1966 bushwalk on North Bribie

The following article gives readers a view of North Bribie Island as it was in 1966.

Bushwalking on Bribie (1966)

by "Wantimba"

An island, warm in the sun, lies across Pumicestone Strait from Caloundra, inviting the bushwalker, the bird watcher, the fisherman and the casual tourist to something unusual, something different.

The invitation is especially strong on sunny winter days between May and September.

This is the northern end of Bribie Island. Of the many accounts of early Queensland only one gives an indication of the native name of this island.

John Dunmore Lang, D.D., A.M., in his book "Queensland - Australia" dated London April 22, 1861 wrote:- "To the northward of Stradbroke Island, and separated from it by a navigable channel of nearly a mile in width is Moreton Island, running due North for about twenty miles with an average breadth of three miles. The third island is Bribie's Island, the Yarun of the natives..."

For those who wish to visit "the Yarun of the natives" at the northern end, outboard hire boats are available at several points between Bulcock Beach and Military Jetty fronting Pumicestone Strait.

On the island at the site of the old jetty where military supplies and equipment were landed during World War II, there is an attractive landing. A notice board fronts the water. "Lions Park, Caloundra." There are low banksia and wattle trees shading springy, close cut grass and rustic tables - both there per courtesy of Caloundra Lions. This small square of "civilised" ground amid primitive surroundings is close to the ocean beach. The first sand dunes can be seen from the picnic tables.

The holiday adventurer should come provided with a good picnic hamper and a supply of drinking water for, as yet, there are no water tanks on the northern part of Bribie Island.

It is primitive land, retaining some of the native creatures and wild "atmosphere" which inevitably vanish before "development."

Kangaroos favour a small open area of grass land just north of the landing. Several emus stalk the sand dunes. At least two of these emus are extremely big and unusually dark in colour. Several brolgas (native companions) inhabit the stretch of dune and swamp extending south to the old lighthouse fronting the ocean beach.

GHOST FORTS

The active visitor may choose between walking down the open ocean beach as a beachcomber, or following the old military road behind the frontal sand dunes. About a mile south, between the road and the beach, is the first of a string of old forts built during World War II.

The massive concrete and log structures are crumbling and dangerous. One fort is almost undermined by ocean tides - illustrating the alarming erosion which is eating away the northern end of Bribie Island.

Underground storage chambers and magazines remain in good condition. They are as sound as on the day the last soldier marched out. Hundreds of names, accumulated over 25 years are scribbled on the dry walls.

These forts and many other traces of a large military establishment tell of tense days when big guns and young men waited for enemy ships which may have attempted to force the North West Channel into Brisbane.

Today [1966], surf surges on a long peaceful beach. Keen fishermen cast into promising gutters. A feeling of primitive isolation, ignoring the ghost forts and past history, holds this island.

DISUSED LIGHTS

Some three miles south of Lions Park the dome of a lighthouse shows above the frontal sand dunes. The tower is now decrepit and neglected. Once this was an important mark for shipping. Like the ghost forts it is now part of Bribie's long history.

In "Bribie the Basket Maker," Thos. Welsby wrote:- "Comes now the Lower Light House. There are two structures of this nature on the island used as leads for deep sea vessels seeking the North West Channel into Moreton lights. They were built in 1896, one being called the front light, the other the back light. These houses contain white fixed lights, the nearest giving a front of 12 nautical miles, the back one 15. The structures are built and known as skeleton towers. The outer or ocean light has a height of 62 feet, as a building, from base to vane, with 56 feet of height of light above high water, whilst the inner or backlight is 98 feet above high water mark."

Today [1966], a clear track leads past the ocean light to the second light. People climb this tower for views of the island. The hugs timbers are still sound, excepting for one great stay which has been burned by bush fires. For 70 years these skeleton towers have stood above the flat land of Bribie Island.

Beside the track to the second light a large native fig tree has survived axe and bush fire. The ancient shells of an aboriginal "midden" are plentiful in the sand hereabouts.

