Community
20 May, 2024
Celebrating 30 years of history
With ANZAC Day still firmly in our minds and the Douglas Shire Historical Society’s exhibition of local war heroes held in conjunction, the very same organisation has just celebrated its 30th anniversary.
I caught up with them at their AGM last Monday, at which they celebrated the occasion with a special birthday cake.
For a little history, back in 1994 the society was formed when the Port Douglas Court House was finally returned to its original site in Wharf St and opened as a museum. Official incorporation actually occurred on May 11 of that year.
Prior to this, the Court House had fallen into disrepair when the police vacated it in 1961 and the Department of Works hoped to demolish the building and resume the site on the Port Douglas police reserve.
Betty Whiting, proprietor of the Courthouse Hotel with her husband Albert, decided to save the building and in 1968 had it moved to vacant land behind the hotel. She used it to store her valuable wine collection until a cyclone unroofed the structure and the rain pelted in. All the labels floated off the bottles, so she didn’t know which were more valuable. They say she just had to drink them.
Her dream was to establish a museum for Port Douglas, hopefully in the Court House, and she entrusted her nephew Noel Weare with this vision.
As result of Noel’s tireless work with the Port Douglas Restoration Society, finally the original Court House site was removed from the police reserve and work began to raise funds to restore the old building. In July 1993, the Court House was returned to its original 1879 site under the trusteeship of the Douglas Shire Council and restoration began.
The Douglas Shire Historical Society was formed then with 23 members. Noel Weare was elected inaugural president, David Rex from a long-time resident Mossman family was vice-president and Billie Lloyd was honorary secretary/treasurer. Fundraising had raised a little over $3000 thanks to local generosity.
After much hard work and securing the target funding of almost $60,000, the society’s museum was opened to the public on Saturday, April 5, 1997 by Paul Braddy, Member for Kedron, who had signed off on the land tenure transfer several years previously as police minister for Queensland.
The main display for the Port Douglas Court House Museum was based on the committal proceedings of Ellen Thomson, who in 1887 was accused, before a police magistrate in this actual courtroom, of the murder of her husband Billy. She was later transferred to Boggo Rd jail in Brisbane, going into history as the only woman ever executed by hanging in the State of Queensland. Some say she was innocent.
A video is available of Ellen Thomson’s trial and people sit in the jury benches to watch.
The society continues to meet on the first Monday of the month.
Guest speakers elaborate on details of times gone by with active participation from their audience. Members take a keen interest in researching the history of our shire and assist in the protection of cultural heritage sites.
Many publications by members are available to buy. Volunteers open the museum on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays between 10am and 1pm and are happy to chat to visitors and discuss local history.
The society always welcomes new members who are assisted to research their favourite topics or are welcome to help with cataloguing, adding to the database, or helping in the museum.
There is a Facebook page called Douglas Shire Historical Society, and a fascinating website full of great stories at www.douglashistory.org.au
Finally, happy 30th birthday to the Douglas Shire Historical Society.
I’m off to try some of that cake, so for now it’s Gazza signing out.
Send your stories to gazza@cairnslocalnews.com.au
