Twelve Australian World Champion Axeman Australian Axeman’s Hall of Fame By Carla Evans History has revealed that the earliest axe head was made of stone. As man continued to progress in knowledge and in the art of working with tools, the humble axe head graduated from copper then to bronze and finally iron. In today’s modern world steel is used. The early axe was a tool for cutting or hewing. Later, the medieval knights wielded it in battle, hence the term ‘battle axe’. It has been used in sorcery and is a symbol both in war and in peace. To the early Australian bushman, the axe was an essential tool in felling trees in order to get the land cleared for crops. He used the axe to cut planks for his home, repair his buggy or dray, keep his wife's oven busy, build bridges across streams and creeks, cut railway sleepers, and to stock the hearth on cold winter nights. Tasmania was a rugged place. It was here that wood-chopping, apart from being a means of employment for many men during the building of the Hydro Electric Scheme, was also the origin of wood-chopping as a registered sport: the kind of sport where men could pit their strengths and skills against one another and the winners recorded. After a hard day’s work felling trees, men gathered around the campfire, story tellers would relate their bush tales and, after the native birds had bid each other good night and before the last pipe or cigarette of the day had been enjoyed, these men looked for some amusement. It was in these times that competitive wood-chopping was born. On evenly sized blocks of wood, bearded wiry men would stand opposite one another: mates by day but fierce competitors by night. With axes sharpened and raised and the shrill word to commence was heard, their axes rose and fell, cutting through the hard mountain ash timber or the stringy bark of the peppermint trees. The timing and rhythm of each man spoke of his fitness and stamina: the prize of his mate’s tobacco driving him on. One such event was held at Ulverstone in 1870 behind the Sprent Hotel. Joseph Smith, a local veterinarian, and Jack Briggs of Warragul, Victoria, faced each other on their three foot standing block. The stake was a whopping twenty-five pounds!  The above link will also take you to Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express. ISBN. 978-1-921978-01-2 Author Carla Evans Geelong Victoria
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