The track continues past the second light to the shores of Pumicestone Strait. At the end of the track is an old boat landing where, for some two or three hundreds dollars worth of clearing, an inviting landing and picnic area could be made. From here a track leads south down the centre of the island, finally emerging on the bitumen road between Bongaree and Woorim.

The opportunity to secure the northern end of Bribie Island as a fauna and bird sanctuary, attracting tourists seeking respite from the worlds of bitumen and close packed buildings, may soon pass - dredging leases are pegged on this island in the sun.

At this landing a motor boat could meet parties having made the interesting walk from Lions Park opposite Caloundra, past the old forts and lighthouses, through kangaroo and emu country - and have them back to Military Jetty, Caloundra within half an hour.

REFERENCES

Bushwalking on Bribie by Wantimba. Nambour Chronicle May 6, 1966. page 23.

An online copy of the article can be viewed at http://www.sunshinecoastplaces.com.au/caloundra/bribie-island

Lang, John Dunmore (1847)
Cooksland in north-eastern Australia: the future cotton-field of Great Britain: its characteristics and capabilities for European colonization with a disquisition on the origin, manners and customs of the Aborigines.
London : Longman, Brown, Green and Longman, 1847. 523p.
A pdf file [13.9 MB] of the book, digitized by Google from the library of Harvard University and uploaded to the Internet Archive, can be accessed at
https://archive.org/details/cookslandinnort00langgoog

Welsby, Thomas (1937) 
"Bribie - The Basket Maker"
Brisbane, Qld. : Barker's Bookstores, 1937. 146p.
A pdf file [25.9 MB] of the book can be accessed on the National Library of Australia's website
http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-52856497/view?partId=nla.obj-102585612#page/n3/mode/1up

Saving war relics

War Relic was Holiday Home on Bribie

Barry Clark, Bribie Island Historical Society

We have recently been contacted by a lady from Brisbane with wonderful childhood memories of living in one of the Fort Skirmish Military buildings at Woorim.

It is one of only 2 remaining buildings in the area of Rotary Park, which is soon to have informative signs erected and improvements carried out. The structure is known as RAN 4 and was the Control Room for submarine detection cable laid on the sea floor, across to Moreton Island to detect and destroy enemy ships. 

There were several defensive installations throughout Moreton Bay which are shown on diagram 1. After the war the military equipment was removed but the structures remained.

1. Diagram of Defence installation
during WW2.

There were 5 rooms in the Control room building, for various equipment and wartime observation activities, plus a toilet for the Officers and another for the ratings. The layout and use of the rooms during the war years is shown on diagram 3.  Further back from the sea was the accommodation camp for about 30 servicemen plus various other military structures. The only other building that has survived is one of the Generator rooms which is still visible in Rotary Park.

Soon after the war the submarine cables were recovered and most buildings were removed or lost in the shifting sand dunes. By 1953 the RAN 4 Control Room was almost out of sight under the sand.

2. In 1953 it was almost buried,
before the Olsen family moved in.

Between 1948 and 1953 the Control room structure was used as a "weekender" by Brisbane butchers Bertha and Ern Koppe under a special lease. They installed double bunks and turned the Loop, Wireless and Observation rooms into bedrooms, and the Artificers Workshop became the kitchen.
The lease was taken over by Ray and Joan Craft who continued to use it as a weekender until 1958.

They installed a wood stove, but were unable to leave anything at all in the building when they were not there as it had no windows and was not secure.

3. Military use of rooms during WW2.

4. Rooms as Holiday home for
Olsen family 1958 to 1969.

Bribie Island was still quite remote in those days with only a car ferry from the mainland to the island, and a population of about 400 people.

The road across the island was rough and basic and there was only a sandy track from the Hotel north to the Control room.

Other families also leased Gun Emplacement structures opposite Fourth Avenue. Viv Daddo and family had use of the tiny Generator room still standing in Rotary Park.
Everything required for the holiday visits had to be carried in and taken back home afterwards.

On 12th March 1958 Frank and Oral Olsen took over the lease of RAN4 Control room and continued to use it as a holiday home for the next eleven years until end January 1969.
By 1970 the building was so broken down and unsafe that it could no longer be used.
Helga Newmann (nee Olsen) recently wrote the following letter to the Historical Society with her memories of those days, and provided a diagram of how they used the rooms as a home.

