Historical Australian Towns: Mount Morgan. QLD: A Historic Mining Town in the Dee Ranges

Mount Morgan is located 32 km south-west of Rockhampton in Central Queensland, on the Dee River.

The (G)Kangulu Aboriginal People

The Kangulu Aboriginal people lived on the land where the mining town of Mount Morgan is now situated. However, after the town of Mount Morgan was established in the 1880s, most of the Kangulu people who had lived a hunter and gatherer lifestyle, moved to a town known as Barambah, now called Cherbourg. Some of these people were forcibly moved, and were discouraged from speaking their own language.

The Gangulu language is considered to be a dialect of Biri.

According to Norman Tindale, the area of the Kangulu Aboriginal people is: Dawson River south to Banana and Theodore; northwest to Mackenzie River and near Duaringa and Coomooboolaroo. East to Biloela, Mount Morgan, Gogango Range, and the upper Don River; southeast to Thangool and the headwaters of Grevillea Creek.

The name "Barramundi" comes from the Gangulu people and means "large-scaled river fish". According to Dreamtime stories (there are various versions), a couple are forbidden to marry according to tribal law, and ran away together.

The tribe purses them, and they are cornered with their backs to the ocean. The young man throws his spears to ward off the tribe, and the young woman crafts more spears with the sticks and stones at her feet – binding them together with her hair.

As they grow increasingly desperate, rather than face the retribution of the tribe, the lovers hold hands and jump into the water. Instead of death, the Great Spirit transforms the couple into Barramundi so they may stay together forever.

Vintage Postcard of an aboriginal camp in Mount Morgan by J H Lundager Series 4

Aboriginal Camp in Queensland - very early 1900s

Aboriginal camp in Queensland, early 1900. Aussie Mobs

1882: Gold!

Before the discovery of large amounts of gold in 1882, Mount Morgan was called Ironstone Mountain. And, as Queensland author Frank Sykes wrote in 1893, anyone suggesting the possibility that gold could be found in ironstone before this would have been "laughed to scorn for his verdant notions about mining".

Since the Ganoona Goldrush in 1858, alluvial gold was seen in the creeks and ridges around Mount Morgan, but such finds were not taken seriously and were dismissed as "fools gold". How wrong people were, as Mount Morgan was to become the largest gold mine in Queensland in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Although it is said that a stockman on Calliungal Station named William Mackinlay was the first to discover the gold, it was in June 1882 that Ned and Tom Morgan decided to make a claim at Ironstone Mountain after hearing stories of a "low-grade show".

The brothers pegged out a claim and decided to name it Mount Morgan. Upon deciding to mine the claim on a large scale, they consulted Thomas Hall, the manager of the Rockhampton National Bank and a syndicate was formed with other people.

The Morgan brothers made a big mistake about four years later when they sold the shares in the mine to their business partners, Thomas Hall, William Pattison and William Knox D'Arcy, as they believed that the gold finds were shallow.

1886: Striking It Rich

With the Morgan brothers out of the game, the new owners decided in 1886 to float Mount Morgan Gold Mining Company LTD on the Sydney Stock Exchange.

D’Arcy set about purchasing shares until he owned 36% of the company. Not long afterwards, D'Arcy returned to England, an extremely rich man, with the mining company worth about twenty times its original value.

The gold extracted from the Mount Morgan Mine was described at the beginning of 1887 as the purest gold ever found in Queensland.

However, in the early days of mining for gold, millions of tons of copper had been washed away downstream. With this realisation, the Mount Morgan mine moved into successful copper extraction.

A weekly newspaper called the Mount Morgan Chronicle commenced in 1886; proprietors Donaghey, Eastwood and Co.

1890s

Trains, Boat and a Team of Horses

In 1892, Mount Morgan had a population of about 5000 people. But to get there from Sydney involved first travelling to Bundaberg by rail, then on to Rockhampton by steamboat, travelling for one day and night.

From Rockhampton, the journey would continue by rail and coach, with four horses travelling to the townsite, 700 feet above sea level. The mine sitting another 500 feet above the town.

Inverness House at Mount Morgan, QLD, circa 1892

Bush scene at Morgan's Camp, in the Mount Morgan district, 1892. State Library of QLD

Sugarloaf shaft Mt Morgan, QLD, Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1871 - 1912), Saturday 20 July 1895

Revolving furnaces, Mount Morgan, QLD, Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1871 - 1912), Saturday 20 July 1895

Daily Northern Argus (Rockhampton, Qld. : 1875 - 1896), Wednesday 15 May 1895

Settlement at the Dee River crossing, Mount Morgan district, ca.1895

Settlement at the Dee River crossing, Mount Morgan district, QLD, ca.1895. State Library of QLD

Marshall & O'Connell, Mt Morgan, Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1871 - 1912), Saturday 20 July 1895

Fire

It was reported in the Capricornian that on the 3rd of January, 1897, shortly before two o'clock in the morning, at the Ingham Buildings on East Street, that a whole row of wooden shops burnt down. The draper's shop belonging to a Mr Marshall and Mr O'Connell was destroyed as was the Calliungal Hotel owned by Mr Naskivell.

