Immigration   Mr Michael Rickert, a German immigrant, remembers. Taken from the files of the 'Clifton Courier' as reported shortly before his passing on 11th of August 1939. Correction of German translations and Australian place names, plus added information compiled from history, is included by this writer, Ray Tippett of Allora. Mr Michael Rickert was born in 'Heatfield', Germany in 1851. His father Andreas Rickert was a blacksmith and taught his son's that trade. Mrs Mary Rickert (nee Anna Marie Wetterauer) was his mother. Mr Andreas Rickert had two sisters. Maria Barbara Storch, nee R. (she died of Cholera on board 'Marks' en-route to Australia 1854). And Margaretha Katherina R. Who migrated to North America. Andreas married Mary and they had three children in Germany, Andrew, Michael and Adam. Some years after Margaretha had migrated, Andreas received a letter from her telling him to 'sell up his home and property and migrate to America, there was a big demand for blacksmith's and wages were high'. He was also told by an immigration official to go to Australia as the prospects were good 'with gold in the streets and rivers flowing with milk and honey'. He decided to follow his sisters advice and migrate to North America. He packed up his tools of trade and other necessities, including seeds etc. And sold off his property and unrequired belongings. Then went to the port. Here the agent told him the ship to America had already sailed and there would not be another for three months. There was an Australia bound vessel leaving in three days. So he decided to sail to Australia on the ship 'Marks', Captained by C. Wilder, and having on board 500 immigrants. They boarded the 'Marks' on October 5 1854. The passage cost £8 each. The Government meeting the other £8 on agreement it would be repaid out of the first years wages earned in Australia. On the voyage a number of people died from Cholera, including his son Adam, and his sister Maria Storch who was migrating with her husband Thomas. Their only food was salted pork and tainted water. 52 people died. At the Equater they became windbound during intense heat, and more people died. Andreas' wife Mary gave birth to another son whom they named Adam, after the son who had died earlier in the voyage from Cholera. On arrival in Brisbane, Australia, March 17 1855. Quarantine officials found it necessary to put the vessel in quarantine for three weeks. Andreas had expected to get work in Brisbane at his trade, however an agent informed him that he unknowingly had signed a contract to shepherd sheep for two years. He refused to comply  and was threatened with 6 months internment. So he was forced to agree and became a shepherd. Arrangements were made for a journey from Brisbane to 'Tooloom', N.S.W. by bullock dray. One wagon was to take four families. These were Slayer (wife and child), Dank and his wife, Mrs Ryan and her two grown up sons, and the Rickert's, Andreas and Mary, and their three sons Andrew, Michael and baby Adam. The men would round up the bullock's and the women cooked the meals. The trip took three weeks to reach 'Tooloom' on the Upper Clarence River, just South of Woodenbong, N.S.W. On arrival at 'Tooloom' they found the black's were numerous, and dingoes came after the sheep. The house in which they were to live was of bark walls and bark roof, about 11 feet by 12 feet. The windows and door were also bark and hinged with greenhide straps. The overseer, Mr McGail, gave Andreas a powerful half breed bulldog to kill dingoes with. The dog was also very savage with the Aborigines, of whom a family of nine lived nearby the house. Mrs Rickert was giving the black's extra rations as they helped her with gathering firewood. When the men had left for work one day, one blackfellow came to the house to deliver a message, and there was a sheet of bark against the end of the hut where the dog camped. The dog's chain broke and he attacked the black, Mary was bitten on the thigh while attempting to rescue the man. She managed to get the man inside the house, close the door, and chain the dog up again. This was about three months before the birth of Michaels sister Mary. At the impending birth, his father went for help to Mrs Ryan and the baby was born in his absence. Mrs Ryan did all she could when she arrived, but she being Irish and Mary being German, they could not understand each other. They communicated with signs. The baby was born with a birthmark on her right arm bearing a very good resemblance to a black fellows head. Mrs Rickert never regained health after the birth and the dog bite she had received earlier, turned septic. She passed on three weeks later. Andreas decided to move the family away, but the problem was to find a safe place for the children while he sought a conveyance. He left the children with Mrs Sayer and went to Warwick where he found a man named Hoffman who had a small dray and one horse. He was to supply the provisions for the journey both ways. The only food they had for baby Mary was sugar tied in a cloth for her to suck on. The whole journey took about ten days. All the belongings were packed on the dray, and the road was very rough. Having a large shawl from Germany, Andreas tied the corners together and slung it over his shoulder carrying the baby in front of him, leaving his hands free to lead Andrew and Michael. To cross the creeks the children had to sit on the bank whilst