Moreton Bay Pilot, James Hexton. Allow me for a few minutes to draw attention to an old colonial celebrity, the Pilot stationed at Stradbroke Island, the late Mr James Hexton. He’s dead now and has been for some years, having met a sailor’s death in the performance of his duty, meeting his sad fate inContinue reading “The Old Man of the Sea.”
Tag Archives: Early Photographs
The early days of Caboolture, in colour.
The River. Caboolture in 1841. Towards evening, our direction being still the same, we came to the banks of another river or creek of the same breadth as the Pine River; it was however pretty deep, as it was flood tide. Having crossed it, we went over a tract of rich soil, followed by aContinue reading “The early days of Caboolture, in colour.”
The early days of Gatton, in colour.
The first mention of Gatton as a locality near Moreton Bay comes from a Sydney paper in 1846. “A smart gallop of half an hour brought me to Gatton, Messrs Pitt and Co.’s station, passing which, another half hour gave the dwelling and station of Mr. Pearce to view, on the left bank of theContinue reading “The early days of Gatton, in colour.”
Mr Humby and Mr Humby.
The earliest census returns for Moreton Bay had nearly 1600 people spread out over a vast area that ranged from the Darling Downs to the Logan, Pine River, Ipswich and Brisbane Town. In December 1849, there were two men named Humby in tiny Brisbane Town. Both were English. Both were transported convicts. Both had marriedContinue reading “Mr Humby and Mr Humby.”
The early days of Warwick, in colour.
Warwick is one of Queensland’s oldest inland towns, having been chosen in the late 1840s as a township to support the various squatting runs in the region.
The early days in the Gulf, in colour.
Burketown Burketown and Normanton are towns on either side of the Gulf of Carpentaria – Normanton is on the east, and Burketown on the west. Both towns are historically linked to the Victorian Exploring Expedition, led by Robert O’Hara Burke and William Wills in 1860-1861. That expedition left Melbourne in 1860, and reached the GulfContinue reading “The early days in the Gulf, in colour.”
The early days of Charleville, in colour.
Out and about in Charleville. Sadly, Clement Lindley Wragge (left) was not involved in the breaking of the drought in 1902. Meteorologist Wragge visited Charleville in September of that year, to fire off some Steiger Vortex Cannons, which he was convinced would draw the rain from the clouds. (If fired directly at said clouds.) MrContinue reading “The early days of Charleville, in colour.”
House Decoration – tips for ladies from the Queenslander.
The Queenslander advised ladies to cast aside their embroidery hoops, and use paint, brushes and the inspiration found in nature to transform their homes. (It was assumed that ladies had nothing better to do with their days than crochet or attempt arts and crafts-style makeovers.) Flourishes for the Drawing Room. The Queenslander offered some styleContinue reading “House Decoration – tips for ladies from the Queenslander.”
The early days of Cape York and the Torres Strait, in colour.
The Torres Strait saw a lot of foreign ships passing by and through it from the early 17th century to the Victorian era, which is when the passers-by started to stay. The Strait was named after Luis Vaz de Torres, the first European to have officially recorded its presence, in 1606. After suspecting that theContinue reading “The early days of Cape York and the Torres Strait, in colour.”
The early days of Goondiwindi, in colour.
The Government commenced selling land in newly-christened Goondiwindi in 1860. A year later, a correspondent for the Darling Downs Gazette opined that, for all the difficulty of getting there, it might be well worth staying. At present it is as much as one’s life is worth to attempt an adventure so desperate as that ofContinue reading “The early days of Goondiwindi, in colour.”