It was reported that flames were seen issuing from the fancy goods and tobacconist's shop kept by Mr A. Emanuei and from the fruit and fish shop of Mr D. Matthews. Some of the other shops burnt in the blaze were: McCarthy's Bakery shop, Brown's furniture store, Smith's saddlery shop, C. Boody's hairdressing, Nance's refreshment rooms, Cassell's watchmaking and jewellery, Evers's tailoring, Mrs Fell's fruit and confectionary, Matthew's fruit and fish shop and Houghton's tobacconist.

Mount Morgan works, QLD, Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1871 - 1912), Saturday 18 June 1898

1900s

Coaching - a familiar scene in the early days of Mount Morgan, Vintage QLD

Mount Morgan from Happy Valley, Qld - circa 1900. Aussie Mobs

Miners working underground in the Mount Morgan Mine, QLD, 1903

Mount Morgan from Jubilee Hill, circa 1905

Main street of Mount Morgan, ca. 1905. State Library of QLD

Mount Morgan mine train, Queensland - 1908. Kaye

View of the town of Mount Morgan and the mine beyond from the Queensland National Hotel

Group of gentlemen standing in front of the newspaper office, Mount Morgan, QLD, ca. 1910. State Library of QLD

Overlooking the suburb of Walterhall, Mount Morgan, ca. 1911, State Library of Qld

View from top of Mount Morgan's Limestone Quarry, Marmor, Qld - very early 1900s. Kaye

Open cut stopes at Mt Morgan, Qld - very early 1900s. Kaye

Horsedrawn and motor vehicles on Morgan Street, Mt. Morgan, QLD, 1913. State Library of Qld

Music store in Morgan Street, Mount Morgan, QLD, 1913. State Library of QLD

Shops on Morgan Street, Mount Morgan, 1913

Mount Morgan, QLD, first Hospital, early 1900s

Railway Station at Mt Morgan, Qld - early 1900s. PD

In 1919, Mount Morgan railway employees arranged for a special picnic service. The locomotive PB15 No. 348, was the second PB15 in traffic in 1900. The first was PB15 No.347

1920s

Fire at Mount Morgan, QLD, Capricornian (Rockhampton, Qld. : 1875 - 1929), Saturday 2 September 1922

Morgan Street, Mount Morgan, QLD, circa 1920s. Aussie Mobs

Mrs. Thompson's Railway Boarding House in Mount Morgan, Qld - 1910

Mrs Thompson's Railway Boarding House, Mount Morgan, QLD, circa 1920s Aussie Mobs

Twenty seven Hotels! Here are Some

At one time, Mount Morgan had 27 hotels, with the first hotels being situated behind the first mine. The town itself grew from the mining camp, developing into something resembling a town in about 1887.

Mount Morgan and District Hotels - Past & Present

MINERS ARMS*, Mundic Creek, West Mount Morgan - The Miners Arms and The Australian Hotel were the first hotels in Mount Morgan. They were both pulled down by c.1906.

THE AUSTRALIAN HOTEL*, Mundic Creek, West Mount Morgan - The Australian Hotel was originally named the Mundic Creek Hotel.

THE SHAMROCK HOTEL, Shamrock Street, Red Hill - This hotel was pulled down in the late 1920's and erected as an hotel at Goovigen.

THE EXCHANGE HOTEL, Tipperary Road, Tipperary Point - Originally named the SUNBURST Hotel, it burnt down on February 1, 1955.

THE MOUNTAIN VIEW HOTEL, Tipperary Road, Tipperary Point - This hotel was adjacent to The Sunburst Hotel, and was pulled down in c.1928.

THE MOUNT MORGAN HOTEL, Corner of Morgan Street and Tipperary Road - This hotel was pulled down in c.1928.

THE IMPERIAL HOTEL, Morgan Street - The Imperial Hotel burnt down on April 25, 1923.

The Imperial Hotel in Emu Park was on the corner of Hill and Archer Streets, probably built in the late 1800s. It had a few different owners, including: Mr and Mrs Begg. The hotel burnt down in 1901

THE QUEENSLAND NATIONAL HOTEL, Morgan Street - The license was revoked on the 23rd July 1992.

THE GRAND HOTEL, Corner of Morgan Street and Central Street - The Grand Hotel is still trading.

