Mystery Monday - C'Mon Feel The Noise....How Do You Deal With It?

Naughty Noise Makers And What Should I Do?

Well, we all have those scenarios with anything from the irritating idiot with the leaf blower that seems to go for 8 hours on a Sunday to the neighbors who wanna Rock And Roll all Night and Party Every Day, as Kiss would say.

We even used to have neighbours who's fights used to comprise of him ripping the security gate from the front of his property with his bare hands when locked out by the wife, and starting up a chainsaw at 2 am to gain access - no joke, and it wasn't "Spittle County" either - affluent neighbourhood....bags not confronting HIM!

Bearing in mind that once you start something with a neighbour (work or home) it can get really unattractive very fast, so think long and hard about how to complain about dear little "Precious" who barks from the second Mummy leaves for work to the second she gets home and then dons his halo....who knows, maybe our own pets do the same thing when we are out? Eek!

Sometimes the direct approach works and other times it becomes WW III and you live in horror until someone sells....the mere thought of Precious wearing one of those citronella collars, you philistines!

Pre-Barking Nap

The link below at least gives you a place to start, so have a hunt around and then make your decision - should we speak, forever hold our peace, or dob anonymously....neither feels great, but at least you can make the decision with as much information at your finger tips as possible!

Noise Pollution

Monday Mystery - What Became Of The Dump???

The Local Dump - An Ancient Tradition Lost

Remember when you were a kid, and no weekend was complete without a trip to the dump - even the dog was invited....

Many a trip ended up ensuring that you had yet another tetanus booster shot after you ignored your parents and scampered barefoot straight onto a rusty nail or some piece of galvo...

Frankly I miss every stinky little bit of it, and the TREASURES! Oh, and it was FREE!!!!!

In today's world of control, greed and fake recycling, I thought it might be nice to provide the link below so that you don't get your hopes up next trip....they even have a carefully hand selected shop on the side so that we can go in and buy other people's rubbish (I will be checking this out regardless of my bitterness - always the hypocrite ha)!

God knows better that the council makes a buck selling it back than the little guy sells it on Gumtree and makes a profit towards his ever-swelling electricity bill!

Anyhow, at least the site below takes you through locations, rules, regulations, times, "markets", appropriate footwear (we fooled the gestapo a couple of weeks ago and daringly wore thongs to drop of something in the "cardboard" bin)....probably captured on camera with court-case pending.

Sunshine Coast Council Rubbish Tips - Living The Dream!

Gympie and District Rubbish Dumps (Thrill Hills)... 

Noosa - No Dump, but they have a Landfill and Resource Recovery Centre ( still love you guys even after the divorce) :)



Hope you enjoy the photo below - I would be taking that TV home for sure to convert into a fish tank if it wasn't going to end up selling for $1 mil at the local tip shop! Here's to having a giggle even if it's a load of rubbish!

Image courtesy of Video Blocks

Thursday Thursday - Theebine Hotel

Theebine Hotel

Well, we used to call this hidden gem "Petticoat Junction", as it has a little rarely used (if ever) railway track at the front of it, and is just beautiful. Not sure if it's heritage listed, but I sure just discovered that it is for sale! Eeeek! Wish I had a lazy 1.25 mil laying around!

Image courtesy of the Theebine Hotel Facebook Page

Now this place ticks all the boxes - pub grub, regular entertainment, rustic accommodation and a dinky-di bar at the front....what you are NOT prepared for though, is the giant entertainment area out the back with pool tables and a juke box where you can load it up and waste more money than a pokie once you've had a couple of cold beers....there is so much to this place, so probably smartest to visit their facebook page for a full picture of it.

Image Courtesy Of The Theebine Hotel Facebbok Page

Bonus thrill - nearby is the Dickabram Bridge - a heritage listed bridge built in 1885 (?) I believe you can still drive over it, and some dear friends and I made sure we WALKED over it to give it the full respect it deserves.....stunning with a picnic table nearby, but I am going to tag some true locals to give full commentary on this particular blog - too much good stuff to miss details!

Image courtesy of Wikipedia

Kenlworth - Did You Know?

History Of Kenilworth (Info Courtesy of Wikipedia)

 

The Mary River was known to the Aboriginals as the Numabulla and the name for the Kenilworth area being Hinka Booma. In 1842 Andrew Petrie named the river as the Wide Bay River. In 1847 that Governor Fitzroy renamed the river after his wife Mary.

Image Courtesy Of Qld.com

 Richard Joseph Smith tendered to set up the first cattle run on the east bank of the Mary River in 1850. At the time Mrs Smith was reading Sir Walter Scott's novel "Kenilworth" and she decided to name the property after the novel. The town was surveyed and split off Kenilworth Station in 1921 and took the name of the Station. During the second half of the 19th Century, the Smiths took up more land. 

Other settlers arrived in 1891 originally intending to grow small crops. There was a ready market at the goldfields in Gympie but after the floods of 1893, 1895 and 1898 had wiped out their crops, most ventured into dairying and pig breeding. In 1901 the Kenilworth Farmers' Association was formed and in 1907 they built the Kenilworth Farmers Assembly Hall. This later housed a library and hosted dances. In 1905 the Association was responsible for establishing a co-operative butter factory which opened in Caboolture in 1907. 

