HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF
The Bribie Island Historical Society held its 10 year Anniversary Annual General Meeting last week. It has achieved so much over these years, with residents and visitors becoming increasingly aware of the rich and colourful history of this small island. Society Founder Barry Clark had a simple objective in 2008 when a group of his Local History Students at U3A identified the need to preserve and promote awareness and respect for the islands rich history and urged the formation of the Society.
Featured image(above): HISTORICAL SOCIETY COMMITTEE: Rear L to R Committee – Nancy Cameron, Viv Tucker, Donna Holmes, Barry Clark. Front L to R Executive – Ellen Beechey (Treasurer) Graham Mills (President) Lynne Hooper (Secretary)
Following his contact and interviews with virtually all the long-term island residents in the years before, many personal stories, photos and memorabilia had already been captured. The late Warwick Outram was invited to be the initial Patron and his numerous books on Bribie history proved invaluable. The Historical Society embarked on the task of building a computer Database of all things “Bribie” that could be accessed and searched for future reference. Committee members and volunteers have worked on this every week for 10 years now, and the information gathered is quite remarkable.
Thousands of Photos, Documents, Maps, Letters, Postcards, Newspapers and all sorts of fascinating public and private material has been catalogued. The Society has erected memorial Plaques for 100-year Anniversary celebrations of the settlement of Bongaree, the building of the Jetty, the arrival of the Steamship Koopa, the building Coungeau House and the 50 year anniversary of the Bribie Island Bridge.
Heritage Walk brochures and Fact Sheets about many aspects of local history have all helped to raise awareness, together with regular newspaper articles, public presentations and Heritage walks have all enhanced public knowledge and respect. There is still much more to be done and the Society hopes to install many more Heritage signs around the island for the benefit of residents and visitors.
This year’s AGM elected Graham Mills as President for the coming year, following three years dedicated service by Lynne Hooper who now becomes Secretary. Graham previously served as President in 2011/13 and is currently preparing a book about the residents of Bribie who served in World Wars. A new Treasurer Ellen Beechey takes over from Nancy Cameron who will remain on the Committee, together with two former Presidents Donna Holmes and Barry Clark.
The Society was pleased to welcome a new Committee member Viv Tucker, who has been the custodian of Deception Bay history for many years. Researching and discovering new aspects of local history often provides moments of excitement and amazement at what can still be found. The local Winston family recently unearthed an entire box of previously unseen glass plate photographs and movie films of Bribie in the 1930’s. These are now on Display in the Seaside Museum until early November and are a must-see for all Bribie residents as they provide remarkable views and images of life here on Bribie almost 100 years ago.
There will be a public presentation by the Historical Society at the Bribie Island Library on Tuesday 30th and various guided Heritage Walks as part of the Councils “Healthy & Active” program on September 20th, October 11th and November 15th. Bookings can be made on the website www.moretonbay.qld.gov.au/healthy-active/activetimetable. The Bribie Island Historical Society has a Blog Site http://bribieislandhistory.blogspot.com containing hundreds of Bribie history stories and photos. If you have a topic of interest or a question please contact them on [email protected]
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