Stanthorpe’s 150th logo chosen

Councillor Stephen Tancred presenting winning logo artist Jennie Wardle with a gift voucher. Picture: SAMANTHA WANTLING

By Dominique Tassell

Southern Downs Regional Council has officially passed the artwork for Stanthorpe’s 150th and decided on a date for the celebration.

Jennie Wardle’s design was chosen as the winning logo.

Councillor Stephen Tancred said the design perfectly captured “the essence of Stanthorpe’s heart and soul”.

“It looks like something that will reflect Stanthorpe, that’s got lots of little messages in there. You can look at it for ages and tell stories. We think it’s a good one,” Councillor Tancred said.

“It is fantastic to honour a local and well-rounded artist with this award and Jennie’s very impressive and interpretative artwork will feature on all of the celebration’s marketing material.”

Jennie said she wanted her design “to be a celebration of Stanthorpe and what it means to me”.

The first thing she thought of was the Stanthorpe Post Office, saying it was “such an icon” and she “knew (she) wanted the architecture and even the colours of the building to be the outstanding features of my creation”.

“I tried to incorporate all of the elements I could think of that make Stanthorpe the town that it is – from historical tin mining to modern day festivals.

“And, of course the cold weather!

“I feel truly honoured to have my design chosen to represent Stanthorpe in this way. Over the past couple of years I have become known to the community as a singer/songwriter. Music is my main focus at present, but drawing and illustration is a big part of what I love to do too. It’s so exciting to have my artwork recognised in the local community.”

Jennie says she just loves creating, whether it’s music or illustrations. You can see more of her work, and buy her illustrations online, via her business Jen Digital Art.

When deciding on the official date for the 150th anniversary of Stanthorpe, SDRC had local historian Jim Barnes do some research to find some possible dates.

The date decided upon was 16 May, when the Queensland government signed a notice for the resumption of land from a grazier for the town of Stanthorpe.

Councillor Tancred stated that this date was “the most appropriate because that was when the first positive actual action was done”.

There was already use in the press of the word ‘Stanthorpe’, while the private town located in the area was known as Stannum.

The exact date the anniversary is celebrated on has changed drastically over the course of history, with the town celebrating the 50th anniversary of Stanthorpe on the date that the bridge was opened.

For the 50th anniversary of Stanthorpe, the town focused on the Apple and Grape Festival.

“But this council being a bit more exact, has done some research, and for the 150th we’re going to give it that date and hope that the people that celebrate the 200th will concur with us,” Councillor Tancred said.

It was noted that the Italian consult had expressed interest in being involved, and would like to give input on how Italian migrants have contributed to the area.

Stanthorpe 150 will run year-long, with Warwick Today and Stanthorpe Today planning their own contribution to the celebration.