Here's what John Flavel had to say about developing the Brook Swag:
"For 23 years of my life I have lived in the bush on the west coast of South Australia. Many weeks of each year were spent with my family camping in the station country and some months traveling up through the Northern Territory into Queensland, so I have experienced all climates and ground conditions. In those days we only had a sheet of canvas over us, so I was determined to manufacture a swag that was comfortable, water proof and fly and mosquito proof. After 2 years of designing and building the perfect swag, we patented the design in 1993. We have placed a lot of emphasis on quality, as this is very important to the camper in the bush."
- John Flavel
Inventor, Brook Swag
Swags were originally carried by swagmen, who were farm workers who walked
from job to job in Australia during the 1800's. Swagmen carried their belongings
in a bundle called a swag, which usually consisted of a bluey (a blue bush
blanket) rolled up with spare clothing inside a tarpaulin or ground sheet.
Swagmen carried a billy (can) and a tucker bag containing a frying pan and
tucker (food). It was usual for swagmen to receive rations of food handed
out by country police stations or homesteads. Partly because of this, some
wandered continually without working. While the number of swagmen began to
dwindle after the turn of the century, swags today are widely used in camping
and outdoor recreation.
John Flavel is the Inventor of the Brook Swag. He recognized that modern people
like to have some comforts when they go camping, so he developed the Brook
Swag from the best materials available.
The famous Australian song "Waltzing Matilda" is actually about a swagman and his travels. The song's lyrics are listed below. Click on any underlined word to see the definition.
Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong Under the shade of a coolibah tree And he sang as he watched and waited 'til his billy boiled You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me. Waltzing Matilda, waltzing Matilda [refrain]... Down came a jumbuck To dri-ink at that billabong Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee And he sang as he stuffed that jumbuck in his tucker-bag You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me Up rode the squatter, mounted on his thoroughbred Up rode the troopers, one, two, three "Where's that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tucker-bag?" You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me Up jumped the swagman and sprang into that billabong "You'll never take me alive!", said he And his ghost may be heard as you pa-ass by that billabong You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me.
- Banjo Patterson
circa 1890