Just look what they have to wear. Pity the modern police officers patrolling the Queen Street Mall on a hot summer’s day, lugging around their belts full of assorted law enforcement goodies – comms, tazers, pepper spray, truncheons and the like. All the better to be prepared for a turbulent populace. At least the modernContinue reading “Their lot is not a happy one.”
Category Archives: Early Photographs
The Five Stages of Inebriation and the 19th Century Scribe.
The court reporters of the 19th century had a distinctive turn of phrase. Flowery and humorous when describing the fairly harmless activities of the town tosspots, their penny-a-lining output is best illustrated by “The Five Stages of Inebriation,” a series of photographs taken in the 1860s by Charles Percy Pickering. (These gems, currently reposing theContinue reading “The Five Stages of Inebriation and the 19th Century Scribe.”
Vice-Regal Families
Being Governor of the Colony of Queensland was not an easy task. The Colony separated from New South Wales in 1859, with the arrival of Sir George and Lady Bowen, transitioning to a State in 1901 with Lord and Lady Lamington. In between those dates, the men and women of the first families were testedContinue reading “Vice-Regal Families”
Life on the Rivers
A leisurely tour of river views from the 19th century. No raging torrents or floods, just peaceful river views.
Richard Daintree Photographs
Englishman Richard Daintree joined the Victorian gold rush in the 1850s. He had no success in prospecting, but became a geologist, surveyor and photographer. Here are some of his photos of outback Queensland in the 1860s. Gold prospecting was a long, hard, often fruitless slog. Daintree’s photographs of the area, and the characters who workedContinue reading “Richard Daintree Photographs”
Inns and Hotels of Renown
A guide to places to stay from 1870 to 1890. Rock of Cashel Hotel, Sugarloaf, via Stanthorpe, Queensland, ca 1870. Unidentified photographer. State Library of Queensland. Britannia Hotel in Stanthorpe, 1872. Photographer: William Boag, c. 1838-1878. John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland. Miner’s Refuge Hotel at Broadwater near Stanthorpe, ca 1872. Photographer: William Boag,Continue reading “Inns and Hotels of Renown”
The Chinese Question in Queensland.
1850 – 1860: The answer to our economic prayers. In 1850, Moreton Bay looked forward to the arrival of 108 Chinese labourers, brought in by the ship, Favourite. All had been indentured to employers prior to landing, and competition for their services had been fierce. More Chinese workers were promised. We could hardly wait. TheyContinue reading “The Chinese Question in Queensland.”
The Shearers’ Strike in Images
In the early 1890s, a strike took place in the wool shearing industry that brought about the beginnings of the union movement in Australia. Important concessions were made by both sides before the strike collapsed. Shearing work in the 1860s and 1870s These photos, taken by itinerant photographers during the 1860s and 1870s, show theContinue reading “The Shearers’ Strike in Images”
Then and Now
Some places have hardly been touched by time. Others have changed beyond all recognition. Here are some then and now shots from throughout Queensland. Edison Lane, Brisbane 1888 “Hello, Office of Workplace Health and Safety? Yes, I’d like to report a series of breaches, please. There is a man without a safety harness, hi-vis orContinue reading “Then and Now”
Canine Supervision
Humans can’t be trusted to get things right. Every good project, worksite and swimming hole needs a dog to supervise. Sometimes a project required more than one good boy, sometimes much larger beasts waited politely for their doggy betters to give the go-ahead. Here are the good boys of Queensland in the 19th century.
Moreton Bay and More 