GEOLOGY:

The history of Eumundi & District begins with geology……………………….

The museum’s geological collections outline the formation of landforms around the Sunshine Coast.  Neighbouring Eumundi is North Arm, a place marked by intense volcanic activity between 230 and 210 million years ago.  This volcanic activity produced quantities of rhyolitic ignimbrite, andesite, agglomerate and breccia which may easily be seen and collected in any of the numerous road-cuttings within the District.  Rhyolite has largely been used as a road base by the local Council and Main Roads.

Geological forces millions of years ago right through to the present day have shaped the landscape producing some spectacular and fantastic forms on the coast, such as the Glasshouse Mountains, Mount Eerwah and Mount Coolum. Such forces have also produced many interesting mineral forms. The area is well noted for its abundance of Thunder Eggs, spherical bodies of cooling lava with crystalized quartz, feldspar, clear and banded agates formed into bizzare patterns.

A set of Core Samples taken from the Golden Surprise Mine, clearly illustrate the geological timeline of the entire Coast.

In the early part of the 20^th Century, the Golden Surprise Mine was the most important in a series of gold mines located at North Arm.  The Museum has on display a collection of miner’s tools, photographs and mineral samples that illustrate this short-lived but important industry.

BOTANY:

High rainfall and the and the accumulation of rich sediments have allowed for a great diversity of plant life to flourish in the area.

The Aboriginal inhabitants of the region learnt how to use most of the plants in a variety of ways.  Some of these plants (as well as information concerning both their traditional and contemporary uses) are on display in the gardens surrounding the Museum.

It was good quality timbers that attracted settlers to this region in the first place. The Timber Industry was a mainstay for the people of Eumundi in the early years of settlement and provided many job opportunities and wealth.  Photographic records, various saws, axes and other timber working tools and equipment highlight the numerous Timber Mills that sprang up in the District.  Also on display is Dick Caplick’s Springboard, a testiment to Dick and the other brave timber-getters who risked their lives in order to procure the quality timbers required by the industry for processing.  Samples of some of the woods that were once common in the area, such as Crow’s Ash, Blackbean, Cedar and Bunya Pine are also displayed at the Museum.

Several ‘Backhousia citriodora’ (Lemon Myrtle) plants are maintained within the Museum’s gardens. Once prolific on the rainforested hills, a small-scale Oil Distilling Industry in the early years of the 20^th Century, was largely responsible for making this scented plant less common today.

Eumundi is one of the few towns in Australia that did not erect a stone monument to the men of the town who fought and died in the First World War of the last century. Instead, the Women’s Patriotic Committee purchased and planted various trees, one for each of the fallen. These remain today, a living memorial, linning Memorial Drive and Gridley Street.  The Museum retains detailed records on these special trees as well as the original name plates that accompanied them.

BIOLOGY:

With the abundance of plant life, it is not surprising that the area supports many varied and interesting animals.

The Museum has a large collection of butterflies and moths, some of them, like the Richmond Birdwing Butterfly, are quite rare in the area today.

Also on display are some of the Giants of the Insect World, such as the Titan Stick Insect, Giant King Cricket and Giant Wood Moth.  A myriad of colours and forms organised into respective Orders forms the basis of our ever-expanding reference collection of arachnids and insects - a small sample of what’s out there.

Preserved and mounted are a number of common and not so common marsupials, reptiles and birds that are seldom seen in the wild, giving visitors a chance to examine them up close.

The Museum is also keeping records on the sightings of certain animals found in the District, from the Redback Spider to the Echidna.

FAMILY HISTORY:

The Museum has an extensive archive of Family Histories, covering those families that helped shape the development of Eumundi and surrounding District.  In addition, the Museum retains a number of very valuable oral histories of significant persons and their lives and memories of the town and area.

These files and tapes are available for perusal by interested visitors.

SOCIAL HISTORY:

The bulk of the Museum’s collections are items, images and documents that detail the development of the township and district from its early pioneer days right up to the present.  These collections provide the visitor with a greater appreciation of all facets in the working life and leisure time of people in a typical Queensland, small country town both now and in the past.

Asides from those objects representative of the Timber Industry, the Museum displays objects such as Cream Churns, Butter Moulds and Milk Containers representative of the Butter Factory and Dairy Industry. Cane Knives, Bill Hooks and Potatoe Picks give a good idea on the working life of the numerous fruit growers and agriculturalists that were and still are a major part of the everyday life of the district.

Besides representing the working life, the Museum has numerous religious, sporting and social objects that reflect how the everyday person unwound after a hard day’s work.

Significant objects include the old Telephone Exchange, the original Estey Organ used in one of the town’s Churches and a Bank Signatures Book used in the town from as early as c. 1909.

INDIGENOUS ARTEFACTS:

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