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I would like to dedicate this book to our friend and main researcher of our Great Lakes Historical Society, the late Dawn Elizabeth McMaster (nee Wright).

My Macquarie Dictionary tells me 'dawn' means 'the first appearance of daylight in the morning'. I found Dawn to be a ray of light any time of the day. Her eyes always sparkled. She was always a volume of information. Dawn contributed many of the articles in this book, her last researching effort being "Porter's Mill".

Dawn was born in Tuncurry on 26 May 1922. Her parents were Cloudsley and Bernice Wright. She was educated at Tuncurry School, then at Taree High School and finally at Armidale Teachers' College.

Her interests, in her young life while at College, were Highland Dancing and diving.

Dawn's teaching career started at Mt. George and Fondville near Bowraville then she returned to Tuncurry where she taught until her marriage in 1950 to Elliott McMaster and the next forty-eight years of marriage were spent at 'Glen Ora', Nabiac.

Dawn died at 10 am on Sunday 5 July 1998 and her funeral service proved how popular she was and how we all loved her. I was told there was five hundred friends present on the day.

When I look at daffodils I will always think of Dawn as the lawn beside her home was covered in yellow daffodils at the right time of the year.

Daffodils

planted by Dawn 

at Glen Ora

The old saying is 'good things come in small packages'. Dawn proved that saying and she is one 'little package' we will always miss.

'Always in our hearts and memories'.