Cairns Historical Society

With the Cairns Regional Council agreeing to fund the position of Museum Manager until 2018, the Society's Management Committee were delighted to announce that Mrs Suzanne Gibson has been appointed as their first paid Manager.  Recently the Society formed a special committee called the Cairns Museum Project Control & Planning Group to manage the new Museum project.  Mrs Tammy Kowitz who has already had discussions with the Council on the museum project is on the committee and they have also been fortunate to have Mr Clive Skarott bringing along his extensive business experience to the Chair of this group.  The Society was also pleased to honour Mr Edward Ward with Life Membership.  Ted is the group's longest serving member having joined the Society more than fifty years ago in 1962 when he was still only a teenager.  This year has brought other changes to the group with the recent 'retirement' from the committee of three of the Society's old stewards, Mr Gil Jennex and Pat and Alan Broughton.  All three has spent between thirty to forty years helping to run the Cairns Historical Society and they have left a wonderful legacy to the Society and to the people of the City of Cairns.  The Society has decided to have its annual Christmas party at the Edge Hill Bowls Club on the 11th December and then to close down the group for several weeks from 19th December through to the 5th January 2015.

Eacham Historical Society

The program put in place to try to involve more members in the activities of the Society by conducing fieldtrips and other fieldwork have seen several remakably successful trips organized to explore the district.  During the tin fields trip, where two dozen members and guests gathered at Herberton and then headed out to the tin fields to explore the old mining towns from Watsonville, through to Stannary Hills and finishing off at Irvinebank.  The trip organizers discovered that many on this outing had never been into the local mining areas before.  So the next field trip went further out into the mining country to where many members had never been.  This outing started out at Dimbulah where the members viewed the remains of the old FHV tobacco factory and then on out to the mining townsites of Mount Mulligan and Thornborough.  The last fieldtrip was much closer to home with nearly thirty members travelling about the country to the east of Malanda from Glen Allyn, where morning tea was had at the Nerada Tea Visitors Centre and then on to the Butchers Creek area before finishing the day at Boonjie.  It is hoped to continue this program of field work in the new year and to include some cemetery restoration work.  The last event for this year will be the annual end-of-year party to be held at the Malanda RSL on the 9th December with the Society closing down the following week until mid January.

Mareeba Historical Society

The Mareeba Historical Society recently held its AGM with Mrs Joan Collins taking on the position of President as well as the group's Editor.  The Treasurer reported that she was somewhat dismayed with the state of the accounts and suggested that a serious effort be made with fundraising to get some money coming into the group's coffers.  Also on financial matters, the Society has received the grant for the World War One photographic displays and is now planning to open the first of four completely different displays early next year.  Conservator Sue is working on showing members how to clean, preserve, conserve and pack away, the hundreds of glass negatives and slides that the Society hold in its collection.  The group's Christmas barbecue is to be held on 13th December at Helen's home in Mareeba as usual.