Kershaw Gardens facts for kids

Kershaw Gardens is a huge 50-hectare park in Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia. It's special because it was built on an old rubbish dump! The park is located in the suburb of Park Avenue, Queensland, and is a popular spot for families and nature lovers.

The gardens were officially opened in 1988. They are surrounded by the Bruce Highway, High Street, Dowling Street, and Moores Creek. Moores Creek flows through the park and into the Fitzroy River.

Kershaw Gardens has many nature walks where you can see lots of different native plants. There's also a beautiful artificial waterfall, a traditional slab hut, a special area for dog training, and a big play area. This play area has picnic shelters, a sensory garden, and a fun children's playground.

History of Kershaw Gardens

A wide view of Kershaw Gardens in 2012.

Building the Park (1976-1988)

Before Kershaw Gardens opened, it was the city's main rubbish dump. The Rockhampton City Council decided in 1974 to turn it into a beautiful botanic garden. Work on the park started in 1976 and took 12 years to complete.

Kershaw Gardens officially opened on 18 September 1988. This was part of Australia's 200th birthday celebrations. About 10,000 people came to the opening event!

The gardens were named after Cliff Kershaw, who was the city's chief health inspector. He worked for the city for a long time. Sadly, Cliff Kershaw passed away before the park opened. His family attended the opening and a special service was held to remember him.

A time capsule was buried near the Dowling Street entrance before the opening. It was placed there by a local committee and opened by Rockhampton City Council mayor Jim Webber on 26 January 1988. This time capsule will be opened again on 26 January 2088!

Early Attractions and Changes

When the park first opened, a man-made waterfall was a big attraction. It was turned on during the opening ceremony in 1988. However, it broke down on 4 February 1989. This made some local people upset because it had cost a lot of money. A new, stronger waterfall was built using reinforced concrete and opened in 1990.

Later, in 2010, the waterfall needed repairs again. It was turned off when Cyclone Marcia hit the gardens in February 2015. After the cyclone, the waterfall was symbolically switched back on in May 2015 by the Deputy Premier of Queensland, Jackie Trad, to show the park was starting to recover.

The original plans for Kershaw Gardens included a restored Purrey steam tram. The idea was for the tram to take visitors on short rides around the park. The tram ran briefly in 1990 for the opening of the second waterfall. But keeping the tram and its tracks working was too expensive. The tram was moved to the Archer Park Rail Museum, where it still runs today. Some of the old tram tracks stayed at Kershaw Gardens until they were removed before the park reopened in 2018.

The old North Rockhampton Railway Station was also moved to Kershaw Gardens. It was meant to be a place for meetings and public toilets. But over time, the building got damaged by termites. The council decided to pull it down in 2017. Some people, like former mayor Margaret Strelow, thought it should have been saved.

One of the most popular attractions for kids was the Rotary Monorail. It opened in 1990 and had pedal-powered cars that ran on a loop track. The cars were stored in a cool, man-made cave. In 2009, the council found that the monorail wasn't safe enough because the track was too close to the ground. They added more material under the track to make it safer. The monorail was damaged by Cyclone Marcia in 2015 and was removed. However, a smaller version of the monorail was put in the new playground area in 2018 as a tribute to the original!

In July 2012, a new fenced dog park was opened near the Charles Street entrance. It has an obstacle course for dogs to play on. This helps dogs get exercise and prevents them from getting bored.

Before Cyclone Marcia, new electronic playground equipment was installed. It opened in January 2015, even though there was a small delay when a nearby power transformer was hit by lightning.

Kershaw Gardens Closed (2015)

On 20 February 2015, a very strong storm called Severe Tropical Cyclone Marcia hit Rockhampton. It caused a lot of damage to Kershaw Gardens.

Many trees were pulled out of the ground by the strong winds. This brought up old rubbish from the landfill underneath, like glass, old needles, and other waste.

Because of the old rubbish that came to the surface, the council had to close Kershaw Gardens for safety. They told people to stay away because of the dangerous materials. Even so, some people still visited with their children, so the council had to remove the playground equipment to keep everyone safe.

In May 2015, when the waterfall was turned back on, Mayor Margaret Strelow said that the waterfall was the only part of the park that was safe to see. She explained that the cyclone had turned the gardens back into a rubbish dump because of all the waste that had come up.

The council worked hard to clean up the park. In July 2017, the Queensland Government promised $5 million to help Rockhampton Regional Council with the park's restoration.

Kershaw Gardens Reopens (2018)

After three and a half years, Kershaw Gardens officially reopened on 11 August 2018! There was a big family fun day to celebrate. The Premier of Queensland, Annastacia Palaszczuk, was there, and a traditional Darumbal smoking ceremony was held. This reopening also celebrated the park's 30th birthday.

Special miniature statues of the giant leaf sculptures at the park's entrance were given to people who helped create Kershaw Gardens in 1988. This included former parks manager Tom Wyatt and former mayor Jim Webber.

The new park has many exciting attractions. The main one is a huge, spherical five-level structure in the children's playground. It was originally designed for Central Park in New York! This amazing structure was named "Wyatt's Wonder Web" to honor Tom Wyatt. He was a former parks manager who helped design the gardens on the old landfill site.

The playground also has a flying fox, timber play towers, a spinning ride, a birds nest swing, and a water play area. The water play area has a shallow stream that looks like the Fitzroy River.

After the park reopened, some safety concerns were raised when five steak knives were found buried in the sand. Mayor Strelow said that council workers check the equipment regularly and rake the sand every morning. They also added more security to keep everyone safe.

Images for kids

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  Panorama of Kershaw Gardens, 2012