A BRISBANE man brought an Irish Blackthorn walking stick to Rosewood.

Admittedly that’s a strange statement to make but the man, Peter Rabaa, had an interesting story to tell about the old walking stick and how it in fact represented a valuable piece of the town’s history.

The walking stick, he said, belonged to an early licensee of the Royal George Hotel.

It was, he added, a story of loss and a story of hope.

Patrick Downey was Peter Rabaa’s uncle.

Patrick and his wife, Mary, and their son Patrick Junior, came to Rosewood in the early 1920s to manage and run the Royal George Hotel.

It was to be a new adventure but soon turned into tragedy.

“A horrendous accident occurred soon after their arrival on May 28, 1926 when a fire broke out in the hotel. Mary lost her life in the fire,” Peter said.

“Soon after the death of his wife, Patrick became an alcoholic, the shock completely unnerved him and he was absolutely unable to bear the loss.

“He took to drink as a solace and as a means of forgetfulness, but alcohol brought torture, misery and in the end, it took his life.

“The son, Patrick Junior was then cared for by members of the family in Maryborough and he spent years boarding at a school in Brisbane.”

A sad turn to what was going to be the start of a new adventure, working at the Royal George Hotel, but how did this tragedy occur?

Peter said that there were many comments made in the local papers at the time about the tragedy, but only the family knew the facts for certain.

“Mary had been singeing her hair, (a beauty treatment of the times) at the top level of the Royal George, when her clothing caught on fire and she succumbed to her fatal injuries,” he said.

“Horrendous screams were heard coming from the upper level of the Royal George and as locals turned to look at what was going on, Mary emerged onto the verandah, batting at her flaming dress as fire licked at her face and took hold of her hair.

“Patrick Senior rushed upstairs and used blankets to smother the flames, but as the bells of the St Brigid’s Church warned of a fire in the township, the young mother cradled by her husband while being attended to by Dr Robert Wallace, local chemists and nurses, lost her life.”

A truly devastating part of Rosewood’s history. But comes with a story of hope.

“Patrick Junior graduated from school and went on to become a Catholic Priest and in 1961 he married myself and my wife Jocelyn in Maryborough … a truly moving time,” he said.

“When Patrick Junior passed away in 2000, I was given his father’s Irish Blackthorn walking stick, a monumental part of the family’s history that holds onto a sad past with some hope through Patrick Junior’s strength and determination.”