2016 Families of Townsville Publication

Publisher

Gallery Services, Townsville City Council

PO Box 1268

Townsville Queensland, 4810 Australia

prtg@townsville.qld.gov.au | +61 7 47279011

©Gallery Services, Townsville City Council and the authors 2016

Organised by Gallery Services, Townsville City Council in collaboration with LensCap Crew

Gallery Services, Townsville City Council

Shane Fitzgerald Manager Gallery Services

Eric Nash Curator

Erwin Cruz Exhibitions and Collection Coordinator

Louise Cummins Education and Programs Coordinator

June to July 2016

A collaborative project coinciding with

6 May to 10 July 2016

Rob Donaldson Digital Media and Exhibition Design Coordinator

Jo Stacey Team Leader Administration Gallery Services

Holly Grech-Fitzgerald Collections Management Officer

Carly Sheil Digital Media and Exhibition Design Officer

Dianne Purnell Digital Media and Exhibition Design Fellow

Leonardo Valero Exhibitions Officer

Rurik Henry Exhibitions Officer

Jess Cuddihy Education and Programs Officer

Sarah Reddington Education and Programs Assistant

Danielle Berry Arts Officer

Wendy Bainbridge Administration Officer

Ruth Hughes Administration Officer

Jillian Macfie Gallery Assistant

Damian Cumner Gallery Assistant

Nicole Richardson Gallery Assistant

Samuel Smith Gallery Assistant

Jo Lankester Gallery Assistant

LensCap Crew

Margot Douglas

Kate Osborne

Cesar Herrera

Kaye McArthur

Merle Poletto

Kevin Flemming

Publication Design and Development

Rob Donaldson / Shane Fitzgerald / Eric Nash / Sarah Welch

Cover Image

Back: Dan O’Neil, Beatrice Childs (wards of Ball family);

Middle: Rose, Alice, Andrew Ball; Front: Creighton Ball c. 1887

Perc Tucker Regional Gallery

Cnr. Denham and Flinders Streets

Townsville QLD 4810

Mon - Fri: 10am - 5pm

Sat - Sun: 10am - 2pm

(07) 4727 9011

ptrg@townsville.qld.gov.au

www.townsville.qld.gov.au

@TCC_PercTucker PercTuckerTCC

Introduction

Gallery Services, Townsville

City Council and LensCap Crew collaborate to take portraiture to the streets in 2016.

Families of Townsville follows on from the highly successful Faces of Townsville project of 2014, this time tracing the history of some of the city’s founding families.

The project is timed to coincide with Townsville’s major celebration of portraiture, The Percivals.

While the key painting and photographic exhibitions highlight our contemporary society and capture present-day personalities, Families of Townsville takes a look at Townsville’s founding familiesall the more poignant as the project takes place as part of the city’s T150 celebrations.

LensCap Crew is a small community group with a shared passion for storytelling projects. Gallery Services is proud to partner with the group to help them achieve this result.

Families of Townsville is not intended to investigate every significant family that has helped build our city to what it is today.

Simply, too many people have made lasting contributions. As such, LensCap Crew have made a small selection of founding families in the region, with each participant focussing their attention on one or two families, sourcing photographs, and penning short historical overviews.

Without doubt, LensCap Crew’s extensive research has unearthed interesting images and facts about each of the selected families that paint a bigger picture of Townsville’s beginnings.

We hope you enjoy exploring the rich histories of these families through this booklet, and encourage you to take to the streets to view the paste-ups that have been produced from these photographs.

Paste-ups are located in the Townsville CBD and in the suburbs that have been named after these Families of Townsville. For a map and listing of the paste-up locations, please enquire at Perc Tucker Regional Gallery.

Image

Alice Douglas (nee Ball) 1911

Aitken Family

Thomas Aitken and his family were the original settlers in what is known today as the suburb of Aitkenvale, the biggest commercial centre of Townsville. In 1867, Thomas Aitken and his wife Margaret purchased a holding of land and were the original grantees of Portion 38, Parish of Coonambelah.

In the 1840s, as a young orphan, Thomas Aitken boarded a ship for Australia. Drawn to a life on the land, he worked around Brisbane, but nevertheless returned to Scotland to marry the girl next door to the orphanage where he had spent his early years.

Margaret and Thomas together became accustomed to austere living and shared a love of the land. They drove cattle and horse drays throughout Western Queensland.

