The land and Aboriginal people are inseparable – Drastic change was to follow -
Women displayed courage and tenacity – Closer settlement brought more people -
Sharing knowledge enriches lives – Our relationship with the land was and still
is not easy – With the opening of the railway, small townships grew.

 

Spirit of the Land mural (on State Farm Road, Biloela) A combination of two styles of artwork have been created in this unique mural. The mural tells of stories connecting two cultures from Indigenous beginnings to 1928 in the Callide Valley.
In 1928 Biloela was gazetted as a town. The 15 interpretive signs tell stories of real people who left their country of birth, compromised, pioneered and adapted to the Australian way of life. The indigenous section shows aboriginal life before European settlement.
We have much to learn from them in caring for our land for future generations to enjoy.

People from different countries were immigrating to our area and blending into the community bringing their culture and adapting to the Australian way of life. There are also stories about ‘closer settlement’ after World War I in our area when the population grew. The name of the mural and the names on the park benches were selected from a naming competition held in our community.

You will see and read how our pioneers and Indigenous people formed friendships, endured loneliness and heartbreak together, to build and create the communities we enjoy today. Members of our community were given the opportunity to place their hand prints on the mural on ‘opening day’. By placing their hand print on the mural they not only left their mark in history, they showed the unity within our wonderful community.

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A Timeline

1851 Explorer Charles Archer entered the Callide Valley

1861 The first white child born in the Valley

1902 Last wagon of wool leaves

1923 Closer settlement opened up in the area

1925 Over 40,000 acres were planted with cotton.

1926 The Railway built a goods shed and house for the station mistress

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Population

The Census of 1856 shows the population from Taroom to Gracemere was 264 males and 64 females with over 100 stations in its 40,000 square miles! The current population of the Banana Shire is: 15, 626. The Banana Shire includes the towns and villages of: Biloela, Moura, Theodore, Thangool, Baralaba, Goovigen, Banana, Wowan, Dululu, Cracow, Jambin and Taroom. Biloela’s population today is: 5,752.

Moura’s population is currently: 2,000.

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