My memories of holidaying at "The Fort" Bribie Island 

by Helga Newmann (nee Olsen) April 2017

Between March 1958 and January 1969 my family (parents and five children) holidayed at various times (school holidays) at Bribie Island staying in "The Fort" leased by my Uncle Francis Lloyd Olsen (Frank Olsen). We would catch the barge  over from Toorbul Point to Bribie Island then drive across the island towards the ocean beach.

The road in to the fort was only a poorly maintained sandy track through the bush. First thing when we arrived Dad started the windmill so we could have water and got the kerosene refrigerator going. There was no electricity so we used primus lanterns for lights, a kerosene refrigerator and a wood stove. I don't remember stockpiles of wood for the stove so maybe we had some other means of cooking but I don't recall. Maybe a primus stove.

The windows would have had bars but I don't recall whether there was glass in them. The sand dunes actually came right up under the windows (within a foot of the windows) on the beach side. People used to wander along the beach and stop to look in the window. Many a time you'd surprise somebody looking in at you.

We used to swim and fish in the surf right in front of the fort. We also did lots of walking going to some of the inland lagoons. It was wonderful at night to lie in bed and listen to the only sound - the ocean breaking on the shore - and shadowy figures walking past the doorway when Mum and Dad passed with a lantern.

Saving Our War History

After 1970 the Control building continued to deteriorate and became extensively vandalised over the next 25 years, until in 1996 the newly formed Rotary Club of Bribie Island initiated a project to refurbish the building. Volunteers worked for many months inputting thousands of volunteer hours to uncover the building, clean and paint the interior rooms and external structure.

5. Control room before Rotary Restoration in 1996.

6. Restoration work by Rotary volunteers in 1996/7.

When completed it was almost as good as new and was positioned just above the high water mark. Despite the efforts of Rotary there was no interest by State or Council to provide adequate protection or signage.

7. After Rotary restoration vandals struck again in 2000.

In subsequent years king tides and storm surges eroded the protective sand dune in front of the Control Room, and vandals continued to break into the building and deface the restoration work.

8. Storm erosion in 2011 almost claims Control room.

9. Protective Sandbags after storms of 2011.

A major storm surge in 2011 removed large quantities of sand and seriously undermined the structure until it was almost lost.

Council were then required to construct a large sand bag protective wall around the building, which now sticks out over the beach and is washed by the daily tide.

10. What it looks like inside today.

Bribie Island Rotary Club have urged Council for many years to recognise the significance of these structures and to improve the facilities in Rotary Park and erect their informative signage. This work is scheduled to take place soon and it must be hoped that this will raise public awareness and respect for these important historical relics.

For more than a decade the Historical Society have urged State Government to recognise the almost complete loss of World War 2 structures at Fort Bribie on the north of the island. There are now very few remaining structures remaining intact. I have recently taken 40 people, as one of Council's Public programs, to see the inside of the Control Room and appreciate the role of Bribie Island in WW2. The interior is rapidly deteriorating due to extensive concrete cancer, and its ultimate collapse seems inevitable. Such a pity.

It was lovely to hear from Helga (nee Olsen) with her memories of many exciting holidays with her family, living in an empty concrete bunker on the water's edge ... a million dollar location.

We should all be reflecting on just how close Australia came to being invaded during the war, and the strategic role of the buildings and those who served on Bribie Island during those challenging years.

Acknowledgements
Thank you to Helga Newmann (nee Olsen) for her kind permission to reproduce her memories of "The Fort" Bribie Island.

The above article was published in the June 2017 issue (pages 14-15) of 
The Bribie Islander https://issuu.com/thebribieislander/docs/35_bis_june_2017

Further Information
Dr Richard Walding's webpages on Fort Bribie
http://indicatorloops.com/bribie.htm - has Loop Hut Floor Plan

http://indicatorloops.com/fortbribie.htm

Bribie Island WW2 Fortifications

Second World War Fortifications on Bribie Island

One of the most documented topics of Bribie Island history are the Second World War Fortifications located at several sites on the island.

