Mount Morgan in Pictures
Shopping Spree in Morgan Street
The thought of time travel has inspired many a writer since the late 1880s when the Edward Page Mitchell story The Clock that Went Backward appeared in the New York Sun. While H. G. Wells is considered the “father” of time travel because of The Time Machine’s publication in 1895, it was Spanish writer Gaspar who wrote El Anacronopete (meaning something that flies backward through time) who is more likely to claim the first “time travel” honours. H. G. Wells was certainly the literary inventor of the time machine. Throughout history, many fiction writers have tried their hand at writing about “time travel” including, surprisingly enough, Mark Twain who wrote A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, before The Time Machine, but after Gaspar’s publication. Since these early days a host of writers – Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, Kurt Vonnegut, Audrey Niffenger and of course, Diana Gabaldon – have all fantasised and been inspired by the concept of time travel. With the conclusion of the shopfront series, it seemed reasonable to finish with a shopping spree on Morgan Street, but with a time-related twist. The creator of the interesting series and Sydney resident, Catherine McIntosh (inset image), whose family connections to Mount Morgan date back to the 1880s, was given the following scenario – Page 14
“You have been given an opportunity to travel back in time for a shopping experience on Morgan Street for one day. You have ten pounds in your pocket. Time travel makes sure you have the appropriate clothing, footwear and hairdo for that time period”. What time period in Mount Morgan’s history would you travel back to for a shopping expedition and why? I’d like to land in the pictured 1913 Morgan Street image from the State Library of Queensland because I’m familiar with those shopfronts from my research. Also, my ancestors, the Stubbs family, lived in Mount Morgan then, in Rockhampton Road (now James Street), so I could learn about the type of life they led. How would you explain your presence in town? I’d say I’m visiting from out of town – which is true, only that I’m from another century! Would you go back to a specific time of the year? Christmas time would be fun, with homemade street and shopfront decorations and local bands playing Christmas carols on street corners. There were so many bands back then, such as the Mount Morgan Brass Band, the Salvation Army Band, the Mount Morgan String Band and the Pipers’ Band. Maybe I’d see my great-grandfather, Upsall Stubbs, playing in one of the bands. Continued on Page 15
MOUNT MORGAN ARGUS
11 - 25 MAY 2022
