Maytown was the main township on the

Palmer River Goldfields The Palmer River is a river in Far North Queensland, Australia. The area surrounding the river was the site of a gold rush in the late 19th century which started in 1873. Course and features The headwaters of the Palmer River rise in the Suss ...

Far North Queensland Far North Queensland (FNQ) is the northernmost part of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland. Its largest city is Cairns, Queensland, Cairns and it is dominated geographically by Cape York Peninsula, which stret ...

, Australia. It is now a

ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

within

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality, a historical named location or place in Canada * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localitie ...

Palmer Palmer may refer to: People and fictional characters * Palmer (pilgrim), a medieval European pilgrim to the Holy Land * Palmer (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Palmer (surname), including a list of people and f ...

in the

Shire of Cook The Shire of Cook (The Shire) is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia. The Shire covers most of the eastern and central parts of Cape York Peninsula, the most northerly section of the Australian mainland. It covers an area ...

, having been active from to the 1920s. It was added to the

Queensland Heritage Register The Queensland Heritage Register is a heritage register, a statutory list of places in Queensland, Australia that are protected by Queensland legislation, the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. It is maintained by the Queensland Heritage Council. As ...

on 1 June 2004.

History

Kuku Yalanji The Kuku Yalanji, also known as Gugu-Yalanji, Kuku Yalandji or Kokojelandji, are an Aboriginal Australian people originating from the rainforest regions of Far North Queensland. Language The traditional language of the people is Guugu Yaland ...

'' (also known as ''Gugu Yalanji'', ''Kuku Yalaja'', and ''Kuku Yelandji'') is an

Australian Aboriginal language The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

of the Mossman and Daintree areas of

North Queensland North Queensland or the Northern Region is the northern part of the Australian state of Queensland that lies just south of Far North Queensland. Queensland is a massive state, larger than many countries, and its Tropical North Queensland, trop ...

. The language region includes areas within the local government area of

Shire of Douglas The Shire of Douglas is a Local government in Australia, local government area in Far North Queensland. It is located on the coast north of the city of Cairns, Queensland, Cairns. The shire, administered from the town of Mossman, Queensland, Mos ...

and

, particularly the localities of Mossman, Daintree,

Bloomfield River The Bloomfield River is a river in the Wet Tropics of Far North Queensland, Australia, noted for its Bloomfield River cod fish species, found only in the river. Course and features The river rises in the Great Dividing Range below Zig Zag and ...

, China Camp, Maytown,

Cape Tribulation Cape Tribulation is a headland and coastal locality in the Shire of Douglas in northern Queensland, Australia. In the , Cape Tribulation had a population of 123 people. Geography The locality is north of Cairns. It is within the Daintree N ...

and

Wujal Wujal Wujal Wujal, sometimes spelt Wudjil Wudjil, is a rural town and locality in the Wujal Wujal Aboriginal Shire, Queensland, Australia. It is an Aboriginal community. In the , the locality of Wujal Wujal had a population of 276 people. The comm ...

. '' Yalanji'' (also known as ''Kuku Yalanji'', ''Kuku Yalaja'', ''Kuku Yelandji'', and ''Gugu Yalanji)'' is an

. The traditional language region is

Mossman River The Mossman River is a river in lower Cape York Peninsula, Queensland, Australia. Geography The headwaters of the river rise under Devils Thumb on the Mount Carbine Tableland in the Great Dividing Range. The river flows through a deeply in ...

in the south to the

Annan River The Annan River ( Kuku Nyungkal: ''Yuku Baja'') is a river in the Wet Tropics of Far North Queensland, Australia. Course and features The river rises in the Yorkey Range below Mount Romeo near , north-northwest of . The river flows generally ...

in the north, bordered by the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

in the east and extending inland to west of Mount Mulgrave. This includes the local government boundaries of the

, the

and the

Aboriginal Shire of Wujal Wujal The Wujal Wujal Aboriginal Shire is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia. It is managed as a Deed of Grant in Trust under the ''Local Government (Community Government Areas) Act 2004''. In the , the Wujal Wujal Aboriginal S ...

and the towns and localities of

Cooktown Cooktown is a coastal town and locality in the Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia. Cooktown is at the mouth of the Endeavour River, on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland where James Cook beached his ship, the '' Endeavour'', for ...

, Mossman, Daintree,

and

. It includes the head of the

Palmer River The Palmer River is a river in Far North Queensland, Australia. The area surrounding the river was the site of a gold rush in the late 19th century which started in 1873. Course and features The headwaters of the Palmer River rise in the Suss ...

, the

, China Camp, Maytown, and Palmerville. After James Venture Mulligan's discovery of

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

on the

in August 1873, a rush followed and was sustained for several years by further

alluvial Alluvium (, ) is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluvium is also sometimes called alluvial deposit. Alluvium is ...

finds. An estimated twenty to thirty thousand people made their way to the field or

in the early years. It was regarded as an ideal "small man's field" for diggers without capital and experience had the opportunity to get rich quickly. The alluvial mining communities tended to concentrate in ephemeral canvas camps. The most substantial were Palmerville, on the eastern edges of Kokomini territory, Maytown and Byerstown, whose establishment reflected an eastward movement of the mining population along the river. In May 1875 Maytown became the administrative and business centre of the field. Originally called Edwardstown after the local butcher, John (Jack) Edwards, the town was surveyed in 1875 by

Archibald Campbell MacMillan Archibald may refer to: People and characters *Archibald (name), a masculine given name and a surname *Archibald (musician) (1916–1973), American R&B pianist * Archibald, a character from the animated TV show ''Archibald the Koala'' Other uses ...