Also established was the Kenilworth Farmers' Co-operative Store in Eumundi. In 1912 a steam-powered sawmill was built on Coolabine Creek. In 1921 Kenilworth Station was sold off and divided into dairy farms and allotments. By 1925 all the large estates in the district had been subdivided and sold. Today dairying is still a major part of farming in the area but there has been diversification into fruit and vegetables and pig farming. 

Kenilworth Post Office opened by 1926 (a receiving office had been open from 1896).
 
The first store was opened in Kenilworth on 2 January 1924 as well as the new hall opening and the first butcher's shop appeared in 1925. Kenilworth Provisional School built by the community opened on 22 January 1900. This school became a State School on 1 January 1909. (This school was in the locality now known as Gheerulla).
 
Kenilworth Township was opened in the Kenilworth Hall on 21 October 1924. The hall, in 1926, was equipped to show silent pictures. The site for a public recreation ground was purchased in 1927 and in 1933, the Public Hall was moved to this new location. The Church of England Mary Valley Parish was established in 1925. 

The Kenilworth Library opened in 1986 with a major refurbishment in 2000.
At the 2006 census, Kenilworth had a population of 238.

Image Courtesy Of Kenilworth Dairies

 

Mystery Mondays - The Buderim Beast

The Buderim Beast

This is a great mystery that comes up from time to time....well documented sightings in various yards and even the local Buderim Falls. There is a lot of speculation about the Buderim Beast, and if you google it, you will see that when the Sunshine Coast Daily featured it, 36% of voters believe it to be a Thylacine (Tasmanian Devil - now extinct). 

Image by Sue Smith via the Sunshine Coast Daily

Naturally this gets people pretty excited (most of us just WANT to believe it of course - still getting over Santa not being real, sob), but the fun part is not just the online research, but looking for it every time you step out in the bush around Buderim! Hikers beware........

Gympie's Glowing Tombstone

Well, if you are new to the region, this is an article from the Gympie times a few years ago regarding one of our favorite childhood experiences....

"EVEN if you're new about town, chances are you've heard about the eerie glowing tombstone standing high on the rolling hills of the Corella Rd cemetery.
For what seems like decades, locals have debated the source of the creepy light shining off George Argo's granite obelisk, be it a simple reflection of passing headlights and adjacent fixtures or evidence of something stranger at play.
Questions continue to cloud the circumstances of Mr Argo's 'accidental' early morning death in February 1895 - did he really fall down a mine shaft he knew 'like the back of his hand', or does a sinister truth remain hiding in the shadow of doubt?
Cemetery workers claim Mr Argo's tombstone no longer glows, but remain open-minded about just what that light could have been".

Image Craig Warhurst

So this is how it works.....you head back into town from the Forestry department late at night, and as you get to the entry gates on the left, slow right down....over in the middle of the cemetery, ahead on the left, the tombstone will suddenly light up! It is like a "glow in the dark". Contrary to what the cemetery workers say, it is still going strong as I have personally checked it our recently.

There was a rumor around years ago that it was caused by the exact refraction of a street light on the angle with what it is actually made out of, but we all checked this out in a blackout when we were kids and it STILL GLOWS!

Even if you don't live in Gympie, maybe next trip to Rainbow at night, it's worth a side-trip :)

Glasshouse Mountains - Did You Know?

Image Courtesy of Aero Power Flight School

 * In his Journal on 17 May, 1770 Captain James Cook wrote: "These hills lie but a little way inland, and not far from each other: they are remarkable for the singular form of their elevation, which very much resembles a glass house, and for this reason I called them the Glass Houses …". This is a reference to their appearance which reminded him of the glass furnaces in Yorkshire.

 *The Glass House Mountains are a series of eleven intrusive volcanic plugs, formed of rhyolite and trachtyte, lavas which hardened inside the vents of tertiary volcanoes, about 25-27 million years ago. The cooling of the mountains resulted in the formation of vertical columns which can be observed on Mount Beerwah, Mount Ngungun and Mount Coonowrin.

*Mount Beerwah is the highest peak at 555 metres. Coochin (235 m), Coonowrin (377 m), Ngungun (253 m), Elimbah (129 m), Beerburrum (278 m), Tibberoowuccum (220 m), Tunbubudla (293 m and 312 m), Miketeebumulgrai (199 m) and Tibrogargan (364 m) all are located within the Glass House Mountains National Park and some offer excellent opportunities for bushwalking, abseiling and picnicking. 


 * The Glass House Mountains were formed approximately 25-27 million years ago.

* Prior to European settlement the area around the Glass House Mountains was occupied by people from the Gubbi Gubbi Aboriginal language group.

* On 17 May, 1770 Captain James Cook became the first European to sight the volcanic plugs.

* In July-August, 1799 Matthew Flinders sailed up the Queensland coast. He explored the area for sixteen days and climbed Mount Beerburrum.

