Explore the past at Pioneer Park Museum
Exploring the relics of Australian history makes us realise just how much has changed in the detail of daily life. Pioneer Park Museum holds a wide and sometimes familiar collection of everyday items that have disappeared from use and now offer insights into the evolution of Australian culture.
A visit to the machinery shed reveals an 1890 Marshall Industries wheat thrasher, retired tractors affectionately restored back to working life, and other agricultural machines that are reminders of the way things were. The collection is among the largest assembly of working agricultural machinery in Queensland and on the fourth weekend in May each year locals relive a little of those pioneering days.
The old skills of wheat thrashing, ploughing and chaff cutting are revived for the annual field day educating younger generations to the stamina of their forefathers. There's a collection of original colonial buildings sourced primarily from the Dalby district including the old Jubilee hospital that dates back pre-World War 11.
In the school house wooden bench desks, alphabet charts and outdated history books deliver flashbacks of those old school days. Household paraphernalia such as wringer washing machines, party line telephones and 19 th Century fashions provide glimpses into domestic life while in the grocery store 1960s Vegemite jars and Aeroplane Jelly remind us that a few things have stayed the same.
Pioneer Park Association treasurer Elaine Fox says, "People will walk into rooms and say 'This is just like Grandma's house used to be'." The instant recognition of decades passed is an experience that has drawn visitors back time and again.
"People come back again because they enjoyed it so much or because they couldn't see it all in one visit. We've had people say this is the most comprehensive collection they have ever seen." The museum boasts one of the world's two remaining 1926 Chandler Hearses and houses an extensive rock, mineral and fossil collection including a fossilised dinosaur egg.
Elaine's husband, Dan, is Association president and together they carry out much of the museum's daily management tasks. It's a labour of love in many ways but they're not complaining. "We get visitors from countries such as England, Germany and Switzerland and they are amazed by it all." |
