Brisbane Ekka’s official title is now the Royal Queensland Show . . . but the Ekka has had several name changes over the years. The Exhibition grew from the formation of the National Agricultural and Industrial Association of Queensland in 1875. This group was formed to organise the first Queensland Intercolonial Exhibition. This occurred in 1876 at the present site. Admission was 5 shillings on judging day, 2/6 for the opening ceremony and one shilling for admission after the opening ceremony.
The first Exhibition in 1876 was held at the present site, in the grounds of the Acclimatisation Society of Queensland. This Society was set up to ‘introduce, propagate and distribute useful plants from overseas countries’. In 1863, the colonial government had granted the Society 32 acres for its work. But as the Exhibition grew, it took over more and more of the gardens, as well as purchasing land in
Fortitude
Valley
. Today only a fragment of the original gardens survives as ‘
Bowen
Park
’. As you pass
Royal
Brisbane
Hospital
, look on the opposite side of
Bowen Bridge Road
and you’ll see the Park’s iron gates and gracious old trees. The first Brisbane Exhibition was held in 1876.
This year’s Ekka marks 130 years of annual celebration of
Queensland
’s progress and prosperity. The Ekka has only been cancelled once, in 1919 during the international flu epidemic, when the grounds were used as an emergency hospital. The Exhibitors Dining Hall became a ward, and other wards were set up in military huts erected in the Exhibition grounds.
The Show is a regular event in the calendar of towns and cities across the state. Brisbane’s first show or Exhibition was held in 1876, and was intended to promote not just local industries, but to showcase the agricultural, pastoral and industrial resources of the whole of Queensland. Just as important are the social aspects of the Show where the people of the city and the country come together - country tweed, moleskins, and city business suits mingle at the Cattleman’s Bar and for many years the annual Show Balls have been a highlight of Queensland’s social scene.
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