One hundred years ago, in September 1926, a group of women got together to form the Redcliffe branch of the Queensland Country Women’s Association. In accord with the CWA ethos of “…Through Country Women, For Country Women, By Country Women”, they rolled up their sleeves and got to work helping their rural sisters.
With Redcliffe’s natural advantages in mind – sunshine, sea and sand — it was not hard to come up with the best way to do this. The CWA was already providing seaside holiday accommodation for country families elsewhere in Queensland, and the organisation, recognising the peninsula’s potential as a place of respite for families from the west, formulated plans to buy land and build in the area.
After the formation of the Redcliffe branch, the scheme proceeded apace and by January 1927, with the assistance of funds from the Darling Downs branch, two “huts” had been constructed overlooking Queens Beach and were ready for occupation by tenants.
The huts were self-contained and able to house a family, “in comfort” (if not luxury: the bedding consisted of “three ¾ and two single stretchers”). All furniture and fittings were provided, but residents were required to bring linen and cutlery. Some tenants expressed surprise that the “very up to date seaside cottages” should be called huts.
While access to some CWA holiday accommodations was restricted to women and children, the Redcliffe houses permitted husbands and older boys as well. A Mr Hansen of Dalby, who stayed there with his family in early 1928, expressed his gratitude for “the splendid holiday which the Scarborough hut afforded him…a home away from home”. Not only families experienced the hospitality of the Redcliffe CWA; in mid-1928, a party of 14 girls from Chinchilla, none of whom had ever seen the sea before, “had a very happy holiday, receiving many kindnesses from the local residents”.
Expanding to Meet Growing Demand for Seaside Respite
Such was the popularity of Redcliffe seaside holidays that two huts were insufficient to keep up with demand and a third was built, thanks to the generosity of Mrs Mackenzie of Jondaryan, who donated the £550 required for its construction. Tenders were called in November and the “Ann Williams” hut, named for Mrs Mackenzie’s mother, was opened in December – project completion times being enviably speedier in those days. A fourth hut and a caretaker’s cottage were built in 1930.
A Pittsworth woman spoke glowingly of “the comfort and kindness [of]…the members of the CWA at Redcliffe”, a sentiment that many other women and families would have echoed over the years.
With thanks to City of Moreton Bay: ourstory.moretonbay.qld.gov.au
Read more stories from our Redcliffe Guide print magazine here:
- Reddy Roundup: Updates from the Community
- What’s Hot Around Town
- Organic Gardening in October
- Fish of the Month: Fringefin Trevally
- Brisbane Writers Festival Returns With Big Stories
- Redcliffe Art Society Landmark Exhibition
- Bring Your Own Wonder
- Saddle Up For Dolphins Country Family Fun Day
- Step Into the Eighties for a Killer Night
- Foodie Fiesta Returns to Redcliffe
- Fashion and High Tea Combine for Myeloma Fundraiser
- Where to Find Gluten-Free Dining in Redcliffe
- All Aboard Redcliffe Peninsula Railway Line’s 10th Anniversary
- Run for Órla – Turning Love into Action, Hope into Purpose
- Tea a Sensational Sip at Thai Boi
- Brisbane Writers Festival Brings Authors to Moreton Bay Libraries
