An article in the latest edition of Open Road points this out, the author also paying a visit to the Tumut museum to see other fascinating Miles Franklin artefacts.

Although Stella lived in the Goulburn district at Stillwater Thornford for many years, and was a prominent young person of the Goulburn community of that era, nothing exists in Goulburn to point this out, except we now have a street called Franklin Street.

Stella enjoyed going to the plays and visiting entertainers who performed in Goulburn during this era. Later on in life, she was to write her own plays, some still unpublished.

Perhaps the new Goulburn Performing Arts Centre (PAC) could be named the Stella Miles Franklin Arts Centre?

We have placed a request to have the annual Miles Franklin literary award presented to the winner in Goulburn.

A little-known fact is that author verna Susannah Coleman was a friend of Stella and wrote the very interesting book on Miles Franklin in America, titled Her (Unknown) Brilliant Career.

Verna, who passed away in 2011, was the mother-in-law of past Federal Treasurer Peter Costello.

Her father was, for a time, the editor of The Bulletin before becoming a member of the NSW Parliament, representing the electorate of Fuller.

If Goulburn did obtain the presentation of the Miles Franklin literary award, perhaps Mrs Costello could be asked to present it.

As I have pointed out before, we need that statue of a young Miles Franklin sitting in Belmore Park reading her fan mail and – as she said – showing a bit of lace to attract the young local lads (although Stella also said she preferred the older men as they could chat at her level).

What other unknown history does Goulburn hold?

As part of this year’s Lilac Time Festival, there will be an afternoon whereby some of the city’s musicians will show what they can do.

Some young, some not so young, but all happy to show that not everyone spends their time watching television or playing games on their iPod.

The event will be at the Uniting Church Hall, 43 Goldsmith Street, Goulburn on Monday, October 2, at 2pm.

There is absolutely no charge and it will be completely informal.

Just enjoy supporting some of the musicians of the city on a pleasant afternoon.

I fear the campaign targeting the Prince of Wales will increase as we near the deadline set by republicans of 2020 to commence a process of removing the Crown from the Australian Constitution.

We shouldn’t forget that over the past 18 years, since the failed Republic referendum of 1999, republicans have set many targets for a republic campaign, but the years have passed without a murmur, not from the people anyway.

Obviously, republicans want to move before Charles becomes king because they know that once he is on the throne he will be accepted and that people will be looking towards the next Coronation.

They also know that when Charles is king, William will become Prince of Wales thus entrenching the monarchy for several generations to come.

The prospect of a president has no celebrity factor and no assurance of constitutional stability.

Whilst people surveyed may agree with an Australian as head of state, there is no way that they will agree to the complexity of change to the constitution.

Besides, Australia already has an Australian as our executive head of state in the Governor-General who, once appointed, assumes the role of the monarch in this country and no one could call Peter Cosgrove not an Australian.