In this week’s episode of Back Roads, host Heather Ewart travels to Home Hill, a quaint town situated in the sugarcane-rich region of northern Queensland.
The episode, part of the show’s tenth season, delves into the captivating and sometimes poignant tales of the families who initially settled in this area to work in the sugarcane fields.
Heather Ewart uncovers the town’s development around one of Australia’s most significant sugarcane mills, highlighting the enduring influence of Italian immigrants who arrived in the early 20th century to work in the cane fields.
One of the episode’s highlights is Ewart‘s interaction with the Musumeci family. This family, whose roots trace back to the Italian cane cutters, continues to celebrate their heritage through strong familial connections and the culinary delights of Italian cuisine.
The episode also features the ‘Sweet Days and Hot Nights Festival,’ a local celebration marking the beginning of the sugarcane season. The festival starts with the traditional burning of the season’s first sugarcane crop and includes a competitive hand cane-cutting contest.
Ewart joins the descendants of the original immigrants, showcasing their inherited prowess in cane cutting.
However, the narrative also touches on the darker aspect of the region’s history. In Ayr, a neighbouring town, Ewart meets Les Henaway, whose grandfather was a victim of ‘Black Birding’ – a practice where South Sea Islanders were deceitfully or forcefully brought to work in the cane fields.
Through Henaway‘s story, the episode sheds light on the struggles faced by families affected by this legacy.
The story isn’t solely focused on sugarcane. Ewart also meets Jim Gaston, a local elder involved in the Gudjuda Reference Group’s Sea Ranger program. This segment takes viewers off the coast of Bowen, approximately 100km from Home Hill, to witness the remarkable process of capturing and tagging sea turtles, an initiative to monitor their populations.
