Category: Queensland State Archives’ Photostream About Fortitude Valley

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At the 25 May Cabinet meeting, the Police Minister and Deputy Premier Bill Gunn, who was Acting Premier at the time, took a secret submission to Cabinet (Dec 51516) to appoint Gerald Edward “Tony” Fitzgerald QC as a ‘Commissioner to Inquire into Allegations Relating to the Queensland Police Force’. Responding to the Four Corners Episode The Moonlight State, which aired on 11 May, Fitzgerald’s appointment would have far-reaching implications for the state of Queensland.

By 21 December, the writing was on the wall for a number of serving police officers, and Cabinet considered whether superannuation could be withheld from officers who are found to be corrupt (Dec 53235), but did not reach a decision.

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On 23 March Cabinet noted the Strategic Plan for the State Library of Queensland. This had been led by Consultancy Services at the Public Service Board (Dec 51000). Cabinet subsequently approved an authority to prepare a new Libraries and Archives Act.

The new legislation would detail the functions of the State Library Board bringing it into line with other ‘user bodies’ of the Queensland Cultural Centre. Importantly the new legislation would include greater detail on functions of the State Archivist and include Archives in the title (Dec 51330).

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The information considered by Cabinet regarding the road toll in 1986 provides striking evidence of the value of regulation and prohibition on our roads.

The efficacy of wearing of seat belts was evaluated; 14 children under 10 were killed in car crashes in 1986. Only one of these children was definitely wearing a restraint at the time (5 cases could not be determined) (Dec 50591).

Cabinet considered an evaluation of the Reduced Impaired Driving (RID) Campaign, Queensland’s first attempt at random alcohol breath testing. The trial was for six months and ended on 21 February. The evaluation dramatically demonstrated its effectiveness as a road safety measure. Compared with the same period in the previous three years, road fatalities decreased by 19.8% and in the Brisbane Statistical Division by 24.6%. Cabinet agreed to RID continuing indefinitely (Dec 50925).

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Bowen Court House is a heritage-listed courthouse at 30 William Street, Bowen, Whitsunday Region, Queensland. It was designed by George St Paul Connolly of the Colonial Architect’s Office and built in 1880 by Southall & Tracey. The courthouse was completed in 1881 in the Classic Revival Style. It is a two-story building and was constructed in rendered brick with a corrugated iron roof. It is still in use today and contains most of the original furniture and features.

The Bowen Court House is important in demonstrating the early prominence of Bowen, being considerably more grand than other early courts at Townsville and Charters Towers; both of which towns were to eclipse Bowen. As the first Supreme Court outside of Brisbane, it also illustrates the way in which the legal system was established and government services provided in the developing north of the colony.

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Barcaldine is a small town and locality in the Barcaldine Region in Central West Queensland. It is approximately 520 kilometres by road west of the city of Rockhampton. This is the administrative centre of the Barcaldine Region. Major industries are sheep and beef cattle rearing. The streets in Barcaldine are named after different types of trees.

The town takes its name from a sheep station called Barcaldine Downs, which was established in 1863 by Donald Cameron. The Barcaldine Post Office opened on 13 November 1886, and the Barcaldine State School opened on 4 July 1887.

Barcaldine played a significant role in the Australian labour movement and the birth of the Australian Labor Party. In 1891, it was one of the focal points of the 1891 Australian shearers’ strike, with the Eureka Flag flying over the strike camp. The landmark Tree of Knowledge, under which the strikers met,

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Australian Volkswagens

Australia was one of the few countries outside Germany where Volkswagens were locally manufactured. Australian-sold VWs in the 1950s and 1960s were made in Melbourne, and there are numerous differences between our VWs and the American/UK/Euro versions.

Volkswagens were first imported to Australia in late 1953 and went on official sale in early 1954. These earliest cars were fully imported. The Federal Government of the time offered tax concessions on locally-made cars, so from June 1954 Volkswagen Australia began importing German CKD (‘Completely Knocked Down’) kits and assembling them in Melbourne.

After a short while basic Australian-made components such as batteries, tyres and glass were substituted, and through the late 1950s this was gradually expanded to locally made paints and glues; nuts, bolts and fasteners; rubber, cloth and trim, and electrical components. By 1956 the Australian-assembled VW was already more than 50% Australian made.

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Club VeeDub

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Innisfail Court House is a heritage-listed courthouse at 10 Edith Street, Innisfail, Cassowary Coast Region, Queensland. It is the town’s third courthouse. It was designed in the inter-war classic style by the Department of Public Works and built in 1939 by day labour. The current courthouse is a two-storied brick building with a corrugated-iron roof. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 13 January 1995.

Opened in March 1940, this was the third courthouse to be built in Innisfail, replacing the Second Innisfail Court House, a timber building erected in 1888. The current courthouse building survives as an example of the development of Innisfail as a commercial and official centre for the surrounding district from the late nineteenth century, and the prosperity accompanying the expansion of settlement and the sugar industry in the area during the early twentieth century.

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Johannes Bjelke-Petersen was born in Dannevirke, New Zealand, on January 13, 1911. His father, who was Danish, immigrated to Queensland, Australia, with his family in 1913. Johannes (or Joh, as he was widely known) left school at the age of 13. He remained a major peanut farmer at his home in Kingaroy and a leading businessman in the region throughout his political career.

Bjelke-Petersen entered Parliament in 1947 as a Country Party (later renamed the National Party) member for the constituency of Nanango. He first entered the cabinet as minister for works and housing in 1963 and became premier in 1968.

A controversial figure, Bjelke-Petersen dominated Queensland politics for 19 years. Among many incidents that brought him to attention at a national level, in 1971 he declared a state of emergency in Queensland as a reaction to demonstrations against the touring South African Springboks (Rugby Union team).

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Lytton Camp.

The encampment at Lytton was a busy scene all day yesterday. From the small hours of the morning there were arriving men and baggage, and horses, and the hundred and one incidents attendant on pitching a camp were all gone through. The horse lines has to be arranged, tents had to be set, and culinary arrangements made. The camp this year is likely to be a model one, for all the men are taking the keenest interest, and careful attention is being paid to sanitary and other affairs. kitchen refuse it to be carefully kept covered, to prevent the advent of flies, which are always ready and willing to do their best towards causing an outbreak of fever in any army. Training and manoeuvres will go on until the 21st, when the units will break camp and once more march back to their headquarters.

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Fort Lytton began closing down as soon as the Second World War ended. However, the signal station remained operational until late 1965. The fort’s last significant defence operation was in October 1964 when the signals station was used to gather intelligence on the “Indonesian coup”. Shortly after this incident, the Fort Lytton site was handed over to the AMPOL oil company to build an oil refinery.

Whilst most of the site was transformed into oil refining and storage facilities, three parcels of land were left intact. They were the site of the colonial fort and its associated structures, Lytton Hill and its associated structures, and the site of the heavy anti-aircraft battery, containing four protected guns pits and a command post. The oil company transferred the site of the colonial fort and its associated structure to the Queensland Government in 1988, and this became Fort

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