Backward Glance - Bli Bli, a settlement on the Maroochy River

Up until the 1860s, early Europeans didn’t know much about the coastal rivers north of colonial Brisbane.

In 1838 and 1840, Andrew Petrie from Brisbane had noted the stands of valuable cedar during his exploration trips near the coast.

Later, his son Tom was one of the first to venture into the Maroochy region looking for timber – which in turn brought timber getters to the area.

The crash of falling timber deep in the magnificent forests was heard regularly for nearly 100 years.

During the 1860s, timber cut inland on the ranges and on the coastal lowlands gave the Maroochy region a reputation for producing some of the finest timber in the colony.

The overland tracks had proved very difficult for transportation, so timber getters sought other solutions.

The rivers provided highways for the timber to be transported to Brisbane.

The first timber removed from the region came from areas close to the coast.

In 1861, Brisbane’s Port Master G P Heath was sent north to report on promising ports.

On his expedition, like Petrie before him, he encountered considerable difficulty on the bar, when entering what later became Maroochy River.

Bli Bli’s early years of European settlement began as early holdings of large selections.

In 1862, John Westaway and his teenage sons, William and Richard, secured the lease of Moolooloo Plains.

With them came the experienced pioneer bush men Tom Laxton, Edmund Lander and Tom Petheridge, riding their horses with pack horses trailing through the thick scrubs.

They brought 550 head of cattle and built a slab hut and cattle yards at Bli Bli, on the south bank of Maroochy River.

In 1867, the Westaway’s left Bli Bli, heading south to the region known today as Meridan Plains. Here they developed large cattle holdings.

The Westaway’s were respected by all who knew and had dealings with them.

Sadly, by the end of the century, most of the valuable timbers in the North Coast region were depleted.

Timber traders then turned their attention to the North Coast’s potential, including the Maroochy region, for agricultural purposes.

William Clark, a timber lease holder, first experimented with sugar cane growing near Bli Bli in the late 1860s.

Twenty years later several sugar cane farms were surveyed and taken up.

After a new land act was passed in 1876, a fresh wave of options saw almost all of the lush lands and valleys along the Maroochy River taken up by 1884.

In the 1890s, the steamship “Tarshaw” transported vital supplies from Brisbane to Maroochydore and then further up the Maroochy River to the early pioneers of Bli Bli.

The Tarshaw was built at Kangaroo Point and was nearly 110 feet in length.

She made her first trip to the Maroochy River in 1886, it was the only boat at the time that could safely take a load of timber over the shallower sand banks where the river meets the ocean.

Upon return, the Tarshaw carried vital supplies, as well as farming equipment and some passengers.

When crossing the Maroochy River bar, the captain would sound his steam whistle to alert the settlers of their approach – so they would make their way to the wharf to collect their much-needed supplies.

The Maroochy River was a natural barrier for settlers wanting to access the good farm land north of the river.

This lack of ready access stunted the development of Bli Bli for many years.

Hubert Wells, the son of Thomas and Rachael Wells, moved from Sydney to Bli Bli in 1906 when he was aged about 15.

His family had bought a 400 acre property near the present site of Bli Bli Castle.

Hubert married Violet Home at Nambour in 1911 and farmed the 400 acre property.

Sugar cane was growing throughout the region and he became an inspector for Moreton Central Sugar Mill, Nambour.

Active in the early community, Violet and Hubert’s home became the base for Royal Life Saving meetings in the district.

On March 13, 1916, the early still water swimming and lifesaving club Bli Bli (a sub-branch of the Maroochydore branch of the Royal Life Saving Society), was formed.

Thomas Nichols and wife Margaret selected land in 1880 at Bli Bli.

Charles, one of their three sons, invested heavily in an unsuccessful sugar growing project and he and his brother George left Bli Bli for several years.

On his return to the district in 1884, Charles applied for a new selection.

Sadly, he drowned on June 7, 1908 when his boat capsized while crossing the Maroochy River bar, which claimed many lives over the years.

Clement Prentis was the son of Henry Prentis and wife Ann.

On November 10, 1885, Clement married Margaret McClintock at Woombye.

The couple lived at Petrie Creek, Bli Bli where they engaged in fruit and cane farming on the property they named Mt Pleasant.

He selected land on the northern side of Petrie Creek in 1878 and later extended his land to include the site of Dean's boatshed on the creek bank at Cedar Tree.

Clement operated bullock teams snigging logs and produce across to both Maroochy and Mooloolah Heads and became the second wharf caretaker at Mooloolah Heads, now known as Mooloolaba.

In the early 1900s Woombye and Palmwoods were the leading pineapple growing areas of the region.

To cope with increased production there were a number of private canneries working, including Blanch Brothers Cannery at Bli Bli.

The cannery was built on land at Bli Bli opposite what is now Bli Bli Castle.

Mr Blanch arrived from the Clarence River district in 1913 and cleared 10 acres of land.

His sons, Fred and Jim, built a sawmill and cut wooden fruit cases as well as growing pineapples in the red sandy soil on the ridges of Bli Bli.

Pineapple farmers delivered their pineapples to the cannery and the produce was labelled BBB, meaning Blanch Brothers Best.

Stay tuned for Part Two next week.

Thanks to Sunshine Coast Council’s Heritage Library Officers for the words and Picture Sunshine Coast for the images.

Image details

Hero image: Students and Miss Adela Bleckley in front of the Bli Bli Provisional School, 1903. The school was officially opened on 2 April 1901 with Alexander Purdon as teacher and enrolment of 26 students.

Image 1: Steamers 'Tarshaw' and 'Tadorna Radjah' at anchor in Maroochy River, 1888

Image 2: Charles Nichols with his horse team hauling bags of harvested oysters from the Maroochy River, BliBli, ca 1890

Image 3: Local residents travelling along the cane tramline on trollies, BliBli, 1914

Image 4: Passengers aboard a tram bound for BliBli, ca 1918

Image 5: Passengers aboard river launches moored at the wharf at Deepwater on Petrie Creek, BliBli, ca 1920

Image 6: Horse team hauling loaded cane trucks from a punt on to the tramline on the bank of the Maroochy River, Bli Bli, ca 1945. Cane punting was the only method of transporting cane across the Maroochy River until the David Alan Low Bridge was opened at Bli Bli in 1959

Image 7: BliBlicane growers' exhibit of improved sugarcane at Brisbane, 1922

Image 8: Official opening of Bli Bli Public Hall, 1927. Pictured: R. Nichols, E. Pashen, D. McDonald, E.R. Jefferies, E.J. Blanch, V. Clark, B. Vennett, H. Wells, F.W. Blanch, M. Espin.