Karen B

Who Lives in a Place Like This? Part 2

The Sketch Map of Brisbane Town in 1844, and the stories behind it. 16. Wright’s Hotel At first, hotels were few in old Brisbane Town. The hospitable Scot, Alexander Wright, was the proprietor of one of the larger and more respectable ones, The Caledonian Hotel, between Queen and Ann Streets. Mr Wright boasted of theContinue reading “Who Lives in a Place Like This? Part 2”

Who Lives in a Place Like This? Part 1.

The Sketch Map of Brisbane Town in 1844, and the stories behind it. A rough, sketched map of Brisbane town in 1844 reposes in the John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland. It is attributed to Carl Friedrich Gerler, who arrived in Brisbane as a missionary to the Zion Hill establishment in 1844. The buildingsContinue reading “Who Lives in a Place Like This? Part 1.”

True Crime in 1840s Brisbane

As reported by the Moreton Bay Courier With the exception of the murder of Robert Cox at Kangaroo Point in 1848, and the relatively distant frontier violence perpetrated by and on European settlers, life was fairly quiet in Moreton Bay in the 1840s. Still, there are columns to fill, and readers to shock, so theContinue reading “True Crime in 1840s Brisbane”

Found Dead in the Bush

There were few more haunting fears for the lone traveler than that of becoming ill or injured and of dying alone, in the middle of nowhere. 19th century Europeans had little idea of bushcraft – how to find edible plants, how to locate clean drinking water, even how to dress and when to travel toContinue reading “Found Dead in the Bush”

Census Time in Colonial Brisbane

Imagine being a Census collector in the 19th century – particularly in the vast but sparsely populated Colony of Queensland. Travelling by road and river to remote hamlets, shepherd’s huts and stations in all weathers and probably at some personal risk, in order to determine who lived where, who did what, and what were theirContinue reading “Census Time in Colonial Brisbane”

The Sudden Rise of Larrikinism

As seen in the Letters to the Editor. 1871 – 1875. In 1871, Larrikins rather suddenly appeared in Queensland. Dire tales of disorder on the streets of stately Melbourne had begun to appear in the Queensland press, causing pious folk to glance nervously at any seemingly under-employed young person who crossed their path. Surely theyContinue reading “The Sudden Rise of Larrikinism”

A Transportation Procession

As imagined by the Windmill Reporter. 1850 was drawing to a close, and the population of Brisbane Town – estimated at some 2000 souls – was contemplating how best to make a success of the settlement. That is, the part of the population that thought about such things. Most people were wondering where their nextContinue reading “A Transportation Procession”

The Infernal Vagabond of a Woman

In April 1840, a young convict servant to Mr Robert Dixon, a Surveyor at Moreton Bay, was sent to Sydney on the Cutter John. Unusually, her fare and rations were paid directly by Mr Dixon, rather than the Government. A year later, she would figure in a trial at Moreton Bay that arose from aContinue reading “The Infernal Vagabond of a Woman”

Personal and Commercial.

A Tour of the Classifieds The plaintive personal advertisements for missing friends mentioned in the previous post often sat cheek by jowl with truly bizarre advertising content – gossip and rabble-rousing, and a number of inscrutable items that would only be understood by your average colonial Victorian perusing the local organ of record. The veryContinue reading “Personal and Commercial.”

If This Should Meet The Eye of …

Missing Friends Part 1. Imagine farewelling a family member who was setting off to another country to make a new life. Now, imagine doing this without social media, the internet generally or phones to keep in touch with that person. Letters (if your family could read and write) were your only hope of hearing fromContinue reading “If This Should Meet The Eye of …”