The local history of Diddillibah

by REBECCA MUGRIDGE

ccording to the book of the same name, Diddillibah is a small locality of hills, valleys and houses in a peaceful, rural setting with Nambour and Woombye less than 10 kms to its west, Bli Bli to its northeast and Maroochydore to its east.

The whole area has a natural beauty that frames the houses and buildings with a soothing green and a rustic, country charm, and yet, this idyllic place is just minutes away from the hustle of Maroochydore or the Bruce Highway.

The Diddillibah book came about as a rich source of local history, and also an immaculately fact-checked record. The correct details were important, such as a Methodist had been recorded as a Church of England, and other incorrect facts.

Local historian and author Eunice Paulett, a retired teacher passionate about the history of the area, said these inaccuracies inspired her to research and preserve as much factual information and correct details as possible.

“I've lived on the Sunshine Coast since 1973. I was a Geography and German teacher at Caloundra and

ANambour high schools before I retired, then I worked as a volunteer at the Tourist Information offices in Mooloolaba and Maroochydore for nearly ten years. During that time, I wrote a brochure for the council on walks on the Sunshine Coast. I did them all of course!” Eunice explained.

“I have a teacher friend, Audienne Blyth, who has written a lot about the history of Yandina, and she encouraged me to research and do a booklet on Rosemount where I live. So, I did. That was in 2018. A couple of years later, Covid year 2020, some friends in Diddillibah encouraged me to help get facts right about Henry Keil and the church and the school at Diddillibah.

“So, the researching and fact-checking and interviewing descendants of early settlers began,” Eunice said with a big smile.

“I had help from Lynette Walker, Jenny Catalano, contacts made at the Nambour Museum, and information from the local history section of Nambour Library, by people who documented some parts of the area a long time ago, (e.g., Tom Petrie and Fred Fink).

“The book grew and fell into chapters about early settlers, fruit growing- especially pineapples - and the sugar cane cultivation; the schools, the church, roads and bridges, etc.

“There were some funny stories along the way like those by Graeme Pettigrew, who sadly has since died.

“And of course, there are always unknown contacts and other stories we didn't hear about when writing the book.”

Spelling, Eunice said, is also an incredibly important part of collecting history.

“My first point of research interest was Henry Keil. There’s Kiels Mountain School and Kiels Mountain and Kiels Mountain Road but his name was Henry Keil,” she pointed out.

The 117-page book explores the families, stories and buildings of Diddillibah in a detailed collection of research, carefully curated into a book. Inside, amongst the historical facts, readers will find maps, details of the local families and a wonderful array of old photos.

Peter Lawrence, proud Yugarapul man, historian and local Kiels Mountain resident has written a chapter in Diddillibah titled First Inhabitants, Traditional Custodians, First Nations People

'The local Kabi Kabi people have lived on what is known as the Sunshine Coast for thousands of years. They are sometimes referred to as the Gubbi Gubbi people, First Nations’ culture, land and language are interwoven' Peter writes.

Peter has a wealth of historical knowledge and, like many local historians, has his own personal family connection to the Sunshine Coast.

“The origins of names, Diddillibah, Woombye, Caboolture, Yandina, Nambour (Namba), Maroochydore, they are all Kabi Kabi or Yuggera words. They tell you what the area was, like Kuluin means black swan. Some suggest Diddillibah means carpet snake but the word for this is “wongi,” Peter shared.

“I have been teaching history for about 25 years in secondary schools in Queensland, always with an Aboriginal focus. I used to teach Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island studies in the late 1990s and I’ve taught modern history for over 20 years.”

Along with the chapter in Diddillibah, Peter has also written a chapter for a Modern Histories textbook for Cambridge and has been a researcher for books like World War I-based book, 2014.

“My great, great, great grandfather, Walter Bunny, was European,” said Peter. “He had land allocated to him in 1868 and they were the first European family in the Rosewood Scrub west of Ipswich.

“My great grandmother was an Aboriginal woman, she was taken from there and hidden by the European side of her own family in Brisbane. My mum’s side of the family moved here about 1930, behind the Banana Bender Pub.

“My great grandparents had a banana farm there, they are the Rossow family. All my great-grandparents were living in the Landsborough area by 1940.”