* Today the volcanic plugs are part of the Queensland National Parks. The area around the mountains, because of the rich volcanic soil, produces pineapples, papaws, strawberries, avocados and passionfruit, as well as vegetables and macadamia nuts.

NB:Information copied directly from the Aussie Towns site which contains other amazing links for exploration!

Maroochydore - Did You Know?

 There are a number of possible explanations for Maroochydore. All are based around the black swans which can be seen in the area. Some interpretations explain that the word is an English equivalent of the local Aboriginal word "marutchi" meaning "black swan" or "marutchi dora" meaning "water where the black swan lives". Alternatively the word possibly comes from the Yuggera language, "muru-kutchi" meaning red-bill, the name of the black swan. The Yuggera people lived around Brisbane. The name was given to the area by Andrew Petrie in 1842. Petrie was accompanied by two Yuggera men from whom, presumably, he obtained the name. The name Maroochydore came into general use in 1884.

*Prior to the arrival of Europeans the area along the coast near Maroochydore was home to the Gubi Gubi Aboriginal people. 

* The first European in the area was the Irish convict John Graham who, having been sentenced to seven years transportation for stealing hemp, was sent to Moreton Bay. In July 1826, believing he could row to China, Graham escaped from Moreton Bay. He walked into an Aboriginal camp near the present site of Maroochydore and was immediately accepted as the ghost of one woman's dead husband. Graham lived with the Aborigines for six years.

* In 1833 Graham returned to Moreton Bay and gave himself up.

* Timber-getters were in the area by the early 1850s. They cut timber in the hinterland.

* A depot handling timber was established on the river by 1856.

* The explorer Andrew Petrie passed through the area in 1862 and named the Maroochy River.

* A wharf was built at the mouth of the Maroochy River in 1868.

* In 1888 the Salvation Army held a camp at Cotton Tree.

* William Pettigrew opened a sawmill on the Maroochy River in 1891.

* The Pettigrew sawmill closed in 1898.

* The township of Maroochydore came into existence in 1900.

* In 1907 Thomas O'Connor subdivided land near the river mouth and sold allotments.

 * The Club Hotel was built in 1911.

* A School of Arts and the local Surf Life Saving Club were both operating by 1916.

* A State Primary School was opened in 1921.

* The Maroochy Post Office opened in 1922.

* During the 1920s the Maroochydore Picture Palace and Jazzland was opened.

* A road from the Bruce Highway was opened in 1928.

* The local golf course was opened in 1956.

* It wasn't until the 1960s that the area developed as a major tourist destination.

* The local population doubled between 1961 and 1971.

* The canals at Maroochy Waters were built in the 1970s and 1980s.

Artists Impression of The New CBD with an interesting article in News.Com

* The Sunshine Plaza was opened in 1995.

NB:Information copied directly from the Aussie Towns site which contains other amazing links for exploration!

Maleny - Did You Know?

*There are two possible explanations for the naming of Maleny and both of them are spelling mistakes. One theory argues that it was named Maleny because the Balfour brothers, who established the Colinton Station in 1841, were surveyors and they named Malleny Mountain on the Blackall Range after the tiny Scottish town of Malleny. Alternatively it was named after a surveyor named Maloney who worked in the local area. Either way the spelling was pretty bad. It is either Maleny but should be Malleny or Maleny and it should be Maloney ... but never Maleny.

 

* The area was once occupied by the Nalbo and Dallambara peoples of the Gubbi Gubbi nation who each year gathered at Baroon Pocket on the banks of the Obi Obi River to feast on Bunya nuts. The explorer Ludwig Leichhardt witnessed one of these gatherings and described it as "This plain they call Booroon ... seems the rendezvous for fights between the hostile tribes who come from near and far to enjoy the harvest of the Bunya". In fact it was an annual gathering of Aborigines from as far away as the Gold Coast and the Darling Downs.

* By the 1850s timber cutters had moved into the district and for the next few decades the primary industries were timber cutting and sawmilling. Not surprisingly when it came to naming Maleny's streets the timber industry was acknowledged with streets named Maple, Myrtle and Cedar. By the 1870s the district had a timber mill and a blacksmith.

* On 13 November, 1878 Isaac Burgess selected land on the present site of Maleny. It was the beginning of a period when dairy and beef cattle were grazed on the rich grasses which resulted from the substantial annual rainfall and the rich red volcanic soils.

* A school was opened in 1886 and a local post office in 1890. The town was officially proclaimed in 1891.

* Although dairy farming dominated the local economy (a butter factory was opened in in 1904 and a second factory in 1912) the area became increasingly focussed on mixed farming with small crops and orchards replacing the pasturelands.

* Maleny remained a rural service town until the 1980s when retirees, seeking a cool alternative to the coast, moved in and started building large houses on one and two acre lots. This evolved into the town becoming an arts and crafts centre with a dominant alternative lifestyle. Perhaps the best symbol of this alternative lifestyle was the town's passionate attempt to resist the arrival of a Woolworths supermarket in the early years of the twenty-first century.
  


