CHRISTMAS IN THE CONVICT ERA. Christmas 1828 occurred on a Thursday, and the indefatigable Peter Spicer did not record it in his diary (Return of Works Performed), however the entry for Friday 26 December 1828 records: Perhaps not feeling what little Christmas spirit was to be had in the settlement were the 131 patients inContinue reading “Christmas at Moreton Bay: from the Convict Era to Separation”
Category Archives: Characters
A snapshot of life in Brisbane in 1866.
You can learn a great deal about life in a particular time and place from the daily newspapers, particularly the classified advertising. Here is a snapshot of life in Brisbane on 27 June 1866, courtesy of the Brisbane Courier. A suitable residence. This advertisement is designed to appeal to those who require a des resContinue reading “A snapshot of life in Brisbane in 1866.”
A look back at bushranging from 1912.
Chronicles of Queensland in the early days: Some Early Bushrangers— Race Meeting on the Condamine— Knocking Down Big Cheques— A Hot Time— Sticking up the Mail— A Good Bit of Tracking — A Pigeon-toed Horse —Capture of the Criminals— Kirk and Grey— A “Green” Police Sergeant (BY “OLD CHUM”). No. 71 Many years ago, aContinue reading “A look back at bushranging from 1912.”
A Brief History of bushranging in Queensland. Part 3.
1865 – The year that everything changed. We cannot omit to notice a very happy result of the advantages likely to accrue from telegraphic communication, adverted to by a gentleman who charged himself with what may be deemed the representation of the moral and religious aspect of the question. This gentleman stated that he foresawContinue reading “A Brief History of bushranging in Queensland. Part 3.”
The Cranky Cobbler of Brisbane Town
James McAuliffe was a native of Carlow, Ireland. A compact 5 ft 3 ¼, he had brown hair, hazel eyes and a ruddy and freckled complexion. He was educated enough to read and write and was married with two sons and a daughter when, out of desperation or foolishness, he stole some clothing. Brought beforeContinue reading “The Cranky Cobbler of Brisbane Town”
The Flying Pieman performs at Ipswich, 03 November 1848
Ipswich News: The Flying Pieman performed here yesterday the feats which he proposed performing at Brisbane, viz.: wheeling a barrow half a mile, running forward half a mile, running backward half a mile, walking one mile, picking up fifty stones one yard apart and placing them in a basket; as a gig could not beContinue reading “The Flying Pieman performs at Ipswich, 03 November 1848”
A Brief History of Bushranging in Queensland. Part 2.
Free Settlement to Separation to the Gold Rushes of the North. Bushranging – once the term used to describe escaped convicts – gradually came to mean armed robbery and a life spent on the roads, dodging the law. In the 1820s and 1830s in New South Wales and Tasmania, men like Jack Donohue “The WildContinue reading “A Brief History of Bushranging in Queensland. Part 2.”
A Brief History of Bushranging in Queensland. Part 1.
1824-1842 Moreton Bay Convict Settlement “Bushranging” was a term invented around 1805 to describe the actions of escaped convicts who took to the bush, often leading violent outlaw lives to secure food and avoid capture. Absconding became an attractive option in the penal settlements of Sydney (est. 1788) and Van Diemen’s Land (est. 1803). Food was scarce, rations wereContinue reading “A Brief History of Bushranging in Queensland. Part 1.”
“Quack-quack-quack,” 21 September 1858
The spectators at the Brisbane Police Office, on Tuesday last, witnessed a singular exhibition of a respectable man, (a resident in the western suburbs) being brought up before that august Bench, under warrant, for using offensive language in the hearing of one of our majestic Beaks, (the usual process of issuing a summons to appearContinue reading ““Quack-quack-quack,” 21 September 1858″
An Actor Hounded Down – 20 September, 1890
Australia was going through the worst industrial unrest in its history, with agitation for a national general strike. In September 1890, a group of comrades decided to rock up to the Opera House, and give some serious stick to an actor who had fraternised with the enemy. Trouble was, they weren’t sure which actor had workedContinue reading “An Actor Hounded Down – 20 September, 1890”
Moreton Bay and More 