Peter said local history books like Diddillibah, which now include a First Nations viewpoint, are important but there are also a few others well worth reading.

“In the Tracks of the Rainbow Serpent is an Aboriginal history of this local area,” said Peter. “Another one I always refer people to is Tom Petrie’s Reminiscences of Early Queensland

“The book [Diddillibah] is a good starting point,” Peter added, for anyone interested in history.

Eunice’s book is an achievement in local historical significance and whether you have family links to the Sunshine Coast or are just curious, it is a fascinating window to the past.

“I think booklets which record local history are important to people presently living anywhere here on the Sunshine Coast,” Eunice said. The latest edition of Diddillibah has been digitised by Allan Petts, and the Diddillibah Hall Committee organised the printing and the sales. It can be purchased through the Hall Committee website or their Facebook page, $25, diddillibahhall.com. au. You can avoid postage by collecting your copy from Black Cockatoo Retreat by appointment, ring Sally 0439 884 988.

by JUDY FREDRIKSEN

Knitting since she was aged seven, Debs’ latent skill for unique craft designs began to manifest in her younger years when she travelled from Rochedale into Brisbane City for work.

“I had an hour trip on the train every day and I was making these simple little cotton tops on the train. I could knit the front on the way in, and the back on the way out. Because the same people travelled to work every day with me, people would ask, ‘Can you make me one?’

“I had this wonderful little business going, making tops for people on the train. That gave me the idea that I could design my own knitwear, so I started doing my own designs after that.”

Debs then progressed into owning a craft shop and nursery at Caboolture with her husband. That was like an Aladdin’s Cave for her; she was totally enchanted by the incredible variety, colours and textures of all the new and exotic yarns that had suddenly become fashionable.

Then, as can happen in life, children came along, and things changed. In 1985 she moved to Maleny where there was a lovely little craft shop in the main street. Today it is the location of Rather Bizr.

“We used to stand outside the shop with the

And so the seed for Knitfest was sowed, though it would take another 30 years for that seed to germinate and flourish.

Meanwhile Debs, who is also a talented musician and plays slide guitar, was playing music gigs fulltime in South East Queensland and Northern New South Wales, with her band, Blues Arcane.

However, it was her calm insightfulness and strong organisational skills that saw her life take another twist, launching her into the rarefied stratosphere of event management.

“We were gigging 3–4 nights a week, doing small tours, and I was working for all the different street press as a journo and photo journalist. I did interviews with all the major bands, and musos were asking me to book their band.

“I was writing gig and CD reviews for different acts – everybody liked my advice. Big name bands from overseas started sending me their cds to review.”

Debs was so well respected that bands wanted her to manage them. She ended up in charge of 25 different

Sal, this looks a bit odd. Can you maybe put the lasy dot point across the advert width Make image slighly smaller and place at left , logo on right Name

June Doyle, volunteer yarnbomber who made the ‘wild women’ dolls  right fertiliser for the beanie and scarf festival idea to sprout and grow into Knitfest.

Now in its sixth year, Knitfest has seen the township of Maleny yarnbombed nearly every winter when trees, buildings and fences around town are decorated with snuggly woollen covers, creative mobiles depicting myriad elements of nature, or mysterious characters borne out of the imaginations of playful children.

Knitfest includes numerous workshops where you can learn to knit, crochet, create macramé, needle felt or weaving, or even spin your own wool.

Several experienced and talented fibre artists help Debs every year, their creativity being so admirable that in 2022, they were invited to yarnbomb the Queen Street Mall, Brisbane.

This year, the Brisbane City Council has invited them back to yarnbomb a new shopping centre at Mt Gravatt. For this occasion, they are creating Australianthemed creatures depicting nature and the Great Barrier Reef.

People come from all over the world for Knitfest, says Debs. They come from England, Japan, Texas, USA, Canada, Turkey, as well as from all over Australia. Even when the event has struggled to find funding, Debs has come up with some kind of free event to support the community, something that is important to her personal values. Events bring a lot of business to a small town, she says.

“Last year, because we couldn’t put the event on, we did something different. We started up ‘hats for heroes’. It was making beanies, scarves and comfort bears for all the first responders and people that have been victims of disasters.” All were well received.

