20th Century

Beaudesert Railway Station and Complex, Davidson Park

During WWI the ringing of church bells signalled to the townsfolk to gather at the railation in Davidson Park, as the incoming train from Brisbane held one of their heroes from the battlefields. Local dignitaries, friends and loved ones met the train, and the town band played Home Sweet Home. The returned warrior was hoisted high upon strong shoulders amid cheering and clapping.

Yearning for home had been in the thoughts of many of our fighting men while away from loved ones. Michael Patrick (Mick) Deane of Christmas Creek writing home: “I am longing to be back among you at the dear old Creek…I’d give a lot to get a nice smack that would send me to Blighty (home) for the winter, out of the mud and snow. How is the (Hillview) hall? Have you got her out of debt yet?”

Robert Crozier of Beaudesert: “Dear Alice, I am sorry I am not back with you to help you milk those cows.” Ernest Stanfield of Beaudesert: “When I got onto the hospital ship, the sisters were so kind, that I felt inclined to howl…after four months in the trenches you can appreciate a little of the milk of human kindness.”

Joyful memories of homecoming must surely still stir in the soil of this very ground.

The station building is a late nineteenth century standard design with curved and chamfered brackets supporting the shade which is an extension of the gabled roof. It appears to have been built in 2 stages, the northern (original) section consisting of a store (former waiting) and toilet and office and the later southern extension being an extension of the office with an abandoned ticket window in the end wall. The ceiling is lined and painted white but that of the waiting area is unpainted. The goods shed is a substantially altered c.10m x 4.5m timber framed weatherboard lined building with 1 sliding door on each side elevation, platforms and window boarded up and no shade. The crane is of 2 tons capacity and was manufactured by Cowans Sheldon and Co. Ltd., Carlisle, (no.1494) in 1886. The Shire building may have been associated with the tramway and appears to have been used as a goods shed.

Beaudesert is located in a district producing fodder crops and serves a dairying community. The railway from Bethania Junction to Logan Village was built by J. Overend and Co. and opened on 5 September 1885. W. Mason built the extension to Beaudesert which was completed on 28 December 1887 and opened on 17 May 1888. Locomotive and carriage sheds were moved from Logan Village. The Shire tramway from Beaudesert to Lamington and Rathdowney was opened in stages from 10 October 1903 to convey timber and dairy products and was closed on 30 September 1944. In 1962 the main traffic on the line was stock to Tancred's slaughter yards near Bromelton. The line was closed in 1995. By 1934 the complex consisted of station building, lamp room/w.c., engine shed and turntable with 2 tier tank, weighbridge, goods shed and 2 ton crane, trucking yards, and the following houses: pumpers quarters, porters quarters, fettlers, Station Master's house and camping quarters. The tramway and Shire buildings were located to the south of the station building. The weighbridge was removed in 1969 and the tank in 1970. By 1994 the contributory elements consisted of the station building, goods shed and crane and an unidentified building of the Beaudesert Shire.

Drynan Cousins Football Team

In 1932, an advertisement appeared in the Beaudesert Times for a football game to aid the Beaudesert Hospital. This was a regional match played between the Logan and Albert Rugby League Team", of Beaudesert, and the Drynan Cousins, a team fielded from the surrounding countryside. The latter team was made up entirely of first cousins as each player was a grandchild of Andrew and Anne Drynan, the original selectors, who settled there in 1875. Fielding the 17 man team was not onerous, as, by 1932, the family boasted 32 male and 19 female first cousins. Following the game, an evening dinner was organized at the Beaudesert Hotel by the Drynan brothers, thirty of the male first cousins attended the dinner, where the Drynan Cousins team were complimented on "the good, clean game they had played", the "wonderful spirit" with which they participated, and proposed that "if they act in private life as they did on the football field they would be good men".

Today, in 2020, many descendants of the family remain resident in the district. They maintain family traditions of kindred connectedness and generational support, qualities set out so solidly and affectionately by their remarkable ancestors.

Boonah Butter Factory

This once grand building has an impressive history. At the time it was built, this was one of the most modern butter factories in the Commonwealth of Australia it also had the distinction of being the largest in the southern hemisphere.  Until it ceased operations in March 1974, water to operate the factory had to be piped from the dam at Dugandan. The output of butter from the factory was at one time the second highest in Queensland, and it was a major supplier of dairy product to Brisbane. The Butter Factory is situated in a prominent position being on the corner of the Boonah-Rathdowney Road and Railway Street. It is the first building visitors come to when entering the central business district. Although it is now in a sad state of disrepair, it served as a gallery and art space for many years. The loading ramp where local farmers and carriers unloaded the cream cans is now used as a fruit and vegetable outlet. This building is the only surviving major industrial site related to the dairy, railway and timber industries in Boonah. Cossart’s Mill at Dugandan, the largest supplier of butter boxes in Australia supplied the boxes for the factory.

Image Credit - State Library of Queensland

Image Credit - Scenic Rim Regional Council 2021

Romeo Lahey and Arthur Groom having a bush breakfast, 1938

Binna Burra The First Christmas Camp

Arthur Groom, a journalist and Romeo Lahey an engineer from Canungra, were the two gentlemen instrumental in the formation of Binna Burra Mountain Lodge. Romeo was a vigorous campaigner for the establishment of Lamington National Park which was proclaimed in 1915. 

Both Arthur and Romeo independently visited Mt Roberts where Binna Burra now stands on several occasions. Christmas 1933 was extremely wet with a tropical cyclone developing off the coast as Christmas Day approached. 

Margaret Pryor from Kedron attended the inaugural camp that wet Christmas and recalled, “The tent camp was near the entrance of the Caves Walk. A big tent for the dining room and a cooks tent with stove facilities and smaller tents for sleeping. There were often snakes in the tents at night you could hear the girls scream when a snake was discovered”.

On clear nights Arthur would lead the guests up the hill to where Binna Burra Lodge now stands and they would look out over to the lights of Brisbane and he would tell his guests, “This is where I’ll build my Guesthouse".

Image Credit: State Library of Queensland

Frank and Young Ian

'The Threads that Bind Us’

Ian Harsant never forgot his friend Frankie, the Italian prisoner of war who came to work on the Harrisville family farm in 1944, when Ian was just two years old. Francesco Pintabona and two of his compatriots were treated as members of the family, sharing meals with the Harsants in their kitchen. Ian called his friend ‘Hank’ and followed him around the farm as he worked.

After Frank was repatriated to his war-torn homeland in 1946, letters from Ian’s father, Roderick Harsant, supporting the Italian’s wish to return and settle in Australia mysteriously went astray, and Frank never returned.

Unable to bear the thought that Frank might believe the Harsant family had abandoned him, Ian wrote letters and searched records for fifty years, until his quest finally bore bitter-sweet fruit.

Image Credit: Ian Harsant

Image Title: Frank holding young Ian on the hay truck

Lahey's Canungra Tramway

Although it was Hugh Mahony who is credited with being the first man to harvest cedar on Canungra Creek in the 1850s, it was the Laheys who saw the value in  "good timber" and  commenced construction work on the mill which was to become the terminus of the largest private timber tramway operation in Queensland.

The mill at Canungra flourished during the first sixteen years of operation with timber readily obtained from the immediate area. The Lahey family expanded their business during this time, establishing an office in Brisbane in 1887, saw and planing mills at  Beaudesert  in 1888, the construction of a new mill at Canungra in 1897 after the original mill was destroyed by fire.

Near the end of the century it became obvious that the mill needed access to the Coomera Valley to provide long-term log supplies. The high saddle east of the town was a major barrier and in 1900, H.W. Clark was employed to survey a logging tramway.

