On a ridge of rugged bushland north of Childers is a small clearing on private land with ties to one of the area’s early pioneer sugar-growing families which played an important role in community life during World War II.
Situated on land taken up by James Equestrian Noakes in 1880, Noakes Lookout was once known as a local beauty spot and a site for community gatherings.
Noakes Lookout has special association with the Childers community and is listed on Bundaberg Regional Council’s Register of Local Heritage Places.
Early settlement of Isis District
The first blocks of land in the Isis district were selected in the early 1870s, increasing in demand in the 1880s as more of the Isis Scrub was cleared and towns developed in Horton, Abingdon and Childers.
By the early 1900s the majority of the scrub had been cleared for sugar cane farms and plantations, and the mills that processed the cane.
James Noakes was a prominent businessman in Maryborough, where he was active in the civic life of the town.
Among his many roles, he served on the Maryborough Council as both Alderman and Mayor, was one of the original trustees for the Maryborough Showground and President of the Wide Bay and Burnett Pastoral and Agricultural Society.
James was an early pioneer of cane farming in Bundaberg and Childers, on which he focused his energies from 1880 to his death in 1905.
He had four sons and one daughter who all settled in the Bundaberg Region, primarily around Childers, where the family’s land holdings continued to be managed and expanded by James’ son Edward Percival (Percy).
Percy Noakes was also active in Local Government, serving as Chairman of the Isis Shire Council from 1939 to 1949.
He was also a director of the Isis Central Sugar Mill.
Noakes Lookout becomes community landmark
Noakes Lookout gained popularity for its panoramic views over the surrounding farmland and was featured on the itinerary for visiting dignitaries.
The Isis branch of the RACQ supported improved access to the lookout as early as 1937 and in 1938 voted to contribute half of the cost of improving the road leading to Noakes’ Lookout.
Helen (Betty) Noakes, daughter of Percy, wrote an illustrated children’s book in 1942, ‘Moon Magic’, inspired by her time growing up on the family farm.
In it, she described the view from the lookout as ‘Sugar Cane Fields stretching like a bright patchwork quilt far below; there would be fields of all the shades of green imaginable, criss-crossed by ploughed ones of pink, and grey, and red, and rusty brown, all seeming to be playing hide and seek with little laughing roads and lantana thickets and patches of nobbley tree-tops’.
Becoming an important community space, during World War II, the Childers community held ‘Chop Parties’ at the lookout to support the war effort.
According to the Bundaberg RSL Sub Branch a ‘chop party’ was when a group of soldiers would gather to cook and eat their meals, often in a makeshift or improvised manner.
Community singing events were also conducted, aided by piano music, the instrument having been carted up the hill on the back of a truck.
Soldiers stationed at the Recreation Grounds in Childers used the ascent to the lookout for marching practice.
Other features included a small shelter and a water tank, which are no longer existing.
In late 1947, Isis Shire Council resolved to erect signposts directing tourists to Noakes’ Lookout.
In 1949, the road appeared to have needed repairs again, as the Childers and District Chamber of Commerce suggested to Council to improve access to the lookout.
Triangulation Station
The site was surveyed by the Australian Survey Corps and is known as Triangulation Station PSM43570 (#17745).
The Australian Survey Corps, later known as the Royal Australian Survey Corps, undertook extensive efforts to map the Australian continent post-World War II.
A marker was installed at Noakes Lookout on 1 March 1958 in the form of a circular metal plaque inscribed with ‘AUSTRALIAN SURVEY CORPS TRIANGULATION STATION’ around a central triangle.
The marker is set in a concrete base and is located towards the edge of the clearing.
Close by is a tree stump marked with the letters ‘A’ and ‘S’ underneath a triangle.
Current site
When Noakes Lookout was added to Council’s Local Heritage Register in 2020, the hilltop was noted as cleared and flattened with surrounding area generally overgrown with grass, shrubs and trees obscuring the view.
It is located on private property and the previous access route along an unnamed track past a former quarry is now impassable.
The history of Noakes Lookout is ingrained in the personal memories of descendants of the Noakes family and members of the Childers community.
The passionate and detailed community support shown in the submission for inclusion in the local heritage register underpins the importance Noakes Lookout has for the community.
This story is shared as part of Bundaberg Regional Council’s Australian Heritage Festival celebrations.
