Timber ruler used by James Pitkeathly
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- Type
- Rulers
- Materials
- Wood
- Collection
- James Pitkeathly collection no. 1
- Accession number
- 2013.0022.0002
Description
A timber ruler with printed markings and handwritten text on both sides. On one side printed text reads 'A.G. THORNTON LTD MANCHESTER', and handwritten text scratched into the wood reads 'Pitkeathly'. The oppisite side of the ruler has printed text that reads 'A.P GREENFIELD & Co LTD BRISBANE' and handwritten text scratched into the wood that also reads 'Pitkeathly'.
About the collection
This collection consists of approximately 58 items relating to the life of James Pitkeathly (1895 - 1997), a Scottish migrant who worked as a mine manager and surveyor in the Hunter Valley, central Queensland and South East Asia. Pitkeathly also served in the Australian Infantry Force on the Western Front from 1916 - 1919. When James Pitkeathly migrated to Australia the 'White Australia Policy' had been in place for over a decade. Potential British migrants were encouraged to come to Australia and offered assisted passages to do so. Pitkeathly brought with him much sought after coal mining skills and throughout his career worked in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales and Bowen Basin, Queensland, two regions significant in the expansion of Australia's coal mining industry. During the 1920s Pitkeathly was employed by the Malayan Collieries Ltd and he worked in Borneo and British Malaya. This collection offers insight into the economic significance of the Australian coal industry and the development of major towns such as Newcastle as well as the experiences of a skilled Australian working and living in South East Asia. This collection also explores the life of Australian soldier embroiled in trench warfare on the Western Front during the First World War.
Read live from the Museum's Collection API (12/11/2026, 6:16:06 am). Record last updated by the Museum 2025-02-23. Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.