When the North West Star set up its stall at the Mount Isa Show we had many visitors asking us about the beautiful photos on display next to us.
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We would like to have taken the credit – and indeed some of the photos were originally from the paper – but the display was by the North Queensland Historical Collections, the business name of Brian Adamson.
A native-born Mount Isan, Mr Adamson was always akeen photographer and in 1988 he started collecting old photographs of the city.
It was a hobby that led to the formation of North Queensland Historical Collections now with an astonishing 25,000 photographs of Mount Isa.
Mr Adamson said he now had over over 200 of those photographs framed which he use for exhibitions like the Mount Isa Show and special occasions like the 75th anniversary and 90th anniversary of the town.
“I got a whole heap of North West Star negatives from 1972 to 1983,” Mr Adamson said.
“They’ve all been developed, I scan them and get information from them.”
Mr Adamson said he wanted to set up a permanent exhibition home for the photos in Mount Isa.
“That’s my ambition, it’s a long struggle but I’ll get there”.
(A permanent exhibition home) is my ambition, it’s a long struggle but I’ll get there
- Brian Adamson
Mr Adamson said there was a lot of history behind the photographs.
“When you look at the photos you can see the changes,” he said.
“People who are born and bred here can explain to people who come here why that was there and they can relate it to what the history was.”
Mr Adamson said he put details on the bottom of each framed photo so people could relate to where they were taken.
“They go from 1923 to 2013 and I want to have a big exhibition for 100 years, which is not far away.”
Mr Adamson couldn’t pick a favourite when pressed.
“I like them all, I just enjoy doing them,” he said.
I was born and bred here and this my legacy that I can leave to people.”
Mr Adamson said he had seen good and bad times in Mount Isa.
“We’ve got a cycle – it’s a typical mining town,” he said.