner where the white arrow indicates in the main picture. Were these meant for chains and shackles?
#christmasisland #history #shackles #oldstructure #christmasislandarchives #ruin #southpointchristmasisland
A photo of probably the first Chinese temple to be A photo of probably the first Chinese temple to be built on Christmas Island c1902-1904. This site is in Settlement at the Temple Court area on Gaze Road. The original temple, shown here in black and white, appears to have been replaced in later years by the current one (scroll across) still standing on the original site. It is today known as the Tai Pak Kong temple - Tua Pek Kong (Chinese: 大伯公; Tâi-lô: Tuā-peh-kong).
#christmasisland #taoisttemple #chinesetemple #christmasislandarchives #culture #taoist
“In the universe, there are things that are know “In the universe, there are things that are known, and things that are unknown, and in between, there are doors.” ~ William Blake
I think the old wooden banners around the door may have been rescued when a nearby temple was being renovated many years ago? I'm not sure about this, so if anyone can tell me their origin that would be great.
#christmasisland #chinesedoor #reddoor #christmasislandarchives
Just one of many fascinating stories that were exh Just one of many fascinating stories that were exhibited at my Faded Lost Forgotten exhibition held on Christmas Island during Territory Week in 2021 and 2022.
#christmasisland #christmasislandhistory #cemetery #headstone #gravesite #grave #arab #forgottenplaces #lostcemetery #kubur #christmasislandarchives
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Authentic stories reflecting the experiences of past and present Christmas Islanders.

Copyright © 2023 · Fran Yeoh. All rights reserved.