NB:Information copied directly from the Aussie Towns site which contains other amazing links for exploration!

Nambour - Did You Know?

*The town that grew up in the area around 1870 was known as Petrie's Creek. It was renamed Nambour in 1891. The name, a local Aboriginal word (Naamba) meant red flowering tea-tree (Callistemon viminalis) or its bark. It had been the name given to the first cattle station in the district which had been selected by William Samwell in 1870.

 

 *Prior to the arrival of Europeans the area was occupied by people from the Gubbi Gubbi Aboriginal language group.
 
* The first settler in the area was Matthew Carroll who selected 40 ha in January 1870.

* Carroll was followed two months later by William Samwell who selected 658 ha which he called Nambour. And later in 1870 a third selection was made by Henry Hootan but it was forfeited in 1872.

* In 1884 Mathew Carroll opened the Tullababa Hotel

* In 1885 the Tullababa Hotel became a post office branch with Carroll as the postmaster. By this time two sawmills were operating in the area.

* In 1886 the Sylvannia School was opened.

* The town was officially subdivided in 1889.

* The railway reached the town in 1890 and was officially opened in 1891. 

*Blocks were subdivided & new settlers commenced clearing the land to grow fruit, sugarcane & farm produce.

* The Moreton Central Sugar Mill Company was formed in Nambour in 1894.

* A sugar mill was built in 1896.

* In 1913 the first town library was built.

* In 1917 the first rural school was built in Queensland.

* During 1924 17 buildings in the town were destroyed by fire.

* Electricity reached the town in 1927.

* October 1929 saw the Town Hall and Town Library destroyed by fire.

* By 1930 the town had its own hospital - the Maroochy District Hospital.

* By the 1960s the district had been renamed the Sunshine Coast.

* Cane was still cut by hand in the area as recently as the 1970s. This was only because of the hilly terrain which was not suitable for cane-cutting machines.

* In recent times the agricultural base of the area has expanded to include a variety of tropical crops - macadamia nuts, bananas, citrus fruits and pineapples.


NB:Information copied directly from the Aussie Towns site which contains other amazing links for exploration! Click on the "Underbelly" label for local legend and lore....

Yandina - Did You Know?

Image Courtesy Of Sunshine Coast Property Group

*The local Aborigines, the Kabi Kabi, called the district around Yandina 'koongalba' meaning 'small water' and the early settlers named it Native Dog Flat. Eventually the town was named Yandina after the Yandina cattle run which was located east of Mount Ninderry. It is claimed that 'yandina' is a combination of two local Kabi Kabi words 'yan' meaning 'to go' and 'dinna' meaning 'feet' ie to go by foot.


* the district had been settled by the Kabi Kabi people for thousands of years prior to the arrival of Europeans.

* European settlers moved into the area in the 1850s and by 1870 the township of Yandina had been officially surveyed. The predominant industry, as with most of the Sunshine Coast hinterland, was timber with timber cutters logging bunya pine, cedar and beech from the forests.

* a church was built in 1880 and a hotel was opened in 1889. The hotel had to be moved when the railway arrived in 1891.

* Ginger growing had started in the Buderim area shortly after World War I. It was a crop of minor importance until World War II stopped importation from China allowing the industry to expand to meet local demand. The Buderim Ginger Grower’s Co-operative Association Limited, originally located in Buderim, was established by five local farmers. In 1979 it was moved to a much bigger factory in Yandina.

* In 1996 the town was bypassed by the Bruce Highway.



NB:Information copied directly from the Aussie Towns site which contains other amazing links for exploration! Click on the "Underbelly" label for local legend and lore....

Gympie - Did You Know?

* Prior to European settlement the district was occupied by the Gubbi Gubbi people.

* By the 1840s European graziers had established sheep properties in the area. John Daniel 
McTaggart established the Kilkivan selection 50 km west of Gympie around this time.

* In 1867 James Nash, the son of an English farm labourer who had migrated to Sydney in 1857, discovered gold near the Mary River. Nash announced his find on 16 October 1867 and it resulted in "one of the wildest rushes in Queensland history".

* By 1868 there were more than 25,000 people in the Gympie area.

* It was officially named Gympie in 1868. Previously it had been known as Gympie Creek.

* The first flood of the Mary River during European settlement occurred in 1870.

 

* The town was proclaimed a municipality in 1880.

* The railway arrived in 1881 and in 1888 it had its own stock exchange.

* In 1891 the rail line connected Gympie to Brisbane.

* The town's worst flood was recorded in 1893 when the Mary River reached 25.45 metres.

* Gympie was officially declared a town in 1903.

* The gold mining eventually closed in 1925. By that time the city was an important regional centre for the surrounding rich agricultural district.

  
NB:Information copied directly from the Aussie Towns site which contains other amazing links for exploration!

Tin Can Bay - Did You Know?

 *Although there is some dispute as to the meaning of the word it is widely accepted that Tin Can Bay's name is a variant of the local Aboriginal word 'tuncanbar' which may have referred to the dugongs which abound in the area. The word also may have meant a vine or the local mangroves.