Their five children were born during their droving days before they had arrived in Townsville. In 1867, while the Aitken family drove their cattle through to Townville, a remarkable find changed their lives. A large nugget of gold was stumbled upon during their stop over in Ravenswood. It is thought that Thomas was the first person to have found gold at Ravenswood.

Image (Above) Margaret Aitken c. late 1800s Image (Right) Thomas Aitken c. late 1800s

Instead of returning to the nearby goldfield, the proceeds received from the gold were used to purchase 3500 acres of land on the Ross River with the intention of establishing a dairy farm.

Establishing their residence in Townsville had its challenges for this pioneering family. Their first house was a log shanty, down on the banks of the Ross River, and was washed away in a flood.

A homestead was then built where the Aitkinvale Library stands today. However, in 1899, this spacious home was burnt down. Over the years this family further established themselves in Townsville and had connections to historic events nationally.

Their land was subdivided in 1883. Thomas established the Aitkenvale Hotel in 1884, in the same location the Vale Hotel stands on today.

He began subdividing the property, putting 440 quarter acre residential allotments on the market in 1885.

The oldest child, Elizabeth, along with her husband Henry, built the Grand Hotel on Flinders Street.

Jane, the second daughter, and her husband Mr. Buckpitt owned a butcher shop on Flinders Street East.

Isabella’s father in-law, Mr. Covington, was the assistant to the great naturalist Charles Darwin, his passage partly paid on the five year voyage on the Beagle (18311836), assisting in the collection and storage of specimens.

Image (Left) Isabella and Charlotte Aitken Image (Above) The wedding of Elsie Bryant, sister of Isabella Aitken (nee. Bryant) and Tom Vernon

Ball & Douglas Families

In 1864, Andrew Ball is acknowledged as the first white man to have trodden the soil of Cleveland Bay in search of an area in order to establish a settlement for his employer – Black & Co. Aged 32, he was Manager of Woodstock Station from where he set out with Mark Reid to explore unknown country lying to the north of the northwest spurs of Mt Elliott, with the object of stocking it with cattle.

Rather than cattle paddocks, a higher decreed was laid out along a plan developed by James Melton Black. From November 1864 the first permanent settlement started to grow at a rapid rate. Due to its similarity in appearance to Castleton on the Isle of Man, Ball named the area ‘Castletown’ – a title the place was distinguished for some time prior to being renamed Townsville.

Ball returned to Woodstock Station prior to returning to Townsville in 1869. In 1877 he married the widowed Mrs Rose O’Neill, the proprietress of the Exchange Hotel, taking over the lease. The Hotel was destroyed by fire in 1881 but rebuilt in 1882. Established in 1873, this Hotel remains on its original site today in Flinders

Street East. In 1886 the Balls built a house called ‘Rosebank’, adjacent to Balls Lane. The house is still standing along with some mango trees planted when the house was built.

Andrew and Rose’s daughter Alice Ball married Robert J Douglas. Robert Douglas, born 1883, spent most of his childhood on Thursday Island, where his father, the

Hon. John Douglas, was the Government Resident from 1885-1904 following his retirement from a long political life.

John Douglas had entered politics in July 1859 for NSW Colony prior to Queensland’s separation from NSW in December 1859 and culminated his political life as Colonial Secretary (Premier) 1877-79.

Image (Left) Andrew Ball c.1864

Image (Above) Dougas Family Back: Edward, John, Hugh Front: Robert, Henry c. 1900

Robert Douglas arrived in Townsville as a young barrister in 1907, marrying Alice in 1912. In 1915 he was appointed judge of Arbitration Court and in 1923, aged only 39, he was offered the post of Northern Supreme Court Judge which he held until his retirement in 1953. He is regarded as one of the pioneers of law in Queensland.

He was an Alderman on Townsville Council from 1921-25. The suburb Douglas, which now encompasses

James Cook University and the General Hospital, was named on 15 June 1968. The Douglas thread continues. Robert and Alice had five children; the oldest Bob (Robert), 19151998, was a physician (the Robert A Douglas Auditorium at Townsville General Hospital is named in his honor) and remained a resident in the city. His daughters Selena and Sarah are still residents in Townsville today.

