Ross River Meatworks Chimney (© Magi Nams)
Tempted outdoors by fresh air and the dawn chorus, I cycled over the Bowen Road bridge and into Idalia, passing kookaburras perched silently on wires above the river, scanning the mudflats and river for prey. I also passed an old, fenced-off brick chimney in a vacant field in Idalia. That chimney, which Vilis and I have used to orient ourselves while on walks in the area, and which we supposed was formerly part of an old factory, is in fact the only remnant of the Ross River Meatworks. This, we learned from an article in yesterday’s Townsville Bulletin, which reported that the chimney is to be restored as a monument to Townsville’s industrial history.1
Out of curiosity, I did a little more digging into that history and discovered that the Ross River Meatworks was built in 1890, at a time when Townsville’s population was only 13,000, and when the land now occupied by the modern, upscale housing developments in Annandale and Idalia consisted of holding pens for cattle slated to be processed in the meatworks.2 That information painted an entirely different picture in my mind of Townsville, as did the words of North Queensland historian Dr. Dorothy Gibson-Wade, who was quoted in a 2008 Townsville Bulletin article as saying, “It was all open country in that era but it was a huge enterprise – Ross River Meatworks was enormous… You would often see great herds of cattle being driven down over Herveys Range and into the meatworks…The major industry on which the founding of North Queensland was based was pastoral but you can’t do much with cattle unless you have a meatworks.”2
The meatworks was a booming industry for over a hundred years, with the development of refrigeration facilitating beef exports to British markets. 2 After topping out in its production in 1992, the Ross River Meatworks closed in 1995 and was demolished in 1997 – except for its landmark chimney. 2 Public outcry saved the red-brick tower 1, which was added to the Queensland Heritage Register in 2009.3
Later in the morning, Vilis and I visited the Willows Market, intent on stocking up on locally grown fresh produce. I quickly filled my basket with vine-ripened tomatoes and other vegetables, as well as a trio of pineapples purchased for the unbeatable price of $5.
The North Queensland region between Townsville and Cairns is one of three major pineapple-producing areas in Queensland, the other two being the Fitzroy region in central-east Queensland, and the Moreton and Brisbane areas in the southeastern part of the state.4 Queensland produces nearly all of Australia’s pineapples 4, 75% of which are processed in Brisbane’s Golden Circle cannery4, with the remainder sold as fresh fruits within Australia. Essentially none are exported.4 Over 300 growers produce about 125,000 tonnes of fruit,5 and the state can even boast its very own Queensland-bred pineapple variety, the Aus-Jubilee, Australia’s first home-bred pineapple.6
Vilis Testing Pineapple for Ripeness (© Magi Nams)
Our lunch was a Greek salad incorporating several sun-warmed, vine-ripened tomatoes along with creamy Tasmanian feta cheese that melted in our mouths. The real treat, though, was our dessert of sliced pineapple – soft and dripping with a luxury of sweet juice that made me think all those steamy Townsville summer days may have been worth it after all, just for that exquisite taste of fresh, ripe pineapple.
References:
1. Lendl Ryan. April 17, 2010. Chimney restoration agreement will prevent icon from stacking it. Townsville Bulletin. p. 3.
2. Lendl Ryan. August 23, 2008. Townsville icon smoked out – vital bricks in building our city. Townsville Bulletin. Accessed April 19, 2010. http://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/article/2008/08/23/15661_news.html
3. Wikipedia. Ross River Meatworks Chimney. Updated 11-Feb-2010. Accessed 19-Apr-2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ross_River_Meatworks_Chimney
4. Australian Government, Australian Natural Resources Atlas. Agriculture – National Horticulture Industry Profiles – Tropical Fruit. Updated 16-Nov-2007. Accessed 19-Apr-2010. http://www.anra.gov.au/topics/agriculture/pubs/national/tropical_fruit.html
5. G. Sanewski and C. Scott. 1998. The Australian Pineapple Industry (abstract). ISHS Acta Horticulturae 529: III International Pineapple Synmposium. Accessed 19-Apr-2010. http://www.actahort.org/members/showpdf?booknrarnr=529_4
6. Queensland Government, Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation, News Release, January 14, 2009. Jubilation for Australia’s first pineapple. Accessed 19-April-2010. http://www.dpi.qld.gov.au/30_12814.htm
