Karen B

After the Disappearance, Another Death.

April 19, 1879. Maryborough, Queensland. Robert Aitken’s disappearance continued to vex the Maryborough police. The river had been dragged, indigenous divers had been sent in to explore its murky depths, and no trace of the man had been found. Aitken’s personal life had been examined, and although there were some questions about the sequence ofContinue reading “After the Disappearance, Another Death.”

The Latest News for March 20 (1847)

One event dominated the news on 20 March 1847 – the recent wreck of the steamer Sovereign, and the loss of 44 lives. The murders of Andrew Gregor and Mary Shannon six months earlier still haunted the Courier and its readers. Page 1 The front page was, as usual, the place for advertising. First, MrContinue reading “The Latest News for March 20 (1847)”

The Latest News for March 17 (1849)

The Moreton Bay Courier was published every Saturday in the 1840s, and on Saturday 17 March 1849, the edition gave readers all of the latest news (only three months late for overseas news!), letters and advertisements. As was the custom at the time, the first page was devoted to classified advertising. Readers were informed thatContinue reading “The Latest News for March 17 (1849)”

A Most Mysterious Disappearance

Maryborough, near the river. Sunday 06 April 1879. THE NEIGHBOURS By his estimation, it was around 4 am when Mr Holme was woken by the sound of raised voices on the other side of the river. It sounded like a scuffle, with a woman crying out, “Stop it! Oh, stop it!” There was a loudContinue reading “A Most Mysterious Disappearance”

Ratcliffe Pring: the Attorney-General who was arrested.

NOTABLE BRISBANE PIONEERS On Monday 22 January 1872, a plainclothes police officer from Brisbane was spotted on the streets of Dalby. He loitered about all day, making himself conspicuous, although the residents of that town weren’t sure what he was looking for. That is, until he enquired about the time a certain coach would arriveContinue reading “Ratcliffe Pring: the Attorney-General who was arrested.”

The Grub Train and the Emu Hunt That Never Was.

Prince Alfred visits Queensland. We bowed and scraped to Prince Alfred. We inflicted upon him massacred anthems and a series of mismanaged receptions. The children of St Mary’s at Ipswich made a banner that got his name wrong –Welcome Alfreda? We might have bored him, and almost certainly irritated him, but at least we didn’tContinue reading “The Grub Train and the Emu Hunt That Never Was.”

Harry Shepperson: the stationer who ran away with the actress.

NOTABLE BRISBANE PIONEERS Henry William Shepperson was a well-known and respectable book-seller and stationer in Brisbane in the 1860s and 1870s. He produced beautiful calendars and religious pamphlets for St John’s Anglican Cathedral. Harry was active in the Masons, and was married with children, two of whom sadly died in infancy. He was an enthusiasticContinue reading “Harry Shepperson: the stationer who ran away with the actress.”

Thomas Warry

Notable Brisbane Pioneers Old Brisbane throws up some unusual characters, not least the distinguished Thomas Symes Warry. In his relatively short life, he was a prize-winning chemist, a Member of the Legislative Assembly, Magistrate and, briefly, the centre of a peculiar scandal involving the possession of a severed head. Thomas S Warry was born inContinue reading “Thomas Warry”

Ladies’ Fashions of the 1800s

AN EARLY FASHION VICTIM The first European women in Australia were of two distinct classes – Government/Military wives and poor convict women. The latter were largely immune to the variations in high style. The former were prey to the slings and arrows of outrageous fashion – foremost among these was Mary Bligh Putnam. Mary accompaniedContinue reading “Ladies’ Fashions of the 1800s”

Coaches, Railways, Cabs and New-Fangled Automobiles

How we got from A to B in old Queensland. Cobb & Co. Cobb & Co was founded in Victoria in 1853, by an American with a splendidly American name, Freeman Cobb. It was a version of the pony express at first, trading as “American Telegraph Line of Coaches.” Horses were changed regularly, and speedContinue reading “Coaches, Railways, Cabs and New-Fangled Automobiles”