By Callum Ludwig
The Mont De Lancey Historic Homestead is now home to a new display of vintage tools, courtesy of Charlie Chamberlain.
Mr Chamberlain is a retired builder and former president and life member of Eastern Woodturners and had accumulated the extensive collection before deciding to donate it.
Mr Chamberlain said he started the collection about 35 years ago or maybe a bit longer.
“(It started) with a few things that belonged to my wife’s great-grandfather, and then I’ve collected ever since; carpentry tools, plumbing tools, other bits and pieces, and some kitchen oil, so there’s a bit of everything, but a lot of building tools,” he said.
“When I was teaching in the TAFE system I did used to have students coming and looking at them where I had them displayed in the other house but the last few years there’s not been a room to spread them out so my main thing was to keep the collection together and that’s what Mont De Lamcey wanted to do.”
The tools are on display at the entry to the Eastern Woodturners, which has been based at Mont De Lancey for 16 years as of this year.
Mr Chamberlain said he would still be around the woodturners club and Mont De Lancey.
“All the school tours, which I just did one this morning, they all like to go through that room to go into the main room, so that’s going to be open for self-guided tours in Mont De Lancey,” he said.
“If they pay to have a tour, they can go into that area and have a look, they are secured beyond a wire cage, but they’re allowed to go in there themselves and have a look around at them all… it shows a lot of the younger ones what the tools that we actually used in building were and some of them are tools I started with when I was 15.”
“I’ll still be part of the woodturning club up there and I’ve just finished doing some work on the cubby house down the bottom there that needs redoing and Gavin McIntyre and I are going to redo the school house.”
