Roads, Tourism and Cultural History

A study of the history, mythology and symbolism of the road trip

Roads and road tourism loom large in the Australian imagination as distance and mobility have shaped the nation’s history and culture. This book explores how Australians have experienced and imagined roads and road travel over time and offers a new way of thinking about roads and road tourism as important strands in a nation’s cultural fabric.

Rosemary Kerr is a professional historian and heritage consultant who has worked in the field for over 20 years. She is also a member of the Australia ICOMOS National Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes and Cultural Routes. Her research interests include Australian cultural history, cultural heritage, cultural routes, and the history of travel and tourism.

Rosemary Kerr is a professional historian and heritage consultant who has worked in the field for over 20 years. She is also a member of the Australia ICOMOS National Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes and Cultural Routes. Her research interests include Australian cultural history, cultural heritage, cultural routes, and the history of travel and tourism.

This book elevates the road network of Australia to one of global significance by uniting the road, culture and landscape of the continent in an engaging narrative that is sure to inspire a new look at the Outback road as both a physical and cultural legacy worthy of critical reflection.

Since the late nineteenth century Australians have defined both their individual character and national identity as resulting from their interaction with the Bush, a harsh natural environment marked by fire, flood and drought. This immaculately researched and tightly argued book complicates our understanding of how Australians have imagined the road, the rural environment and themselves. This is a bold and imaginative contribution to Australian cultural history.

A stunningly original exploration of Australian roads, real and imagined, zones where dreams and nightmares, love and hate, exhilaration and horror are intimately entangled. Rosemary Kerr takes us on a strange and magnificent journey across the Australian continent and deep into the hearts and minds of Australians.