Image Courtesy Of Trip Advisor

 
* In the 1850s a dugong station was established at the mouth of the Kauri Creek, just north of Tin Can Bay, and dugong were killed and their oil extracted in much the same way whales were exploited at the time.

* A European settlement was established around 1870 primarily as a port to ship timber to the Maryborough sawmills. There was also some oyster cultivation.

* Although Norman Point is now a pleasant park and a jetty for the Coast Guard it was originally the site of one of Queensland's first railway lines. The railway was constructed to transport logs to the jetty where they were loaded onto barges and shipped to the mills in Maryborough.

* In 1922 township lots were sold and by the 1930s it had become a popular and cheap holiday destination used mostly by people who lived nearby in the hinterland.

* By 1957 Tin Can Bay had become a fishing village. There was a prawning fleet and by 1971 it had its own fish market.

NB:Information copied directly from the Aussie Towns site which contains other amazing links for exploration! Click on the "Underbelly" label for local legend and lore....

Alexandra Headland - Did You Know?

The following information and images have been directly copied from the Alexandra Headland Community Association. Click on the name to take you to their full site, as the amount of work and research that this committee put into their community is second to none - always looking for more supporters!

The early history and the current life of Alexandra Headland is intimately bound up with the history of its neighboring suburbs and the two rivers it sits between – Maroochy and Mooloolah. The beach has always been one of the areas “richest assets” whilst its green belt is the only coastal forest remnant between the two rivers. Achieving the balance between development as a seaside resort, and protection of the natural environment has always been an issue – then and today.

The First Headlanders

The first inhabitants of this area are generally acknowledged to have been the Undanbi people – small family groups of aborigines who occupied these coastal plains. Distinguished by language and cultural traditions, they had cordial relations with other neighbouring groups with whom they shared a common language or dialect. No direct references can be found to an aboriginal name for this area or rocky headland, but the first built house was named “Wongothin” after the beach (and “wonga” means pigeon in Kabi Kabi dialect) and the surrounding property was named “Coolaluthin”, after the aboriginal word for cypress pines. The influence of aboriginal culture is preserved in the names for the rivers of Maroochy (black swan) and Mooloolah (black snakes – ‘mullu’ & fishing nets – mula).

Exploring Sailors

Captain Cook sailed past our coastline on May 17th 1770 in the Endeavour and a commemorative cairn was erected on top of Alexandra Headland in the bicentennial year  of his visit 1970.    In 1802 Matthew Flinders sailed past on an expedition to chart the coastline of New Holland in The Investigator.  Neither explorer came ashore to discover the beauty of the region.

1820-1840    Undanbi People Rescue Castaways

During 1823-24, three shipwrecked convict timbergetters were befriended and assisted by the Undanbi peoples of Mooloolah and Maroochy Rivers and they learned some of their language – a fast spoken dialect of the Turrubul language group. Other escaped convicts from Moreton Bay also lived for many years with many tribes.  Leichardt described them as “generally taller, slimmer people than the inlanders” and others noticed that they could be distinguished by the large callous on their wrists which developed as a result of manipulating their fishing nets. In the 1830s-1840s it was estimated some 80 Undanbi lived at Maroochy River with another group of similar size on the lower Mooloolah River.

1840-1860  Timber Exploration & Conservation Legislation.

Andrew Petrie explored the coastline in 1838 and 1840 asessing the economic potential for timber and he named Maroochydore. The Bunya Proclamation of 1842 (early conservation legislation) recognised the importance to aboriginal people of the Bunya Pine Trees, and created a reserve that included Alex to protect the area from timber felling and grazing. Ludwig Leichardt, naturalist and explorer, also described and crossed both the Mooloolah & Maroochy rivers in 1844.

1860-1880: First Land Sales and Timber Industry Established

In 1862 it was Tom Petrie (son of Andrew) who was one of the first to venture into Maroochy to exploit timber resources in 1862, and who is acknowledged to have had a great understanding of the aborigines.
But it was William Pettigrew, a friend of the Petrie family, who was able on August 4th 1864 to purchase a 330 acre property of lands and forests to use as his base for a saw mill. Portion 2 of this, some eighty acres, encompassed Alexandra Headland (and the beach he called Wongothin) were purchased for 124 pounds. Pettigrew also owned a fleet of steam and sailing ships. Pettigrew built the first house on Alexandra Headland in 1869 on high ground on the sheltered north side of the headland on land he named Coolaluthin and from where he could survey much of the land he owned. He also established a small farm and experimented growing sugarcane.
Helen Gregory reports that it was not until the influx of white settlers in the 1870’s that aborigines were forced to retreat from their traditional lands and food sources, and access to sacred places were denied. Traditional Aboriginal ways of life, kinship & religions systems began to collapse in the areas near the river where new settlers began to change the land and it natural productivity.
In 1871 Pettigrew moved a house from Mooloolah to the headland for his overseer and named it “Wongotha”. The esplanade along the beach became a traffic route to the timber mill from Maroochy River and the Alex area was fenced as a paddock for the bullocks who hauled the cedar, beech and she-pine logs. A small store opened between the two houses to supply the basic needs of timbergetters and early settlers.

