A family Christmas gathering came with a special gift this year.
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When the Evershed family gathered in Bermagui this week, many decided to pay respect to one of their renowned ancestors by visiting the Bega town clock.
The Dr Evershed Memorial Clock in Gipps St was built and dedicated in 1930 in memory of Dr Montague Evershed.
As recorded by the Bega Pioneers' Museum, Dr Evershed was born in 1841 at Billingshurst, Sussex, in England.
He worked at Guy's Hospital, London before serving for two years as a ship's surgeon on HMS 'Sabroan'.
In 1873, Dr Evershed heard of the need for doctors in country towns in the colony and he set up a practice in Bega.
In 1876, Dr Evershed married Louisa Welby, the daughter of the Bega schoolmaster, and they had five children.
He died on June 16, 1927, aged 86. He was so dedicated to Bega and loved by residents they decided to build a memorial to remember him.
Family history
The Evershed family members visiting the clock tower on Christmas Eve were not direct descendants of Montague, but were proud to learn of the public memorial in his name.
Mostly from Sydney, they were all celebrating Christmas with Georgie Kite (nee Evershed) in Bermagui.
Patriarch Len Evershed said he emigrated to Australia in 1972 as a "10-pound Pom" with daughters Penny and Sophie in tow (he now has five daughters).
They were also from the Sussex area, with Billingshurst having "a high population of dead Eversheds" Penny said with a chuckle.
"The majority of the family stems from there," she said.
The visit to Bega was a first for Penny and many of the family.
"I have a strong sense of our family history," Penny said.
"And this was always something I wanted to do [visit the clock].
"I loved it. It's filled with history."
Len said he was "absolutely stoked" to bring his family to the memorial.
"When we knew Christmas was going to be here, we had to come and get a photo!" he said.
Keeping time
Built in 1930, the Dr Evershed Memorial Clock underwent a renovation in 2017.
The original mechanisms were replaced with electronic devices that have satellite uplinks to keep accurate time and which need very little maintenance.
It automatically adjusts for daylight saving, including when it needs to "spring forward", running fast over the course of 10 minutes to make 2am become 3.10am.
As part of the restoration, the gold leaf on the tower's memorial plaque was also redone.
The old lead pendulum - which weighed about 15kg - was now on display in the Pioneers' Museum.
