People, Buildings and Events that have made the Showground
Vic Moller & The Moller Pavilion
VIC MOLLERIn 1910 when Vic was just 19 he founded the Indooroopilly Horticultural & Industrial Society in Brisbane Qld and was the secretary for a number of years. He was also co-founder with Mr. E. J. Beard, of the Queensland Orchid Society, and was its first life member.He moved to Bangalow in 1947 where he met his future wife and in 1951 he was elected the secretary of Bangalow Park Trust and Secretary of Bangalow Agricultural & Industrial Society the same year. (The Bangalow Park Trust is the committee that manage the Showground and the Bangalow Agricultural & Industrial Society is the group who manage and run the annual Bangalow Show.In 1952 Vic returned to Brisbane due to employment commitments, he however returned and was again elected as secretary of the Bangalow A & I Society secretary in 1960. In his role as secretary he had ensured that all insurances were in place and luckily it was because in December 1964, the grandstand on the showground, which was erected in 1906 was destroyed by a cyclone. A luncheon pavilion was built in its place and later it was named The Moller Pavilion.Vic remained secretary of The Bangalow Show Society until 1966 and then again from 1971 to 1974. He was also the Secretary of the Bangalow Poultry Club from 1964 to 1968.
Victor William Albert Moller 1891 - 1976
Ken Noble & The Moller Pavilion
Ken Noble Memorial WingA basic kitchen area was added to The Moller sometime in the 1970's and Ken Noble made a donation to complete the addition.
Ken seems to have been involved in a number of community groups around Bangalow and he provided entertainment as a singer and piano player. He was the only child of Olive and Earnest Noble and did not marry. Ken was born in 1908 and died in 1976.
Harry Fowler & The Showground
Harry FowlerHis name appears across buildings and photos. Harry was a colossus in the Bangalow community during the 1930s to the 1970’s. A member and office holder in many community groups including the A&I (Show) and the Showground Committees.
Harry was a awarded the Order of Australia in 1980 for his community work.
He was a prisoner of war for 4 years in WWII in a German camp.
Jan Hulbert & The Showground
Jan Hulbert - A plaque in the Moller Pavilion readsJan Hulbert (nee Jarrett) 1939 – 2021Showground Park Trust member 1987 – 2021 & President for 18 years.A life member of The Bangalow Show Society, The Bangalow School P&C and The Sports Association, Jan was “a walking history book”.
In this Moller Pavilion Jan catered for many events including: reunions, weddings birthdays, wakes, working bees and her traditional Bangalow Show Lunch.Jan, her EH Holden, her passion for gardening, her jam scones, plum pudding and fruit salad became an institution that many in Bangalow fondly remember.A YouTube interview with Jan in 2018 covers a history the A&I Hall and the Showground. A 50 minute tour de force.
Many of the photos on this website, especially the ones in the history section, came from Jan's extensive collection.
The 1906 Show
The 1906 Show
A special event because we have photos and information about the event. A book "Farm Life on the Richmond and Tweed Rivers" had a page about the Bangalow Show in 1906.
Buildings that no longer exist
Over the years buildings have been demolished, moved and renovated.
The Beer Booth was located just east of the current Booking Resident Cottage
The stables near The Lions Kiosk have been renovated beyond recognition.
The original Scout Hall near the Beer Booth. It was demolished and a new Scout Hall was built near the Show Office.
Showground 1970's. Note the buildings in the foreground they are the backs of the 3 buildings above.
This toilet block had showers added and the building rendered in an upgrade in the early 2000's
Showground 1980's the rusty roofs on some of the buildings in town have been replaced and the hills are cultivated. On the Showground some buildings have disappeared
The O'Meara Fields
What was colloquially known as the Polocrosse Fields, the eastern area of the Bangalow Showground was offically named “The O’Meara Fields” in 2023 in recognition of the O’Meara family.
The O’Meara’s have been represented on this showground since 1898. The field could in fact be named after Henry O’Meara who was on the early committee and took home year after year most of the Jersey cattle prizes. A giant in the early 1900’s for the Binna Burra and the Bangalow community the field is named partly after him but also after Charles, Alan, Tony, Gerald, Frank, Margaret, Anne, Sharron, Brendon & Ashleigh.
Missing from that list is Mick O’Meara, missing because he needs a specific and special recognition for his work on the Show Committee as president for many years and as an active committee member of the Park Trust Committee (the community group that manages the Showground) decades, Michael (Mick) has spent much of his life as an active and generous participant in making the Showground work.
If not for Michael’s grandfather, Frank, the show would still be held on a Wednesday & Thursday. In 1954 he suggested the change after a long lively debate (at one stage he resigned) well the rest is history.
The O’Meara field is named for a long history of the family and its association with the Showground however The Park Trust Committee made the decision to name the field because Mick has more than carried on that tradition, he has excelled at it, and he has bought with him his generation and the next generation of the family to keep this showground the working heritage centre that it has become.
Like many with Irish roots the O’Mara/O’Meara family came to Australia as convicts. The culprit was Michael O’Mara transported in 1824 for who knows what. His wife to keep the family together arrived soon after with their three children. They lived on the South Coast but their grandchildren following the developing dairy industry moved to Binna Burra and the rest is history with the O’Meara clan spread throughout the region. The commitment to community seems to have become part of the family DNA and Bangalow is a better place because of it.
With the new sign in place the O'Meara Fields are officially named in November 2023. Some of the family present for the event include from L to R above: Jax Olive with his mother Ashleigh Olive (O'Meara) Brendon O'Meara, Sharon & Michael (Mick) O'Meara, Jimmy Olive and Shane Olive. Shane & Ashleigh live at the Showground with Shane the current (2020/24) Booking Officer and Grounds Manager. (Not in the photo is Michael's sister Anne who is the Bangalow Show secretary.)
The Bangalow Lion's Kiosk
The original Lion's building was a brick box surrounded by a metal frame that was the beer booth for the annual show. It either had to go or be replaced. The Lions with typical hard work and effort secured funding and the result was the Lion's Kiosk a building in keeping with the history of the showground and a functional and useful addition to the grounds. BUT it opened in the middle of the COVID 19 pandemic and for a few of years its use was very limited. The opening picture reflects the fear of the time. Masks were mandatory and just for a short time in mid 2021 gatherings were allowed between the lock down periods that ground events, work and social activities to a near halt. The official opening was Thursday, July 22nd 2021 when the photo opposite was taken.
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