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1880 - St James' Church enlargement Having become the Cathedral of the new diocese, St James’ Church was enlarged, extending the nave and north and south aisles 1883 Plans for a new and larger cathedral began when members of the church formed a committee to raise the funds 1884 The proposal to build a cathedral was approved by a church synod and the Cathedral Building Committee was appointed. An organ, donated by Miss S.E. Holland (an English friend of Bishop Stanton), was added to the church. 1885 Arthur Blackett of Sydney, son of Edmund Blackett (the New South Wales colonial architect) was commissioned to design a new cathedral. The initial designs called for a cathedral constructed of sandstone with granite columns which would hold 1000 parishioners. Source: www.stjamescathedral.com.au/the-cathedral/history/ The nave would be 37 feet (11 m) wide, transepts would be 24 feet (7.3 m) wide and the total interior length from chancel to bell tower would be 115 feet (35 m). 1887 Many features of these designs were rejected upon review by the diocese and three revisions were necessary before a final plan was approved. The final design was for a church built in stone, with a low wide central tower that would act as a ventilation shaft, and a single tower at the northern door. It was to cost £24,000 but was built in sections. The diocese called tenders for the construction of the Cathedral. The first sod was turned on the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria on June 22nd. 1892 The building was erected by Townsville contractors MacMahon & Cliffe. Subsequent financial constraints forced changes to the design, and the Cathedral was constructed in brick, with concrete facings, a temporary roof, and no towers. This first stage of the Cathedral was consecrated on October 27th by the second Bishop of North Queensland, Christopher Barlow. 1896 On 26 January, Cyclone Sigma struck Townsville; however, the Cathedral was relatively unaffected by this 1903 On March 9th, Cyclone Leonta struck Townsville, destroying the 1871 St James’ Church and the temporary roof of the Cathedral. The Cathedral was promptly rebuilt with higher walls and a more permanent roof at a cost of £2,500. The gas lights, seen here, remained until 1922. They were replaced by electrical lights when it became available until 1959 The second stage of the Cathedral was designed in 1955 by Melbourne architect Louis Williams, with Townsville architects Black and Paulsen responsible for the building between 1959-1960. 1959-60 Although Blackett’s design had a strong Byzantine flavour, with its magnificent pointed arches and the apsidal east end, at one stage of the design he envisaged having a dome above the nave. Williams favoured a Gothic design, which was popular for churches up to the end of the 1960s. The nave and the Western façade with the bell tower and stature of St James were all added Evidence of the extension can be seen as although the brick makers, Scott Brothers, reopened the original clay pit to make new bricks for the extension, a slight difference of colour can be seen due to the aging of the bricks. Evidence can also be seen in the ceiling where the original rough sawn, lapped timber was replaced with machine sawn, tongue-in-groove. The final foundation stone was laid in 1960 marking the completion of the Cathedral.

The Church was built as a war memorial and commemorates the men and women of the district who served in World Wars One and Two. The foundation stone for the church was laid in 1947 and the church was officially opened on the 15th November 1953. Front Inscription KINGAROY DISTRICT METHODIST MEMORIAL CHURCH To The Glory Of God And In Honour Of The Men And Women Of This District Who Served In World Wars I & II This Stone Was Laid By The President Of The Queensland Conference Rev. A. A. Mills, M. C. 11th. October 1947. Rev. W. Lawton Minister Source: www.monumentaustralia.org.au/themes/conflict/multiple/dis...

Coconut Tree Climbing – Samoan Style! climbing-feet Securely tie a piece of strong cloth and loop it around your ankles. When complete, flatten the strip against the coconut palm, with both feet on opposite sides of the tree trunk. Now, with the base of your feet grip the sides of the tree, the cloth will press against the tree as well. This helps keep your feet stable, and gives you more leverage to push yourself up the tree. Climbing can hurt if you’re not used to going barefoot, but your skin will toughen up with practice. Grip the tree between your hands. Your arms must be strong enough to hold your weight, so you are leaning into the tree instead of dangling away from it. Your hands need to be opposite of each other, so you can squeeze the trunk. Place your feet against the sides of the tree. Hop onto the base of the tree, gripping it with your legs. Turn your feet inward, so the undersides of your feet press against the left and right sides of the trunk. Your legs will be bent and splayed outward, like a frog’s. Push yourself up with your feet. Extend your legs without moving your feet or hands. This will bring you up straight, a little higher than before. Bring your feet up. Quickly bring both feet up at the same time, gripping a spot higher up the tree. To keep yourself stable, press hard with both hands. If your arms are strong, you can lift your feet completely off the trunk and position them again at a higher point. Otherwise, slide your feet up the side of the trunk, or push them up one at a time in small steps. This requires less muscle, but can be painful on soft feet. Keep your feet on opposite sides of the tree, so the loop doesn’t fall off your feet. Now you’re back in your starting position. Extend your legs to lift yourself higher and REPEAT. Once you’re up to the top, you can pick the coconut by twisting the stem of the coconut repeatedly until it breaks. But if you’re like my coconut tree cutter, chop of the coconuts with a machete. It’s so much easier and faster. Source: www.polynesia.com/blog/coconut-tree-climbing-samoan-style

The two most common harvesting methods are the climbing method and the pole method. Climbing is the most widespread, but it is also more dangerous and requires skilled workers.[79] Manually climbing trees is traditional in most countries and requires a specific posture that exerts pressure on the trunk with the feet. Climbers employed in coconut plantations often develop musculoskeletal disorders and risk severe injury or death from falling.[8 Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coconut