What We Found
We were told Townsville would be different, and it was, but not always in ways you might have expected. Suburban Auchenflower was compact and closely settled. Initially, so was Townsville. If things had worked out differently, it might have stayed that way.
Given their 'druthers, I'm sure my parents would have preferred to live in North Ward or on one of the hills behind Townsville's CBD. Melton Hill would have done me very nicely, thank you, and Stanton Hill wouldn't have been far behind.
Instead, we spent three years in Aitkenvale, which at that stage was right on the fringes of civilisation, half an hour by crowded bus from the CBD. Four years on Bayswater Road in a house that wasn't in Currajong but didn't seem to be in Pimlico either followed that. Then, at the end of 1970, my parents headed back south, and I decided The North was home.
Arriving sets the scene. Townsville's Original Footprint remains on the 'to-do' list. When it moves from there, it will explore historical aspects of the area around our original accommodation at the eastern end of the Strand.
'Course, When I Come Here, This Was All Scrub transitions to The Wilds of Aitkenvale before Townsville's late sixties and early seventies growth spurt. A Teenager's Guide to Townsville in the Sixties switches the focus to Bayswater Road and a more accessible city centre.
