Ben and Elizabeth (Lizzie) Chifley moved into their Busby Street cottage - named Carnwath - in Bathurst following their marriage in 1914. Ben worked as an engine driver in the nearby railways, and became increasingly involved in the labour movement. In 1928 he was elected as the Labor member for the local seat in the Commonwealth Parliament, which he lost in 1931 and regained in 1940, and then held until his death in 1951. Throughout his parliamentary career, including his terms as Treasurer (1941-1945) and then as Prime Minister (1945-1949), Chifley lived at Carnwath.

He commuted most weekends from Canberra to Bathurst to be at home in his electorate and with his wife.

Left to right. Grace Knuckey (right), with her father and mother in the family store, Wellington, c.1960 Photograph courtesy of Grace Knuckey Grace Knuckey outside her corner shop in Wellington in 1999. Photograph by Joy McCann

At the end of last year Knuckey's Store in Wellington was listed on the State Heritage Register. The fate of the small corner store had galvanised the small central west town since an application to demolish the 1890 store for a car park. In the end an important factor in the decision to list the building was its special association with the community.

"The store is a very fine example of the many country stores that were community meeting places as well as centres of commercial activity in the 20th century," said Deputy Premier and Minister responsible for Heritage, Dr Andrew Refshauge in announcing the listing.

"Knuckey's is also the only known store in New South Wales that was used by Chinese market gardeners and local Aboriginal community."

There are seven criteria which are used to assess whether a heritage item is significant to the State of NSW and should therefore be listed on the State Heritage Register. Although we often talk about social value and social significance, it is one of the more difficult criteria to assess. How can you measure the esteem which a community holds for an item? Or tell whether a place contributes to a community's sense of identity?

Knuckey's Store is a typical corner shop of the Federation period that has stood on the corner of Swift and Arthur Streets, a prominent intersection in central Wellington, for over 100 years. This small corner shop was leased by Cornishman Richard Knuckey in 1915. His daughter, Grace, began working full time at the store in 1932 and learned all the details of the shop's management. As her mother preferred to spend time in the garden, Grace was soon left to run the shop and help her father with other business interests. Richard Knuckey died suddenly in 1952 and Grace took on the management of his affairs including the retail business.

For much of it's operation Knuckey's was known from Sydney to Bourke as a meeting place. It was called "The Popular Corner". Locals and out-of-towners met on its shady corner. Horses and sulkies were left out the back where the current RSL car park is now situated. Circuses were also held on this spot. Later buses would drop people off at the store and people would make their way there from the railway station.

But Knuckey's probably had the greatest importance for the Aboriginal community who were able to gather there to chat and meet friends without fear of persecution. This was especially important during a period when so many Aboriginal people were subject to the Aborigines Protection Act of 1909-1969 which, among other things, regulated the gathering of Aboriginal people in public places. With its seats and shady verandah and long opening hours of 8am til midnight, Knuckey's became an unofficial meeting place.

During the 1920s and early 1930s the store acted as the local ration store for the people from the Nanima Aboriginal Mission. A certificate could be obtained from the police station and taken to the store for groceries. The Knuckeys had a good relationship with the Aboriginal community and became a crucial part of the Aboriginal people's lives, particularly when the men were away working. The certificates could only be obtained from the police station by the men, therefore while they were away it was the local community that sustained their families. Mr Knuckey gave store credit to the women while the nuns at the presbytery provided food as well as clothing and the Chinese market gardeners provided vegetables from the market gardens.

In the 1960s council passed new by-laws which required removal of Wellington verandahs ostensibly because they posed a traffic hazard. This effectively ended Knuckey's role as a meeting place for local Aborigines as it no longer offered shelter from the weather. (The verandah has recently been rebuilt with the assistance of heritage funding.) No other corner store with a comparable social history has been identified to date in New South Wales.

Knuckey's Store has important associations for the local community in Wellington. With its role in the social life of the town, it has become part of the community's sense of place and identity. And it has a special importance to the Aboriginal communities of the Central West region of the State.

At a crossroad in a small country town, Knuckey's is a place where memory, association and heritage meet. The shady verandah which provided all the people of Wellington with a shared place to gather and socialise is something the community doesn't want to lose. And therein lies a clue as to what 'social value' is about in heritage conservation.