The Tree of Knowledge

[~HG~]

The Tree of Knowledge at Barcaldine is one of Australia's most famous historical trees.

The 150-year old ghost gum, Eucalyptus Papuana, earned its claim to fame as the founding site of the political movement we now know as the Australian Labor Party.

The tree was the main meeting place for townspeople and was then known as the 'Alleluia Tree' because the Salvation Army used to meet under its branches.
Meetings of bullock drivers ('bullockies") were also held under the tree.

In 1891 Barcaldine was the centre for the striking shearers during The 'Great Shearers Strike' when they met under its boughs. In May 1891, about 3000 striking shearers marched under the 'Eureka' flag to put forward their protests against poor working conditions and low wages.

The shearers strikes were broken by the Governments of NSW and Queensland who sided with the business interests and arrested 13 of the leaders who were sentenced to gaol for three years.

Following this the the unions and others formed the "Labour Electoral Leagues" which later became the "Labor Party" and then the "Australian Labor Party" (ALP) which is, of course, one of the two major parties in Austrlia today. The Australian Labor Party is the oldest political party in Australia and one of the oldest in the western world.

In those days there were no organised political parties. Politicians grouped on different issues as they arose. The organised Labor Party changed all this and forced the non Labor politicians to form political parties to oppose them.

Beside the tree is a monument in the shape of a pair of shears. The stated aim of the monument was to:

'Honour the men and women of the Labour movement who congregated in this area and, through their courage, determination and dedication to the principles, ideals and objectives of the labour movement, played a leading role in the formation of the Labor Party and further spearheaded the many reforms that resulted in the vastly improved way of life for the Australian people generally.'

The plaque on the front of the monument has the faces and names of the 13 gaoled strike leaders. It is interesting to note that a number of these went on to become significant political figures: William Fothergill returned to become Chairman of Barcaldine Shire Council; William Hamilton became President of the Queensland Legislative Council and George Taylor became the Speaker of the West Australian Legislative Council.