. It has been claimed that MacMillan named it Maytown after his daughter; however, his only daughter Mary Eleanor (but known as May) was not born until 3 July 1880 and the name Maytown had been in use since at least 1874. In 1876 there were 12 hotels, 6 stores, 3 bakers, 3 tobacconists and stationers, Edwards the butcher, lemonade factory and a surgeon. The sheer size of the population, estimated in May 1877 at 19,500 for the field, kept money circulating among commercial houses for essentials and luxury goods, but at the same time, there was little financial investment in the permanent manifestations of settlement. By 1882 the number of hotels had declined to six, and there were two European Stores, 10 Chinese stores, two banks, two butchers, baker, blacksmith, saddler, chemist, lemonade factory and printer. A post office existed from 1876 to 1945. By 1877, the

Golden Age The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology, particularly the ''Works and Days'' of Hesiod, and is part of the description of temporal decline of the state of peoples through five Ages of Man, Ages, Gold being the first and the one during wh ...

newspaper was printed followed by the Palmer Chronicle in 1883. Mining Warden Philip Frederic Sellheim, an educated family man residing at Maytown, bemoaned the lack of social institutions and initiated the establishment of a hospital, school and Miners' Institute Library, although these did not eventuate until the 1880s when most of Maytown's population had departed. In 1886 the population was 154 Europeans and 450 Chinese. There was no Christian church, but there was a Chinese temple. Maytown State School opened circa 1877 and closed in 1917. It reopened briefly in 1924, closing in 1925. By the turn of the century the town had a branch of the

Queensland Government Savings Bank The Queensland Government Savings Bank was a bank in Queensland, Australia. It was operated by the Queensland Government. It was also known as the Government Savings Bank of Queensland. History The Queensland Government Savings Bank was estab ...

, a state school, courthouse, school of arts, hospital, police barracks, one hotel, eight stores - four of which were Chinese, a baker, saddler and Miners Institute. In 1900, the town had a population of 674 (252 Europeans and 422 Chinese). Maytown State School opened circa 1877 in Maytown and closed in 1917. It reopened briefly in 1924, closing in 1925. By 1924 only Wah Chong and Company's store remained operating. Buildings like the school, which closed in 1925, remained abandoned until

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the hope of a mining revival. The town was largely abandoned by 1945. Today there are only the remains of the baker's oven, stone kerb and channeling along the former Leslie Street, telegraph poles, floor paving, a cemetery with 16 headstones from 1875 to 1986 remaining and in Duff Street a replica hut built by the Palmer River Historical Preservation Society.

Description

The township is located on the north bank of the Palmer River near the junction of Butcher's Creek. The area contains a high concentration of building surfaces and footings. Some street alignments are discernible and one street contains carefully laid stone kerbing and gutters. Dominant structural remains include a brick baker's oven, timber uprights for the school, a Chinese temple site, and burnt timber stumps and corrugated iron sheets of the police station. A stone commemorative

cairn A cairn is a human-made pile (or stack) of stones raised for a purpose, usually as a marker or as a burial mound. The word ''cairn'' comes from the (plural ). Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehistory, t ...

and an (inaccurate) replica of a miner's hut have recently been constructed in the centre of the town site. The cemetery contains about 40 identifiable graves including 16 with headstones. The earliest headstone is dated 1875. The latest headstone is dated 1986 marking Sam Elliott's grave. There is no surviving plant.

Heritage listing

Maytown Township was listed on the

on 1 June 2004 having satisfied the following criteria. The place is important in demonstrating the evolution or pattern of Queensland's history. Maytown Township is significant as the major settlement on the Palmer goldfield. Founded beyond the frontier of pastoral occupation, it became an important centre for administration, communications and cultural contact with local Aboriginal people and Chinese miners. The town site contains building footings associated with administration and commerce. The place demonstrates rare, uncommon or endangered aspects of Queensland's cultural heritage. The presence of stone kerb and channelling is rare on far northern goldfields and survives as testimony to the desire for a permanent settlement in the region. Other structural remains are well represented and better documented than at other abandoned mining centres in north Queensland. The place has potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of Queensland's history. Maytown cemetery is a significant cultural heritage component of the place and contains important historical documentation for the interpretation and understanding of those who lived in the area whilst gold mining operations were thriving along the Palmer River. The place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a particular class of cultural places. As the commercial centre for the Palmer River goldfield, Maytown Town Reserve still demonstrates an extensive coverage of historical archaeological remains including campsites, graves, pig ovens and charcoal kilns. The township site and associated places are central to understanding and interpretation of the entire Palmer River goldfield.

Associated heritage listings

In addition, Maytown is associated with other

heritage-listed This list is of heritage registers, inventories of cultural properties, natural and human-made, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable, that are deemed to be of sufficient heritage value to be separately identified and recorded. In ma ...

sites from the Palmer goldfields era, including: * Wild Irish Girl Mine and Battery, Conglomerate Range * Laura to Maytown Coach Road, Laura to Maytown * Alexandra Mine and Battery, Palmerville Station

References

Attribution

External links

* {{cite web, title=Palmer River, url=http://www.queenslandplaces.com.au/palmer-river, work=Queensland Places, publisher=Centre for the Government of Queensland, University of Queensland Geography of Far North Queensland Ghost towns in Queensland Mining towns in Queensland Populated places established in the 1870s 1870s establishments in Australia Populated places disestablished in 1945 Queensland Heritage Register Palmer, Queensland Mines in Queensland Articles incorporating text from the Queensland Heritage Register