The Legend Of The Glass House Mountains

It is said that Mt.Tibrogargan, the father, and Mt.Beerwah, the mother, had many children - Mt.Coonowrin (the eldest), Mt.Beerburrum, the Mt.Tunbubudla twins, Mt.Coochin twins, Mt.Ngungun, Mt.Tibberoowuccum, Mt.Miketebumulgrai and Mt.Saddleback. There were also Mt.Round who was fat and small and Mt.Wildhorse who was always paddling in the sea. One day, Tibrogargan was gazing out to sea when he noticed a great rising of the waters. Hurrying off to gather his younger children in order to flee to the safety of the mountains which lay to the west, he called out to Coonowrin to help his mother, who was again with child. Looking back to see how Coonowrin was assisting Beerwah, Tibrogargan was greatly angered to see him running off alone. He pursued Coonowrin and, raising his club, struck the latter such a mighty blow that it dislocated Coonowrin's neck and he has never been able to straighten it since.

When the floods subsided and the family returned to the plains, the other children teased Coonowrin about his crooked neck. Feeling ashamed, Coonowrin went to Tibrogargan and asked for forgiveness, but filled with shame at his son's cowardice, Tibrogargan could do nothing but weep copious tears, which, trickling along the ground, formed a stream which flowed into the sea. Then Coonowrin went to his brothers and sisters, but they also wept at the shame of their brother's cowardice.

The lamentations of Coonowrin parents and his brothers and sisters at his disgrace explain the presence, to this day, of the numerous small streams of the area. Tibrogargan then called Coonowrin, asking him why he had deserted Beerwah; at which Coonowrin replied that as Beerwah was the biggest of them all she should be able to take care of herself. He did not know that Beerwah was again pregnant, which was the reason for her great size. Then Tibrogargan turned his back on Coonowrin and vowed that he would never look at him again.

Even today, Tibrogargan gazes far out to sea and never looks around at Coonowrin, who hangs his head and cries, his tears running off to the sea. His mother Beerwah is still heavy with child as it takes a long, long time to give birth to a mountain.

The Geology Of The Glass House Mountains

The Glasshouse Mountains are the remnant cores of volcanoes active about 25 million years ago. They were formed as molten rock was forced out of vents from within the earth. As these flows of magma cooled over a period they solidified into conal shapes of hard rocks (rhyolite and trachyte). Erosion of the surrounding softer sand stone over millions of years has lowered the ground level to where we live to day. The only testimony to this violent volcanic era are the Mountains we see. Mount Beerwah at 556 metres high is the "Mother by legend" and the grandest of all the mountains. Mt.Tibrogargan is relatively smaller at 364 metres but still impressive with it's distinctive Aboriginal face looking east towards the Pacific being very visible from Glasshouse Mountains Road. At 375 metres high Mt.Coonowrin (Crookneck from the legend) is possibly the most striking of the group with a bare tooth like appearance. Very photogenic from the Old Gympie Road area. To the south are The Tunbubudla Twins at 338 and 294 metres. Somewhat smaller but still very dominant in size.

A total of 15 mountains of various sizes cover an area of over 600,000 hectares from Mt.Mellum in the north to Round Mountain south of Elimbah, to the lesser Wild Horse Mountain at 123 metres high on the Bruce Highway to the east.  One of the most accessible places to view the mountains from is lookout 589 - just a short drive off Old Gympie Road and from most of the local tourist attractions, the magnificent views are worth every kilometre.

The History Of The Glass House Mountains

On Thursday 17^th May 1770 Captain James Cook while sailing up the east coast of the land known as Terra Australis or New Holland, sighted and named "these hills" as the Glass Houses (the reflections and the shape of these hills reminded him of the glass manufacturing houses back in England).

The next morning at 9 am James Cook, Joseph Banks, Doctor Solander and a small group of men landed in the north shore of Moreton Bay and are recorded as the first British people to come ashore in Queensland. Cook named this area Glass House Bay. This bay was renamed 29 years later. On 15^th July 1799 Capt. Matthew Flinders aged 25, sailed the sloop "Norfolk" into Moreton Bay. The next morning they landed on Bribie Island and after a disagreement with the natives, named the area Skirmish Point.

On the 26^th July, Flinders sailed north up this river and beached 'Norfolk' on a sandy strip for some minor repairs. Together with two seamen and a native "Bongaree" from Sydney, he proceeded up a small creek in the general direction of the highest peak. After leaving the small boat they pushed through low swampy country until they were stopped by a small creek. (Glass House Mountains Creek). Unable to reach the larger mountains they decided to head for the closest 'round mount with sloping sides', and climbed Mount Beerburrum before returning to Norfolk. Flinders continued to explore and map the coastal area north to Sandy Cape on Fraser Island until the 9^th August when he departed for Sydney.

In 1824, a penal settlement was established at Redcliffe Point. After moving this settlement to where Brisbane stands today, it was finally abandoned in 1839 and the area was opened to free settlers in 1842. In 1859 the state of Queensland separated from the colony of N.S.W. and Brisbane, by now a prosperous city, was declared the capital.