Page "Bundaberg" Paragraph 14

The naming of Bundaberg's streets was a job for its surveyors, of which there were three.

Thompson was assisted by unregistered surveyor assistants James Ellwood and Alfred Dale Edwards.

Edwards preferred using aboriginal names.

Kolan, Woongarra, Barolin, Bingera, Kalkie, Moolboolooman, and for streets Tantitha, Bourbong etc.

the later local Kalkie name for a large waterhole in front of the old Post Office Cairns Post 1910 P7 18 Jan W. A Dean.

It is a common misconception that the main street was incorrectly gazetted in the Bundaberg Mail as " Bourbong " instead of " Bourbon " street and the name persisted.

However, Rackemann conducted a survey of letterheads printed between 1904 and 1957.

Up until 1940 the count for both names was near enough to equal, with in some cases companies carrying both spelling variations in successive years.

However, by 1941 there is no reference to " Bourbon " street.

It is thought more likely that Edwards named it after ' Boorbong ', the local name given to a series of waterholes near the Rubyanna area.

( Now East Bundaberg ) This is borne out by farmer Robert Strathdee's farming selection in the vicinity of the watering holes being recorded on early survey maps as ' Boorbung '.

The Bourbong was referred to ( Howitt 1904 ) as the name of one of the initiation ceremonies.

Harry Aldridge stated that the scars of initiated men differed from that of Fraser Island in that men on Fraser Island had 5 vertical scars on their chest whereas in Bundaberg the Dundu: ra people had 3 scars across the chest.

Edwards