It is with great pleasure that I present my report for 2024-25. I begin by acknowledging the passing of long-time member Edna Jarvis during the year. Edna was a great supporter of the society and had a vast knowledge of historical activities in the district. She was an active committee member for many years and as Jill mentioned she helped with the painting of the front fence when it was installed many years ago.
The future of the society continues to be of great concern to the aging committee. This year we welcomed back Graeme Mills (past President) and new member Ron Tame to the committee. This band of history buffs continue to maintain and manage the vast collection at the Court House and this year have spent many hours sorting through new donated resource material as well as culling items. The volunteers not only file and record the items that are presented or donated to the society, but they also make themselves available to assist researchers in their quest for family history or local information. We are regularly told by researchers that our collection and knowledge is awesome but without more volunteers all this may disappear! We are desperately in need of new office bearers and volunteers to open the Court House twice a month to manage the collection and assist with research.
It may be necessary to reduce the opening days to one day a month and by appointment, however the current volunteers enjoy their days at the Court House and are keen to assist researchers.
Maintenance of the Court House buildings and infrastructure continue to be an issue. We investigated options for replacing the decking between to 2 buildings however the quote was extensive and could not be met from grant options, so has been shelved for the time being. We also investigated options to replace the weather-beaten front fence…a work in progress. The ramp railing also needs another coat of paint!
I have also reported damage to the Court House brick work to DEECA and they have suggested we have an engineer’s /builder’s report conducted to assess any structural damage, however it is their historic building and I feel it is their responsibility. I also reported the spread of 3 Corner Jack weed in the grass area which has previously been kept under control by one of our volunteers, but it is now spreading out of control….to be investigated! Looks like we’ll have to see to the weeds! Mowing will also need to be addressed!
The sales of ‘Pubs of Avoca’ written by member Phil Waring have been positive – $35 a copy . ..and I know Phil is still researching pubs in the district so I’m sure he will have a new book for sale soon.
During the year, Landsborough Historical Society launched the “Pyrenees Rail Heritage Trail”. The society researched the lost stations of the Pyrenees and had signs installed at each of the 7 station sites. Unfortunately, Avoca and Homebush were not included so this is something we are addressing with Avoca Community Arts & Gardens, especially with 150th anniversary of the Maryborough-Avoca Railway Line due to be celebrated in October 2026.
During the year we were also notified that there had been damage to the front door of Daly’s Cottage (white ant infestation meant the door had fallen in). The committee had also discussed our management position and whether we would be able to continue this in the future. In the meantime, owners of Daly’s Cottage, Taltarni, had been sold with the new owners offering it to the Pyrenees Shire Council as they no longer required it. Communication with PSC confirmed this offer and the Council is in the process of having the title transferred to the Shire. We are still waiting to hear from Council re management into the future.
The memorial wall at the Avoca Cemetery continues to provide an opportunity for family members to acknowledge their descendants who were buried in unmarked graves. Families can contact the committee to arrange the editing and printing of plaques to be attached to the wall.
Finally, I would like to thank the current committee for their dedication and expertise, and our members for their continued financial support of the historical society. The editing and printing of our newsletter continues to be a challenge. We depend on items being sent to us for inclusion in the publication and without support from our members it may become the ‘Pilgrim/Robinson Pioneers’ rather than the ‘Pyrenees Pioneers’. Thanks go to Suzanne for her account of her tour of the Sandakan Death March in Borneo as part of the 80th anniversary of the end of WW2 in our last edition. (Part 2 continues in this edition Page 5 –7)
We would love to hear from you if you have a family story or historical event to share with our members… Let’s hope we can find a way forward to continue the preservation of our district’s history so we can offer our services to our members and researchers near and far.
Marg Pilgrim, President 2025
First published in the Pyrenees Pioneers December 2025
