The iconic watering holes of Mackay

When looking into the history of pubs and hotels in Mackay, there are a lot of stories to tell.

And with so many people enjoying a good pub story, Mackay Historical museum research officer Glen Hall thought he should tap into Mackay's history by writing 'Pubs of Mackay 1862-1962'.

Glen says if you're ever lucky enough to win the lottery, you can thank one local hotel owner in Mackay for not getting taxed on your winnings.

"That was Albert Langford who owned Langford's Hotel," Glen said.

"He fought the Federal Government because he used to punt on the horses on the weekend and win money, and they tried to say that he was a full-time punter and it was his main income.

"And it wasn't, it was just his winnings and he won the High Court case and today any winning earned from lotteries and things like that are not taxed because of Albert Langford's fight."

The Darwin Awards

The Darwin Awards are named in honour of Charles Darwin, known for his contributions to evolutionary theory.

The awards acknowledge people who improve the gene pool by removing themselves from it, and Glen says he thinks in the past we had a recipient of The Darwin Awards here in Mackay.

"A bloke named John O'Donnell was the publican of a Criterion Hotel which was originally located near the old Pioneer Shire Council on Wood Street," Glen said.

"He had decided to go down and check his cask of rum one night and because he couldn't see, he lighted a match and of course with volatile liquid and gases, he died from injuries caused from an explosion."

Glen says there has been numerous pub and hotel fires in Mackay throught the years.

"I have recorded 28 of them since settlement, so there is probably a few dodgy publicans who thought they would get their insurance money," Glenn said.

"And then there are other causes unexplained so yes, they are a story in themselves as well."

Iconic watering holes

An iconic hotel that Glen says should be a stand out to all locals is the Duke of Edinburgh on Walkerston Street.

"That is the oldest hotel in the district at the moment and was built in 1882," Glen said.

"It really started when Walkerston was a group of little houses basically, so the town has grown tremendously.

Glen says his favourite hotel is the General Gordon Hotel at Homebush, which was built in 1886.

"It is also one of the oldest in the district and it's just a beautiful atmosphere surrounded by all the cane fields and when you go inside the pub the atmosphere is still there," he said.

Glen says if he was to document every interesting character in a story, it would be more than 2,000 pages long.

So instead he has created a brief history of the hotels and included some of the anecdotes and stories on some people he found more interesting than the others.

"The next book I plan to release is about the men of Mackay who died during World War I," Glen said.

"I have only been working on that one for 21 years, so that is in final stages now and should be out before Anzac Day, so that should be a labour of love as well."

Source : ABC News   14 November, 2014   Sophie Kesteven