 The tramway from Canungra up the Coomera Valley was surveyed in detail . Having discarded options of wire-rope and rack railway operation, a 90 metre unlined tunnel of rectangular cross-section was cut through the ridge, the most substantial construction on a timber tramway in Queensland. It was not necessary to line the tunnel, a judgement confirmed by its state nearly a century later.

By 1904, 4.5 miles of the proposed 10 mile tramline (bridging the Coomera three times) had been completed with rails and the 90 metre long tunnel was complete. The line was long enough to tap 18 months supply of timber.

 By February 1905 the line was complete and the geared Climax locomotive had arrived.

Besides the Canungra-O'Reilly's Road, the tramway tunnel remains the one major landmark of the whole tramway and sawmilling complex.

Image Credit: State Library of Queensland

Boys, Bicycles and Bombs of Beaudesert

In January 942, fear of Japan dropping incendiary fire bombs on Australian townships, prompted Beaudesert Chief Air Raid Warden Harold Selwyn-Smith to appeal for assistance from boys aged 14 to 18. There was one stipulation: they must own a bicycle.

After an air-raid, the lads were to pedal through the town streets looking for bomb holes in roofs. Their weaponry was a hard hat, stirrup pump to extinguish the fire, and a wooden rake to push the bomb onto a shovel to be carried outside and smothered in sand.

An old photograph shows the boys at their first training in 1942, perched on the back of a fire truck with dad’s long trousers bunched around slender waists, and hems hastily shortened for this grown-up task.

Gradually the community breathed a sigh of relief as the allies won the battles of Kokoda and Midway. The teenagers were never put to the test, but they were trained and ready. Now, they could be boys once more.

Image Credit: Beaudesert Museum

Beaudesert Times (former)

Opened on 17 February 1905 as Technical Hall/School of Arts. Constructed in local timber and designed by G Wilson. Built by A Nicol at a cost of 638 pounds. The property was transferred from its trustees to Beaudesert Shire Council in 1939 and then to the Beaudesert Times in 1972. It was sold again in 2004 and 2007.

Enrights (formerly Lahey's) Sawmill, Beaudesert

On the western side of the Mount Lindesay highway on the northern outskirts of Beaudesert. Enright's Beaudesert Sawmill is an operating sawmill and is in a well-maintained condition. According to a sign the roof trusses date from 1888 and are still sound. The remainder of the building and its contents are presumably from later dates, particularly the modern Canadian log handling equipment. The additions to the main sawmill shed reflect a gradual process of change to meet need.

Isaiah Lahey managed the new Beaudesert Mill and the firm became Lahey Brothers Extended, its partners, J. W., I. D. and T. G. all being natives of Ireland who had emigrated to Australia in 1862. The Laheys bought a Fowler steam traction engine to haul logs to the mill; its nick-name of ¿Laheys¿ Folly¿ tells of its success. The mill being beside the railway with its own siding on the outskirts of Beaudesert, the output was efficiently railed to market. The siding was also a regular stopping place for passengers for more than 50 years. The construction of the Beaudesert Tramway in 1904 by the local Shire Council provided an effective means of the mill tapping most of the country south to the border. The Shire's own locomotive was specially allowed along the government railway to take logs directly to Lahey's mill. The mill burnt down in 1919 and David with his eldest son Percy designed the new mill and supervised its building. Lahey¿s Beaudesert Limited was registered on 15 April 1924 with Isaiah (retired) and his sons Archibald and Harold as shareholders. The mill was sold to Pattersons of Toowong in 1948 and six years later to the Enrights, its current owners. Enrights, who had earlier purchased Charlie Ward¿s sawmill in William Street, Beaudesert, closed the William Street mill in 1962. They state that despite the fire, the building now housing the mill, which has been substantially modernised, is the shed for Lahey¿s original mill, constructed with roof trusses of hoop pine and joined with 25 millimetre [one inch] dowel and glued. The mill is electrically powered, steam operation having ended in 1948. The mill was substantially enlarged in 1906, Lahey Brothers and Nicklin then being the proprietors. The mill is still operating, Enright's having substantially raised productivity in 1985 with the installation of a $250 000 Canadian log sizing carriage, log feed works, log turner and log decker. Installation was handled by Jim Woods replacing an 18 year old sawbench. Despite Laheys¿ dominance, there were many other sawmills. Josias Hancock operated at Beaudesert and Darlington in the late 1890s, with Campbell and Sons at Beaudesert in 1915, and by 1918 Raymond and Hossack of Brisbane. From 1929 the Queensland Forest Service had a Beaudesert mill. There were mills at Jelbyn. Laheys leased the Kerry mill from Mrs Smales in the 1890s, and Hancock and Gore also milled at Kerry. Josias Hancock, also trading as Hancock Brothers, operated a mill at Darlington as well as Dugandan (later Cossarts) and Beaudesert, from around 1896. It was beside the Albert River near the Darlington State School, but although the site is identifiable, no remains are visible. Later operated by Hancock and Gore, it was listed until 1908.

Logan and Albert Hotel

Two storey rendered masonry hotel with asbestos cement roof. Ornate parapet to street with 'Logan and Albert Hotel' on the corner and centre of Brisbane Street elevation. Upper level verandah has enclosed balustrade and solid sections with windows through. Appears intact. Supported on posts at street level. '1934' on balustrade. Some cast plaster detailing on ceiling survives. Bars refurbished but alterations are probably mostly reversible.

Architects Hall and Phillips 1934. Replaced an earlier hotel of the same name.

Beaudesert Racecourse Grandstand

Timber grandstand with bar area underneath and fenced racecourse. Stables and amenities are also situated on the site.

The Logan and Albert Jockey Club held its inaugural meeting in Howard’s Beaudesert Hotel in April 1879. Early races were held on Markwell’s property about two miles out of town. In 1881, 120 acres were set aside as the reserve for the racecourse near Ilbogan Lagoon. However, it would seem that the club continued to use the private land because it considered the Ilbogan site unsuitable and lobbied to be allowed to sell it for agriculture. This did not occur and the first race meeting on the site was held in September 1901.

Il-Bogan Racecourse

Beaudesert racecourse is located 64 kilometres south west of Brisbane and is the home of the Beaudesert Race Club and the Hibernian Race Club. Racing began at Beaudesert racecourse in 1879 with the formation of the Logan and Albert Jockey Club. Beaudesert Race Club has been racing since 1895. The present grandstand was built in 1912 and has been retained as a heritage feature of the course. In 2001 Beaudesert racecourse underwent a major upgrade including the building of an all-weather course proper. Beaudesert Race Club hosts over seven race meetings per year with the major events being the ANZAC Day races, Melbourne Cup day and Beaudesert Cup day.

Beaudesert racecourse is a tight circular track with a circumference of only 1435 metres. The track is 18 metres wide with the home straight a short 210 metres long. The course obviously favours on pace runners with inside barriers a big advantage. A long chute that joins the course proper at the 1000m provides starts for races over 1100m, 1200m and 1400m. The Beaudesert Hibernian Charity Raceday held each May is an iconic event on the Queensland racing calendar. The Hibernian charity race meetings began in 1949 and have raised millions of dollars for worthy causes. The Hibernian Race Club came into being in 1907 and held meetings at the Shamrock Vale course in conjunction with the Kerry Race Club for more than 40 years. The modern Beaudesert Hibernian Race Club conducted its first race meeting in 1949 and in the 1950s was granted permanent status as a provincial club with a permanent charity race date.Local Catholic priest Monsignor Owen Steele was elected chairman of the race club with a vision was to build a welfare establishment later to be known as Boystown. The first Boystown race meeting was held in 1961 and until the final race day in 1988 more than $500,000 was raised in support of Boystown.

