Historian in Residence

The Sunshine Coast Historian in Residence program enters its second year.

The successful historians selected for the 2022-2023 program are Dr Tony Brady and Brian Rough. They bring extensive knowledge and experience in their individual field of expertise. Their chosen topics will help fill the missing gaps in Sunshine Coast’s history.

To undertake their research, the Historians in Residence will have access to council’s heritage collections.

Residencies are located at:

• Heritage Library
• Bankfoot House Heritage Precinct and Landsborough Museum.

Research outcomes may vary from the outline below. For information about the program, download the guidelines [221KB].

Historian in Residence - Bankfoot House/Landsborough Museum - Dr Tony Brady

Research topic: The Development of Agriculture in the Landsborough Region since 1868.

Summary - Story 1: Unearthing Agrarian Practice at Bankfoot. This research aims to build an understanding of how the property’s mixed farming practices might have changed through time and when faced with the advent and advance of industrialisation or the natural disasters of drought, fire and flood.

Summary - Story 2: The physiography challenges of farming the Glass House Mountains region. The Glass House Mountains region of the Sunshine Coast epitomises diversity.  With steep hill slopes, gullies and swampy coastal plains that vary in soil structure, rainfall and temperature, the region presented numerous challenges for early farmers who had little guidance and relied heavily on trial and error in a time when there was no room for mistakes.

Summary - Story 3: Getting it to Market - the challenges and changes in getting Glasshouse Mountains produce to market. This paper will look at how getting produce to the consumer changed with time for Landsborough primary producers and how the change in end consumer may have influenced agrarian practice.

Historian in Residence - Heritage Library – Brian Rough

Research topic: Breaking through the clouds of war: living through World War II on the Sunshine Coast.

Summary - Story 1: The civic response to war: the role of local government on the Sunshine Coast during World War Two. This research will explore how decisions and actions taken during this period have shaped the formation of Sunshine Coast infrastructure, including roads and communications and impacted on the wider community evolution.

Summary - Story 2: The strategic importance of the Sunshine Coast in 1942. The region played an important role in the defence of South-East Australia, and from the outbreak of war until its end, thousands of Australian and American military personnel served, trained or passed through the region, interacting with the local population.

Summary - Story 3: Community organisations and social cohesion on the Sunshine Coast during World War Two. The role of communities will be explored from churches, clubs and social activities to civil defence organisations such as Volunteer Aid Detachments, Volunteer Air Observers Corps, and Volunteer Defence Corps (Home Guard); and the Air Raid Precaution organisation.