Image (Left) John Douglas c. 1900s Image (Above) Robert A Douglas and James A Douglas c. 1918

Condon Family

Standing so proudly, is the William Condon Bridge spanning the flowing banks of the Bohle River, named after this first settler’s family son. Like the pioneering family it is named after, who withstood many hardships to shape this land, this bridge structure is committed to the city’s future, a course first set by the Condon family.

The suburb of Condon was named after William Condon and family, son of the original settlers on this land. His father Patrick and his mother Dora, pregnant at the time with their sixth child, arrived by ship, the Rajasthan in 1862, from County Cork in Ireland.

Together in 1884, Patrick and Dora took up 241 acres of land in the Thuringowa Land Division at the foot of Hervey Range. They paid an annual rental of 12.2 pounds on the land.

It wasn’t just about farming the land, there was a requirement to undertake improvements, fence

Image (Above) Patrick Condon

Image (Opposite, Left) Patrick Condon Image (Opposite, Right) Patrick Condon with wife Dora

the boundaries, cultivate the land, and construct stockyards and wells. In 1892 Patrick had met his payments, and made the required improvements including the building of an Inn, which allowed him to purchase further land.

To supplement the family income, Patrick’s sons William and Johnalongside other pioneering families - operated a carrier business.

Taking up to 2 hours to prepare his team of 22 draft horses, William took loadings over Hervey Range to the cattle stations and mining settlements at Normanton and Bourketown. The men walked alongside a team of animals, and together supplied food and machinery to these settlements, and also delivered logs on the return journey to Townsville.

John fought in WWI, and died at the age of 21, and is buried at the Somme in France. William Condon remained in Townsville with his wife Susannah and their seven children. William and his wife bought a large parcel of land where the Riverway complex is today, hence the naming of the suburb Condon.

The female members of the family inherited the land, whilst the males received the cattle, however in the process of selling the cattle the proceeds were apparently stolen and the men never received them.

Patrick and Dora’s daughter Ethel and her husband Jack Vickers established a dairy farm between Gollogly Lane and Hervey Range Road. Over the generations this area was farmed; crops such as corn, hay, vegetables, and cotton were grown, and the farm was also used for grazing cattle. The next generation of the Vickers established Rossbank Dairy in 1962 and showed great charity to the Townsville community by supplying milk to poor families

without payment. The Twin Cities Bridge, over Ross River Dam at Condon, was renamed the Vickers Bridge after Jack and Ethel Vickers.

Today, William Condon’s story very much transcends his ancestors’ business interests. He and his wife Joan have established many businesses throughout the region and are strong campaigners for the development of tourism in the region.

Image (Left) Dora Condon

Image (Above) William Condon and his family

Garbutt Family

wealthy family in Yorkshire, England. On a return journey to England he married with Lucy Elizabeth Watson.

They invested their capital in cattle in Lower Logan, south of Brisbane. After the unfavorable performance of his investment, and death of his mother and two brothers, in 1878 Charles Garbutt, his wife and four young children moved to Upper Herbert in North Queensland, where they bought Woodleigh and Tirrabella.

Charles Overend Garbutt and his family, truly pioneers of North Queensland, represent the tireless spirit of perseverance. Charles Garbutt aged sixteen arrived to Australia in 1864, with his mother and brothers, leaving behind a

Charles and Lucy had thirteen children, of which four sons and four daughters survived: Charles Arthur, John, Herbert, Ernest, Lucy, Kate, Mary and Dorothy. Early chronicles highlight the admirable commitment of Mrs. Garbutt, who with a baby on arms, helped droving cattle. At the end of

Image Mr C.O. Garbutt

the 19th century market depression due to drought and diseases interfered with Garbutt’s cattle operation. Charles died in 1906.

The second-generation Garbutt family spread across North Queensland pursuing sugargrowing, mining, fruit farming, and butchering business endeavors in Kuranda, Mareeba, Mount Molloy, Mount Garnet, Innisfail and Townsville.

At 23 years, the youngest son Ernest arrived to Townsville 1 August 1907. He had obtained a one thousand pounds as a line of credit to start his butchery business on the corner of Flinders and Stanley Streets. His brothers, Charles and John, joined him in the firm. Garbutt Bros soon became the largest retail butchery in Townsville. Following their success, his mother and sisters moved to Townsville.

Image Wedding photo of Talbot Heatley and Alice Garbutt, and bridesmaids NQID 9341, St Anne’s Album, NQ Photographic Collection, JCU Library Special Collections

Garbutt Bros led the family to expand their butchery business and return to cattle commerce. They bought freehold parcels around Townsville and Bowen where they established cattle stands.

