Visit Barcaldine, Queensland: Birthplace of the Australian labour movement

Do you know about the Great Shearers’ strike in 1891?

Did you know that Barcaldine is the reputed birth place of the Australian Labour Movement?

If you are interested in Australian history, make sure you put Barcaldine on your list of places to visit.

Barcaldine is known as the Garden City of the West. While we did see the lovely plants and flowers dotted around the town, it was the Australian history that stood out to us.

We visited Barcaldine, in Queensland, in April 2017, while on our caravan road trip travelling Australia. As retirees enjoying travel we  were impressed with this small country town.  It has a population under 2,000. We found the town very neat and tidy, all painted up, with hardly an empty shop. We came away with the impression Barcaldine was doing “alright”.

In our opinion, this little town continues to punch well above it’s weight. Barcaldine has embraced it’s rich history. Tourism is a major focus. Many cities would be hard pressed to have tourist attractions to the standard Barcaldine has.

Where is it?

Barcaldine is situated in the heart of Outback Queensland, on the junction of the Landsborough and Capricorn Highways.

Brisbane is 1069 kilometres to the South East

Mt Isa is 755 kilometres West

Rockhampton is 579 kilometres East.

Things not to miss in Barcaldine:

1891 Australian Shearers’ strike displays:

I have two brothers who are shearers. Greg has always read extensively about Australian history. So the history of the shearers’ strike is well known to us both. Even so, it was wonderful to stand where the shearers’ went on strike.  This happened so long ago, yet the shearers, and what they stood up for, continue to be honoured. As we looked at the displays about the shearers’ strike, we talked about how the shearers’ strike had a major influence on the Australian workplace, culture, and politics.

In 1891 Shearers were told their wage would be cut from 20 shillings ($2.00) per hundred sheep shorn, to 17/6 ($1.75) per hundred shorn.

The Great Shearers Strike saw more than 1000 men down shears and march through the streets of Barcaldine. They demanded better pay from grazier’s and for the “recognition of unionism”.

The Shearers formed the Queensland Shearers Union.  This exhibition is about the birth of the Australian labour movement. In folklore, this is the birth of the Labor Party.

The strike lasted for four months. Thirteen of the leaders were arrested and sentenced to three years hard labour. A total of 82 unionists were arrested and imprisoned.

According to a storyboard in the main street of Barcaldine:

In it’s history, Australia has only seen two armed insurrections between white settlers and government -backed forces – the Eureka revolt in 1854 and the lesser known Queensland shearers’ strike of 1891.

During this turbulent time a number of shearing sheds in the local area mysteriously burnt down.

What amazing Australian history? And it all happened right in Barcaldine! Check out the displays in the main street of Barcaldine, all near the Tree of Knowledge. Additional information and displays can be seen in the Australian Workers Heritage Centre.

The thirteen stands and plaques are a memorial to the thirteen leaders of the shearers strike who were arrested and sentenced to three years hard labour. Each stand has a plaque, with the name and photo of each of the thirteen leaders.

Tree of Knowledge:

Barcaldine is the home of the Tree of Knowledge.  This is the reputed birthplace of the Australian labour movement.

It was under this tree that the striking shearers’ met. The tree has been preserved and is heritage listed.  The Tree of Knowledge is now protected by the modern structure seen in the photo below.

At night, the Tree of Knowledge is lit up for display.

At night, The Tree of Knowledge is lit up for display.

Windmill, pond and artworks:

The windmill, pond and artwork adjacent to the Tree of Knowledge honour the importance of artesian water to the Barcaldine community.

This windmill was built in 1917. It was originally built at Back Creek, East of Barcaldine, and was one of the first free flowing bores in Queensland. The windmill fell into disrepair. It was moved into Barcaldine, as a symbol of the importance of artesian water to the local community. A pond and artwork sit by the windmill.

