A Colourful past for our Club...
This may give an insight into why we proudly call our Club the "Burleigh Heads Mowbray Park Surf Life Saving Club." It also demonstrates that we are strong in our convictions, our beliefs and sense of justice... oh yes, and perhaps a touch of 'larrikinism.'

Research for the information contained in this page was gleaned from numerous sources, personal interviews with old members, and two publications: I'm Telling You Burleigh Heads Will Do, and The Heart of Paradise. Both written by local historian, Robert Longhurst. The latter is a marvellous history book on Burleigh Heads, and it is available from the Gold Coast City Council Library for a modest $11.00 (includes GST).

It's funny how some early community concerns are still the topic of conversation at Burleigh today. Looking back we can find it laughable that some restrictive attitudes prevailed, however the significantly more 'prudent' social mores of the time should be considered when reading this document.

Early Burleigh Beach Life
As early as 1920 the local journalist (J.M. Goodwin) anticipated that the arrival of the Brisbane masses by road would bring a 'hoodlum' element, intent on vandalism and general mayhem. The city then came to Burleigh every weekend in the form of motorists, and in the summer season tens of thousands thronged the town eager for amusement.

The Church of England, with a somewhat more relaxed attitude to Christmas entertainment, allowed dances in their hall as early as the 1926-27 season, often competing with similar dances at Fradgley's and Jarvis' Halls. The Shire Council appears to have taken a dim view of such use of a church building, with a motion passed that in future such dances would only be approved if they were held under church auspices with profits going to religious purposes.

The Methodists church, by contrast, held an  annual Flower Show, begun in October 1927 - an event which became a regular feature of Burleigh life. Christmas boxing matches, wood chops, side shows and fun rides also became part of holiday life at the town.

Early Surf Club Days...
Prominent in much of this burgeoning social life were the members of the Mowbray Park Surf Life Saving Club, a Brisbane-based club patrolling South Coast beaches, and generally regarded as somewhat more worldly-wise than many a local lad.

Our first members were patrolling lifesavers from the Mowbray Park Public Baths in Brisbane, and the brought their vigilance and expertise to Burleigh Beach, forming the foundation of our Club in 1923.

The Club's reputation for successful rescues and competition honours grew with every season; by the 1933-34 season some 226 rescues had been made at Burleigh Beach and the Club was proud to have achieved the position of Premier Club of Queensland since 1932. Captain W. Daley had held the title of Champion Queensland Life Saver since 1931 and the Club was runner-up in the 1932 Australian R.R. Championships.

Most importantly, no drowning had occurred at Burleigh since the Club commenced patrols which were now maintained throughout the year at weekends. The club's surf boat Speedo was acquired in April 1930. To finance equipment and travelling costs, the club held dances and other fund-raising activities such as chocolate wheels both at Burleigh and in Brisbane. A far smaller source of income came from donation and beach collections. In the Christmas season of I931-32 the Club held 23 dances on an open-air floor.

...and nights!
At the November 1933 meeting of Nerang Shire Council, the Club applied for a permit to hold 'midnight dances' on certain Sundays during the coming holidays, the application being unanimously refused. At midnight, on New Year's Eve, Sunday 31 December 1933, the Club held an open-air dance 'shortly after New Year was ushered in' and hundreds were in attendance.

On 27 January 1934 the Council reacted by summarily withdrawing the Club's permit to patrol Burleigh Beach. It also refused to grant a renewal of the dance floor licence, and demanded that Mowbray Park 'remove all its belongings from Council property'. A new local Club was to be formed to be called the 'Burleigh Heads Surf Life Saving Club'.

The ensuing events brought Burleigh Heads to national attention and did little to enhance the Shire Council's reputation for sane judgment. The most adamant of the Councillors appears to have been A.C. Black, who since 1924 had served as a Division 4 representative. He was a prominent Burleigh storekeeper, owner of the 'A.C.B. Store'.

A public meeting called by No 4 Division representatives was held at Jarvis' Hall on 8 February to organize a local surf patrol. The crowd of 250 recorded a heavy majority against such a club being formed, the motion was lost, and public support for Mowbray Park grew as the club refused to leave the beach and maintained its voluntary patrols. The Brisbane Telegraph quickly supported the Club, although being critical of the overt flouting of the Council by-law.
'...with a membership of 50 and a following of possibly three times that number, a metropolitan club willing to give voluntary service on a beach 60 miles from the city and to provide its own gear and equipment to carry out that duty is without doubt an invaluable acquisition to any community and one not to be lightly discarded.'

