Archaeologist Sarah McGuiness will celebrate National Archaeology Week as the next speaker in the recently launched Night at the Museum series being held at the Gerringong Library and Museum (GLaM).

There’s no reason for concern – we’re assured it’s not like the movie where you spend the night in a museum among dinosaurs and Neanderthals who then come to life and chase you around.

Instead, Sarah, a non-scary archaeologist, will give you a glimpse inside her world, then you will have a glass of wine and a nibble.

“I want to introduce people to Australian archaeology because often the reaction I get is ‘but we don’t have any archaeology here’.

“I just really want to change that mindset and introduce people to the amazing archaeology we do have, both Aboriginal and historic, that I’ve found through the last 15 years working around the country.”

Sarah has worked all over Australia, in the Pilbara, Western Australia, as well as on sites just one hour from Kiama – rock art sites, artifact sites and cultural landscapes.

She has also worked on contact sites between Aboriginal people and the early settlers plus historic sites around Sydney in The Rocks, throughout Tasmania (especially an interesting project in Salamanca Place and the early Hobart settlement), and other areas that are foremost in Australian history, such as Ned Kelly sites around Glenrowan.

Sarah is also facilitating a Pre-School Mini Dig at the museum earlier in the day for 3 to 5 year olds.

A mini-dig at Shellharbour

“This hands-on archaeology always gets the kids really excited, it’s so much fun,” says Sarah.

“We have teamed up with the library for this ‘mini dig’,” says Helen McDermott, President of the Gerringong and Districts Historical Society. “

The children who usually come to story time, will get a high-viz vest, some little brushes, then head out to the front of the library to dig up some fossils and a plastic skeleton buried in the sand pit. They will have story time, a colouring competition and then we will show them some of the old fossils in the museum.”

Sarah says the kids will have a go at putting the plastic skeleton together and she will talk to them about what archaeologists do.

The Gerringong & District Historical Society launched the Night at series in April, with a talk from local artist and photographer Jon Harris attracting about 50 people to the meeting room at the Library. Jon spoke about how he arrived on the South Coast, how he grew his successful business photographing weddings, homes and nature and how he brings art and technology together to create fine art.

The third Night at the Museum will be by Werri Boardriders, who plan to show a film about beach culture taken locally in the 1970s and 80s.

“These gorgeous young people in the film, who would have been in their teens, are 50 years later probably grandparents by now,” Helen says.

“The film shows wonderful scenes of our local beaches and countryside. We hope this will appeal to another group of people.”

The new Museum

Helen says the talks are also fundraisers to help run the Museum.

Helen has been president for the past nine years and says the last few have been the most interesting. She says that the project to build the new museum has had “from go to whoa” four Council directors, three Council general managers, three project managers and two architects. It was built during COVID, bushfires and floods.

“We moved out of our shed in Christmas 2017 and we expected it would be 18 months before we moved in here. But it ended up being four years.

“We met in the RSL to keep the Society going, and it now is very healthy with 74 financial members.”

Donations towards the preservation of the Museum’s archival collection are always welcome.

Night at the Museum

Thursday May 19 May, 5.30-8pm at the GLaM, 10 Blackwood St, Gerringong. $10 entry (includes light refreshments and wine and a visit to the new museum).

‘Mini Dig’ at the Museum

Thursday May 19, 10.30-11.30. A free special event at GLaM for ages 3-5. Registrations essential. Please book all attendees (including carers and siblings).

Trybooking.com/BYVVB