THE CHILLAGOE CREEK HOMESTEAD

"The Fossil House"

Chillagoe's History

Tours of Distinction

Chillagoe's History

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CHILLAGOE'S history reaches back 2000 million years. About 420 - 360 million years ago Chillagoe was coastal. Down through the ages a coral reef formed, the remnants of which can be seen in the surrounding bluffs. Over time the landscape changed. Caves began to form.
Move quickly through the time scale to the reign of the great Dinosaurs.
At Chillagoe, we would be witnessing the spectacular sight of giant marine reptiles swimming in the warm waters of the Apian Sea.
Again the landscape changed Australia became a floating ark with its unique cargo of marsupials. Some became specialized grazers standing 3 metres tall. Earth Scientists tell us that between 14,000 and 10,000 years ago, the climate changed to more-or-less as present.

CHILLAGOE today, is a sleepy little outback town with a backdrop of stark, yet beautiful, limestone bluffs. But do not be deceived! Chillagoe is a town with a past: a rich and vibrant history, part of which is still debated to this day.

The geological processes over the ages had brought rich minerals to the surface. The discovery of gold on the Palmer River heralded the arrival of the pastoralists in the 1870's. The prospectors followed. Ore bodies were discovered. A central smelting Plant opened in 1901. Men from nations around the world toiled in an incredibly hot, hostile environment. The largest private network of rail (until 1970's) connected the mines to the Smelting Plant, and down to the port of Cairns.

In 1914 the Smelters closed. On the 1st January, 1919 the Queensland Government acquired the Chillagoe Smelters, and the vast network of rail, but it was not until three years later they acquired the leases of the Mungana mines, the Lady jane and Girofla. Stories of graft, corruption and political intrigue became rife and legends in the own day.

When the Mungana Affair erupted, it shocked the nation and destroyed the political career of one of Australia's favourite sons, Edward G. Theordore, "Red Ted" Was he guilty? The subject is still hotly debated amongst historians to this day. In chillagoe, ask an old-timer. It's amazing the stories you'll hear! Take a walk around the old State Smelter Reserve at dusk. The experience is true-blue heritage extravaganza!