COMMUNITY CENTRE

Eventually, she found herself working for places like Cooly Rocks On, Woodford Folk Festival, Motorfest, Soundfest, Mitchell Creek Rock N Blues Fest and Big Day Out. This lady was engaged by some really big venues and had developed serious street cred!

On the downside though, she was constantly away from home, much to the disappointment of her partner. Tired of her never-ending absences, he said to Debs: “Why don’t you put something on here?”

Those few simple words turned out to be just the

This year, the theme for Maleny Knitfest is ‘Wild Women’ and is entirely open to interpretation,

The festival will run from July 1-3, but half of the workshops are already booked out, so attendees need to get in quickly!

If you would like to become involved in Knitfest in any way, either as a volunteer, stallholder or enter the competitions, details are on the website, knitfest.com. au, or visit the page on Facebook/Instagram.

N orthern Territory

I have bee n l u c k y e n o ug h in the last 12 y ea rs to visit the NT fo u r times ! U l u ru is a magica l pla ce a n d m ust- ex pe rie n ce d estinatio n fo r a l l A ustra lia ns - o n e f il led w ith in c red ible sig hts, eve r- c ha n gin g c o l o u rs, a n d e n e rg y u n lik e a n yw he re e lse in the w o rld , w ith natu ra l la n d ma rks a n d a ric h In d ige n o us histo r y that c ombin e to ta k e y o u r b reath awa y .

A highlight for me was the Sounds of Silence Dinner, where you are taken to the true outback for an Indigenous performance as the sun sets.The night sky opens,and you are invited to learn about our solar system, all of which is visible and vast above.

K in gs C a n y o n (situated bet wee n A lice S prin gs a n d U l u ru) is a ls o a n in c red ible l o catio n T he rim wa l k is inspirin g a n d ca n be d o n e b y m ost leve ls of f it n ess Hea d in g n o rth, Da r w in is su rro u n d ed b y ama zin g nationa l pa rks Fo r me, Litc hf ie ld Natio na l Pa rk w ith its in c red ible g o rges, e n o rm o us trees a n d w ild life was u nfo rget ta ble

A visit to the Humpty Doo Pub is a must as you make your way north, run by locals and filled with character! The Northern Territory is unique in so many ways, and I would love to help you experience the majesty of it all.

Trevor Morrison is the Community Engagement and Education Officer from ECOllaboration, an environmental not-for-profit organisation that has been on the Sunshine Coast for 30 years.

“While Maleny has always held a strong reputation for platypus, Nambour is more of a local secret and is blessed with a healthy population of platypuses,” Trevor shares.

“Recently we identified six unique platypuses in a 60-minute survey using only three locations along Petrie Creek, so we can assume that there would be plenty more that went under our radar.

“I think Nambour is very underrated for its environmental diversity in general, but the platypus is perhaps our most iconic species, therefore raising awareness about its prevalence in the Nambour (and Sunshine Coast) region is a really important part of what ECOllaboration does.”

And awareness is crucial when human impact can harm the platypus.

“In my opinion, the two largest issues are pollution and habitat destruction, the latter usually stemming from urban development and damage to the riparian zone along creek banks.”

by REBECCA MUGRIDGE

In Nambour you have the chance of sighting the unique, semi- aquatic, egg-laying, Australian mammal, the platypus! The presence of these unusual creatures, in a river that runs through a busy town, is an exciting one.

Nambour local, Jean Dunning, is a photographer who has been able to capture the Nambour platypus in stunning photographs.

The trick, she says, is to have a little patience.

“The platypus are not always out and about. From Carter Road/Arundel Roundabout area I have seen up to four platypus during mating season.

“I take photos of wildlife every day. My husband retired about three years ago and we go out and about taking in our beautiful surroundings, platypus-spotting a few times a week,” says Jean, who also explains that a current threat to platypus is yabby traps.

“Neil Andison (the Platypus Whisperer from Maleny) is trying to raise awareness. Unfortunately, once a platypus gets inside, it is trapped and dies quickly. They are mammals and must reach the surface of the creek within four minutes. Being trapped under water in the yabby traps kills them.”

Keeping the platypus alive and breeding in Nambour is a combined effort. From public volunteers to community and environmental groups and the Sunshine Coast Council.

