{"id":297287,"date":"2021-04-14T20:17:14","date_gmt":"2021-04-14T10:17:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=297287"},"modified":"2021-04-15T19:37:23","modified_gmt":"2021-04-15T09:37:23","slug":"bottle-tree-marks-a-tragedy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2021\/04\/14\/bottle-tree-marks-a-tragedy\/","title":{"rendered":"Bottle Tree Marks A Tragedy"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Robert and Sarah Smith’s descendants gather in front of the historic bottle tree<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
The memorial plaque has been mounted on a rock in front of the Hivesville bottle tree<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

April 14, 2021<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hundreds of motorists would drive past the bottle tree on the corner of Hivesville’s Memorial Park every day, but few would have any idea why that tree is there.<\/p>\n

The bottle tree was planted in 1932, three years after a level crossing tragedy which occurred just metres away.<\/p>\n

On October 1, 1929, local farmer Robert Smith apparently stalled his Ford ute on the railway line which then crossed Wondai-Proston Road.<\/p>\n

Seconds later the Proston steam train ploughed into the vehicle, trapping it under the engine.<\/p>\n

Mr Smith, 58, suffered fatal injuries in the horrific collision.<\/p>\n

The death rocked the local community, even though Mr Smith – a former sergeant in the Royal Irish Constabulary – and his family had only arrived from Ireland seven years earlier.<\/p>\n

According to family records, Mr Smith was a trustee of the local hall committee, a JP, a member of the Wondai Hospital Board, secretary of the Local Progress Association and a member of the committee which successfully campaigned for the re-establishment of a school in Hivesville in 1924.<\/p>\n

An obituary published in a local newspaper noted:<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Quite a gloom was cast over the Wondai-Hivesville district on Tuesday, October 1, 1929, when it became known that Mr Robert Smith had met an untimely end by misadventure”.<\/em><\/p>\n

“In accordance with his usual custom, Mr Smith had on Tuesday morning driven his Ford utility truck from his farm ‘Bellevue’, situated a mile on the Wondai side of Hivesville, to the railway station at the latter township and delivered his cream for railing.<\/em><\/p>\n

“After conducting some business in the township he started for home at 11:30am and when motoring over the line at the railway crossing the inward bound tri-weekly Proston train struck the truck amidships, cutting it in two, striking also the driver and hurling him to instant death.<\/em><\/p>\n

“The visibility of an approaching train at this crossing is bad and as the train was moving at a fairly rapid speed it is improbable (sic) that the unfortunate man even knew by what means he was launched into eternity.”\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

He left behind his wife Sarah (d. 1965), six sons and one daughter.<\/p>\n

The local newspaper noted his funeral cortege was one of the largest seen locally, consisting of more than 50 cars and 300 people.<\/p>\n

The death obviously made a large impact on one Hivesville resident, local school headmaster Alex Wilson, who planted the bottle tree in his memory near the site of the tragedy.<\/p>\n

Members of the Smith family, including 10 grandchildren, gathered at the foot of the tree on Sunday afternoon to make sure their forebear – and Mr Wilson’s tribute to him – would not be forgotten.<\/strong><\/p>\n

With assistance from local councillor Kathy Duff, the family organised for a rock plinth to be placed in front of the tree, bearing a plaque recording Mr Smith’s death and Mr Wilson’s tribute to him.<\/p>\n

Grandson George Smith told the assembled group the tree was now in the process of being listed on the National Register of Heritage Trees.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Smith family members watch on as Cr Kathy Duff and Robert Smith’s great-great-great-granddaughter Summer Thomas, 8, from Yarraman, unveil the memorial plaque<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n

\"\"<\/a>
Robert and Sarah Smith (Photo: Smith family)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/td>\n
\n

\"\"<\/a>
The new plaque placed in front of the bottle tree<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n
\"\"<\/a>
The 10 grandchildren of Robert and Laura Smith in the shade of the Hivesville bottle tree<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Grandsons Derek and George Smith presented Cr Kathy Duff with flowers and a small gift at the end of the ceremony<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Smith family descendants watch as the memorial plaque is unveiled on Sunday afternoon<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
The Smith Family resided at ‘Bellevue’ near Hivesville … Robert Smith is fourth from the left in the front row (Photo: Smith family)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
How newspapers reported the tragedy on October 2, 1929 … left, Maryborough Chronicle – Wide Bay and Burnett Advertiser; top right, Brisbane Courier; bottom right, The Age (Photos: Trove)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hundreds of motorists would drive past the bottle tree on the corner of Hivesville’s Memorial Park every day, but few would have any idea why that tree is there.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":297288,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[16,3],"tags":[217],"yoast_head":"\nBottle Tree Marks A Tragedy - southburnett.com.au<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Hundreds of motorists would drive past the bottle tree on the corner of Hivesville's Memorial Park every day, but few would have any idea why that tree is there.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2021\/04\/14\/bottle-tree-marks-a-tragedy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bottle Tree Marks A Tragedy - 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