Richard Burke Oral History

DETAILS

OverviewRichard Burke is the grandson of T.M. Burke and son of Marcus Burke, a family dynasty that started in Australia with the emigration of Billy Burke from Ireland in 1846. The Burke family have had a multi-generational connection and love-affair with Noosa, both living and making a living in the area. T.M. Burke was an early land developer and through building the bridges over Lake Doonella and Weyba Creek in 1929, played a significant role in opening up the eastern beaches for development. His land development work was continued by his sons Marcus and Noel until the T.M. Burke company was sold to LJ Hooker in the early 1960s. Richard is a self-proclaimed ‘tree hugger’ with strong ‘green’ beliefs; an ethos that could be seen as the antithesis of his grandfather’s development activities. As Noosa became increasingly environmentally aware, negativity towards T.M. Burke’s practices emerged, despite the fact that from the early 1960s, this work was actually being undertaken by LJ Hooker under the T.M. Burke company name. This was a challenge Richard had to navigate as a Burke living and working in the greener, less-development friendly Noosa of the 1970s and 1980s.

In this interview Richard discusses:

• The Burke family’s origins in Australia, starting with the emigration of T.M. Burke’s father
from Ireland to the goldfields of Victoria in 1846
• T.M. Burke’s ability to see future potential and to play the ‘long game’
• Richard’s first visit to Noosa and what it was like in 1956
• Noosa in the 70s, 80s and 90s
• The negative perception of T.M. Burke in the area and the challenge of that to him
personally
• Landscaping projects he worked on including Little Cove, Netanya Noosa, Ocean Breeze
• Designing the Gympie Terrace foreshore path and amenities
• Building the Weyba Creek pedestrian bridge
• Characters like Hey Bill and Mumbles Walker
• The wide range of wildlife on their property at Tinbeerwah
• Building houses
• Early development in Sunshine Beach
• Noosa Design Award and his home winning second prize
• Changes in Noosa particularly population growth and increase in businesses

Oral History Transcript

Audio

Video

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LocalitySunshine BeachNoosavillePlaceWeyba BridgeMt TinbeerwahDoonella BridgePersonBill WatsonRichard BurkeFamilyDowd FamilyEventNoosa Design AwardsBusinessT.M.Burke Pty LtdMotels & Guest HouseNetanya Noosa Beachfront ResortOcean Breeze MotelMenuLocation | NoosavilleDecade | 2020-2029