Page 2 - history_booklet

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PART 1

1949 - 1987

Written and Compiled by
Dorothy Guttormsen
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7 December 1986

When the Queensland Caravan Club was formed in 1949, it was known as the Caravan Club
of Australia, Brisbane Branch.

The idea of forming a club came about when a Mr Ben Flack called on Mr N Clarke at his
Wellington Road, East Brisbane accessories shop to buy some accessories for a caravan he
was building. One word led to another and eventually a group of caravan part suppliers
and other interested people met in the Queensland Institute Hall in Edward Street,
Brisbane to set about forming a caravan club. This was in 1949.

The first rally was held in Deception Bay, and twenty-five gaily decorated vans, escorted
by Police, moved off from Kedron to their destination at Deception Bay. It was a most
joyous occasion and provided a lot of fun and laughter for all who came to look and observe
the first caravan rally ever held in Queensland.

The first Committee responsible for this rally consisted of:

President: Mr Sam Emmett.
Vice President: Mr Les Laurence.
Secretary: Mr E Neville.
Treasurer: Mr A Doherty.
Committee Men: Mr Chesney.
Mr Harris.
Mr Beven.
Mr Eton.
Rally Marshall: Mr Norm Clarke.

Since that time, we have had fifteen other Presidents whose terms of office have ranged
from one to five years in duration.

A feature of the early rallies was the fancy dress crocodile walk held each Sunday morning
after the meeting. Competitions like Mini Golf, Croquet and Knockem-Down were all
enjoyed at these Sunday morning meetings. The first rally was held on the weekend of
14 to 16 May 1949.
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The first Roving Rally was held on the Easter weekend of 1957. A distance of four hundred
miles was covered, taking-in Goodna, Moore, Kingaroy, Murgon and Gympie. It was held
in perfect weather starting at Goodna on Good Friday morning at 9:00am. Lunch was at
the town of Moore and the night was spent at Kingaroy. Next morning it went on to the
town of Murgon, where they stayed in the showgrounds. The residents of Murgon arranged
a tour of Cherbourg Aboriginal Settlement, and then that night they also provided the