Andreas helped Hoffman with wheel chocks going downhill. Then he took the children across. The same thing applied for steep hills. Adam, who wasn't yet two years old, was the only person allowed to remain on the dray. When they got to one creek (Hoffman's Creek) the current was very strong. Andreas left them while he went to help Hoffman, then while helping the children across he lost grip of Adam's hand, reaching for it the baby (Mary) fell out of the shawl into the water. He was just able to reach them both before they were swept into deeper water. It took a long time for them to walk back upstream to the dray and get dry clothing for the baby. The first station they came to was 'Woodenbong', the next was 'Koreelah', then after again crossing Hoffman's Creek they skirted the mountains to 'Elbow Valley', then 'Killarney' where they camped the night, reaching Warwick the next day. Here they met old shipmates the Danks'. The trip had taken them ten days from 'Tooloom' to Warwick. Andreas got a job at Tom Craig's blacksmith shop for £3 a week. He found a Mr and Mrs Kircher who agreed to look after the baby for 8 shillings a week and 12 shillings a year for clothing. (Later in 1859 the Kircher's bought a farm called 'Aschmanhausen' (13) at Sandy Creek, and it was there that Mary was reared). Sometime later the house where father Andreas and the three boys lived was condemned, and he got the Hoffman boys to help build a bark hut on a reserve. There they lived and the two older boys attended school about a half a mile away. The school was run by the N.S.W. Government. They were very quick in learning the English language. The two biggest boys at the school were Syd and Arthur Morgan, whose father was the editor of the 'Warwick Argus'. When the 'Separation of States' took place in 1859, the school was closed. Then there were only private schools. At about that time Canon B Glennie Christened baby Mary, and also filled out the paperwork for the families Naturalisation, and they became British Subjects. Following the separation of Queensland from New South Wales, Andreas was dismissed from his job because of slack trade. They then moved to 'Goomburra' to do blacksmithing and other work around the station. The manager, Mr Copa was a nice man. Next came Mr North. All the stations shepherded sheep in those days. Michael who was only 9 years old was appointed to mind the lambs. Then a Mr Green came from England to manage the station. He sacked all the workers and built fences around the property. So they moved to Allora on February 2, 1862. There Andreas bought an allottment of one acre for £12. He built a bark hut and blacksmith shop on the site of the present Railway Hotel. He made an agreement with a Mr Kingsford (one time mayor of Warwick and who had married Sarah McInnes in the first wedding performed in Allora, the bride being 15 years 11 months old when she became the Lady Mayoress of Warwick), to buy a set of blacksmith tools and iron, in return for making splitting tools. Andrew helped in the shop and Michael had to go bush and burn charcoal for the forge. When he had 20 bags ready he would borrow a dray to cart it home. Mrs Gwynne started a school in a tent and that was where Adam began his schooling. Mr Gwynne held a night school where Andrew and Michael attended for 1 shilling a week. There was a lot of trade with teamsters from Ipswich and Warwick. Mrs Gwynne became Postmistress, and Cobb & Co's coaches called there on their way up from Sydney. The first Allora hotel was built by Donald Clark in 1857. The next was built by Samual Gordon. Doctor's Ramsdale and Bradfield were the earliest English identities. Frances Kates opened the first shop in 1862. Ned Anderson was the first carpenter, and Sandy Cameron and George Munro were the first to do fencing and splitting. Harry Black was the first teamster to cart for fencing. He carted the timber for a contractor to build a bridge over Blackwater Creek, and Michael was his 'offsider'. Lawrence Geck was the other driver. The logs were secured 8 miles down the creek at 'Kangaroo Point'. When that work was finished Michael went back to gathering charcoal. It was about 1863 when the first Church of England was built by Mr B Maser. Canon Glennie (who was about to become Archdeacon of Brisbane, and later in 1868 married Miss Mary Brougham Crawshaw of Sandy Creek), was stationed in Warwick and once a week visited Allora, Drayton and Leyburn. Michael got a job as 'offsider' to Jimmy Roney's team carting tallow, sheepskins and wool from Goomburra to Ipswich. He was away three weeks at a time on the trip to Ipswich, and the return trip brought rock-salt loose on the dray. On the way back from Ipswich to Rosewood there were about 15 to 20 chains of log road over a swamp. Bumping over this caused the long bearers of the dray to crack at the axle-bed. When they arrived at Rosewood they unloaded the rock-salt onto the ground, then the driver took the dray back to Ipswich for repairs. Leaving Michael in charge of the rock-salt covered by a tarpaulin, with half a damper and 6 pounds of salted beef. He was away two weeks. When Michael ran out of food he walked 20 chains to an Inn, and they agreed to supply him one meal a day while he was waiting. Michael eventually returned home and did a variety of jobs. Wheat threshing when it was in season, reaping and carting. Then another trip to Ipswich. In that loading were