Mount Olivet Hospital in Brisbane became the beneficiary of the race day in 1989, an association that continued for 13 years, raising nearly $1 million. Since 2003 the Beaudesert Hibernian Race Club has raised funds for the Wesley Hospital Breast Cancer unit and RACQ Careflight rescue and retrieval helicopter service.

St Mary's School

The school itself is situated in the centre of Beaudesert where it is highly visible from the town and enjoys great open spaces. The aesthetics of the buildings reflect a heritage nature and we hope to salvage the façade of the 1939 built building for the rebuild because it is iconic to the school. As a school icon, the front entry of this building is incorporated into the school badge with the motto “BELONG, GROW, SERVE IN CHRIST” included. It is from this motto that we base our school vision.

In 1899 a committee was formed for the purpose of building a convent for the Sisters of Mercy who would teach the students in the proposed new Catholic school. On the 19th August 1901 the school was opened with an enrolment of 101 students. Families in the Beaudesert district have continued to send their children to St. Mary’s for over 110 years and there are children who are currently in the school who are great grand children of some who were here in those early years. Many generations have come to school at St. Mary’s. There are still some of the original school buildings on site. Over the years there have been many renovations to the school with major building projects in 1939, 1958, 1967 and from 1997 where an ongoing building program now sees St. Mary’s almost at the end of endeavours to building facilities for a 3-stream school. St Mary's Catholic Church

The town's most impressive historical attraction is St Mary's, a magnificent timber church, which is located on Bromelton Street and is attached to St Mary's Primary School. It has an unusual history. The first St Mary's, known at the time as Our Lady of the Purification, was completed in 1889 but moved to Kerry in 1907. That same year the current church was completed. The Scenic Rim Local Heritage Register notes: St Mary's was blessed and opened on 15 September 1907. The foundation stone had been laid on the 2 February in the same year. Designed by G H M Addison, the timber gothic church boasted a bell tower. The building was raised and restumped in the 1920s, with brick front steps added in the 1950s. The building is representative of a large timber church in the carpenter gothic style of architecture that was popular for churches from the late nineteenth century. Features include the ornate gable decoration, vertically oriented stained glass windows, and asymmetrical façade with bell tower. The design demonstrates a high degree of creative and technical achievement. The church has social significance as a gathering place for the local Catholic community since the late nineteenth century.

Railway Hotel

In anticipation of a railway extension the Railway Hotel was opened in 1887. When the line from Bethania Junction opened the following year Beaudesert was positioned to become the provincial centre for the upper Logan and Albert River Valleys and for farm communities as far south as the McPherson Ranges over the New South Wales border. A sawmill and a Church of England were opened in 1888.

The Overflow, Wyaralong

The Overflow 1895 is a historic grazing property located about 60 kilometres south of Brisbane as the crow flies, 16 kilometres west of Beaudesert and about 20 kilometres east of Boonah. It spans the Beaudesert-Boonah highway and fronts the Wyaralong Dam. The newly constructed dam, completed in 2010, forms the northern boundary. The Overflow boasts approximately 12 kilometres of waterfront land.

Edgar first pitched his tent under a fig tree on the slope opposite the present site of The Overflow mansion. He worked his property from that location until he was able to build something more permanent. The current home was completed late in 1899 and in the first few months of 1900. The final opening was sealed just in time for the newly-wed Edgar and Nita to take up residence. As the family grew, extensions were added. Modules were added to the eastern and western sides of the central structure in 1912. In 1914, “upstairs” was added. This was a remarkable feat in itself.

The cedar staircase pierces the centre of the house leaving enough hallway for easy movement. The top section has no beams. It is held together by enormous lengths of steel rod joined in the middle with turn buckles. It is dominated by one large room which has essentially been open to the elements ever since. The eight Joyce girls grew up in that environment tolerating heatwaves, droughts, wet seasons and frosts.

Beaudesert General Cemetery

Land transferred from the estate of Ernest White to cemetery trustees in 1900. Transferred to Shire Council as trustees in 1932. 1937, part of Boundary Street (now closed), now part of cemetery, as it has been doubled in size, by adding land to the east and new road created around the cemetery (Wd 1535). 1962, new road created around cemetery now included in the cemetery, as there have already been burials on this land.

Gleneagle Cemetery, Gleneagle

Land donated to the Catholic Church by William Rafter in 1886. A church was located on the site (date unknown). The cemetery was known as Tullarmore Cemetery. William Rafter was buried here in August 1909. His son William was arrested for desicrating the church in 1933. Many pioneering Irish families are buried here including those re-interred from the Waterford cemetery when the property was sold in 1983.

Tamrookum Cemetery, Tamrookum

Tamrookum Cemetery is located in the very well maintained grounds of All Saints Anglican Church, a beautiful timber building that dates from 1915.

Beaudesert Memorial Palm Garden

33 trees were planted for the 33 Men and Women who lost there lives during The Second World War. This Memorial was built as part of the Australia Remembers in 1996. There is also a Memorial in appreciation to all Vietnam Veteran's on the 40th Anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan.

Second World War, 1939-1945 Vietnam War, 1962-1972

Beaudesert Hotel

Large two storey brick hotel with terracotta tiled roof. Two colours of brick with art deco detailing. Cantilevered street awning with first floor balconies with horizontal tubular steel rail balustrade. Brickwork forms curved parapet at corner. Verandah on Short Street enclosed. Rear very utilitarian with bottle shop and covered parking attached. Windows timber with horizontal glazing bars. Fairly intact art deco interiors with raised parts to ceilings, vj bar fronts, terrazzo porch floors. Etched glass in doorways - 'BH'.

The building occupies the site of the original Beaudesert Jockey Club Hotel built by Albert Jennings in 1885. He died in 1886 and his widow Agnes took over the licence. She remarried John Markwell and then leased and later sold the property to her son George. He died in 1918 and it was transferred to his wife Charlotte, who also sub leased the property numerous times. During the interwar years, a number of other parcels of land were added to the original hotel site, which presumably included an extended structure. In 1935 the property was acquired by Queensland Brewery Ltd. A new brick hotel was designed by Addison & McDonald and built by K Morris in 1941.

Kooralbyn Memorial

Large stone with plaques attached, surrounded by pavers and a small garden.

Constable George Doyle and Albert Dahlke

The memorial erected over the grave commemorates Constable Doyle and Dahlke who were killed by the Kenniff Brothers in 1902. A plaque was unveiled on the memorial to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the tragedy in 2002. Constable George Doyle while attempting to arrest brothers Patrick and James Kenniff on the 30 March 1902 was murdered by them at Lethbridge's Pocket via Springsure. On the morning of Sunday 30th March 1902, the police party, which included Albert Dahlke who was an employeer of R.M.Collins who owned the Tamrookum church, surprised the Kenniffs, who were camping at Lethbridge's Pocket, and took James into custody. Patrick Kenniff was believed to have escaped. One of the party, Sam Johnson was sent to collect the police pack horses so they could start in pursuit of Patrick Kenniff however on his return he found Doyle, Dahlke and James Kenniff missing from the camp. When both the Kenniffs rode back into the camp towards Johnson he fled and raised the alarm. The bodies of the Constable and Dahlke were burnt, however the charred remains were found in the saddle bags of Constable Doyle. A massive police hunt ensued until finally the Kenniff brothers were caught near Mitchell. The two brothers, Patrick and James, were charged with the murder of Constable George Doyle and station hand Dahlke. The two were found guilty of murder and ended up in the notorious St Helena Island penal settlement. Patrick Kenniff was hung in Brisbane on 12 January 1903 but James death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. James served 12 years in prison and then worked on cattle stations and fossicked before dying of cancer in 1940. 'The memorial, which is to be erected at Tamrookum, over the graves of the late Constable Doyle and Mr. Dahlke, who were the victims of the awful tragedy in the bush last year, is now on view at Mr. A. L. Petrie's yards, near Toowong cemetery. It is a neat obelisk surmounted by a cross, and suitably inscribed, The memorial will be removed to Tamrookum on the 4th December.' Telegraph (Brisbane), 26 November 1904. December 10. The Doyle - Dahlke memorial was unveiled at Tamrookum today—the twenty ninth anniversary of the late Albert Dahlke's birthday. There was no ceremony. The Queenslander (Brisbane), 17 December 1904.