By late February a new club had, however, been formed, its patron G. Rudd (Chairman of Nerang Shire); president Councillor L.C. Symonds; treasurer Councillor A.C. Black; trustee Councillor T. Page. The club committee quickly raised the mirth of many locals, one of whom wrote that
'during four years at Burleigh I have never once seen either of the four councillors in the surf.'

Other suggestions were made that overtures were being made to unemployed qualified life savers, guaranteeing them Council jobs, if they agreed to volunteer as Club members. Whether such was true or not, the Burleigh Club attracted relief workers presently in the district. The new club was, however, refused affiliation both by the State Association and the senior Point Danger Club, given the fact that the recognized club already patrolled the beach.

How our name came to be...
The Mowbray Park Club also moved to galvanize public support by renaming itself the 'Mowbray Park-Burleigh Heads Surf Life Saving Club' much to the satisfaction of the local Progress Association. Open dissension now appeared at Council meetings; Councillors Schuster and Henman declaring Mowbray Park had 'acted as gentlemen' and were 'entitled to British justice' whilst Councillor Hack felt
'...even in the past they acted in a high handed manner and some of the club members were the worst offenders in the matter of beach costumes; they apparently thought they could do as they liked.'

A 'committee meeting of Burleigh residents' called a public protest meeting at the De Luxe Theatre on Friday 9 March 1934 and arranged for a mass petition of No 4 Division ratepayers to demand the Council rescind its decision and reinstate the club. Well over 200 attended and the petition was agreed to. Within a fortnight the document had been signed by 214 residents. By now the metropolitan press headlined 'Bumbledom at Burleigh' and 'Beach Bungle'. With Easter coming the safety of bathers became the first consideration.
'The councillors have a queer idea of a fitting a punishment to a 'crime' when they set out to penalise the whole of Burleigh Heads by ordering the culprits to relinquish watch and ward over bathers along the Nerang Shire's stretch of coast.'

The dispute now reached a further height. On 21 March the Shire Chairman and three Division 4 representatives took possession of the surf shed, soon to be surrounded by a large crowd of residents and visitors. 'Blows were nearly struck.' None of the Mowbray Park Club's equipment was removed, presumably as the Club's solicitors (Morris, Fletcher and Cross) had warned that legal proceedings would ensue. An attempt the next day by Councillor Black to enter the boat shed by breaking the padlock saw the local constable threaten Black's arrest. Nerang Shire workers then cut a hole through the adjoining wall and transferred the Club's property.

A public indignation meeting resulted, organized by the newly established Ratepayers and Electors Protest Committee. It was held on Burleigh Beach on Sunday 25 March and was attended by nearly 1,000 people - one of the largest public demonstrations held in Queensland to that date, a brave Councillor Symonds warning that such a meeting was in itself a breach of the by-laws. A unanimous vote protested against the Council's action. The petition duly presented to the Council on 24 March was rejected, whilst the Shire voted 10 pounds to the new Burleigh club to patrol the beach at Easter.

The weight of public pressure was beginning to take effect, however, with Councillor Page now voting for reinstatement of the Mowbray Park Club. The ludicrous situation now emerged of two clubs competing to patrol the one beach, which only highlighted the superiority of the older club, with a chain of rescues being highlighted in the press
'...the sweeping statement by a councillor of No. 4 Division... that we don't want champion lifesavers on our beaches, was amply refuted by the timely rescues effected by the Mowbray Park-Burleigh Heads Surf Club."

The humiliation of the Council and its club had other results, the worst of which was the discovery of a sabotaged Mowbray Park life line during the Easter holidays. Within a few weeks the new club had virtually ceased to exist; only Mowbray Park men patrolled the beach. Reports even suggest that the new club members had been jeered at by the public.

The April Council meeting now voted to give the Mowbray Park Club 14 days to quit the beach and remove all their goods, failing which an eviction order would be put into effect. The Club's solicitors immediately acted, declaring the building the club's property and threatening to take legal action.

On Sunday 13 May 1934, as the Council's deadline was due to expire, the farce reached a climax. An attempt was made to burn down the Mowbray Park Surf Shed; methylated spirits had been poured over parts of the building and been set alight. The timber, however, had been damp from recent rains and the fire did not take hold. The padlock on the building also had been tampered with.

An inquiry into the attempted arson took place in July with an intermittent relief worker claiming that he was asked by Councillor A.C. Black to burn down the surf shed. Black denied the charge, despite evidence tendered that the Texaco oil can discovered at the scene had been left at his store several days previous to the fire. He suggested that a rival local businessman was behind the whole affair, trumping up evidence against him. The inquiry was eventually to go no further, with no charges laid.

