Written by Kerrie Alexander
NEVER seen before images of the Fraser Coast region have been preserved for future generations
thanks to a local historian and several Fraser Coast museums.
John Andersen – a historian, a Hervey Bay Historical Village and Museum volunteer and pioneering Hervey Bay resident – was the driving force behind producing the first historic 200-page Moments in Time book in 2019.
The book took nine months to complete and featured many photos, panagrams and postcards of Hervey Bay and surrounds that date back to the 1890s.
Following the “unbelievable” response to MIT1 and plenty of photos left over, John said it was only logical to produce Volume 2, featuring the pictorial history of the entire Fraser Coast.
John said his passion, and the endless hours spent scanning the photos and producing both the books, was done purely to keep the region’s history alive.
“Once in print, at least pictures that may have been lost forever are spread through many libraries and private homes so that in 50-100 years, the generations to follow will be able to see life in 2020 as well as the 160 years prior to that,” John said.
“There are countless pics in MIT2 that have never been before been published.
“Maybe they were in someone’s family album with every chance that they could have finished up at the local rubbish tip, as has so often happened previously.”
Volunteers from the Maryborough-Wide Bay Museum, the Wide Bay Hospital Museum, The Military & Colonial Museum, Bauple Museum, Brooweena Museum, Burrum-Howard District Museum and the Hervey Bay Historical Village & Museum, were all involved in producing the second edition.
The book features 200 pages, full colour, hard covered with dust jacket, top grade gloss stock and is
professionally bound.
“I have worked on Volume 2 virtually since the completion of MIT1, which was launched on April 5,
2019, and the other museums were highly involved after a meeting we held in Maryborough late 2019.
“All of the participating museums contributed their 30 to 40 pages with hundreds of pics that I culled for inclusion … pics that told a story.
“Many meetings, over 600 emails, many miles travelled, and countless phone conversations have
resulted in the completed work.”
John said some of the rarest and iconic pages include images of a graphite mine on Bauple Mountain, the tobacco industry at Bauple with WD & HO Wills, convict-built culverts around Brooweena, bushranger hide outs, plus many others.
“There are many (rare photos) but some of these really make me realise the importance of the publication.
“There is so much to learn … the history of TOC H, its Maryborough connection.
“The book contains everything from Queens Mary walking the streets of London to Chad Morgan as a 19-year-old at Scrubby Creek in Howard.”
There are souvenir editions available for a limited time for $50, which include signatures by Mayor George Seymour, John Andersen and museum president Harold Collins.
The book will otherwise retail for $40 and can be bought at all participating museums, the Hervey Bay Tourist Information Centre, Stockland Newsagency, Torquay and Urangan Post Office and Keen’s Caltex in Nikenbah.