100th Anniversary Memorial 1902 -2002 On 1 April 2002 members of the Doyle, Dahlke and Collins families accompanied by members of the Queensland Police Service, gathered to remember the tragic deaths of Constable George Doyle and station manager Albert Dahlke Dedicated by Acting Deputy Commissioner R.P.Conder, APM Plaque sponsored by the Queensland Police Union

In Memory Of Constable George Doyle And Albert Christian Dahlke.

Whose Uncompromising Fidelity And Heroic Endeavour To Do Their Duty And Vindicate The Law Led To Their Murder Under Revolting Circumstances At Lethbridge Pocket Near The Head Of The Warrego River Easter Day 1902.

In Order To Destroy Traces Of The Crime Their Bodies Were Burnt But The Ashes Having Been Subsequently Recovered Were Interred In This Place. 13th January, 1904 Thou Hast Been Faithful Over A Few Things. I Will Make Thee Ruler Over Many Things. R·I·P

23 Squadron, Wyaralong

The memorial commemorates 23 Squadron Royal Australian Air Force (R.A.A.F.) who used the area at Wyaralong Dam for bombing and gunnery range practice before departing for combat duty during in World War Two. It recognises the relationship established during World War Two between the Philp family of 'Wyaralong' and their descendants with No. 23 Squadron Royal Australian Air Force.

No 23 Squadron During World War 11, No.23 Squadron, and other Royal Australian Airforce Squadrons (RAAF) based in South East Queensland, used the Wyaralong area south of this point, as a deployed airfield for bombing and gunnery range practice before departing for combat operations in Papua New Guinea. So began the association between No 23 Squadron and Wyaralong land holders that continues to this day. The Wedge-tailed Eagle is found across Australia, including this area. It has been a part of the official RAAF emblem since 1939.

Beaudesert Masonic Lodge

Two storey fibro cement building with timber sash windows and corrugated iron roof. The design of the building uses Masonic symbology throughout, such as the three-tiered windows and the angular façade representing the Masonic compass.

The land for the Masonic Lodge was originally given by Thomas Brayford in 1910 to trustees of the Theodore Unmack (Irish) Masonic Lodge. It is estimated that the building was designed and constructed in the 1950s.

Wyaralong Homestead

Wyaralong Homestead is a low-set timber building of three core areas connected to the other by verandahs. The multi-gabled roofline is corrugated iron sheeting. The house addresses the Teviot Brook to the north. The house was constructed in several stages from 1860s-1915.

Wyaralong is situated at the northeast edge of Boonah Shire. The original 10 000 acres of land was divided from the Dugandan Run in the early years of 1900. Wyaralong was purchased by Colin J. C. Philp, eldest son of Sir Robert Philp KCMG, around the time of his marriage to Miss K. Collins. This block had previously been the home station of Campbell McDonald, a partner in Dugandan. The property was later cut into dairy farms occupied by ‘share farmers’. A members of the Philp family still resides at Wyaralong in the old homestead partly built by Campbell McDonald, and extensively extended by Colin Philp for his family.

40th Anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan

The plaque commemorates the 40th Anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan and acknowledges all Vietnam Veterans. The Battle of Long Tan (18 August 1966) took place near the village of Long Tan, in Phuoc Tuy Province, South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. The action was fought between Australian forces and Viet Cong and North Vietnamese units after the 108-man D Company, 6 RAR clashed with a force of between 1,500 to 2,500 men from the Viet Cong 275th Regiment, reinforced by at least one North Vietnamese battalion and D445 Provincial Mobile Battalion. Eighteen Australians were killed and 24 wounded, while the Viet Cong lost at least 245 dead which were found over the days that followed. A decisive Australian victory, Long Tan proved a major local set back for the Viet Cong. Australia's military involvement in the Vietnam War began with the arrival of the Australian Army Training Team Vietnam (AATTV) in South Vietnam during July and August 1962. Australia's participation in the war was formally declared at an end when the Governor-General issued a proclamation on 11 January 1973. However, the end-date of Australia's involvement in the Vietnam War has officially been amended to 29 April 1975 to reflect Australia’s further involvement in the war during the fall of Saigon in 1975. The Department of Veterans Affairs and the Australian War Memorial, in Canberra now recognise this new date.

In appreciation to all Vietnam veterans on the 40th anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan. 8 August 2006

Beaudesert RSL Sub Branch Memorial Wall

The Memorial Wall commemorates those from the district who have served in the various conflicts in which Australia has been involved.

Beaudesert R.S.L. Sub Branch Memorial Inc Memorial Wall Dedicated 15th February 2014 by The Rev. Ian Turnbull

Centenary Of Beaudesert

Plaque commemorates the centenary of Beaudesert. The town was named after Beau Desert station which was established in the area in 1842 and named after Beau Desert Park in Staffordshire. The area had been explored in the late 1820s by both Allan Cunningham and Patrick Logan after whom the nearby river is named. The large landholdings which were taken up in the early 1840s remained until the 1860s when they were broken up. This led to a change from sheep grazing to cattle and a growth in the density of a settlement which became known as Beaudesert which was proclaimed a town in 1874. By the time the railway arrived in 1888 the town had grown due to its proximity to Brisbane. To Commemorate The Centenary of Beaudesert 1874-1974 Unveiled 12th October 1974 By The Hon. J. Bjelke-Petersen M.L.A. Premier of Queensland

25 Years of Rural Youth

A plough commemorates 25 years of Rural Youth in Beaudesert.

This plaque is placed here to commemorate twenty-five years of Rural Youth in Beaudesert. The golden plough represents the highest ideals of rural youth. Placed here by Beaudesert Rural Youth and unveiled on 20th May 1979.

Lieutenant Harry 'Breaker' Morant

The museum 'Harry's Haunt' commemorates soldier and poet Harry 'Breaker' Morant who served and was executed in the South African (Boer) War. Harry 'Breaker' Harbord Morant was an Anglo-Australian drover, horseman, poet, soldier and convicted war criminal whose skill with horses earned him the nickname 'The Breaker'. The bulk of his published work appeared in The Bulletin magazine. During service in the Second Boer War, Morant participated in the summary execution of several Boer (Afrikaner) prisoners and the murder of a German missionary, Daniel Heese, who had been a witness to the shootings. His actions led to his controversial court-martial for murder and his death warrant was personally signed by the British commander in South Africa, Lord Kitchener, although Lord Kitchener subsequently denied the issuance of it. Morant was executed for murder by a contingent of Cameron Highlanders (a regiment of the British Army) in Pretoria gaol (South Africa) on 27 February 1902.

