On the night of the full moon, the 26th of August 1904, the Yarramalong Hall was officially opened. It was the grandest edifice in the valley and it was not until you reached Wyong, half a day by horse and cart away, that an equally imposing building was to be found.
People came by horse and cart or pony trap from Wyong or crossed the range on horseback or on foot from Dooralong and other surrounding valleys, some of the likely lads having walked all day, arriving just as the moon was beginning to rise.
The facade of the grand new edifice was covered in red, white and blue bunting and its interior decorated in a most elegant fashion with potted palms and fern. A crowd 150 strong stood with head bowed and with the males, hats clasped to heart, to sing "God Save the King", whereupon they clapped and cheered as the member for Northumberland, Mr Matthew Charlton opened the doors using a key cast from 14ct gold.
With the Yarramalong hall officially open and the mandatory and often tedious speeches finally over, the ball began and the locally milled floor boards began to pound to the feet of the dancers and the rafters above echoed to the lively strains of the Masons Band who'd made the difficult trip all the way from Gosford. They danced and cavorted until near sun-up and it was agreed by all that the valley had never seen a grander night and that the hall's extravagant cost of one hundred and seventy four pounds had been community money very well invested.
The century that has passed has been kind to the Yarramalong School of Arts Hall. The village immediately surrounding it, unlike so many others, hasn't expanded into quasi-suburbia to cause it to become lost in a maze of red brick and tile. The elegant little hall, now redolent of so much local history, remains pretty as a picture, a focal point where local folk still gather to discuss and engage in the affairs of the valley. It is just as it always has been, lovingly cared for by the hall committee.
Bryce Courtenay
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