By ALESHA CAPONE
JEFF Maynard has captured the character of St Albans in a new book he has written on the suburb’s colourful and fascinating past.
Frontier Suburb: A Short History of St Albans was recently launched on behalf of the St Albans History Society.
Mr Maynard said in the 1880s, St Albans was originally planned as a prestigious suburb of leafy avenues and grand residences.
In reality, the area became a farming hinterland where cows wandered through houses abandoned by poor residents during the Great Depression.
After World War II, St Albans’ present-day multicultural population began when the area became “home to migrants who couldn’t afford to live anywhere else”.
“The place I think brought out the best in people and sometimes the worst in people too,” Mr Maynard said.
“But I think you had to be tough to survive here and that’s still true in today’s society.
“History’s always about people.
“That’s always a sort of challenge – to find a story or a narrative that people will read.”
Mr Maynard said some of the stories people submitted for the book had been emotionally moving, such as those from rockstar Broderick Smith.
Smith, who grew up in St Albans, went on to find fame as lead singer of band The Dingoes whose signature tune ‘Way Out West’ hit the charts in 1973.
“Some of his stories about growing up and relating to post-war migrants suffering post-traumatic stress were amazing,” Mr Maynard said.
While writing the book, Mr Maynard was invited to give a talk at a St Albans school.
He has included a thank-you letter from a Grade 4 pupil named Elleni in Frontier Suburb.
“I hope the book you are writing will be a big success,” Elleni wrote.