HARRY`S HAUNT In Memory Of Lt. Harry "The Breaker" Morant

Royal Australian Navy - Vietnam

The plaque commemorates the service of the Royal Australian Navy in the Vietnam War The Royal Australian Navy's role in the Vietnam War is sometimes overlooked by comparison with the Army's larger numerical involvement. As well as serving in ships deployed to Vietnam naval personnel served in clearance diving teams, the Navy helicopter flight, in logistic support roles and in medical teams. Australian destroyers sailed nearly 400,000 miles in the course of the war and fired more than 100,000 rounds of ammunition. The converted aircraft carrier H.M.A.S. Sydney carried about 16,000 Australian troops as the famed `Vung Tau Ferry'. Australian Clearance Divers carried out several thousand ship searches looking for bombs and other explosive devices. A total of eight officers and sailors of the Royal Australian Navy were killed and nearly 50 injured in the 10 years of our Navy's involvement in hostilities. Australia's military involvement in the Vietnam War began with the arrival of the Australian Army Training Team Vietnam (AATTV) in South Vietnam during July and August 1962. Australia's participation in the war was formally declared at an end when the Governor-General issued a proclamation on 11 January 1973. However, the end-date of Australia's involvement in the Vietnam War has officially been amended to 29 April 1975 to reflect Australia’s further involvement in the war during the fall of Saigon in 1975. The Department of Veterans Affairs and the Australian War Memorial, in Canberra now recognise this new date.

RAN Service in South Vietnam Ships & Units allotted for duty HMAS Brisbane ​HMAS Perth ​HMAS Hobart ​HMAS Vendetta Clearance Diving Team RAN Helicopter Flight Detachment of 723 Sqn RAN Helicopter Element 9 Sqn RAAF Support & Logistics Roll ​HMAS ANZAC ​HMAS Boonaroo ​HMAS Derwent ​HMAS Duchess HV Jeparit ​HMAS Jeparit ​HMAS Melbourne ​HMAS Parramatta ​HMAS Queenborough ​HMAS Quiberon ​HMAS Stuart ​HMAS Swan ​HMAS Sydney Helicopter flight Embark in ​HMAS Sydney RAN Band 725 Sqn and 817 Sqn Escort Roll ​HMAS Torrens ​HMAS Vampire ​HMAS Vandetta ​HMAS Yarra ​HMAS Quickmatch To the Royal Australian Navy 100 years 1911 to 2011

St Thomas War Memorial Church

The church commemorates those who served in World Wars One and Two. A. M. D. G. In memory of the men and women of the services of World Wars - 1914 - 18 and 1939 - 45 This stone was set by His Excellency Lieut-General Sir John Lavarack K.C.M.G., K.C.V.O., K.B.E., C.B., D.S.C. Governor of Queensland And blessed by the Most Revd. Reginald Halse D.D. Archbishop of Brisbane 24th November 1956 Revd. Noel R. Tomlinson Th. L. Rector C. D. Tranter Churchwardens C. A. Ferguson

St Mary's Catholic Church, Beaudesert

In 1874, Father Benedict Scortechini was appointed to the Logan Mission, which included Beaudesert, to become its first resident priest. The first baptism that he entered in the parish Baptismal register is dated 28th December of that year. Father Scortechini resided at Logan Village for the next nine years. In 1889, Archbishop Dunne laid the foundation of a new church at the prettily-situated and fast-growing town of Beaudesert. That same year, the church dedicated to Our Lady of the Purification, and known as St Mary's ever since, was blessed and opened by the Archbishop. It was not long before the original church became too small for the ever-growing catholic population and a decision was made to shift the church to Kerry and replace it in Beaudesert with a new building. The old church has been at Kerry since 1907 and is now know as St John's. St Mary's was blessed and opened on 15 September 1907. The foundation stone had been laid on the 2 February in the same year. Designed by G H M Addison, the timber gothic church boasted a bell tower. The building was raised and restumped in the 1920s, with brick front steps added in the 1950s.

Wiss Brothers Store

Wiss Brothers’ Store in the main street of Kalbar was designed by Ipswich architect Henry Wyman and built in 1909. The township was known as Englesberg up until WWI, reflecting the German heritage of the region. The Wiss brothers, Campbell and Lionel came to Queensland in 1887, establishing themselves in Englesberg in the early 1890s. The business remained with the Wiss family until 1947, and subsequent owners continued to operate the general store until the 1960s.

The street facade is a virtuoso assemblage of sheet metal and classical masonry detail. It has three arched windows above the awning, the central one being the largest and crowned by a pediment with the inscription WISS BROS. Pilasters feature to either side of the pediment, with the dates 1890 and 1909, and to the corners of the facade, and are surmounted by finials.

The building is embellished by the use of decorative pressed metal sheets, depicting a brickwork pattern to the front facade and floral and geometric patterns to the verandah awning, window display ceiling and sections of the store ceiling. The shopfront has three glass display bays with cast-iron columns at each corner of the central bay. There are french doors with fanlights, between each of the bays.

Internally, the building has exposed timber trusses with diagonally boarded raked ceilings with a central flat pressed metal ceiling. The trusses are supported by central timber columns with timber arch brackets and some of the original timber partitioning, with turned timber balustrade capping, remains.

To the south of the store is the original residence, consisting of two small timber and iron dwellings connected by an enclosed verandah. A bulk store, constructed of timber with twin hipped corrugated iron roofs and lean-to awnings, is located at the rear of the store.

ASSI 150 Wayfinder, Veresdale

Free Standing Carved Sculpture. Stained Iron Bark Trunk.

Funded by the Scenic Rim Regional Councils Artist in Residence strategic initiative through regional Arts Development Fund.

Hopkins Park

Historic Walk 2013 Look over to the Logan River flats between the Veresdale Hotel and Walker Road. Here were once the cotton fields of Townsvale. The original survey shows a proposed one chain wide road dividing the property which became Walker Road, named after the manager and eventual owner of the plantation, William Tutin Walker. During the 150 Year Commemoration of the arrival of the South Sea Islanders, an historic walk took place along Walker Road which reflected the original entry of the Islanders to the plantation. Led by Vanuatu Chief Richard Fandanumata, the ASSI community walked side by side with the Walker family and local landowners. With the blowing of the conch shell, the dried seeds strapped to ankles rattled to the throb of hand carved drums. Feet were treading the very soil which once dripped with the sweat of their forebears.

ASSI 150 Wayfinder, Veresdale

Stage 2 of the ASSI 150 Wayfinder Artwork

Beaudesert Memorial

On a traffic island in the centre of town stands the heritage-listed Beaudesert and District War Memorial. Its location at the corner of Brisbane and William Streets is where early tracks from outlying station runs converged. Built at a cost of £1340 it was unveiled in 1921. Comprising a pedestal surmounted by a digger statue, and a 10m high obelisk, the life-sized soldier is fashioned from Sicilian marble, and depicted ‘just released from duty’. The throat of his tunic is open, pipe in right hand, and rifle slung from left shoulder. Guarding the memorial are two sandstone lions facing outwards. Surviving in its intact surrounds for over 00 years, the monument forms a dominant landmark within the townscape.

Image Credit - Steve Fitchett Photography 2021

Aratula Lutheran Cemetery

Aratula, the youngest of all the towns in the Boonah district, dates from 1915, when 19 town allotments were auctioned. Jacob Richter, who set up business as a blacksmith about 1912 when the area was still known as Carter’s Gate, later donated the land on which St Paul’s Lutheran Church was built. The Aratula Lutheran Cemetery was in the grounds of St Pauls which closed in 1997. It contains six recognisable grave sites which are mainly designated by lowset tablets. The first known burial was that of Herman Gustave Muller who died in 1916. The most recent burial is that of Jill Jergensen who died in 1933 at the tender age of two and a half. The six grave stones are fenced off from the previous church grounds. The cemetery was closed in 1945. Situated on Carter Road, the cemetery was subdivided from the church grounds which are now privately owned. The money raised from the sale of St Paul’s Church and land was used to fund the hall at St John’s Lutheran Church at Kalbar.

