My World, My Home, My people - Douglas Shire

Sadly, most people think I am nothing more than a series of inanimate geographical electoral boundaries but really, I am so much more than that, I am your home.

The same home that you should care for, love and nurture as you would a delicate new born. You might see me as a soil rich environment with burgeoning mountain ranges and ample freshwater streams, but I am infact a very old and fragile eco-system.

For many thousands of years I have had a lot of help from a group of very beautiful human beings who refer to themselves as Yalanji, a name which literally translates to English meaning ‘from here’.

Europeans first came to these shores back in 1770 when Lieutenant James Cook passed the coast heading north. His ship the 'Endeavour' struck the Reef and had to be beached at Cooktown for repairs. This is where the first of many subsequent environmental disasters happened.

Cook had live Pigs on board and prior to the ship being listed (put on its side) the Pigs were all taken ashore and penned. Unfortunately, many of the animals escaped the crude enclosures and the rest as they say is history.

I was named Douglas Shire in 1880 after the ‘then’ Queensland Premier John Douglas, prior to that I was known to the Yalanji people as Kubidi. What’s in a name I thought at the time but I have over the years become quite fond of my name, Douglas… Douglas Shire, It has a warm fuzzy homely type feeling about it doesn’t it?

Things were really starting to change around here by the mid 1870’s when gold was found up on the tablelands, the merchants and Government departments started to setup camp in and around Port Douglas. A road was completed on the 6th of September 1877 which became affectionately known as the Bump track, this road was to prove a vital link between the gold fields on the tablelands and the harbour at Port Douglas.

The local population grew to about 6000 settlers over the next thirty years and every year more and more of the precious Complex Mesophyll Vine Forest that once covered a great portion of this area was all but disappearing, as more trees were cut down, more land was planted with crops. Many crops were trialled including rice but by far the most successful was Sugar Cane.

In February 1911, a cyclone caused considerable damage to Port Douglas and battered coastal shipping. Five weeks later a second much more powerful system hammered the area (March 16th, 1911). This second cyclone almost completely destroyed Port Douglas and nearby Mossman, two lives were lost.

In addition, the railway connection between the two towns was wrecked by the destruction of the terminus and the intervening bridge in front of the Sugar Wharf. The 1911 Cyclone is only ever referred to as the 1911 cyclone as the practice of naming cyclones did not actually start until 1964, the reality is that two cyclones that hit that year.

Originally, the custom of naming cyclones was that only female names were used, the use of male names did not begin until 1975. Now the names alternate between male and female and if a cyclone becomes a significant event like Tracy or Larry that name will be ‘retired’ into the history books.

By the 1920’s the main business center of the district had drifted from Port Douglas over to Mossman largely due to the needs of an ever expanding sugar industry. By 1927, One hundred and forty eight cane growers were growing sugar cane in the Mossman district alone.

The 1930’s was a busy time around here as a real community leader was running the show, his name was R.D Rex and he was responsible for many infrastructure projects that still exist today also the hospital opened in Mossman and the Port Douglas hospital closed.

1933 saw the official opening of that wonderfully scenic drive between Cairns and Mossman we know as the Cook Highway and the Mossman to Daintree Road was also completed that same year. The US 2/15 Engineers commenced construction of the Rex Highway over the range to Julatten from the outskirts of Mossman.

Electricity was turned on in Port Douglas in 1957 and the following year saw the last rail and sea transportation of sugar from the Port Douglas wharf. After that it was sent by road to Cairns and the village of Port Douglas started to wane.

In 1960 the Douglas Shire Council started the Daintree ferry service and the road was extended all the way up to Cape Tribulation. The Great Barrier Reef was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1981 and by 1983 protesters blockaded the Bloomfield track to stop a road being dozed between Cape Tribulation and Cooktown.

In 1984 the Cairns International Airport was opened and tourism started to become a major industry in the area. The Sheraton Mirage resort opened in 1988 and the Greater Daintree National park was entered into the World Heritage List.As you can see, many things good and bad have unfolded around here over the years and many more are yet to unfold, but if you love me, I promise to love you back.