Abstract

In the first half of the 20th century, the declaration of areas as national parks had much more to do with attracting tourists than with protecting natural resources. Consequently, the early parks were frequently relatively small areas. Initially, Eungella was no different. The first park in 1936 was approximately 405 hectares. That trend was clearly disregarded only five years later when an area of 48,295 hectares was declared as national park over significant samples of rainforest and eucalypt forest along the Clarke Range. It was the largest national park in Queensland to that date, a distinction it held for more than a quarter of a century. Archival records in government files clearly support the contention that nature conservation, particularly the protection of rainforest, was an important factor driving the declaration of Eungella National Park, one of Queensland’s most important protected areas.