beards

James ATHERTON was born on 8 May 1830 in Blackrod, Lancashire, England, died on 23 December 1903 in Queensland, Australia at age 73, and was buried on 24 December 1903 in Yeppoon Cemetery, Queensland, Australia. In 1856, James with his younger brother John, overlanded sheep from the family property of `Bold Blair near Armidale to Queensland and formed a sheep station called `Rosewood'. James remained around this area all his life. He invested in Mount Morgan Mine which did not prove successful losing his property and lastly moved to `Copland` (now St. Brendans College) where he died in December 1903. Source: atherton.one-name.net/tng/getperson.php?personID=I10867&a... The Atherton family arrived in Sydney during 1844 on the brig Briton. There were 7 siblings; James, John, Alice, Rebecca, Edmund, Harry, and Thomas. But also two further siblings, Esther and Richard, who were born in New South Wales. Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Atherton_(pioneer) Both Atherton, the town, and the Atherton Tablelands were named after John Atherton, a remarkable early settler who, in 1857 when he was only twenty, overlanded sheep from the New England area of NSW to Rockhampton. He moved to the area in the late 1870s. Source: www.aussietowns.com.au/town/atherton-qld

It's funny... as an Aussie, I've never really thought of crocodiles as predators! That makes no sense, obviously... I mean, LOOK AT IT!

Big Ben laid at a truly frightening 22 feet and 6 inches (6.8 meters) and ruled Alligator Creek in Yaamba nearly 150 years ago.

While his age is unknown, he was a figure of legend amongst the area's indigenous people who claimed he was a man-eater.

Big Ben was more than a normal crocodile, described at the time as the last of his species, notable for having a different, more vicious jaw structure than a normal croc.

His front teeth in the lower jaw fitted into holes in his upper jaw creating an unescapable lock for whatever poor creature he bit.

In 1872, a hunter named Goldino Columbo shot Big Ben in the head while out on the river but was unable to finish the job or capture him.

The monstrous reptile's body was later found washed up on the shore by none other than John William Wilson.

Rocky locals will know Wilson as the architect responsible for designing 200 buildings in the region including the Heritage Hotel and the Queensland National Hotel in Mount Morgan.

Big Ben's appearance was so frightful Wilson didn't dare get close, and only returned several days later to find him truly dead.

When he was brought back to town and had his guts opened they found 101 kilograms of quartz, a collection of human bones, and two other smaller crocodiles.

Big Ben's body was stuffed and paraded around Queensland and New South Wales with a collection of other, albeit smaller, crocodiles, also killed by Columbo a few months later.

It's clear that CQ has never had a shortage of overgrown reptiles, not 100 years ago, and not today.

Source:
www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/rockhampton/meet-b...

I supplied that information to the Morning Bulletin Rockhampton, which i uncovered 16 yrs ago...i have alot more info on Big Ben..including a photo on the taxidermy table with the skull & bones of two humans beside him...the backbone of a bulloch, and numerous large stones, all removed from his belly.

www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/rockhampton/the-de...

The first full-time curator, James Watt, was appointed in 1915. Source: www.qagoma.qld.gov.au/about/#:~:text=The%20Queensland%20A....