Aratula Produce and hardware

When Jacob Richter built his blacksmith business in Carter’s Gate about 1912, it was the first business in an area that was to become the township of Aratula. Ten years later the business was purchased by C.T. Bickerton, from the nearby town of Kalbar. Bickerton extended the building at that time, although further extensions and renovations were made when the business was purchased by the Lodz brothers in 1927. The Lodz Brothers operated a smithy and mechanical repairs business on the corner of the Cunningham Highway and Elizabeth Streets adjacent to Bickerton’s business. After they purchased Bickerton’s business the Lodz brothers used the building to operate a commercial machinery business. Richter’s building, although renovated, still stands on Elizabeth Street. Gone is the machinery business instead the building now houses an antique and second-hand shop. The front entrance is protected by a street verandah which gives a feel of yester year to the building which has been in service for over 100 years.

Aratula School of Arts

As the township of Aratula developed so did the need for better community facilities. The Aratula School of Arts first opened on Elizabeth Street in 1926.The first building used was the former Woolooman State School. It was transported to Aratula on two bullock wagons, and rebuilt. The School of Arts was opened by noted Queensland grazier, Arnold Weinholt, the owner of Fassifern Station. To cater for the growing needs of the district, the School of Arts was extended in the 1950s, when a larger hall was purchased from Haigslea and re-erected on the site. This second building was connected on the eastern section of the complex. Since that time other renovations have taken place. The School of Arts halls play an important role in the community, and this one is no exception. Until St Stephens Church was erected in 1954, all Anglican Services were conducted there. It also served as an important gathering place for the community.

Aratula State School

The area around the current township of Aratula was first known as Dale’s Gate and later as Carter’s Gate. A provisional school was opened at Carter’s Gate in 1911, with an enrolment of 24 pupils. The school was renamed the Aratula State School in 1913, and this appears to have been the first official use of the name Aratula. Sadly, the school building was destroyed by fire in 1915, and for two years the school was conducted in the railway goods yard. A new building was erected in 1917. On the occasion of its Golden Anniversary in 1961, a monument was erected in the school grounds. This features a sundial made of gun metal placed on a trachite boulder from the local Warrill Creek. The original name of the school is celebrated in the motto of the school ‘Gateway to Learning’. The school buildings are now over 100 years old and are still much as built although the verandahs have been enclosed. As with many other schools Arbour Day plantings have provided the grounds with many mature trees.

Former St Paul's Church

Jacob Richter donated land for the establishment of a Lutheran Church in Aratula which became known as St Pauls. His blacksmith shop which commenced in 1912 was the first business in the area of Carter’s Gate, now the township of Aratula. Timber for the building was donated by Messrs Surawski and Wagner. The church was a small timber building with a steeply pitched roof, and at some time was extended. Due to falling attendance the church was closed in 1990. It then passed into private ownership and was renovated becoming a bed and breakfast accommodation site. Although it is no longer a church, the building remains in Elizabeth Street. The Aratula area was part of the parish of Englesberg, which was renamed Kalbar during World War I. It is therefore fitting that the proceeds of the sale of the church and land were used to fund a hall at St John’s Lutheran Church in that town.

Butter factory

This once grand building has an impressive history. At the time it was built, this was one of the most modern butter factories in the Commonwealth of Australia it also had the distinction of being the largest in the southern hemisphere. Until it ceased operations in March 1974, water to operate the factory had to be piped from the dam at Dugandan. The output of butter from the factory was at one time the second highest in Queensland, and it was a major supplier of dairy product to Brisbane. The Butter Factory is situated in a prominent position being on the corner of the Boonah-Rathdowney Road and Railway Street. It is the first building visitors come to when entering the central business district. Although it is now in a sad state of disrepair, it served as a gallery and art space for many years. The loading ramp where local farmers and carriers unloaded the cream cans is now used as a fruit and vegetable outlet. This building is the only surviving major industrial site related to the dairy, railway and timber industries in Boonah. Cossart’s Mill at Dugandan, the largest supplier of butter boxes in Australia supplied the boxes for the factory.

Coulson Cemetery

The Coulson General Cemetery was originally known as the Teviotville Cemetery. The change of name followed confusion created when the railway department named a station further to the west Teviotville. This eventually resulted in a change of the name for the area now known as Coulson. It is possible that this could cause confusion with some early death certificates. The cemetery holds approximately 340 graves. The burials date from 1886, and the headstones range from highly ornate marble columns, small flat tablets to metal markers. Most of the early headstones were the work of local stonemason Wilhelm Metz. The cemetery became the responsibility of the Boonah Shire Council in 1962, and since the shire amalgamations in 2008, it is now the responsibility of the Scenic Rim Regional Council. Situated on gently sloping ground on the Boonah Ipswich Road, the cemetery is very attractive with the ambience enhanced by the mature trees in the surrounds. One notable grave is that of Adolph Blumberg, one of the three brothers who originally gave the name Blumbergville to what is now Boonah.

Coulson State School

Allan Cunningham was one of the most important European explorers in the area now known as the Scenic Rim. Travelling from the south in 1827, Cunningham was the first European to describe the Darling Downs. On that trip he also noted a possible gap through the Great Dividing Range which was later named Spicers Gap. In 1828 Cunningham set out from Moreton Bay to try to find the gap he saw in 1827, and a possible route from the coast to the Darling Downs. Instead, he discovered the gap now known as Cunningham’s Gap on August 24, 1828. Having discovered the pass, Cunningham returned to Ipswich. It was not until 1847 that Spicer’s Gap was again discovered, this time by Henry Alphen, a stockman from Canning Downs at Warwick. It has been estimated that Cunningham’s camp was on Rocky Creek, now the site of Cunningham’s Camp No. 6 and a stone cairn celebrating the discoveries. Because of the prohibition of settlement within 100km of Moreton Bay Penal Colony it was not until the early 1840s that pastoralists were able to make use of Cunningham’s discoveries. Cunningham also joined expeditions with other notable explorers in southern Queensland, John Oxley, Captain Patrick Logan and Charles Fraser.

Bruckners Sawmill and Residence

The Bruckner and Hertsberg Sawmill in Dugandan commenced in 1882. Originally built on the southeast side of Teviot Brook, it was operated by partners Heinrich Bruckner and Carl Hertsberg. The site is said to have been selected to avoid flood waters in Teviot Brook. Bruckner bought out the Hertsberg interests in the business in 1889. He continued in control of the mill until his death in 1934. The business was then operated by family members until Keith Bruckner, the third generation, sold the business in 1971. The new owner was Clem Hoffman of Ipswich. A failure to meet log quotas led to the eventual closure of the mill. Some of the buildings, including the sawmill shed, remain on site although in poor condition, however some of the machinery that operated the mill can now be seen in the Templin Historical Village. The Bruckner family are known to have built at least four cottages for their workers, some of these are still in existence.

