A cache for the Shearer’s Strike of 1891.
The Great Shearers’ Strike of 1891 was a major confrontation between Queensland graziers and their shearing hands. It has been recorded as one of the most significant events in the development of the Australian Labour Movement. (Check out the relevant attractions in Barcaldine.)
Barcaldine became the headquarters for the strikers and the site of the biggest strike camp just north of the town at Lagoon Creek (Check soon for a cache there). Strike meetings were often held in the shade of a ghost gum in the town’s main street - which came to be known as the Tree of Knowledge (Check the cache there).
But is that what really happened? Hmmmm. Maybe? You can read more here: http://is.gd/HgnpxY.
Series Notes: Barcaldine lies at the crossroads of major transport routes north-south and east-west; on the major transport routes from Townsville to Adelaide and Rockhampton to Darwin. Road Trains, some of considerable length, travel these roads 24/7. Caravans galore mostly during daytime hours, highlight the significance of the tourist trade to the area.
Along each of these routes is a series of caches highlighting the centrality of Barcaldine as an access hub in Central Western Queensland.
The Eastern Series of twelve caches commences some 22 or so klms from Barcaldine on the Capricorn Highway from Rockhampton. It ends at a rest stop on the outskirts of the town. All caches of this series, except one, are on the left (western) side of the highway, so there is no need to cross the highway in search of a cache. Roadside parking is available at all caches, even for caravans.
If you are travelling out of Barcaldine, please reverse the direction of some aspects in these descriptions. Not all points will be visible when travelling east, as they will be on the opposite side of the road facing away from the direction of travel.