The Garbutt family were prominent members of Townsville community, supporting local and regional initiatives in the interests of the community with a tireless spirit to overcome adversity.

In 1915, when the Townsville to Charters Towers railway line was opened, the siding (near current day Warrina), alongside where the Garbutt family butchers had a livestock killing works and associated activities, was named Garbutt Siding.

In 1918 the Garbutt area was detached from Thuringowa Shire and put in Townsville. In July 1939, the Garbutt Siding Progress Association petitioned the government to change the name to Garbutt. Townsville Council had no objection and the Queensland Government name change was official in 1940.

Image (Left) Alice Garbutt, married Talbot Heatley. NQID 9339, St Anne’s Album, NQ Photographic Collection, JCU Library Special Collections

Image (Above) Nancy Garbutt. Photographer: Elsie Lambton Studios, Townsville. NQID 9340, St Anne’s Album, NQ Photographic Collection, JCU Library Special Collections

References:

Black, J. (early 18th century). North Queensland Pioneers. Charters Towers: North Queensland Newspaper Co. Ltd. p. 110

(1939, July). Pioneers of “Woodleigh” Station: Mrs. C. O. Garbutt, (Senior). Cummins & Campbell’s Monthly Magazine. pp. 13

Townsville and District Intellogence Bureau. (1913). Souvenir programme of the Grand Jubilee Carnival: Held in commemoration of the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Foundation of Townsville. Townsville: Townsville and District Development Association. p. 132

Heatley State High School. (1975). Our Heritage Townsville: The Heatley History Project Committee. p. 63

Houldsworth, M. (1995). The morning side of the hill. A Townsville childhood 1939-45. Townsville: James Cook University. p. 216

Watson, L. (1952). The Townsville story: they fashioned a city beam by beam. Townsville: Members of Historical Society of Queensland Inc. p. 100

Image Mrs C O Garbutt with daughters, Kit, Maude and Dot. Photographer: R R Taylor, Cairns. NQID 19487, McAulay Bowden Album, NQ Photographic Collection, JCU Library Special Collections

Garbutt (entry 46541). Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 28 April 2016. https://www.dnrm.qld.gov.au/qld/environment/ land/place-names/search?id=46541#/search= Garbutt&types=0&place=Garbutt46541

Image E.T. Garbutt

NQID 19488, McAulay Bowden Album, NQ Photographic Collection, JCU Library Special Collections

Heatley Family

Image (Left)

Francis Heatley and wife

Kate Heatley (nee Talbot)

Francis Heatley was born in the village of Ternascote, Armagh, Ireland in 1852. He came to Australia on the sailing ship ‘Sir William Wallace’ in 1880.

Francis was a skilled carpenter by trade. In the late 1880s he opened a small business as a manufacturer of furniture with a branch devoted to undertaking in Ogden Street. As a funeral director, Francis had a hearse and a mourning coach, each drawn by two black horses with a fringed black mantle draped across their backs. He made the coffins and drove the hearse, while his brother Bill drove the mourning coach. The shop also had a large showroom containing furniture that was held in high regard for the quality of its craftsmanship.

Kate Frances Talbot was born in Roscrea, Tipperary, Ireland in 1866. She was sent out on a sailing ship, to a distant relative living in Sydney as Ireland was in the midst of the potato famine.

In 1889 Francis Heatley married Kate Frances Talbot in St. Andrew’s Church on Wills Street.

Francis and Kate built and made their home on the corner of Armstrong and Mark Streets in Hermit Park. The home and church were both destroyed by Cyclone Althea in 1971.

Their children William (Bill), George, Mary (Minnie) and Talbot were born in 1890, 1892, 1896 and 1898 respectively. They had a small dairy herd, which they milked daily, and the boys helped deliver milk to customers nearby. The cows were kept on a reserve close to their home together with the horses.

In the 1920s the firm of F. Heatley and Sons expanded greatly under the management of Bill Heatley; notably, manchester and drapery departments were added to the business. His sons were active in the local government and civic affairs of Townsville.

In 1916, William (Bill) married Minnie May Williams. Bill became Mayor of Townsville from 1926 to 1933, and led the people through the great depression years.