They hope to change this by involving the community more. “On behalf of the Sunshine Coast Environment Council (SCEC) we are hosting a World Environment Day, Platypus Conservation Walk on Saturday June 10 which finishes with some creekside planting through the assistance of Sunshine Coast Council (SCC) and Petrie Creek Catchment Care Group (PCCCG).

“I believe that people are far more inclined to protect something that they have an emotional connection to, which is easy to generate once you see a platypus in Petrie Creek!”

Trevor encourages public involvement. “We recently had a witness report an accidental pollutant reaching Petrie Creek near a major platypus hotspot and SCC were extremely prompt in addressing it.”

The public also helps with the platypus counts. “Our platypus surveys are vital for two reasons: community engagement and data.,” explains Trevor.

Jamie Slaven from Petrie Creek Catchment Care Group (PCCCG) says sightings in Nambour have increased.

“There have been many sightings over the years, however, in the last few years they have been regularly sighted in a few sections of the creek in Nambour.”

Jamie says the main spotting is from Arundel Avenue through to Currie Street. “The old weir from the Sugar Mill days provides favourable conditions.

“The platypus have burrows in the bank of the creek where they retreat to during the day, so it is important to ensure the creek banks are stable to maintain the burrows.”

PCCCG was established in 1998 by concerned locals over the state of Petrie Creek, Jamie says, “For many years PCCCG has been involved in a partnership with SCC to restore parts of Petrie Creek.

“The Council BushCare program includes the site near the Model Railway Park in Nambour, which is close to the location where the platypus are regularly seen. BushCare site Gulung Gung is east of Quota Park in the area behind Aldi and Nambour State College.

“These areas involve weed removal and [planting] lots of local native plants, grown and supplied by the PCCCG’s Florabunda BushCare Nursery.”

Florabunda BushCare co-ordinator, Suzie Pearce, says, “The nursery Florabunda BushCare began in 2002 to provide local native plants. Over the last 25 years there have been a range of projects along the creek involving landholders, other environmental groups, community jobs programs, correctional services and Sunshine Coast Council.”

Norm Morwood coordinates three BushCare groups that are in partnership with SCC and PCCCG. “Personally, I find it the most interesting thing I’ve done in my life,” Norm says.

“It also keeps me active, physically and mentally, and all aspects seem to be very rewarding. I moved to Woombye in 2007 after a career in Mining Engineering at various places throughout Australia. That included time in restoration of environmental damage by mines, as well as developing mining techniques to ensure minimal environmental damage.”

Norm says Nambour is a rich wildlife area. “We regularly record the number of individual species of birds at one of our BushCare Sites, Florabunda Pocket in Woombye.”

“We normally record up to, and a bit over 40 different species during our two-hour activity!”

Trevor continues, “If you want to learn more about platypus spotting get in touch with ECOllaboration. I could potentially host an additional community information session.

“We also conduct school field trips and incursions, so if you are a teacher who wants to learn more about

• Register your interest with ECOllaboration (trevor@ecollaboration.org.au)

• Join World Environment Day "Platypus Conservation Walk" on Saturday June 10

• Volunteer with Petrie Creek Catchment Care Group (PCCCG)

• Join Facebook group Platypus Watch Friends Sunshine Coast

• Visit Florabunda Bushcare Community Nursery https://florabundabushcare.wordpress.com/

• Volunteer at a local BushCare group Join a BushCare community group (sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au)

• Join the Citizen Science Monitoring and help record data on platypus raising environmental awareness for your students, please contact us.

“Our Protect the Petrie Creek Platypus campaign will be kicking off soon, and people will be able to ‘Adopt a Platypus’ or buy rubbish bin stickers to raise awareness and funding.”

And perhaps the burning question many of us want to know is, is more than one platypus a platypi?!

“This one always comes up, so read the following if you want to sound smart at the next trivia event...” says Trevor.

“Platypus is a Greek term (platys = flat, and pous = foot) so the correct plural in Greek grammatical form is either ‘platypuses’ or ‘platypodes’.

"’Platypus’ is also a commonly used, and accepted, plural term. Despite ongoing use, "platypi" is actually incorrect, as that is a Latin plural method, not Greek.”

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