TALE OF A BOOK

Judith Hall

We have had our in our possession for some years a small soft cover book about the history of Coorparoo and Stones Corner. We’re not entirely sure how we acquired it, but possibly it was at one of the RNA book sales.
I have a friend who lives in Stones Corner area who is always ranting about Stones Corner and the local community struggles. I offered the book to her thinking she might like it but she declined. Then Peter phoned the State Library and offered it to them, they said they already had one.

So it has sat here for a further great length of time until yesterday. 

I received a private message via Facebook, from someone I have never met and the man does not know me but he somehow picked up on my having mentioned this particular little book via a web search. He is a descendant (great-great-grandson) of the original James Stone of Stone’s Ginger Beer and for whom the suburb of Stone’s Corner is named. He was recently interviewed for a newspaper and he’d been trying to get more material together about Stones Corner history and in particular his family at the request of a journalist. I responded to his mobile number leaving a message and he phoned back the next morningpleased to have tracked me down and excited that I still had the book.  

He did remark how little material is in the State Library either in photos or reading material on Stones Corner, and that all he had been able to get was a rather poor photo copy of the book I had mentioned to try to further his meagre collection. He had been unable to find any other surviving copies.

So I did ask him if he would like the little book and he offered to pay, which I declined. We’re just happy that it’s going to very good home.

As you can see by the photos at some time it was in the Parliamentary library – stamped 11 Sept 1956, so maybe how thats how it survived for such a long time prior to us obtaining it. 
Whats unusual about it though is someone had pasted in a newspaper clipping inside the front cover — and throughout the book someone has written tiny notations and corrections on minute slips of paper and tucked them into the crease of the pages at appropriate points.
So yesterday I wrapped it in plastic wrap (thinking about the rain and not losing the enclosures) and put it in a padded bag and mailed it off to the recipient who seems rather excited to be getting it. It may have been 6 shillings in 1956….but priceless in 2018 to that person.

The book included some pictures of his great great grandmother and grandfather James Stone and information about the family business etc.

Happy ending 

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