His wife Minnie presided over the Townsville Red Cross Society for a number of years. During 1930 Bill purchased ‘Ellerslie’ on what was then known as Hervey Range Road (now Ross River Road). It was a well-known house in Townsville with a large lagoon and huge ancient rain trees, and throughout the 1930s dances and other events were often held there.

In the 1950s the property became St Anne’s School and continues as The Cathedral School today, with the house now known as Heatley House.

Youngest son Talbot married Alice Mary Garbutt in Saint James’ Cathedral in 1924. The marriage united two pioneering families of North Queensland.

Heatley, the suburb, was formally named in 1967, recognising an influential mayor of Townsville and the family’s contribution to the progress and development of this region.

Image (Left) W.J. Heatley, Mayor of Townsville 1927-32 NQID 26209, Townsville Mayors Album, NQ Photographic Collection, JCU Library Special Collections

Kelso Family

banks of the Upper Ross River to the foothills of Mount Stuart and out to Hervey Range. They ran cattle and established a dairy that was run by the women of the family.

James Kelso used to carry goods to the mining centres as a way of earning extra money during the dry seasons. His son, James (Jim) Kelso, worked as spare boy on his father’s carrying teams, which transported freight to Georgetown, Gilberton and other places.

James and Mary Kelso emigrated from Scotland to Australia in 1874. They arrived in Townsville circa 1876, residing in Cook Street, North Ward, before taking up a selection of 1200 acres on the upper Ross River, named ‘Laudham Park’. At its peak, the property stretched for more than 40,000 ha along both

Three generations of the Kelsos raised families at Laudham Park. Jim, who was a young child when the family moved to Laudham Park, remembered their arrival at the site with their humble belongings, two horses and a coop of fowls.

James and Mary had five children, three girls and two boys, one of whom died as an infant. In 1908, daughter Mary married into the Rasmussen family, another large family from the Upper Ross that ran cattle and the Danish Dairy.

In 1907, son Jim married Anne Ireland, whose family lived in the area that is now Kirwan. During World War I, James Kelso went into partnership with Anne’s father, William Ireland, in a cattle property, ‘Granite Hills’. Both men served as Aldermen and Chairmen of Thuringowa Shire Council. James Kelso was an Alderman on the Thuringowa Shire Council from 1925 to 1955.

Most of what was Laudham Park is today under water due to the construction of Ross River dam, which was completed in 1973. The family’s other property, ‘Granite Hills’, is now part of Defence Department land on Hervey Range.

Image (Opposite) James Kelso Sr

Image (Top) James (Jim) Kelso Jr

Image (Bottom) Marion Kelso

Descendants of the Kelsos still live in Townsville, and one branch of the family lives in the family home of Mary Kelso and Hans Christie Rasmussen in Belgian Gardens.

The first residential lots in Kelso were sold in the 1966 with the suburb named after James. Kelso is the most distant suburb from the Townsville CBD along Ross River and it was not until the 1980s that the new suburb became more densely settled.

Image (Opposite) Wedding portrait of Hans Christie Rasmussen and Mary Kelso Image (Top) Three sisters from the first generation of the Kelso family Image (Bottom) Children of Jim and Anne Kelso with their ‘billy cart’ at Laudham Park

Rasmussen Family

Jorgen and Bodil Rasmussen arrived in Townsville in 1871 as immigrants from Denmark. Jorgen came from a family of dairy farmers, and after working on a local farm for a short period, he took up a selection of 2000 acres of land along the Ross River and started The Danish Dairy. They were the first family to take up land in the Upper Ross area.

The milking and storage sheds were built from local timber and the floor from pink porphyry rocks carted by horse and dray from a creek on the other side of the river. Bodil was considered tireless and tough. Besides raising 12 children and working closely beside her husband, she made butter, cheese, and other goods, travelling over 12 miles every Friday by horse and buggy to sell the products in Townsville.

In 1880, Jorgen was one of four people elected to a Building Committee to establish a provisional school for children living in the neighborhood. The tiny one-room school opened on l1 April, 1881,

Image Jorgen and Bodil Rasmussen

and was known as the Ross River Provisional School. The school was rebuilt after being destroyed by fire in the late 1890s and in 1905 became a State School known as The Weir School. Most of Jorgen and Bodil’s children attended the school, walking the 4 miles to and from the school every day.