Australian Workers Heritage Centre:

The Australian Workers Heritage Centre is a museum style complex that honours the rich history, heritage and traditions of all working Australians. This is a large complex, so allow a couple of hours to inspect all that is on offer.

Within the Centre there are numerous buildings with exhibitions displaying Australian historical work places of yesteryear:

• Kunwarara Railway Station and Carriage – tells the history of the Australian railway workers and passengers.
• Police Watch House – honours the work of Police across the country.
• Celebration Theatre – The Tent was part of the Australian Bicentennial Celebrations and now houses several exhibitions.
• AWU Shearers’ Hall – Australia’s oldest union office and hall.
• Labour House – a display about the history of labour in politics
• Australia Post – a historical display dedicated to all postal workers
• One Teacher School –   a display typical of rural schools in early 1900s
• The Power House – a display thanking all the power workers
• Exhibition Block B – a display honouring health workers
• Exhibition Block A – a Women in Australian Working History display
• Main Roads – celebrating those who built the vast network of roads throughout the nation
• Emergency Services – honouring volunteers serving the community

We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to the Australian Workers Heritage Centre. It was such a different style of museum, with great displays representing workplaces of Australia from a historical perspective.

In the photo above, check out the wooden post in front of the  “primitive lock up” – a set of leg irons attached to a tree stump was sometimes used as an “impoverished cell”.

Enjoy a Pub crawl:

Barcaldine has five historic pubs operating! This is amazing, given the small population of Barcaldine is under 2,000. It used to have six pubs. The sixth pub has been converted into an impressive, large, modern Visitors Information Centre.

We enjoyed a pub crawl along the main street, to inspect all the old pubs.  It was a Saturday afternoon.  The main street was very quiet.  The day was hot – about 31 degrees. We ended up spending time in the Shakespeare Hotel, enjoying a few cool drinks.  The bar staff and patrons were friendly. They proudly told us Barcaldine is a friendly town,with next to no crime. They said you could leave your wallet on the bar, forget it, come back hours later, and it would still be there. Great story, but we didn’t put it to the test.

Obviously, the pub is used to tourists visiting. There was a large map of Queensland, and another large map of Australia, on the wall. We inspected the maps at length, in awe of how far we have to go. The bar staff offered us a free sausage sandwich (declined), a free newspaper (accepted), and commented they hoped more grey nomads were on the way.

Taste the Artesian water:

Barcaldine is in artesian country.  Barcaldine’s water supply comes from the Great Artesian Basin.  We were repeatedly told that Barcaldine’s artesian water was award winning, as it won the 2015 “Best of the Best” Queensland water taste test.  Certainly, we had to agree that it was a good drop. Make sure you try a glass of chilled artesian water while in Barcaldine.

Watch out for a Road train:

When driving along the highways in outback Queensland you will see Road Trains.   These are trucks with longer than usual carriages.  The trucks have a sign on them saying “Road Train”.  We have been seeing Road trains with three carriages.  We believe we may see Road trains towing four carriages when we venture further into the Outback.

This Road Train pulled up next to our free camp, just outside Barcaldine. We spoke to the truck driver.  He said he had 264 cattle on board. The cattle were being transported from the Northern Territory. The cattle had been rested at Longreach. The truck driver was checking the cattle, and checking all the tyres on the large truck.

We were very impressed with Barcaldine.  We loved all we saw, and there is so much more to see than is this post.

When we visited the Information Centre we were impressed with how organised Barcaldine is to welcome visitors. We were given one form, with a clear summary of all the attractions within Barcaldine. On the back there was a list all the regional attractions. We were also informed which attraction were currently closed.

For us, the history was the highlight. We find it inspiring that a small community could have such a lasting impact on Australia.

If you love Australian history, then visiting Barcaldine in Queensland is a must.

Have you visited Barcaldine? If so, what did you enjoy? We’d love to hear your comments.

Travel safely

Cheers from Estelle and Greg – Retirees Enjoying Travel