MR MURRAY GIBSON

OUR LONGEST SERVING SUGAR MILL MANAGER

“From 1919 until his retirement in 1964, (Mr Murray Gibson) provided a steady leadership which saw Proserpine take its long-predicted place as a leading sugar district.” A Crystal Century by John Kerr.

For forty-five years, Murray R Gibson was a well-respected mill manager whose tenure far outstripped that of any other manager since. When he retired, directors had to select the first general manager since the formation of the Association.

Murray Gibson first visited Proserpine in 1905 aboard the ‘Ada Dent’, a small coastal vessel trading between Bowen and Proserpine. The mill manager at the time offered him a position as an office boy and four weeks later he took up the position. In 1913, he was appointed the accountant.

In 1919, after some time in the Innisfail area where he was an accountant at the South Johnstone Mill, he returned to Proserpine as mill manager at the young age of 30. In the book, “A Crystal Century”, author John Kerr painted a glowing picture of this man described as a “gentleman who raised his hat to every woman. He never raised his voice, always wore a white shirt and long trousers, and on entering the mill, he said ‘Good Morning’ to everyone. He was respected by all. He was also tough, resolute, and strong-willed. … He was astute at handling money, stretching a pound and getting value for expenditure. He was frugal; for many years his own house had no hot water system and only a wood stove.”

Throughout his time as manager, Murray Gibson continued to live in the manager’s house – as old as the mill. It was so old that no one submitted a tender to buy it for removal when, in 1972, directors provided a new house for Rod Suthers, their new manager.

Gibson also gave the mill priority over opulent offices. He had the space under his high set house enclosed and this became the secretary’s residence and office for twenty-five years. When the association was formed in 1931, any expenditure on new office space and a board room was deferred for three years to focus on urgent expenditure.

Murray Gibson’s first year as mill manager was something of a baptism of fire. Confronted with five strikes in the short space of fewer than two months, right in the middle of the crushing, he demonstrated his metal. But the man was fair and on at least one occasion championed the cause of a sacked worker.

Faith in Gibson’s leadership was confirmed when he was appointed manager in 1931 when the mill once more became a co-operative owned by the farmers. From the outset, Murray Gibson did all in his power to ensure the technical and financial success of the mill. He was a forward-thinking manager, always focussed on improving outcomes and embracing change where necessary.

In his first annual report to shareholders of the co-operative, Gibson emphasised the need to abandon their outdated process of disposing of mud by adding to bagasse. He also pointed out the need for a fourth mill if Proserpine was to match other mills’ performances. Investment in the manufacturing end of the plant continued to pay dividends.

When the Royal Commission of 1942 adopted the Sugar Bureau’s unpopular system of rationing based on need, Murray Gibson attended hearings in Mackay and proposed a system of controlled substitution for land exhausted for lack of fertiliser which was in short supply during war, explaining how the system had operated at Proserpine for years. Proserpine’s unofficial migration had enabled the district to produce record crops while using less fertiliser than other districts.

As well as being busy as the mill manager, he found time to be associated with many public and sporting organisations including in the early days of the School of Arts and Patriotic and school committees. He was

also Vice President of the Recreation Tennis Club, Patron of the District Tennis Association and President of the Golf Club.

Personally, Murray Gibson suffered much tragedy in his life. His first wife, Mabel (nee Blair) and her baby died in childbirth. Then, in March 1918, during the ferocious Innisfail cyclone, his second wife died while helping a woman who was expecting a child. She was hit in the chest by a flying beam and killed instantly. South Johnstone. He then married Florence Emmeline (nee Gordon) and they had three children but there was more heartache to follow. One of their children, Marjorie, was killed in a shooting accident and not long after that, Florence died. Later, he married Mrs Connie Scott (nee Busuttin), a widow, and he outlived her. So much sorrow to bear.

Murray Gibson spent most of his working life in Proserpine, retiring in his 70s after fifty-nine years in the sugar industry. He died in Bundaberg in 1992 aged 94 years.

To acknowledge all that he achieved would take far more than can be covered within the length constraints of this article. Suffice to say, Murray Gibson was a man who is remembered for his unwavering commitment to progress within the sugar industry in Proserpine. His forty-five year tenure of office as mill manager is a milestone unlikely ever to be replicated.

Story and photo courtesy Proserpine Historical Museum.

Mr Murray Gibson. Photo supplied.