The town of Eumundi holds a captivating history that predates its famous market. This book delves into the town's origins, tracing back to the early timber industry. Readers are introduced to the European settlers who began moving onto the traditional lands of the Kabi Kabi nation in the 1870s and 1880s. The narrative covers the significant arrival of the railway, which connected Brisbane to the prosperous town of Gympie, fostering growth in hotels, stores, and farms.
… Someone, it is unknown who, chose to rename the new station Eumundi. This is an anglicised version of the name of a Kabi Kabi leader from the early 19th Century. He was also known locally as Huon Mundy, but his name has been spelled in multiple other ways, including Ngumundi and Gormundy. He became widely but vaguely known in the colonies through the Eliza Fraser story…
With the advent of the railway, Eumundi saw a boom in its local economy. Farmers thrived with dairy, sugarcane, and fruit production, establishing the town as a flourishing agricultural hub.
This period of growth is richly documented through the stories of the early inhabitants and the community's development before the onset of the Great War.
The war's impact on this quaint pocket of the Sunshine Coast is poignantly explored, providing readers with a deep understanding of Eumundi's resilience and transformation.
... Conflict erupted on the homefront over football. The Charity Cup was won by Woombye scoring 13 - 6 against Eumundi at Nambour on 23rd August 1914. But Eumundi, and its coach Albert Cook in particular, were adamant that the referee had been biased, and that the game should have been played in Eumundi, because they had won the cup the previous year. The match also included an incident of one of the Woombye players punching one of the spectators. The furore over the fairness of the game and the custodianship of the cup were argued for many weeks in the newspapers. Meanwhile, the real war continued to grow...
Authored by Joe Hextall, the director of the Eumundi Museum, this volume is meticulously researched and presented. Spanning 154 pages, the book features 36,000 words and 124 photographs, offering a thorough and engaging exploration of Eumundi's early years. It's a must-read for history enthusiasts and anyone interested in the heritage of the Sunshine Coast.
"A History of Eumundi: Volume I (1873-1919)" is available for just $30.00, with an additional $12.20 for postage anywhere in Australia.