1880-1900:  Settlement Named “Potts Point”

When John Potts took on the Pettigrew overseer’s job from 1880 – 90,  the land around the Headland quickly came to be known as Potts Point. By the end of the century, Pettigrew’s business interests were severely affected by the depression and the Banks foreclosed on his lands.

Images courtesy of Sunshine Coast Libraries

1900-1910:  O’Connor Purchases Pettigrew Land

Thomas O’Connor, a surveyor, purchased all of Pettigrew’s land on the coastal plain in 1903 including all of the area he would later name Alexandra Headland. The land parcel included land from Okinja to Pacific Terrace, including the land now known as Alex Forest. Hinterland residents were increasingly visiting for camping holidays and fishing trips. All the houses on the Headland were burned in a bush fire but demand for re-building was strong! Mooloolah Cemetery established on land at corner of Pacific Terrace and Alexandra Parade.

Images courtesy of Sunshine Coast Libraries

1910-1920: Coming Seaside City Renamed Alexandra Headland

Despite WWI, there was increasing demand for relaxation, so land owner and developer Tommy O’Connor subdivided the first allotments in Alexandra Headland in 1915 to develop a seaside resort (Mary St to Lindsay St and Janet St to Pacific Terrace) followed by allotments along the ocean front and Buderim Road . At this time O’Connor renamed the area Alexandra Headland in honour of the beautiful 70yr old  Queen Alexandra (the Queen Mother). Nambour Chronicle describes the “resurrection” of this seaside bay when the first houses were built on lots 68 & 69 , replacing houses that had been burnt down eight years earlier. It hoped for a “coming seaside city”! But not all his developments were welcomed and his plans for a larger hotel on Buderim Avenue were defeated in 1916. The desire to protect scenic places against the thrust of tourist development persists to this day.
In 1917, a boat and tram service operated to Nambour and Alexandra Headland could boast boarding houses and holiday homes.

Images courtesy of Sunshine Coast Libraries

1920-1930: Community Development – Beach and Surfing Activities

The end of the war sparked a boom in holiday villages and Woombye residents built a number of red-roofed seaside cottages on Alex Headland, and then founded the family orientated Alexandra Headland Surf Life Saving Club in 1924. Built by volunteers, mostly from Woombye, it seemed appropriate to adopt the Woombye Rugby League colours of a black stripe and gold background which symbolises a black snake and the golden wattle.  It took them only one year to win the champion club title which they held from 1925-1927.
O’Connor completes a vision for the first fully integrated resort complex on the Maroochy coast – and built a magnificent hostel on 36 acres opposite the Surf Club.  As a business it was affected by poor transport,and his failure to obtain a liquor licence and the Great Depression of 1929 put paid to this enterprise.
Many community groups arise – the Maroochydore Progress Association in 1920 and in 1924, Buderim identity Vince Crosby was the President of the Mooloolaba & Alexandra Headlands Progress Association.
The improvement of the coastal road is attributed to the Progress Association who built the first gravel road between the rivers in 1922 after the Council prioritised other agricultural roads. At times however the sand drifts near Alex Surf Club made the road over the headland impassable and people had to frequently travel via Buderim!
In 1927, the Brisbane Courier described the beaches of this area as a “seaside trinity of great beauty”.  Large heavy wooden surfboards appeared on the beaches – even Mum’s old ironing board occasionally got an outing!

Images courtesy of Sunshine Coast Libraries

1930-1940:  Camping Heaven Beside the Beach

Alexandra Headland remained a place for relaxation – camping in public areas along the beachfront was common despite few public facilities.   The Presbyterian Church Youth Camps staff began to consider Alexandra Hostel as a future campsite and negotiations to purchase the land began.
By this time, most of the aboriginal people of the area had been sent to Cherbourg Mission – many miles inland far from their cultural homelands by the river and sea. There seemed to be no place for them in the changing Maroochy landscape.

Images courtesy of Sunshine Coast Libraries

1940-1950:  WWII and Public Facilities Developed

The recognition of the beaches as the Shire’s richest assets resulted in some funding for public facilities for those who camped, as well as changing sheds and toilets.
Members of the Voluntary Defence Force mounted patrols on the headland. The US Army commandeered part of the Alexandra Hostel for soldiers R & R. A section of the Australian Army also occupied the building and built a large coop to house carrier pigeons in the grounds.  The 22nd Battalion camped by the beach in grounds now known as Trotter Park.
Fred Murray writes:’In 1946 only a gravel road extended through Alexandra Headland to Mooloolaba. Alexandra Headland contained about half a dozen houses, mostly facing Alice Street and the Esplanade. The only house south of here was Such’s home in Mary Street, only 30 yards from my own home.’
The Presbyterian Church under the guidance of Norman Nelson, the Director of Christian Education and Youth Welfare, purchased the hostel and Alexandra Park a total of 173 acres from the O’Connor estate, extending from the beachfront to Cathedral Hill in 1945. Church camps are conducted on the property continuously to present time.
A Mr A.J. Frost, who owned a clothing business in Nambour, had purchased a large parcel of land bounded by Mary Street, Buderim/Mool Rd and  and in 1948 he subdivided this into 34 allotments and developed local roads.

