Grave Tales: Scenic Rim lsurrounds, Qld visits the cemeteries in Queensland’s Scenic Rim to tell of the everyday people who – willingly or unwillingly – were participants in events that made local and national headlines. They may have lived in the same suburbs, streets, and even the same houses as exist now, or finished their days in this beautiful area. These stories hint at our history – tales of heroism, unsolved murders, love lost, mystery, tragedy, settlement, health epidemics, scandal and sacrifice. Grave Tales reveals more than the headstone can ever convey by tracing the tumultuous journeys that lead to these final resting places. Including: • The Stinson crash: how bushman Bernard O’Reilly found a missing aircraft with seven people on board when no-one else could. • The Fassifern Giantess – Augusta Rewald: in the days when ‘freak shows’ were entertainment, a Boonah resident was exhibited nationwide. • Duty done: a medal no mother wanted to receive – a silver badge for sending multiple sons to war. Sarah Wease of Canungra was a recipient. • Boy meets bushranger – Christian Schmidt: the boy who inadvertently told the ‘Wild Scotchman’ bushranger when to rob the mail coach. • Romeo Lahey’s flagpole: the man who gave us the great Scenic Rim National Park had another passion, a flagpole challenge to win. • The Germans: the war in Europe had repercussions for the Scenic Rim’s large population of German immigrants and especially one German pastor. • Murder by the Kenniff brothers: the most horrible murders in Qld police history – a constable and a property manager slaughtered by outlaws. … And 11 more stories in this volume.
