History's Coordinates

Siemon's Garage in Chinchilla during the 1921-22 floods. Image No 4474

Researchers from the University, in partnership with the Queensland Museum, are driving an exciting project designed to generate a new conception of Queensland’s cultural and environmental history.

The Queensland Historical Atlas will be the first of its kind produced in any state, drawing on cross-disciplinary approaches in history, environmental studies, archaeology, anthropology and cultural geography, to produce a truly multidimensional record of the Sunshine State.

Professor Peter Spearritt said the project would provide a timely opportunity to reflect on the state’s recent history, with Queensland set to celebrate 150 years of self-government in 2009.

“Queensland as a state has been so entranced by its own growth in the past 50 years, especially in mining and holiday accommodation, that there’s been very little scholarly analysis of what’s happening in Queensland, either historically or in the present,” Professor Spearritt said.

“By contrast, there are at least 20 short histories of Australia that have been published over the past century and I guess with the Federal Government largely taking centre stage since World War II, people have become less focused on the State as a sort of canvas for thinking about Australia.

“The idea of a historical atlas was an opportunity to reflect on how the colony and then the State developed, but in new ways where we incorporated strands from a variety of disciplines.”

He said the end result would be published in both print and electronic forms, with the “e-atlas” to function as a piece of living history, open to revisions and commentary.

By way of the interactive resource, Project Coordinator Dr Marion Stell said interested parties would be able to examine their own local histories, creating personalised pathways through Queensland’s past and present.

“The atlas itself will approach its themes in new ways, combining historical maps, authoritative text, graphics, objects, literature, poems, songs, oral history and eyewitness accounts, but the e-atlas will also add interactivity, video and audio,” Dr Stell said.

“People will be able to take their own journeys through Queensland, looking up things that are interesting to them and compiling the material in a different way to suit themselves.”

Professor Spearritt said individuals who used the publication would also be gaining access to an unprecedented collection of resources from key cultural institutions, with collaborations with museums, archives, libraries and other contributors promising a particularly object-rich atlas.

Researchers encouraged scholars and other specialists in related disciplines to get involved in the project, but Professor Spearritt said you didn’t have to be an academic to be able to make a contribution. “Some of the best historic records in Australia are still held in private hands,” he said.

Talks, workshops, and a range of other activities have been held in conjunction with the project.

Story author: Lucy Manderson

• FUNDING: Australian Research Council Linkage Project grant
• RESEARCHERS: Professor Peter Spearritt, Dr Geoff Ginn, Dr Marion Stell, Dr Sean Ulm, Dr Clive McAlpine, Dr Nicole Bordes, Professor David Carter, and PhD students Luke Keogh and Owen Powell
• EMAIL: p.spearritt@uq.edu.au, m.stell@uq.edu.au
• WEB: www.uq.edu.au/qhatlas

Photos: courtesy John Oxley Library                                                                                                                 

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