The Club is in possession of copies of the original newspaper pages featuring the story as it was reported in the Brisbane newspapers. These are currently being prepared for preservation and copies will be on view at some time in the near future.

And what about all those Norfolk Pine trees?
At the height of the A.C. Black proceedings, some one hundred Norfolk Island pine seedlings were donated and planted along the Burleigh foreshore by the local storekeepers Justins Brothers, after consultation with the Shire Engineer.

This followed upon many resolutions of the Progress Association in favour of tree planting and the Justins were commended for 'their generous gifts and efforts to beautify Burleigh's shadeless foreshore' at the June meeting. Within a few weeks some 54 trees were uprooted and destroyed and a stormy meeting of the Association ensued
'It was a dastardly act and befitting a maniac... Such a dastardly act savours personal spleen and the action of an individual of low intellect similar to that employed in the attempted destruction by fire of the local surf shed.'

The Division 4 members now replied that, if Justins Brothers wished to replant the trees, a proper approach to the Council would be required, fuelling further speculation as to how and why the trees were removed. The Justins subsequently declined to replant the trees under Councillor Symond's supervision.
'Residents and visitors appreciate Justins Bros efforts to beautify Burleigh's beachfront, and are astounded at attitude of the Nerang Council in drastically marring an important step in the advancement of the district.'

Finally, a little bit of reason...
Events came to a head in the months of September and October. A deputation of the local Protest Committee called on the Home Secretary (E.M. Hanlon) on 16 October, presenting a petition signed by 9C per cent of Division 4 ratepayers calling for the reinstatement of the Mowbray Park Club.

The committee consisted of Messrs C. Justins, J.M. Goodwin and J. Shaw Snr and were introduced by the local member, T. Flood Plunkett MLA. This followed the Council's attempt to introduce a new by-law giving it total control over patrolling and use of life saving gear on its beaches. The petition obviously succeeded, with the Government rejecting the by-law as ultra vires.
'...the council would be held up to ridicule and shame If it attempted to prevent lifesaving by anyone whether a member of the club or not.'

Meanwhile the Council's club which presumably would have patrolled the beaches if the by-law had succeeded, was in disarray. An 'annual meeting' of the club was called on 24 September, deliberately stacked by Mowbray Park supporters, some 24 members of whom applied there and then to join. The existing committee voted on the issue and by the narrow margin of 6 votes to 4 decided against the motion. The Bulletin reporter dryly noted
'A few minutes after the meeting, two members of the club settled an old grievance by a willing fight in the body of the hall, but no serious damage was done, and the police who were notified that a brawl was likely to occur, found everything in order.'

By late November reports were current that most of the new Burleigh club members had resigned. The Government's rejection of the by-law was the final straw. The Christmas holiday season was fast approaching and the threat that holiday makers might desert Burleigh beaches caused saner judgement to prevail. On 15 December a conference between the Nerang Shire Council and the Mowbray Park Club, confirmed that the club would be allowed to 'unofficially' patrol the beach until February 1935 when further consideration of the patrols would take place.

A final compromise came in December 1935 when the club agreed to change its title to the Burleigh Heads-Mowbray Park Surf Life Saving Club (in effect an amalgamation with the virtually non-existent Council club) whilst the Council agreed to finance the construction of a modern club building, completed in 1936. The Council also agreed to suspend the midnight dancing by-law as an experiment during the 1935 Christmas season. Sunday dancing would not, however, be considered.

The Protest Committee survived into 1935 as the 'Burleigh Surfers Committee' strongly supportive of the Mowbray Park Club. and, one suspects, eager to goad the main protagonists of the previous year's events. In April 1935 the Committee applied to the Council for permission to hold community singing sessions on Burleigh Beach at Easter in aid of the surf club's funds. This was promptly refused, whilst the committee replied that the singing would take place in any case, whatever the consequences.

So that's where our competitive spirit came from!
The concert was indeed held on Easter Sunday at 7 p.m. and broadcast over loud speakers, interrupting some five religious services then underway in the town. The loud speakers could be heard three miles away. Whilst the concert was planned as an obvious provocation, there was frustrated acceptance at the ensuing Council meeting. The club and its supporters had obviously won the fight.

'In the eyes of some persons and some of the councillors these lads (Mowbray Park-Burleigh Heads Surf Club) were the only thing that mattered in the history of Burleigh Heads and to pursue the matter would only stimulate the appetite of those who do think so.'

Obviously, there is much history in the garages, cupboards and attics of the families of our older members, many of whom have long since departed. We would like to request that any Club memorabilia that turns up in this fashion be brought to the Club for preservation and acknowledgement.