🎉 Book Launch Tribute: Celebrating Beverley Joan Runcie and Signposts to the Past

Come join us on Sunday 23 November at 2PM at Wagstaffe Hall, for the launch of Signposts to the Past – Stories of Places and Streets of Bouddi Peninsula.

Signposts to the Past is a different and very interesting look into history. Be ready to be immersed in the fascinating ways places and streets have acquired their names within the Bouddi Peninsula. Our presentation will be filled with engaging stories, historical images and photographs that illustrate the lives of both Indigenous and early settlers. It is a book about people and places. From the meaning behind the name ‘Bouddi’ to the reason why the National Park exists, this event is a must see for anyone interested in the history and geography of this stunning coastal landscape.

Visual Presentation by Myfanwy and Kalena Webb

Tickets at $15 are available ONLINE or through www.bouddisociety.org.au/signposts or using the QR Code. Tickets are also available at the Wagstaffe Store. Refreshments and nibbles will be provided.

Beverley Runcie – Historian and Author of Signposts to the Past

The publication of Signposts to the Past, honours the remarkable life and enduring legacy of Beverley Joan Runcie (BA, Grad.Dip.Ed, M.Lib, ALIA) — a visionary educator, historian, and storyteller whose final work now finds its place in the hands and hearts of her community.

Beverley’s career was defined by excellence and leadership, culminating in her role as Head Senior Teacher and Acting Assistant Principal at Sydney Technical College’s Department of TAFE. But retirement in Killcare marked not an end, but a new beginning — one filled with discovery, creativity, and deep connection to place.

Don Runcie taking photographs at Bullimah Outlook Photo Credit: Beverley Runcie

Her passion for genealogy and local history led to extraordinary contributions, including the 350-page biographical work Reflections (2012), chronicling the life of her cousin Anna Wellington (b. 1929), and the Bouddi History Project publication European Settlers and their Land, a comprehensive history of Bouddi Peninsula found in eBooks on the Bouddi Society’s webpage: www.bouddisociety.org.au.

Group on Putty Beach (Wilmott Butler Collection) Courtesy: Central Coast Libraries.

Signposts to the Past is Beverley’s final gift — a beautifully researched and lovingly written exploration of the origins of place names across the Bouddi Peninsula. Completed posthumously by her daughter Myfanwy Webb and granddaughter Kalena Webb, this book is more than a historical record, it’s a celebration of memory, meaning, and stories that shape our landscape.

Jeremy Webb on Putty Beach with Wasp the dog. Photo credit: Myfanwy Webb

Beverley was a cherished member of the Bouddi Peninsula’s cultural and intellectual life, a member of the The Bouddi Society, and actively engaged with the Society of Australian Genealogists, John Nichols Central Coast Family Society, Central Coast Family History Society, and local poetry and book clubs. Her legacy is one of curiosity, generosity, and a deep love for community.

Putty beach after rain. Photo Credit: Myfanwy Webb

As we launch Signposts to the Past, we celebrate not only a book, but a life lived in pursuit of knowledge, connection, and beauty. Beverley’s voice echoes through these pages, guiding us, inspiring us, and reminding us that every street and every name hold a story worth telling.

To buy CLICK HERE

Read related News Article in CENTRAL COAST COMMUNITY NEWS