THE LEICHHARDT HOTEL, Corner of Morgan Street and East Street - The Leichhardt is still trading.

THE GOLDEN NUGGET HOTEL, Central Street - Originally named the CENTRAL HOTEL, this hotel is still trading.

THE RAILWAY HOTEL, James Street, opposite the Railway Station - The Railway Hotel is still trading.

THE CALLIUNGAL HOTEL, Corner of Morgan Street and East Street - This hotel burnt down on January 9, 1957.

THE METROPOLE HOTEL, Corner of East Street and Hall Street - The Metropole Hotel was pulled down in the early 1930's.

THE CHAMPION HOTEL*, Corner of Dee and Royal Lane. Later replaced by the Royal Hotel.

THE ROYAL HOTEL, Corner of Dee Street and Royal Lane - The Royal was pulled down in c.1928 and erected as the Royal Hotel at Thangool where it burnt down on September 12, 1979.

THE CRITERION HOTEL, Corner of Byrnes Parade and East Street Extended - The Criterion, originally named the Railway Hotel, burnt down on May 5, 1964.

THE MOUNT VICTORIA HOTEL*, Mount Victoria, a small settlement c.8 kilometres southwest of Mount Morgan - This hotel was pulled down on an unknown date, probably 1897.

THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL, Walterhall - The Great Northern Hotel was built originally in Millican Street (off Gordon Lane) in Walterhall. It was later shifted to the corner of Gordon Lane and Joyce Street. In 1933 the hotel was pulled down and erected in James Street and renamed THE RAILWAY HOTEL.

THE AVOCA HOTEL, Gordon Lane, Walterhall, near Dairy Creek - Its license was cancelled in 1953 and it was later pulled down.

THE GOLDEN SPUR HOTEL, Baree, corner of Creek Street and Kyonet Street - The Golden Spur was pulled down in September 1928 and erected as a house at Moongan for Mr. David Jones Sr.

THE MOONGAN HOTEL, Moongan - This hotel was converted into a residence in the very early 1900's and burnt down on September 14, 1987.

THE RAZORBACK HOTEL - Moonmera (bottom of Razorback Range). It was pulled down in 1936 and erected as two houses in Port Curtis Road, Rockhampton.

The Razorback Hotel, Mt. Morgan, QLD, nd

THE JUBILEE HOTEL*, Moonmera, at the bottom of the Razorback - A plan of the proposed Moonmera - Moongan Railway Line (Razorback) dated September 14, 1897 shows the Jubilee Hotel at Moonmera, near to where the Moonmera State School once stood.

THE ERIN HOLM*, Struck Oil, 6 kilometres north of Mount Morgan - The only record of this hotel is in Pugh's Queensland Almanac and Directory for 1904, which says, Erin-Holm Hotel (Dee River Rush - 7 miles).

THE DIGGERS REST HOTEL, Struck Oil - The Diggers Rest Hotel ceased trading in c.1917 and was later pulled down.

THE CLARENCE HOTEL*, Struck Oil - This hotel ceased trading as a hotel after the decline of Struck Oil as a mining area in c.1907 and was later pulled down. See more

1930s

Mount Morgan Firefighters, QLD, Morning Bulletin (Rockhampton, Qld. : 1878 - 1954), Friday 20 March 1931

The Mount Morgan Revival, QLD, Central Queensland Herald (Rockhampton, Qld. : 1930 - 1956), Thursday 5 December 1935

1940s

Pie E. J. Mou'ds, sixth son of

Mr tuid Mrs G. Moulds, Jeannie Street, Mount Morgan, serving with the A.I.F. abroad, was reported to be seriously ill.Central Queensland Herald (Rockhampton, Qld. : 1930 - 1956), Thursday 18 September 1941

Morning Bulletin (Rockhampton, Qld. : 1878 - 1954), Friday 21 September 1945

1950s

At the Mt Morgan Show, QLD, Central Queensland Herald (Rockhampton, Qld. : 1930 - 1956), Thursday 11 June 1953,

Hell's Angel carried Gil Mallyon heavenwards at the Mt Morgan rodeo last Saturday. Central Queensland Herald (Rockhampton, Qld. : 1930 - 1956), Thursday 9 October 1952

Come and Visit

Mount Morgan is a quiet town these days, with many abandoned mines. It is hard to believe that the town was once bustling with 27 pubs and 15 tennis courts. About 50 tonnes of silver, 360,000 tonnes of copper, and 250 tonnes of gold were extracted from the Mount Morgan mines in the 108 years of mining operations.

There were recent plans to reopen some of the mines and clean up tailings from a century of mining operations. Although, it seems that such an operation is not economically viable. Many heritage-listed buildings remain, especially on Morgan Street, East Street, Hall Street and Central Street.

Around Mount Morgan