My last day in Charleville is somewhat slower – catch up on some washing. I ventured in to town to take in Historic House and the Hotel Corones tour. Historic House is a time warp, there are so many artefacts jammed into one small place, it’s hard to appreciate what you’re actually seeing – worth the $7 entry charge just to admire these old vehicles

My mother recalls the young boy scooting around the streets in this chair!

Again the tour of the Hotel Corones was a walk through history, the hotel being a place that has hosted many an aristocrat in its day. These days, it’s tired – the tours assist to keep the doors open!

Augathella (pop. 430) about an hour north east, seriously a quite small town, especially on a Sunday morning! The best cup of coffee, the ONLY cup of coffee I could find was at the garage on the highway and it was a push button machine – no barista in sight!

I quick drive through town which yields some delights –

Tambo (pop. 400) known recently by the fame of Tambo Teddies, although this small town also boasts the only crash site of Qantas!

For me, it was an opportunity to visit my uncle – my last visit here was in 1977. I remember taking the billy cans out to the milk truck and getting them filled with milk still warm from the cows!

Unfortunately a storm came through in the afternoon, so I missed the highlight of Ben’s Chicken Races at the pub, I’m led to believe it’s a daily occurrence and lots of fun to be had!

A drive through Blackall (pop. 950), home the original Black Stump , a marker in which surveyors used to establish latitude and longitude measurements.

I had also seen signs for the Blackall Woolscour, I’ll be honest, I had no idea what a Woolscour was! Wow, this was a diamond in the rough. With a working steam engine which powers the Woolscour, the machine which washes the wool after shearing, prior to export!

After visiting the Sheep Station, this tour gave me the next step in the process of one of Australia’s biggest exports! Absolutely fascinating, quirky tour guide Ian didn’t fail to entertain on my personal tour! Tours run hourly on the hour and they’re just waiting for the visitors to arrive.

I had taken an award winning video of the Woolscour in action although for some reason it hasn’t saved. So follow this link to view the promo video from their site.

Barcaldine (pop. 1500) is the next stop on my trek, like other smaller towns, steeped in history. Most notably the Tree of Knowledge and home of the first industrial strike by shearers for fairer wages and working conditions – home to the birthplace of the Australian Labor Party! Whilst it’s great to look at the sights along the way, I love that I’m learning about Australian history – bits and pieces I kind of knew but not really.

The significance of that first strike is the reason we have regulations and basic wages, employers are bound to pay a fair wage for fair work. I know it doesn’t always work out that way and there will always be those that rort the system, from both sides.

In 2006, the Tree of Knowledge was vandalised through poisoning, a new memorial was developed by award winning m3architecture. The wooden structure is fashioned in such a way, as to reflect the original tree.

A theme that is found in each of these smaller towns and in fact, in every town I’ve been to so far, has been the artwork – murals and sculptures adorn every wall, every park and roundabout!

Artist – Milynda Rogers from Scrapmetalsheila is firmly installed in western Queensland, I encourage you to visit her site and look for her pieces as you travel from town to town!