A PERFECTLY preserved piece of North Queensland's history has been unearthed in an Edmonton home with a copy of this masthead showing the news of the day from 1939.
Tully resident Kevin Hicks has expressed his delight at finding a copy of the North Queensland Register, from Saturday, May 13, 1939, while clearing out his father-in-law's brother's home.
Almost 81 years ago to the day, the news of the day was far from what you'll read between the pages of this edition - as were the advertisements.
Mr Hicks said agricultural news was a feature, as it remains today, but the industry was quite different.
"There's a story on everything you want to know about merino sheep, and plenty of ads for tractors," Mr Hicks said.
"There's another ad for a pig, a sow that had 48 suckers in 15 months, and ads for wool."
Mr Hicks said the paper had plenty of international news including stories from England, the US and even Russia.
"There's also an insert there showing how Anzac Day was commemorated all over, including in London and Sydney."
The paper was 100 pages and cost sixpence.
There are advertisements for fine Royal Doulton china on the front page and other printed information included the tide times, showing our forebears were also keen to wet a line.
Mr Hicks said the family wasn't really sure why the newspaper had been kept for so many years, but suggested his relative may have held on to it as it was published in the year of his birth.
"It was just sitting there in a cupboard, and you can still just sit down and read it like you would this week's newspaper."
The North Queensland Register is Australia's oldest rural weekly newspaper and was first printed in 1892.
It was based in Charters Towers in the early years and was originally known as the North Queensland Herald and Northern Mining Register.
By May 1939, it was published under the North Queensland Register masthead but the front page states it includes both the North Queensland Herald and Northern Mining Register.