The sites were entered into the Queensland Historical Register on 20 July 1993 (QHR 601143) and itemised as follows:

Fort Bribie No.1 Gun Emplacement (1939 - 1943)
Fort Bribie Southern Searchlight (1939 - 1943)
Fort Bribie No. 2 Gun Emplacement (1939 - 1943)
Fort Bribie Northerly Mine Control Hut (1939 - 1943)
Fort Bribie Southerly Mine Control Hut (1939 - 1943)
Fort Bribie Northern Searchlight (1939 - 1943)
Fort Bribie Battery Observation Post (1939 - 1943)
Fort Bribie Signals Operation Room (1939 - 1943)
Fort Bribie Pump House (1939 - 1943)
Fort Bribie Sewerage Treatment Works (1939 - 1943)
Skirmish Point Fortress Observation Post (1942 - 1943)
RAN Station No.4 Control Post (1942 - 1943)
RAN Station No.4 Southerly Engine Room (1942 - 1943)
RAN Station No.4 Northerly Engine Room (1942 - 1943)

Two of the criteria for the sites being added to the Queensland Heritage Register are: 

"They are important in exhibiting a range of aesthetic characteristics valued by the community, in particular the isolation, and sense of place, of the Fort Bribie fortifications, and the sense of discovery enhanced by the overgrown landscape; the form, scale and materials of the Fort Bribie, Skirmish Point Battery and Royal Australian Navy Station No.4 fortifications; and the siting and landmark quality of Fort Bribie, Skirmish Point Battery and the Royal Australian Navy Station No.4 fortifications." [QHR entry, Significance criterion E.]

"They have a strong association with the Second World War Queensland defence efforts of the Australian Military Force and Royal Australian Navy." [QHR entry, Significance criterion H.]

The full entry on the Queensland Historical Register covering significance, history, description and images can be viewed at https://environment.ehp.qld.gov.au/heritage-register/detail/?id=601143

Northern Searchlight - 1980.
Photo: Ronald Powell

Northern Searchlight - 2013.
Photo: QHR entry 601143

Fort Bribie Northern Searchlight (1939 - 1943)

Southern gun emplacement from east - 2013
Photo: QHR entry 601143

Southern gun emplacement from north - 2013
Photo: QHR entry 601143

Fort Bribie No.1 Gun Emplacement (1939 - 1943)

Southern Searchlight - 2013.
Photo: QHR entry 601143

Fort Bribie Southern Searchlight (1939 - 1943)

Northern Gun Emplacement - Dec 1953
Photo: BIHS DC_IW_001_gun

Fort Bribie No. 2 Gun Emplacement (1939 - 1943)

Further reading on the history of Fort Bribie during World War Two:

Dr Richard Walding's website has comprehensive information about 
Fort Bribie
RAN2 Controlled Mining Station and 
Royal Australian Navy Indicator Loop Station (Ran No.4)


Acknowledgements:
Queensland Heritage Register, Queensland Government, entry 601143

Q150 2009 Bribie Wartime

Q150 Heritage Plaque - 12 of 16 - Bribie Island Wartime

The Bribie Island Heritage Plaques Waterfront Walk Bongaree consists of 16 bronze plaques located on the "Heritage Walk" along the walking path beside the Bongaree beach from the southern point of South Esplanade and finishes just north of Kangaroo Avenue.
These 16 bronze plaques set on a white concrete square record various aspects of the history of Bribie Island: Record Rainfall, South Esplanade, Campbell's Store, Camping Grounds, Bribie Island heritage quote from A. Meston, Ian Fairweather, First Shop, Bribie Island Heritage quote from Stan Tutt, First Avenue, Fishing Records, Welsby Parade, Bribie Island Wartime, First Car, Shirley Creek, Castaway Convicts and Fish Cannery.
The following excerpt is from the 2009 booklet produced prior to the plaques placement. The Heritage Plaques Waterfront Walk Bongaree project was a Q150 Community Funded Program, initiated by the Rotary Club of Bribie Island and supported by Moreton Bay Regional Council in conjunction with Bribie Island U3A and Bribie Island Historical Society.