several bales of cotton. As they passed over the Range several bullocks died of pleuro. The return trip brought goods to Allora stores. Out of a team of 14 bullocks only 8 remained on their  return. He did any sort of work when there was not enough work in the blacksmith shop to support the whole family. One job ws to pull corn for Muller. It was pulled, husked and carted in, for only 1 shilling and rations per week. The railway line was started from Ipswich to Toowoomba. He was only 17 years old when he began butchering for Robert Cooke, at 5 shillings per week for 12 months. He heard of a job breaking in colts at 'Canning Downs Station' for 15 shillings a week. He was only there for a month when a horse bucked and ran him into a tree, hurting his leg very badly. He lay in the stable for two weeks, then the manager took him to Warwick for treatment. In Warwick he boarded with a friend for 5 shilling a week until he was well enough to work again. He then went back to Allora butchering for Mr Cooke. The railway was now wending it's way from Toowoomba to Hendon. He was stationed at a branch shop at King's Creek. When the railway was completed on March 8th 1869 to Hendon, he shifted back to Allora and ran a cart, one day to Hendon, the next day toward Toowoomba, to bring meat to the workmen. After completion he ran the cart on the Warwick line. He asked for 7 shillings and 6 pence a week, as the hours were 5am to 10pm. He was refused this and put off the job. He then got a job butchering for Dick Burnett, who paid him 15 shillings a week to supply the railwaymen. When the railway to Warwick was completed, he took on splitting billet-wood for Mr Coote at 'Toolburra' by contract at 27 shilling a cord, to supply the engine at the washpool. Tom Wilson was his partner in this contract. Then he got a job at the washpool carting long wood for £1 a week. He did the same work for Mr Pass at Sandy Creek. He then went back to Mr Coote's to break in horses and do odd jobs around the station. Then he went to Warwick with Tom Wilson to saw timber with a pit-saw at 6 shillings a hundred boards. As the teamsters did not keep them supplied with enough logs, that only lasted four weeks. He then went back to Allora and did blacksmithing with his brothers. As there was only a bark hut and shop, he and Adam went to the bush and split 20,000 shingles. Having purchased a pit-saw, a squaring axe and other tools for 15 shillings. He and Adam brought logs in and sawed timber to build a house, kitchen, and new blacksmith shop. He worked with his father Andreas and brother Andrew in the blacksmith shop, while across the road Adam had rented property from Mr Sam Gordon and started a saw mill. First with a horse-drawn works then later with a donkey-engine for his mill. Michael was now 20 years of age. During this time he invented a sheller in 1873. American agents came out and copied it. In 1874 Andrew married Anna Martha Weiss (and went on to have 13 children). Trade got slack again and Michael looked for other work. Cutting chaff and threshing corn and wheat. He bought a horse-drawn works and a small wheat thresher for this. In 1876, on December 16, he put in an application for 100 acres of land at Elphingstone. On January 27 the following year, it was drawn  for ballot, there were 7 in the draw and Michael won. On February 2 they got the timber to fence the new land. He continued with his chaffcutter, blacksmithing and farming until he decided to live at Elphingstone in 1886. He married Miss Elizabeth Marie (Mary) Imhoff at Clifton, a daughter of Mr and Mrs Imhoff who laid the foundations for the agricultural areas of the Darling Downs. They went on to have 6 children. He bought a 4’ 6” wheat thresher with a 6 HP engine and worked them for many years. He bought 112 acres from the Clifton Estates in 1889. In 1894 he bought 63 acres from Glasheen, and in 1905 he bought a railway reserve of 93 acres—total area of 462 acres. He was one of the directors who formed a committee of the Darling Downs Pastoral, Agricultural and Industrial Association, and was on the committee for 23 years. He was elected President for two years, then resigned in 1935. His health prevented him from following his farm work. Mr Rickert did grand work for the Clifton Colliery State School, and at the time of the Golden Jubilee of the school, his lengthy service was brought to light. In 1929 when he retired from that committee he had completed 35 years as a member. He held the office of Chairman several times. Having then reached the age of 78 years he asked to be relieved of his duties. It is recorded that during his 35 years as a member of the committee, he had not missed one meeting. At the time it was recorded “The worth of service rendered to a rural district by such as he, is hard to estimate, but it must afford much gratification to know that he has earned not only the respect of a large number of personal friends, but the appreciation of all the residents of the district, and in particular, of those for whom he has worked so hard through the channels of his association with Clifton Colliery State School.” Obituary Andreas (Andrew Snr.) Rickert 1817--1896.  Allora. Aged 79. Andrew R. 1848--1920.  Allora. Aged 71. Michael R. 1851--1939.  Clifton. Aged 89. Adam R. 1854--1935.  Murgon. Aged 80y.8m.12d Andreas Rickert's Blacksmith shop on the present Railway Hotel site. (a model constructed by Harry Caneras).