Kosters Cache Mystery Cache

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Hidden : 8/18/2005
Difficulty:
2 out of 5
Terrain:
1 out of 5

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

The initial coordinates are not where the cache is but are within 1km. You are looking for the item in the uploaded photograph to get started. It is in a nearby small park.

John Charles Koster was born in Adelaide in 1855. At the age of 15 he joined the brickmaking trade, working for James Cox of Norwood. In 1880 John Koster started a partnership with Emanuel Reedy, which was dissolved in 1886. Reedy purchased the business to continue brick making. In 1888 John Koster purchased land in North Norwood and began establishing his own pottery, where he was assisted with William Holford (who had worked at Lithgow, NSW) and his son Thomas. They encouraged John Koster to begin production on a range of domestic pottery. Koster decided on the name ‘Premier Pottery S.A.’ For the first decade the pottery struggled, but John Koster, determined to succeed, worked hard and long hours and the variety of wares increased dramatically. At the 1891 Industrial Exhibition, Chamber of Manufacturers’ in Adelaide, Koster received high praise for his, non competitive, entry of earthenware. By the turn of the century the pottery works were large and well established and employing around 20 people. John Koster died in November 1912, and his wife Alice maintained strong control over the pottery and insisted that her eldest son Edward should continue to manufacture the same wares as her late husband. Eventually Edwards brothers Gordon, Norman and Frederick also joined the pottery.
During WW1 the manufacture of acid bottles became Edward’s speciality, as the production of chemicals was undertaken in Australia to compensate for the loss of supply from Germany, who was the enemy. With the completion of the rail link to Western Australia in 1917, a growing market in pots was established and in 1930’s their art wares were very popular in W.A. In 1937 Mrs Alice Koster died and according to the will the pottery was divided between the four brothers and three sisters. The four Koster brothers bought out their three sisters and formed a Limited Company.
The nature of the business changed, two new kilns, to be fired by diesel oil, were built and the nature of production changed progressively with most domestic pottery phased out by 1938. The new accent was to be on industrial products, electric jug bodies and electric insulators. During the WW2 production continued and the factory being operated almost entirely by women, as most of the men were on active duty. In 1958 Edward’s sister Sylvia retired from running the office, and Edward employed an office manager. The new office manager eventually and unfortunately proved to be dishonest and embezzled on such a large scale that in 1977 Edwards was forced to sell the business. A year later Edward Koster died and in 1980 the pottery closed.
Instructions The final cache location is S34 54.bea E138 38.dcf and is a black 1 litre container.
To find out the value of the letters you first need to work out where the photograph was taken from. Then you need to compare the photograph with the red grid to the real object. There are 6 changes on the photograph that are not on the real object, one change in each labeled column. When you find the changes look at what row the change is in on the photograph and the corresponding number on the left edge.
You can now put the numbers into the final location to get the coordinates.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Xbfgref Xvya. Erfg lbhe yrtf arneol.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)


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