Hartley's celebrates 75 years of crocs
IT' a long time since Charlie the crocodile became an attraction at Herb and Mabel Evans' teahouse at Hartley's Creek.
The teahouse was a struggling enterprise on the recently opened Captain Cook Highway between Cairns and Port Douglas.
Pictures: Crocodiles of the north
Charlie, who was either caught in the Barron River, at Yorkeys Knob or in Trinity Inlet, was, according to an advertisement in The Cairns Post in 1935, "five feet long", and Mr Evans believed he would add an attraction to the enterprise.
Seventy-five years on, Evans' Halfway House has evolved into the thriving tourist attraction Hartley's Crocodile Adventures.
According to director Peter Freeman, Hartley's will be celebrating its colourful past throughout the winter with a range of events, specials and memorabilia.
Mr Freeman said the company's archives contained many images from the past 75 years, however, there were a couple of eras that they were asking the public to help cover.
"We've collected many over the years but we are lacking pictures taken in the 1950's and 1960's relating to crocodiles and matters connected to Hartleys Creek Zoo," Mr Freeman said.
Over the 75 years of its existence, Hartley's Creek has been associated with one thing - crocodiles.
"Over that time it has reflected the shifting attitudes of people towards crocodiles and has also been a significant agent of change in the way people regard not only crocs but our responsibilities for their preservation," Mr Freeman said.
Back to the story of Charlie.
He was apparently named after Charlie Davies who stopped his bus at Halfway House every day with parties of visitors.
During World War II, some American officers tried to buy Charlie the crocodile from Mr Evans, but he refused to sell because Charlie was his livelihood.
Charlie's fame grew steadily and the celebrities of the day came flocking, as well as royalty. Prince Charles met his namesake in 1966 and in 1991 the Cairns Council presented Charlie with an award for his "service to the community".
Apart from one instance of bone infection in 1992, Charlie maintained robust health before finally succumbing to cancer in 2000. He had been in captivity longer than any other crocodile in the world.
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Angela and Peter Freeman with the replica of Charlie, the croc who sustained Hartley's Creek through much of tis 75 years.
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