As late as the 1950s the Upper Ross River Road was a rough bush track with more horses than cars. Luxury was a kerosene refrigerator

and a carbide lamp that didn’t explode. Cows were milked by hand before daylight and the milk collected in milk churns from the front gate and delivered to the door by horse and cart. New health regulations introduced in the late 1950s increased the cost of milk production. The small farmers found it was too expensive to comply and the farms were all closed by 1962.

Image Bodil Rasmussen and and seven of her twelve children in front of the Rasmussen house

The land was subdivided, providing the genesis of the suburbs that flank the Ross River today.

A daughter of Jorgen’s eldest daughter Mette (Edith Robinson) was the first female athlete to represent Australia in the Olympic Games, in Amsterdam in 1928. The family’s interest in sport has continued through the descendants of the early settlers with achievements in harness racing, hockey and rugby league.

Four generations of Rasmussens have lived in the Upper Ross and many of the descendants of the original family have remained in Townsville to become part of the growth of regional Australia.

Image (Opposite) Mabel Rasmussen (nee Coleman) wedding portrait Image (Top) Mary and Hans Christie Rasmussen Image (Bottom) Three generations of Rasmussens

Roberts Family

John Roberts arrived in Sydney from Peckham, England in 1820. John’s son Daniel Foley Roberts moved to Brisbane in 1857. After Queensland’s separation in 1859, he was appointed the first Chairman of the Committee of Legislative Council in the Queensland Parliament, a position he held for 29 years.

Daniel’s son George Alexander Roberts, born in 1854, arrived in Townsville in 1881 to set up his law practice firstly in Wickham Street, before moving chambers to Denham Street. These chambers still accommodate a law practice in 2016.

In

1884 - 1885 George

Roberts purchased various lots forming a 19 acre property, comprised of 18 allotments, called ‘Kenilworth’, in Hyde Park - the area then known as West Ward. He paid 3705 pounds.

He built a house of timber and iron. Kenilworth was subdivided and sold after WWII due to escalating costs of insurance and land value taxes.

Image (Above) Daniel Foley Roberts Image (Right) Dal Roberts, Unknown man, Pat Goldring c. 1940s (war time 1939-1945), taken from Castle Hill

His son (George) Vivian, born 1885, also became a solicitor, and was articled to Roberts Leu & Barnett in the early 1900s. He was an alderman on Townsville City Council from 1921 - 1929. He and his wife Mary had three sons; George, Ian and Graham, who were all part of Townsville legal profession. Their daughter Anne created Anne Roberts School of

Dancing, which is still in operation today under the stewardship of her daughter Jane Pirani.

George married Dalva Hack in 1941. Dal, at 19 years of age, had started her own fashion business, which she ran until her retirement aged 85. Bon Dal, Jaunty and then Dal Roberts were well-known fashion establishments in twentieth century Townsville.

George died a week before his 100th birthday, in 2015. He served as an alderman on Townsville City Council from 1949 - 1967 and spearheaded the Council push to acquire land for James Cook University in the 1960s. In early 2000 he led the crusade to have Jezzine Barracks returned to the Townsville community for parkland, rather than be sold to developers.

George was awarded the CBE for his service to Townsville, and the George Roberts Bridge was built in 1974, opened in 1975 to connect Denham Street in the City to Palmer Street, South Townsville.

Image (Left) George Vivian Roberts c. 1918

Image (Above) George Vivian (Viv) Roberts with one of first T-model Fords in Townsville, taken in front of his home Kennilworth c. 1938.

Acknowledgements

Gallery Services, Townsville City Council and LensCap Crew wish to thank all of those who have assisted in researching and developing FamiliesofTownsville, including members of the Aitken, Ball and Douglas, Condon, Garbutt, Heatley, Kelso, Rasmussen and

Roberts families and their descendants; City Libraries, Townsville City Council; James Cook University Library Special Collections; Heritage and Urban Planning Unit, Townsville City Council; and Queensland Place Names.

About: LensCap Crew

LensCap Crew formed as a result of meeting regularly through ABC

Open’s Digital Storytelling Club. Current LensCap Crew members and other community members worked with former ABC Open North Queensland Producer Michael Bromage to hone their skills with numerous technologies and storytelling techniques.

Through ABC Open, ambitious projects were undertaken, including the Faces of Townsville poster project in 2014, also timed to coincide with The Percivals.

With Bromage leaving ABC Open in 2015, LensCap Crew formed in order to keep producing new work, and in the same year delivered a project as part of StrandEphemera, called TheIdentityofTownsville.