A significant historical recognition was made in the country town of Nebo last month, with the unveiling of the John and Margaret Shannon memorial.
The memorial coincided with the 150-year anniversary of Salt Bush Park, which was purchased by John in 1872 for £600.
A HISTORY OF SALTBUSH
John married Margaret and the couple had 11 children. The Youngest, Alan, took over the management of Saltbush before acquiring the aggregation. Alan and his wife Irene had three children, their son Alan Jnr took over Saltbush in 1946. Ian Shannon took over the management in 1955 when Alan took over ‘Cardowan’ and he eventually purchased the property from the family. Ian and his wife Margaret have four children, their second son Stuart and his wife Leigh took over ownership of Saltbush Park.
John Shannon’s living depended on horse teams. He had draught horses and over the years Saltbush Park’s horses achieved a great reputation amongst the cane farmers, which encouraged John to run a herd of 40 brood mares.
When Alan Snr took over, he had a keen eye to breeding quality livestock, he purchased several Clydesdale Stallions to upgrade the stock. Auction sales were held in Mackay each year, and some enterprising local farmers used the Clydesdales for use in the cane fields. They were used for cultivating the fields and planting the cane and carting the cane to the mills.
Johns cattle herd was mixed when he arrived on Saltbush, predominantly Shorthorns, over the next few years he purchased heifers to build up the herd. He eventually purchased some quality Devon Bulls to improve the herd further. Later the herd was infused with quality Hereford bloodlines.
Alan continued this practice. The Saltbush herd was noted for its quality Hereford cattle. However, the arrival of the cattle tick meant they had to be dipped frequently.
When son Ian took over in 1955, he was aware of the increasing benefits of cross-breeding with Bos Indicus bloodlines, and in 1965 he bought a Brahman Bull and it became apparent that the crossbreds were much more thrifty and able to forage and ticks were not as much of a problem.
As a focal point for the early settlers, picnic race meetings were held in several sites through the Broadsound and Nebo Districts. One of these (Normanby) was on “Saltbush” and was an extremely popular gathering each Spring.
The locals would sometimes travel for days in their sulkies and buggies and set up elaborate camps for the race period. There were even formal balls in the evenings, and the ladies reveled in dressing for the occasion: Ruby Shannon composed several pieces for the balls, and one, the Normanby Waltz, proved very popular for many years.
To celebrate the centenary of John Shannon taking over Saltbush in 1872, the family arranged some significant activities around the weekend on 26th August 1972. The most significant event was a five event Picnic Race Meeting, which was staged to invite the local community to join the family to celebrate the survival and prospering of the family through the first 100 years.
A great day and evening were had by all and as a result, a new ambulance was presented to the Sarina Q.A.T.B. The races were held for another 10 years, however the decimation of the local community through the migration to the coal mines meant that there were eventually insufficient volunteer workers and local attendees, and the meetings closed.
This year marks the 150th year of the Shannon Family and Saltbush Park with the unveiling of a bronze Plinth in Centennial Park along with other celebrations held in Nebo and surrounding districts.
Last weekend saw two days of celebrations in Nebo and on the property, with more than 230 friends and family registering for the celebrations, some coming from as far away as Perth.
Isaac Regional Council Mayor Anne Baker was in attendance and said the day was “absolutely beautiful”.
“Congratulations to all involved in this wonderful project,” she said.
Thanks to Angie Caldwell, manager of the Nebo Museum for the history of Saltbush Park
Historical images courtesy of CQUniversity Australia Library Capricornia CQ Collection - Image of Saltbush Park station and John and Margaret Shannon
A bronze Plinth in Centennial Park was unveiled last weekend marking 150 years of the Shannon family in Nebo. Image: Mayor Anne Baker