Milford Village Precinct

The township of Milford grew within an area originally known as Dimmick’s Pocket. A general store erected by Con Harmer in 1885, was later purchased by Henry Dimmick who added a butcher shop. The store was closed for some time, but was reopened by A. E. Harper, who in 1907 built a new store beside the original one. The store was then taken over by the Wernowski Family who operated it until it closed in 1967. A provisional school commenced in 1886 with an enrolment of 26 students. This was upgraded to a State School in 1900. At its peak in 1910, there were 94 students. Sadly, the school closed in 1984. The Uniting Church was established in 1889, and a receiving Office, which became a Post Office, was established in 1887, before it too was closed in 1961. The school was next to the receiving office and enabled children to collect the mail on their way home from school. The district around Milford was well suited to dairy farming, supplying cream in the early days, and later whole milk. Like many small village complexes, Milford suffered from the introduction of better roads and the proximity of a larger town.

Moogerah Dam

Moogerah Dam supplies drinking water to Boonah and most small towns in the district, as well as to Ipswich and the Swanbank Power Station. The dam had long been in planning, the earliest land resumptions for the project commenced in 1916. Actual construction of the dam commenced in 1959, and was completed in 1961. The dam is built across Reynolds Creek, which feeds into the Bremer River. Much of the water that flows into Reynolds Creek and the dam, now known as Lake Moogerah, comes from Main Range. The dam has become a major recreation attraction in the Scenic Rim. Various campsites and cabin sites are available to tourists, as well as privately owned campsites, there is an area owned and operated by Brisbane Grammar School as a campsite for students. School Camps Queensland also operates a site that is available to students and parents in school holidays. Water skiing is a major activity and kayak hire is available. It is also the site of the well-known Moogerah Passion Play held at Easter each year.

Mount Alford Cemetery

The Mt Alford Cemetery is a small area set in Bowman Park in the centre of the township of Mt Alford. The cemetery contains only the grave of Mrs Gertrude Augusta Bell of Coochin. Coochin who died in 1946 at the age of 92. The memorial was designed by Mrs Bell’s grandson, renowned architect Guilford Bell. Although there is only one grave, the memorial bears the names of seven other members of the Bell family, including Guilford Bell who died in 1992, and his parents Francis Marsh Bell and Frederica Lucy Bell. The grave was originally in the grounds of the Mt Alford Anglican Church. Land for an Anglican Church had been donated by Mrs F M Bowman in 1899 but St Peters Anglican Church was not erected until 1914. Falling attendance led to the church being sold for removal in 1973. The land was transferred to the Boonah Shire Council in 1991.The small cemetery was maintained by the family for more than 20 years. Bowman Park was named for the original donor of the land. The area around the graves is now designated as a Cemetery and is maintained by Council.

Mt Alford State School

The Mt. Alford Provisional State School opened on April 4, 1888, with Miss Mary Cavenagh as teacher, and during the first year the maximum attendance at the school reached 24. The opening of the school coincided with the opening of the general store by August Anders. The school became a state school in 1901, and was replaced by a new building in 1911. The new school was built approximately half a mile closer to the township. The closure of small schools at Carney’s Creek, Croftby, Burnett Creek and Moogerah over the years, and the transportation of children to Mt Alford has helped keep enrolments up. The school is positioned on the junction of Ganthorpe Road and Mt Alford Road. This location has also assisted in ensuring increased enrolment. Over the years the school grounds have been able to be enlarged, and landscaping has been carried out. The school has become the catchment school of the southeast sector of Boonah Shire. Arbour Day celebrations held at the school have resulted in a number of mature shade trees in the grounds.

Mt Alford State School Soldiers Memorial

The Mt Alford School Memorial was commissioned by the State School Committee in 1917 and dedicated well before the end of World War I. The dedication took place on May 25, 1918, and was attended by people from all parts of the district. It is believed to have been the first World War I Memorial erected in Australia. The ‘digger’ on the sandstone plinth is the smallest statue on a war memorial in Queensland. It was commissioned to depict the pupils from the school and those from the district who enlisted in the war, the memorial was designed by F. Williams of Ipswich for a cost of £52 ($104). The inscription on the face of the memorial reads in part that it was built to: "Honour Mt Alford's contribution to the Australian Army, the fame of which will never die...". A total of 29 names are now inscribed on the memorial plaque. Landscaping work carried out at the school have provided a backdrop for the annual ANZAC Day services at Mt Alford that take place around the memorial.

Mt Alford Township

Mt Alford is a small historic town approximately 14 kilometers south west of Boonah, and was developed on land that was originally part of the Coochin Coochin Run. The area was resumed by the government and made available for selection about 1885 or 1886. The area became known as Coochin, but the small township was at first called Reckumpilla. Reckumpilla is an Aboriginal word meaning beside the water. In this case the Teviot Brook. This name was later changed to Mt Alford in honour of Mr Thomas Alford who worked on Coochin Coochin, and later became a part owner. Town allotments were set aside from the estate of Carl Wissemann in 1915, when some 44 were sold. The opening of a general store by August Anders, and the establishment of a provisional school in 1888 marked the beginning of the town. There are many places of interest in the town including the Bell Family Memorial in Bowman Park, the State School and the Soldier’s Memorial, as well as the old Mt Alford Creamery. The General Store and The School of Arts are both Heritage listed buildings.

Old Mt Alford Creamery Site

As the productive lands of Teviot Brook district were opened up, farmers soon saw that dairying was the most productive use of the land, and the best way to earn an income. Dairying had its own difficulty. Milk was a perishable product and had to be transported to market quickly. Whole milk was sent to a creamery where the cream was separated from the milk and transported to a butter factory. The Model Dairy Company of Brisbane built a creamery at Mt Alford in 1895. The creamery’s separator held 130 gallons (492 litres) and was driven by a steam plant. The farmers were paid 2½ pence (5.5 cents) per gallon for the whole milk, and the cream collected was then sent to Brisbane in 10 gallon (38 litre) cans. The Creamery building can be seen to the right, behind the Brewery. The first manager of this enterprise was J.S. Reid, but eventually the business was purchased by local farmers and run as a co-operative. As separators became more affordable, farmers purchased their own, there was no longer any need for the co-operative.

Rural Dwelling, Mt Alford

The Land Alienation Act of 1868 saw the breaking up of the big runs and smaller parcels of land being made available to settlers for farming and agriculture. The living conditions for settlers in the early days were difficult. Families lived in slab huts with earthen floors. Gradually as the land was cleared and became more productive, the settlers began to build more permanent structures. The house at 47 Ganthorpe Road is one of the many early dwellings scattered across the Scenic Rim. It has a steeply pitched pyramidal roof covering the core rooms in the centre. The whole is surrounded by verandahs with bull nosed corrugated iron roofs. The separate kitchen wing of the cottage is attached at the back wall of the rear verandah. The risk of fire in these old timber dwellings was very real, and as the most likely source of a fire was the kitchen, these tended to be separated from the main dwelling. In the case of this home, some of the verandahs have been enclosed. This house was built on Teviot Farms by Carl Weismann for his son Wilhelm George Weismann in 1914. Now, more than 100 years later it is still occupied by descendants of the Weismann family.

St Johns Lutheran Church, Mt Alford

Although Mt Alford is only a short distance from Dugandan, 13 Kilometres or 8 miles, the condition of the early roads in the district meant that members of the local Lutheran congregation were unable to regularly attend services at Dugandan. Local services were held at Mt Alford School of Arts. A conference held at the home of W.I. Wissemann in 1908 decided to erect a building on one acre of land donated by Mr Wissemann. The church was erected by Chas Behrendorff and Fr. Schmoekle at a cost of £136. The pulpit and alter were made by Mr Behrendorff and presented to the community by him. The timber used in the church was milled at the local mill run by the Behrendorff Brothers. The church was dedicated in April 1909 by Pastor Langebecker of Toowoomba and given the name St John’s. Falling attendance led to the sale of the building which is now a private residence.

