“Once
a jolly swagman . . .” the words ring out around us, but no one
looks like standing to attention. Maybe it’s not Australia’s
national anthem. “. . . camped by a billabong . . .” the words
continue around us.
The
story comes to life at Winton’s Waltzing Matilda Centre, the only
museum dedicated to a song. Just inside the foyer the scene is played
out with the swagman, the squatter and the troopers on horseback
around a billabong or waterhole.
Waltzing
Matilda, written by Banjo Paterson, was first sung at Winton in 1895,
and is the most appropriate place to hear the words of Australia’s
best-known song.
Mist
drifts across the billabong at the Waltzing Matilda Centre as the
words continue . . . “under the shade of a coolibah tree.”
The
song’s creator Banjo Paterson was probably lucky not to have had a
similar fate to the swagman. A lawyer by trade, he came to Winton to
spend some time with his fiancé, Sarah Riley, and her family.
Christina
Macpherson, a friend of Sarah and an accomplished musician, spent
time with Paterson, culminating in “Waltzing Matilda.” What else
may have happened as they composed the song in private, ended his
relationship with Sarah and her friendship with Christina. Some
versions of the story tell of Paterson being escorted off the
property at gunpoint by Sarah’s brother.
Waltzing
Matilda was first sung just across the road at the North Gregory
Hotel, but Paterson may have left town before the song’s first
public rendition.
No
trip to the outback is complete without a beer and the Gregory seemed
a good place to stick with tradition. Rather than lamb chops or jolly
jumbuck as the menu put it, we opt for a steak with the beer.
More info at Queensland Tourism
More info at Queensland Tourism
