With the name in use since 1879, the town of Geraldton in Queensland was officially named in July 1883. A small notice was printed in The Brisbane Courier stating that in a few years, it would become “the flourishing centre of the largest sugar-producing district in Queensland.”
On the other side of the country, in Geraldton, Western Australia, the news of their unintentional namesake seemingly escaped their notice. That would change in a few short years.
After the naming of the Queensland town, bankers, merchants, and many other people in Geraldton, Western Australia, experienced various kinds of disruptions. Letters expected at a certain time were delayed. When they finally arrived, they were stamped with Queensland postmarks, and written across the envelopes were the words, “Try Geraldton W.A.”
In 1908, the Geraldton Guardian published a short paragraph that was contributed by a reader to their ‘The Query Column.’ Their statement highlighted the importance of addressing letters correctly and ensuring that the state was included when there were two towns of the same name. They asked:
Is it not dangerous to address letters merely “Geraldton?” Are they not likely to go to Geraldton in Queensland?
The confusion extended not only to mail but also to shipping. Geraldton in Queensland was also a port, and many people experienced misdirection of their shipments. By June 1909, the people of Geraldton in Western Australia, had had enough.
On 28 June 1909, the Geraldton Chamber of Commerce held their annual meeting at their secretary’s office. After the reading of the financial statements and some discussion about subscriptions, Arthur Mountain, the newly elected President, brought up the confusion that existed when there were one too many Geraldtons.
…a great deal of confusion, both as regarded correspondence and mis-direction of shipments, was caused through two ports in the Commonwealth having the same name…
With the incidents ongoing, the committee members decided to “place the matter before the Postmaster-General of the Commonwealth, and ask him to take steps in the direction of the alteration of the name of the Queensland port.” To help their case, they planned to ask Sir John Forrest for assistance. William Banks, manager of Messrs. Burns, Philp and Co. in Geraldton, also said he would refer the matter to Robert Philp, who was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly.
Correspondence from Sir John Forrest and the Postmaster-General was read during the Chamber of Commerce’s monthly meeting on 10 August. The conflict was a state issue, but they planned to raise it with the Minister for External Affairs. The committee resolved to await further developments.
A year later, Geraldton in Queensland was no more. On 18 August 1910, the Department of Public Lands announced that Geraldton, from that point forward, would be known as Innisfail.
It understandably took a little while for residents to get used to using the new name. For years, Innisfail was followed by the words ‘late Geraldton.’ In the decades after, people reflected on the reasons for the change. What was the catalyst for the people in Western Australia to take decisive action?
The story, passed around from year to year, became tattered and worn. Details changed, but the core remained the same. A ship (interchangeably Russian, Italian, or American) was meant to go to Geraldton in Western Australia to deliver coal or pickup jarrah. The ship’s captain apparently thought it was Geraldton in Queensland. He sailed there, and upon his arrival, the people in the Queensland town realised he was in the wrong place.
Trying to find evidence of such a story in the newspapers is curiously difficult. At a time when the most mundane things were reported on, that monumental mistake was conspicuously absent. But it seems the mistake, in some form, did occur.
Mayford Sexton moved to Geraldton, Queensland, in 1905 after being transferred to the area in relation to his work for the Customs Department. He remained there for four years. Upon his retirement in 1937, he confirmed the reason for the name change: “an overseas vessel turned up one day at Geraldton in mistake for Geraldton, Western Australia.”
While the new name was accepted, there is no doubt that the name Geraldton continued to hold a special place for some Innisfail residents. On 2 November 1965, a bridge constructed across the Johnstone River was officially opened. 55 years had passed since the old name had ceased to be, but in an acknowledgement of the past, they named it Geraldton Bridge.
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Sources:
Anon (2006) Geraldton on the Johnstone River, ca. 1885. Brisbane: John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland.
1883 'The Brisbane Courier.', The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), 4 July, p. 5. , viewed 12 Jun 2023, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article3419754
1888 'GERALDTON—QUEENSLAND.', The West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954), 13 June, p. 3. , viewed 13 Jun 2023, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article3118964
1908 'THE QUERY COLUMN.', Geraldton Guardian (WA : 1906 - 1928), 2 June, p. 1. , viewed 13 Jun 2023, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66257737
1909 'Geraldton Chamber of Commerce.', Geraldton Guardian (WA : 1906 - 1928), 29 June, p. 1. , viewed 13 Jun 2023, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66276196
State Library of Western Australia; Burns, Philp company Limited, Geraldton; Kretchmar, William Herman; 1905?; Call Number: 4372B/39B
1909 'Chamber of Commerce.', Geraldton Guardian (WA : 1906 - 1928), 12 August, p. 4. , viewed 14 Jun 2023, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66274828
Queensland Government Gazette; 20th August 1910, No. 50, Vol. XCV, Page 470. Courtesy of Ancestry.com
1911 'INNISFAIL LATE GERALDTON.', The Queenslander (Brisbane, Qld. : 1866 - 1939), 1 April, p. 22. , viewed 15 Jun 2023, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article22291356
1937 'AFTER 48½ YEARS.', Cairns Post (Qld. : 1909 - 1954), 12 February, p. 6. , viewed 16 Jun 2023, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article41768568
Very good and interesting 🤔