Quay St, 1912 |
Rockhampton was proclaimed a town on the 15th December 1860 under the Municipality Act of 1858, and became a city in 1902. The first Council was elected on 26 February 1861 and held its inaugural meeting on the 1 March 1861. The six members were John Palmer, Mayor, Richard McKelligett, John Ward, John Stevens, Alexander Grant, and P.D. Mansfield, serving a four year term as was the practice until 1921.
Rockhampton's population at the time was approximately 600, with boundaries stretching from both sets of mountains to encircle the area.
The ward system was introduced in 1864 with three wards, Fitzroy, Archer and Leichhardt. The amalgamation with the Town of North Rockhampton in 1919 added a further ward, and more responsibilities for the Council.
Currently there are ten wards in Rockhampton with 11 members on Council.The original Town Hall was a small wooden construction built in 1874, and was still in use during World War II, even though the new building had been opened in 1939. A foundation stone for the present Town Hall had been laid during the Jubilee celebrations for Queen Victoria in 1897, as recognition that the facility was inadequate and as an incentive to build a new one. During WWII The new Town Hall was used as District HQ for the American Army, with an air raid bunker constructed under the building.
Municipal Amenities
Water Supply was as much a concern for early councils as today. The original water supply came from the Yeppen Lagoon with a service instigated in 1861, after application had been made to the government. The supply was upgraded in 1874 when a loan was provided for the installation of new pumping equipment. Further advances were made in 1926 with the opening of the Mount Charlton pumping station with the supply coming from The Gap, Fitzroy River. The Fitzroy River Barrage was commissioned on 19th March 1970, and the new Glenmore Water Treatment Works was officially opened on 26th November 1971.
Always closely linked to water supply is the city's sanitation. Health problems arising from the City's early water supply were not resolved until attempts for funding for a sewered city began in the 1930s. The City was fully sewered by 1978, and was publicly celebrated with the ritual burning of the last night-soil cart.
Electricity supply was originally maintained by Council and began in the1890's. Street lighting converted from gas to electricity and was completed by 1924.
Transport
Council operated bus services in Rockhampton from 1939 until 1995 when service was passed to private enterprise. Prior to the introduction of buses in Rockhampton, a tram system operated on the south side of the river from 1909 to 1939. Plans never eventuated for trams in North Rockhampton.
The Fitzroy River presented problems, with transport from the north to the south side of the City being via ferries and small punts until a bridge across the river was opened in 1881. Surrounding shires were involved in the maintenance of the bridge until Greater Rockhampton was proclaimed in 1919. The new Fitzroy River Bridge was opened in September 1952, when the original bridge was closed to traffic and finally demolished in 1956. Rockhampton's third road bridge, the Neville Hewitt Bridge was opened in 1980.
The airport was first established in 1930 as a facility for the Rockhampton Aero Club with a push from the newly formed QANTAS and other local airlines. In 1990 the new airport facilities were opened, and the Council assumed ownership of the airport in 1991.
The Port of Rockhampton
In 1874 wharves were built within the city reach of the river to allow the transportation of goods, people and mail to southern and northern ports. Rockhamptonites pursued the idea of a port within the river, until the government finally set up Port Alma and the rail links along the Sunshine Route were completed. In 1960, the redevelopment of the port was funded jointly by Council and the Queensland Government.
Cultural Pursuits
The Rockhampton City Council has a commitment to the cultural heritage of the region and an association, from early settlement , with all cultural endeavours in the City.
The Rockhampton Municipal Library Service has a history which relates to the early settlement of the area. The Rockhampton School of Arts, instigated in 1861 came under Municipal control in 1947. As a venue for cultural activity, the School of Arts performed an educational role with displays of local geological specimens, aboriginal artefacts and regional pictorial materials, as well as being a venue for talks and a meeting place for local groups. The School of Arts stock formed the basis of a collection of significant Australian historical material within the library's collection. The current library buildings were opened in the 1970's, North Rockhampton in 1971 and the City Library in March 1977.A toy library was established in 1982 and a housebound service in 1985 providing access to resources for the elderly and disabled.
The Municipal Theatre was opened in 1964 providing a cultural focus, along with the School of Arts, for socials, eisteddfods and theatrical performances. The Pilbeam Theatre, named in honour of former Mayor, Rex Pilbeam, was opened on the 6th June 1979 and the Music Bowl opened in March 1985. Art works including depictions of the city and early Central Queensland are housed at the Rockhampton City Art Gallery. Mr Pilbeam was responsible for obtaining the funding for a City Art Collection in the late 1970s although works of art had been on display in the City Hall prior to the building of the Art Gallery. Local art and craft groups are catered for with Council's acquisition of a Walter Reid and Co. warehouse which was opened in 1979 as the Walter Reid Arts Centre.
Environment
City beautification began in the first decade of the town being formed. Monsieur Thozet planted trees along city streets, established a plant nursery at Kalka Shades in North Rockhampton, and looked into the aboriginal uses of our local flora. In 1869, the Council of the day set aside an area for botanical gardens on the site of the former Native Police horse-paddock near Murray Lagoon. This has blossomed into the beautiful Botanic Gardens we know today. The Cliff Kershaw Memorial Gardens, a modern botanical garden was established and opened on the north side of the City, in 1988 to feature Australian flora.
To appreciate the beauty of the city a scenic drive was built up Mount Archer to provide spectacular views of the Fitzroy River Valley. Council has continued to develop and maintain many parks and provide beautification of city streets to project the sub-tropical climate the City enjoys.
Recreation
Recreational amenities such as swimming pools have been maintained by Council since the installation of the City Baths in Bolsover Street in 1883. Using an innovative fund raising scheme Rex Pilbeam was able to fund an olympic size pool in South Rockhampton in 1960. The pool for North Rockhampton was opened in 1970.
Photo Courtesy of Rockhampton & District Historical Society.