Images courtesy of Sunshine Coast Libraries

1950-1960: Tourism Focus & Cyclone Damage

Big support for the tourism industryled by Shire Chairman Low, who with great fanfare 1952 opened a modern caravan park at Alexandra Headland on the beachfront.  This closed off Alexandra Parades direct link from Alex Beach to Maroochydore Beach. It was the first council sponsored caravan park in Queensland and Australia – and celebrated with the planting of some 40 pine trees.
A Presbyterian church was erected in Edward Street, and a land selling spree by the church in 1958 included the top of Cathedral Hill through to Okinja Road.
There was much discussion on linking the three coastal townships of Maroochydore, Alexandra Headland and Mooloolaba. The gravel road was still under control of the Shire, but the ambitious Nicklin Government wanted to build a coastal highway.  In 1958 Maroochy Shire introduced a development plan with regulations to cope with future development of coastal areas.
Perhaps it was the damage created by the cyclonic weather of 1954, 55 & 56 with resulting erosion that led to concern for natural environment again conflicting with large development plans. Whilst the Mooloolaba Alexandra Headland Progress Association worked throughout early 50’s and lobbied Council for modern urban amenities like street names, signs, public phone box, street lighting, and a water tower.
In 1958 a large event was the Wheelbarrow Race from Alex to Mooloolaba Surf Clubs, and Alex had its own Badminton Association.

Images courtesy of Sunshine Coast Libraries

1960-1970: Population Surge in the optimistic 60’s

Queensland Government established a Beach Protection Authority in 1967 in response to a sand mining debate and resistance to building on dunes.  In Alex, further sub-divisions occurred on McClintock land (Mooloolaba/Buderim Rd, Alexandra Parade and Edward Street) and the Thynee estate (Mary St, Juan St, Alex Pde).  Mrs Betts-Ann Coates developed  “the only sophisticated restaurant and accommodation complex on the Sunshine Coast” when the Boolarong Restaurant and Motel opened in 1967.  It remained for many years an iconic meeting place in Alex.  The new holiday apartment building on this site is called Grand Palais.

1970-1980:  Dune Protection and Four Lane Roads are Issues –

The formation of the Uniting Church led to changes to the largest parcel of land in Alex.  It was subdivided into two separate but adjoining titles. The Uniting Church land containing Alexandra Hostel (later known as Alexandra House – it was the old youth conference centre located directly opposite the Alex Surf Club) was finally subdivided and a significant parcel sold.  In its place the Alex Shores Resort, and the Alex Shores Estate were developed.  The second half of the title remained with the Presbyterian Church,
There was considerable debate locally and in the shire as to what type of building (and  height) should be allowed on land near the fragile beaches, and how to protect the dune systems.  In January 1976, large waves from Cyclone David eroded coastline in front of Boolarong.  1000 sandbags and rocks were used to stabilize the area. Still strong enthusiasm for the potential of the tourism industry and camping still allowed on beachfront land north of The Surf Club.  The decade closed in great controversy as discussions on traffic solutions in Maroochy Shire including “demaining” and a “four lanes controversy”.

1980-1990: More road & environmental concerns

Amidst much controversy about leaks and plans, Alexandra Parade was upgraded to four lanes in 1980 when many wished for the funding to be allocated to bypass roads (like the Motorway which was finally opened in 1990 as a Toll Road).   The Uniting Church attempted to sell land but some local opposition. High rise development continues in Alex. Much debate about whether a separate Council to look after coastal interests required, as many felt higher coastal rates were subsiding inland areas.
Rising environmental consciousness leads to studies on environmental impact being required for all large developments.   Many new high rise developments north of The Surf Club.

Images courtesy of Sunshine Coast Libraries

1990-2000: Development vs Preservation

The Uniting Church land containing the old youth conference centre (directly opposite the Alex Surf Club) and the “Alex Forest” bushland was finally subdivided and sold, and in its place the Alex Shores Resort, and the Alex Shores Estate were developed.
In 1995 the Presybterian Church also sold part of their land for the “Tranquil Place” subdivision – not without great opposition from those determined to protect Alex’s remnant forest. The Maroochy Shire was convinced to purchase 3.58 hectares, and a result of this campaign “the Shire conservation levy” was introduced to facilitate the future purchase of Shire bushland with conservation value. A further 2.5 hectares were purchased from the Presbyterian Church by Maroochy Shire Council for preservation in 2000.
Commercial sponsorship comes to lifesaving in the form of “Iron Man” competitions.  The Mooloolaba Triathalon begins in 1993 and develops into one of Australia’s premier athletic events, with cyclists and runners pounding Alexandra Parade.

