Rotary Club saves heritage listed building for prosperity.

Imagine, heads bowed solemnly and prayers sent up by troops from under the corrugated iron roof of the Rocky Creek parabolic arch building. The summer sun beating down.

It is Christmas Eve 1942 and those who could attend the worship service in the Rocky Creek Igloo crammed into the building to sit on low wooden forms and search for a message of hope in these dark times of Australia at war.

The Rocky Creek Igloo was built, by TJ Watkins builders from Cairns, in late 1942 to provide a mess hall for troops, patients and staff at the 2nd AGH (Australian General Hospital) which was set up, mainly under canvas, to service the wounded and sick as a result of the defense of Northern Australia and the Pacific, against the Japanese. It was a temporary measure where people could gather.

There were 60,000 patients through the hospital in the 2 and a half years until the war in the Pacific ended in victory for Australia and its allies. 100,000 troops trained and passed through the Atherton Tablelands during these years. The Rocky Creek Igloo hosted entertainment, dances and church services. It has held many memories for those who served here and was the only remaining building on the hospital site when the Defense Forces left after Victory in the Pacific on August 15 1945.

After the war the building was sold to the Frazer Family who converted the stage area into rooms for their home and used the vast concreted floor area to process lawyer cane to make cane furniture.

Mrs Frazer donated the site and building to the then Atherton Shire Council in 1992. With no allocated funds to maintain it the building fell into gross disrepair. The rusting iron which covered the timber parabolic arches allowed the rain in. A cyclone sent a tree through the side breaking the Canite shutters and buckling the roof. The community rumbling about the shame of losing our history started to be heard.

In 2014 Atherton Rotary Club took up the challenge to restore the building. It was then in the hands of the Queensland State Government and heritage listed. Atherton Rotary gained title as trustee of the building and began plans to restore it. A heritage Architect, Rotarian Gayle Plunkett, generously drew plans and worked with a local builder with heritage experience. The parabolic arches were rotting from the base up and parts of the timber in the top sections were water and termite damaged. Every parabolic arch had to be removed and new timber applied where needed. Metal footings now protect the arches from rot and they are held together with bolts, not nails. Heritage values are ‘Like for Like” but cyclone building codes have changed since 1942. All the rusted iron roof was replaced with new corrugated iron and flashings that ensured it does not leak. The stage timbers were replaced with local rainforest timbers. Doors were built to match the 1940s style. Fire equipment and emergency lighting, water electricity and toilets were installed. Earth works for parking and tree planting have been done as the start of landscaping.

Fund raising efforts were extensive. Atherton Rotary has put in hundreds of thousands of dollars along with private donors and grants from both the State and Federal Governments.

In 2019 Atherton Rotary began letting the igloo out for weddings. A website was developed and a manager on commission for bookings was appointed.

 https://www.rockycreekigloo.com/?gclid=CjwKCAjw4qCKBhAVEiwAkTYsPLVVuKHrFlmvBTqhitlPWBBLiADd7wZfUfM40EB4QeUyYv1heEcJuRoCL1kQAvD_BwE was reborn as a venue for the gathering of people.

COVID 19 has impacted our business plan for weddings and events so we have held back on spending to continue to develop the venue at this time.

Restoration is unfinished. We have asbestos to deal with, in the stage area, landscaping to develop and windows to decide on. However we have proudly reclaimed our history on this site and now can offer it back to the community we serve.

Written by

Jo Barnes

Rotarian

Atherton Rotary

20th Sept 2021