A copy of the map for the Bongaree Waterfront Walk can be found at 

http://bribieislandhistory.blogspot.com.au/2016/01/bribie-heritage-plaques-walk.html

BRIBIE ISLAND WARTIME    Bribie Island and Toorbul point (now Sandstone Point) were major training bases for Navy and Army forces during World War 2. Many military structures are still visible along the Ocean beach, and a small Arms Store can be seen across this road.

The Brisbane Line & Fort Bribie

> In the critical days of World War II the Australian Government had decided that an imaginary line would be drawn north of Brisbane across to the West Australian coastline. This line was the northern most limit Australian was prepared to defend and was known as “The Brisbane Line”. 

> Sites for the construction of a Fort to guard Brisbane had to be considered. The two major options were Caloundra or North Bribie Island.

> Bribie Island had many disadvantages: * No drinking water could be found. Bores

Intact military store in Caravan Park, Bongaree, 2009.

realized only salt water. Transporting water would be expensive. * There was no infrastructure on Bribie Island and all materials and equipment would need to be transported by barge. * Underground structures would be difficult because of the sand and water table. * Telephone links would need to be connected across Pumicestone Passage. 

> In spite of the disadvantages Bribie Island became the chosen site in February, 1940. The advantages for the Fort Bribie site was that both major shipping channels could be covered by guns on Fort Bribie, whereas guns in Caloundra could not.

> The building of the North Bribie Island Army Camp commenced in 1941. 

Fort Bribie Buildings

All buildings at the North Bribie Island Army Camp were constructed on sand hills because during high tides, underground water rose. All concrete used for buildings and other structures was mixed by hand.

Daily Roster Board at No. 1 gun emplacement, Fort Bribie.

> FORT BRIBIE. There were two gun emplacements at North Bribie Army Camp.The Number One Gun had to be available 24 hours a day. Number Two Gun was on standby. The Daily Roster Board consisted of a blackboard painted on the concrete wall, with lines and duties painted on, then soldiers names were marked in chalk for each shift. The remains of the roster board can still be seen.

Remains of No. 1 gun emplacement, Fort Bribie
on northern end of Bribie Island, 2009.

> MORTAR POSITIONS. To protect the back of the fort, mortar and machine guns were placed 45 metres apart at the edge of the tree line, and ran the full length of the 1.2 kilometre camp.

> SEARCH LIGHT. The northern search light was situated behind sand hills. Today, because of beach erosion the remains are on the beach.

> TOILET BLOCKS. Four separate toilet blocks—officers, sergeants, male soldiers and female soldiers. Remains of the mens toilet block can be seen today.

2/4th Australian Armoured Brigade during training exercises at Toorbul Point, 1943.

Water Supply

> Initially the only water was a muddy water hole, which had to be filtered and carted by truck to the camp each day. It was decided to pump water from Bulcock Beach Caloundra with a windmill and pipe it across Pumicestone Passage, where it was collected by truck and transported to the Fort daily.

> After much searching fresh water was identified in an underground spring south of the camp. 

> The soldiers dug the soil above the spring to make a catchment for rain water. This trench is still there.

> Every building had a rain water tank. Soldiers were told by the medical officer to bathe in the ocean each day to help with tinea and other fungal diseases.

Mines in Moreton Bay

> The mines were underwater explosives anchored to the sea bed and linked by cables that went to the Mine Control Rooms located at north and south end of Bribie Island. 

> Induction loop cables were laid on the seabed east of Bribie Island. They were very sensitive and any passing vessel would be indicated by a signal sent back to the No. 4 Naval Control Station at the northern end of Woorim Beach. Operators could detonate appropriate mines to destroy enemy ships. 

> The No. 4 Naval Control Station at Woorim still stands today. 

Acknowledgement:

Information from: John Groves “North Bribie Island during World War II” 2006, John and Janice Groves “Digging Deeper into North Bribie Island during World War II” 2007.