Images courtesy of Sunshine Coast Libraries

2000-2010: Real Estate Boom and Traffic Issues

The rise of the house prices in the triangle reflected the increasingly sophisticated homes being built and renovated throughout this small suburb. The old church on Edward St was replaced by units.  The first property in Alex to care exclusively for the elderly was opened – RSL Tantula Rise is a great addition to the community.
Traffic through Alex becomes a central issue. Although the opening of the Sunshine Motorway many years previously (1990) took some pressure off the coastal road, increasingly the road through Alex was seen as a “thoroughfare” – and the atmosphere of a people friendly Alex degraded. The opening of Maroochy Boulevard relieved some pressure, but when the State Government Coast Connect project suggested six lanes along the beachfront, the people reacted. The” No Six Lanes” campaign was very effective but proposals for bus advantage lanes are still to be resolved.   No other beachfront road has four lanes, and all are at 50kph or less.  Why Alex?

After a colourful renovation and expansion, people power forced the Alex Surf Club to re-think another proposal for further expansion of the club at a site on the western side of Alexandra Parade – backing into Alex Shores residential estate.
The decade was coloured by some significant public events. Large crowds watched the sinking of the ex-HMAS Brisbane on 31 July 2005; the surfers farewell to Steve Irwin in September 2006; and then a great welcome home to lone adventurer/sailor Jessica Watson on 6 June 2010.

2010-2020  Strength in Community

A community association in Alexandra Headland is re-established and a website for the community of Alexandra Headland is launched.  Increasing environmental concerns about the stability of the dunes, a coastal walkway and how best to protect our beaches and natural environment.

References:

Alcorn, Berenis: A Rising Seaside Resort. Alexandra Headlands – A Historical Study , 1998.
Fink, Fred: History of Maroochydore-Mooloolaba, 1992.
Gregory, Helen:  Making Maroochy.  A history of the land, the shire, the people. Brisbane 1998
Hooper, Martin: Seachange for Elizabeth & William Hooper.  Vic 2008
Murray, Fred & Whittington, Dot:  Surveying my Life: An autobiography.  Nambour 2007
Nelson NF MBE, To Help Them Find Their Feet, Sith & Paterson, Brisbane 1966
Tainton Rev Joseph, Marutchi – the Early History of the Sunshine Coast, Unpublished 1976

Acknowledgements:  We thank the following for their helpful assistance

Photographs:  We wish to acknowledge the Sunshine Coast Libraries and Julanne Neal & Carol Hawley of the Sunshine Coast Heritage Library who assisted us in providing most of the photos for this historial site.  They maintain an excellent resource that is available to all – Picture Sunshine Coast
We also welcome photographs from members of the community, and hope this historial resource can be improved.

Coolum - Did You Know? By Astute Alexandra Headland

 Astute Alexandra Headland

Coolum - Did You Know?

The name is derived from the local Undumbi word gulum or guloom, meaning "blunt" or "headless", referring to the shape of Mount Coolum, which has no peak. ^[2] According to Aboriginal legend, Ninderry knocked off Coolum's head and it fell into the ocean and is now Mudjimba Island.
The Coolum district was the traditional land of the Inabara or Yinneburra clan of the Undanbi Tribe. In turn, they were part of the larger group of the Kabi Kabi. 

In 1823, the first Europeans to pass through Coolum were castaways and shipwrecked sailors. The first land selection in Coolum was made in 1871 by Grainger Ward - a pastoral lease of 255 hectares. Here, Ward ran upwards of 300 head of cattle. In 1881, Mark Blasdall selected his own lease of 252 hectares. Blasdall was the first to plan sugarcane in the area and to cut timber. He built two huts and a sawmill as well as clearing Coolum Creek, thus enabling steampships to enter to load timber and deliver supplies. By 1882 the steampships 'Tadorna Radjah' and 'Gneering' began to regularly travel from Brisbane to Coolum creek. In 1883 the first Coolum land was freehold and by 1884, Blasdall was declared insolvent and his land freeholded.

Image Courtesy Of Coolum Beach Real Estate

The first permanent settler of Coolum was William Perry-Keene and his family in 1905. His home was called "Green Hills" and was situated at the corner of Beach Road, Daytona and Key West Avenues. Between 1906 and 1912 many people settled permanently in the region. By 1912 there were eight to 12 families living in the district. In 1909, Coulsin established a mailboat service on the Maroochy River. This provided the first regular connection between Coolum and the railhead at Yandina. In 1911, a horse-drawn tramline and punt loading facilities were built at Coolum Creek. 

Construction of the first paved road to Coolum was undertaken between 1922 and 1925. This provided vehicle access from Coolum to Yandina. In 1923, the tramline to Coolum was opened and unscheduled passenger services began. Over this time considerable expansion of the sugarcane industry took place. Cane farming provided the main source of financial stability in the district until the advent of tourism in the 1960s.

The Coolum Library opened in 1989 with a major refurbishment in 1997.^[3]
 
In 2002 Coolum hosted the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, replacing the 2001 meeting that was postponed and moved from Brisbane in the wake of the September 11 attacks. 

In 2006 Australian census, the population of Coolum was 7,744.