This convict-built cottage has been described as a time capsule — in fact, there are so many layers of wallpaper that the ceilings sag and you feel like you're underground.
In an 1860s cottage the occupants would also cover cracks and gaps with old dress fabric, hessian, newspapers and even children's homework, Mr Townsend said.Between 1864 and 1880 the McDermotts pasted their children's homework to the wall, which Mr Townsend initially thought was for practicality rather than display.
He said the McDermotts had signed official documents with an "X", meaning they could not read or write, "whereas their kids are getting quite a good education in Oatlands in the 19th century". "We've found so much of this stuff and there's really only one conclusion to draw: it was the trophy room.""We know he was illiterate; by the time the kids were old enough to read and write, the parents were using them to write letters for them."Mr Townsend is writing a book that will tell some of Tasmania's social history discovered through wallpaper.
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