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A telegraph station had been erected at Coen in 1886, when the overland telegraph line from Laura, at the southern end of Cape York Peninsula, to Thursday Island at the northern end, was being constructed. At Coen, a carrier station was erected adjacent to the 1886 telegraph station and connected to it. Like the buildings erected at Mt Surprise, Fairview and Cape York, the Coen Carrier Station was of pre-fabricated steel frame construction, with outer walls of corrugated iron, concrete floors, and fibrous cement roofing. They were partitioned internally with fibrous-cement sheeting to provide equipment, power and battery rooms, and living accommodation for two or three maintenance staff. It is thought that these buildings were designed and pre-fabricated in one of the PMG's workshops in Melbourne, Adelaide or Sydney. Paste: apps.des.qld.gov.au/heritage-register/detail/?id=601485

Men, women, and children living on reserves and missions were used as a cheap source of labour. Aboriginal children were considered wards of the state, and removed from their parents’ care to live in segregated male and female dormitories on the reserves. Formal education was limited to fourth grade, followed by training in farm or domestic duties. At the age of twelve, Aboriginal children were usually placed on mandatory twelve-month work contracts with local farms and stations. They were not given a choice about who they would work for, and allegations of physical and sexual abuse and cruelty were the common experiences of many young Aboriginal people. Source: www.qhrc.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0013/10606/Abo...

TYPES OF HOUSES. The people live in nicely built houses of timber with thatched roofs. Some of the houses have grass walls and others use plaited palm leaves. These houses (about 80) look very attractive, and many of them are surrounded by beautiful gardens of tropical nature. All of them are spotlessly clean. The head settlement consists of three streets of houses and all buildings are supplied with electric light. The building is continually being undertaken, but the demand exceeds the supply of timber for the mission's mills, which, by the way, is quite up to date though at present it is in a temporary location. It is interesting to recall that some 20 years ago the one-time Archbishop of Brisbane and The Bishop of Salisbury (Dr. Donaldson) gave £6000 for the sawmill. The Queensland Government later also made a substantial grant. The Government annually assists the mission and last year the grant was increased to £5 ahead. Source: The Northern Herald 02 Jul 1938 trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/150831287

o A bush-house is an Australian term for shade-house, created to grow plants that prefer shady conditions and thrive in warm climates. This shady environment simulates the rainforest understorey. Sometimes called a Fernery or Fern House. o IT IS NOT A GLASSHOUSE or true conservatory. o BHs linked to 19th century interior decoration and the use of potted palms, ferns etc. in "hall and table", and for decorating verandahs o In design terms, this is where garden architecture and horticulture combine! Bush houses were extremely popular in Queensland from the 1880s to 1940s, ranging from Government House (OBG and Fernberg) to suburban cottages and villas, to outback homesteads, in private & public gardens. Source: brisbanebotanictreasures.info/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/...