Jaycees' Memorial Fountain unveiled to honour plague victims

In August, 1966 the Jaycees’ Memorial Fountain was unveiled to honour the nurses who sacrificed their lives when the outbreak of pneumonic plague occurred in Maryborough in 1905. The unveiling of the fountain is featured in Extracts from the Archives of Channel Seven featured on our YouTube page. 

On the 28 May, 1905 Nurse Rose Adelaide Wiles, known affectionately as Nurse Adela volunteered to assist plague victims (Matthews, 1995). Further nursing assistance to care for the children was required and one of the nurses to be summoned by letter was Cecelia Elizabeth Bauer (Matthews, 1995). On the 6 June, 1905 Nurse Cecelia Bauer died at the age of twenty-two (Matthews, 1995). After her death the long awaited confirmation that the sickness was the pneumonic plague arrived from the pathology laboratory in Brisbane; two full weeks after the first victim, John O’Connell died (Matthews, 1995). Six days later on the 12 June, 1905 Nurse Adelaide Wiles passes away (Matthews, 1995).

The fountain is built by Bert Piling. The front inscription says:

“This fountain was presented to the city by the Maryborough Junior Chamber of Commerce to honour the memory of  nurses Bauer and Wiles who gave their lives nursing the victims of an outbreak of pneumonic plague "the black death." in June 1905. This outbreak was the third recorded in history. Unveiled on 13th August 1966. 

By P.A. Earnshaw C.B.E., M.B., CH.M., F.R.A.C.P.”

Percy Alan Earnshaw (1893-1980) was a paediatrician and can be seen unveiling the fountain in this extract. He was educated at Maryborough and Brisbane grammar schools, and at the University of Sydney (M.B., Ch.M., 1916) (Thearle, 1996). Earnshaw was a house surgeon (1916) at Sydney Hospital and resident medical officer (1917) at Brisbane General Hospital (Thearle, 1996). On 13 July 1917 he was appointed captain, Australian

Army Medical Corps, Australian Imperial Force (Powell, 2017). Earnshaw was a house physician (1919-21) at the Hospital for Sick Children, London (Thearle, 1996).

The monument features Butchulla artwork by Olga Miller. It depicts the Butchulla legends about a magic stone and the Baddow Island ibis. It originally had a beautiful Aboriginal sculpture on the top that can be viewed clearly in this clip. This is no longer with the fountain.

Alexander Connors is conducting the Excelsior Band. He was awarded a British Empire Medal for his services to banding in Queensland in the 1980s. 

The monument is located behind the Maryborough City Hall. 

This project was supported by an innovation grant from the Library Board of Queensland and is copyrighted to Seven Network and Fraser Coast Libraries.

References:

Matthews, T. (1995). River of Dreams: A History of Maryborough and District. Maryborough: Maryborough City Council.

Powell, M. (2017, February 24). Soldier-Doctor Percy Earnshaw. Retrieved from State Library of Queensland: https://www.slq.qld.gov.au/blog/soldier-doctor-percy-earnshaw

Thearle, M. J. (1996). Earnshaw, Percy Alan (1893 – 1980). Retrieved from Australian Dictionary of Biography: http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/earnshaw-percy-alan-10089

Tags #blackdeath #fountain #bauer #mills