Fraser Coast Libraries has just added the 2019 publication History of the Fraser Coast Show Society to its collection.This is a concise record of more than 114 years of an organisation devoted to people of Fraser Coast and surrounding areas.
The research for this publication started back in 2010. It chronicles the first meeting of the Wide Bay Farmers and Planters' Association in 1867 through to the new society being born in 1875; from the 1900s through to 2019.
The book details the the impacts of drought, influenza and World War II on the annual show. The severe drought of 1902 resulted in the show being postponed and eventually cancelled. A circus trick horse jumper was crushed to death in 1905 - the same year that the plague had occurred in Maryborough.
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| Mary Schmidt, noted Horsewoman and Ring Mistress of Maryborough Show. Her family owned the Carriers Arms Hotel for many years. Source: Maryborough Wide Bay and Burnett Historical Society Inc. Picture can be viewed in Fraser Coast Libraries image gallery. |
In 1919 the show was not run due to the influenza outbreak. The outbreak of World War II saw the 47th Battalion Infantry set up headquarters on the showgrounds.
The other buildings were also used for military purposes. The show ceased for four years during this time. After the military withdrew from the show grounds much work had to be done to bring the grounds up to standard for the Victory Show of 1946.
The last entry of the book discusses the 2019 show. Acknowledgement is given to Diane Wood who sadly passed away before her manuscript was finished. "This story on the History of the Fraser Coast Agricultural Show Society could not have been completed with out Diane's dedication and love for this project"(History of Fraser Coast Show Society, pg 155).
References
Wood, D.L (2017), History of the Fraser Coast Show Society
Tags #Frasercoast #Maryborough #Showsociety #history
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