Mt Cordeaux Gold Mine

Gold Fever came to the Scenic Rim in the form of The Mount Cordeaux Gold Mine. The story originated when a surveyor working with a man named Muller, claimed to have seen traces of gold while working over the edge of a cliff. Muller returned several times but was unable to find gold, nevertheless, the story of the Mount Cordeaux Gold Mine became a local legend. Sometime in the 1930s, using a small amount of ‘fool’s gold’, Walter Jesson managed to convince three local men that he knew the location of the gold. The three men were the Walton brothers and Jack Boyd. The Waltons convinced Jack Boyd that the story was incorrect but began to search themselves, and Jesson showed them where to search. Over the next few years they spent a great deal of money, including purchasing copious quantities of rum for Jesson. The Waltons were joined by their brother, Jim, who eventually discovered that they had been conned. It is still possible to view the operation which has the remains of a horizontal tunnel, a shaft, and an open cut trench. The Walton’s campsite was near the Allan Cunningham Monument at Cunningham’s gap.

Former Teviotville Post Office

The area around Coulson was originally named Teviotville, but some confusion was caused when the railway was built through to Boonah and Dugandan. Railway authorities decided to use the name Teviotville for the station which was opened some miles to the west of where the original Teviotville township was sited. The station was mid-way between Roadvale and Boonah, and no longer on Teviot Brook which had given the district its name. This confusion continued until the name of the original Teviotville was renamed Coulson about 1903. A post office was opened at the Teviotville Railway station in 1887, and operated until 1959. Although Teviotville was never large, it did include a school, a blacksmith and some stores. Most notable was the corn-sheller manufacturing business commenced by Fred Richter in 1908. Within ten years he was selling 100 machines a year to all parts of Queensland. Following Fred’s death his son Harold relocated the business to Little High Street in Boonah in 1938, where it operated successfully.

Teviot District Kindergarten Precinct

The school at Teviotville school was opened in August 1899, and was known as the Teviotville Railway Station School. This name was used until 1903 when the former Teviotville School was renamed Coulson. The school was located on Hagg Road, near the junction of Roadvale Road and Teviot Road. At some stage it was complemented by the addition of a school house. Enrolments at the School grew to 6o pupils some-time during the 1930s. It continued to operate until December 1981.Renovations occurred to the building over the years and like many schools in the district mature trees in the grounds reflect the value of Arbour Day to the environment. The school was built on stumps which provided a covered area for pupils both from rain and the often harsh summer sun. The Boonah District Kindergarten Association opened a kindergarten in 1982. Despite some changes the building has now given over 120 years of service to local education in the Boonah District.

Boonah Honour Board

The honour roll commemorates those who served in the Korean and Vietnam Wars, and the Malayan and Borneo conflicts.

Centenary of Christian Witness

A plaque commemorates the centenary of Christian witness at Christ Church Anglican which was dedicated in 1890 and rebuilt in 1960

Centenary of Commerce

A plaque commemorates the centenary of Christian witness at Christ Church Anglican which was dedicated in 1890 and rebuilt in 1960.

Centenary of Local Government

A plaque commemorates the centenary of local government in the Boonah Shire from 1879 to 1979.

Charles Cossart

A library commemorates Charles Edward Cossart for his services to Boonah and District.

Christ Church War Memorial Stone

A memorial foundation stone set in 1956 commemorates the New Guinea Martyrs and the fallen of World War One, World War Two and Korea. In Anglican terminology the New Guinea Martyrs were eight Anglican clergy, teachers and medical missionaries killed by the Japanese in 1942. The Anglican Bishop of New Guinea (then a diocese of the ecclesiastical Province of Queensland) Philip Strong instructed Anglican missionaries to remain at their posts despite the Japanese invasion. Three hundred thirty-three church workers of various denominations were killed during the Japanese occupation of New Guinea.

Coulson State School Honour Board

The marble honour roll commemorates former students of the Coulson State School who served in World War One.

Samuel Cossart

Monument commemorates Samuel James Cossart, Chairman of the Boonah Shire from 1936 to 1943.

World War One Roll of Honour

Two framed hand-written honour rolls commemorate those from the district who served in World War One.

World War Two Roll of Honour

The wooden honour roll commemorates those who served in World War Two.

Allan Cunningham

The monument commemorates the explorer Allan Cunningham. It was erected in the centenary year of his exploration of the Darling Downs and the opening of the road between Brisbane and Warwick. The monument was restored in 1988. The information plaque at the memorial references the fact that Cunningham located a track through Cunningham Gap in 1828 but it was difficult to negotiate and was classified as a bridle trail because of its steep unforgiving slope. In 1827 Cunningham set out from the upper Hunter River to explore inside the Dividing Range, discovering the Darling Downs and returning in 1828 from Brisbane to discover Cunningham Gap. At a meeting held in May 1927, discussing the unveiling of the Cunningham Memorial, Councillor P McMahon who was presiding over the meeting said that in 1926 a suggestion had been made that the centenary of the Darling Downs be fittingly celebrated. The suggestion was that a memorial be erected as an expression of gratitude for the discovery of the Downs; as a thanksgiving to God for the wonderful territory He had given the people and as a fitting tribute to the great courage and self-sacrifice of the explorer.The Brisbane Courier, 10th May 1927.

A hundred years ago the famous Australian explorer, Allan Cunningham, discovered a gap leading to the Darling Downs, and, passing through it a vast territory of fertile land. To mark the centenary of that discovery a number of Queenslanders gathered at this spot on Saturday to attend the unveiling of a cairn and the opening of a new highway from the metropolis to the downs.The Advertiser (Adelaide), 13th June 1927.

Boonah and District Honour Roll

A plaque commemorates the restoration of the Allan Cunningham monument in 1988.

James Cossart and Sons Pty Ltd Honour Roll

The honour roll commemorates employees of James Cossart and Sons who served in World War Two. It also lists the names of family members who served. It is commonplace for many people to link the name of Cossart with Boonah and the timber industry, but few know the hardships which faced the late Mr. James Cossart in establishing a firm of which the State, in fact the whole nation, can be justly proud. Last night the story of his pioneering spirit was unfolded at a banquet marking the 60th year in business of James Cossart and Sons Pty. Ltd. The function, which was attended by nearly 200 employees and business people associated with the firm, was held in the School of Arts Hall. An honour board containing the names of 90 employees of the firm who enlisted for overseas service in the last war was unveiled at the latter part of the programme by the President of the Shire Patriotic Committee (Rev. C. T. Debenam).

"I have been called upon to unveil this honour board containing the names of 90 employees or former employees, who enlisted for overseas service from the firm of James Cossart and Sons Pty. Ltd., in the hope that it may serve to remind all who behold of the esteem in which the firm held those men and women of the volunteer services whose names are inscribed thereon, and of the firm's loving remembrance of those who paid the supreme sacrifice. May those who served and returned live long to enjoy the fruits of their victory, and may the souls of those who died in service rest in peace," said Mr. Debenham, as he withdrew the Union Jack and the Australian flag which draped the board.

He then went on to quote Lawrence Binyon's "To the Fallen." The honour board, which is about 7ft. by 4ft., was made by Brett and Co., Brisbane, and the gold lettering was carried out by Mr. P. Lawes, Brisbane. Of the names on the board three received decorations, five were killed in action, and one died whilst a prisoner-of-war. Each employee whose name was inscribed on the board was handed a coloured printed reproduction.

Queensland Times (Ipswich, QLD), 1 December 1947.