The Tropical Queensland Sugar Cane Industry: a structural and material survey, 1872 to 1955

The aim of this project is to survey and document examples of extant structures and artefacts, and former major sites; and to make recommendations for their preservation and restoration where appropriate. The area surveyed will be that of the northern mill areas (from Ingham to Mossman) and the industry as it was prior to 1955 when mechanization was just beginning to change the nature of sugar cane cultivation, harvesting, handling and milling. In each mill area examples of structures and artefacts will be viewed, photographed and documented. The geographical size of the area to be surveyed is prohibitive both to making an adequate study of the entirety and to conducting truly scholarly field work. It is unavoidable that remarkable examples worthy of and even in urgent need of preservation and /or restoration will have been missed. Nonetheless, never before has the Queensland sugar cane industry been studied from this perspective making this study one of intrinsic significance and value