A hidden heritage site

Trebonne's heritage-listed handball court sits beside a pub just outside Ingham, north Queensland. Most tourists pass through without noticing the fronton that holds stories of Basque workers.

Who the Basques are

The Basques are a European ethnic group from an area across France and Spain who have preserved their own language and culture. Marie-V Wherry grew up in Trebonne when the town thrived with Basque migrants.

Saviours of the sugar industry

Three migrant recruitment drives known as operations Emu, Eucalyptus and Kangaroo brought at least seven hundred Basque workers to north Queensland in the nineteen fifties to manually harvest sugar cane.

The handball court built

In nineteen fifty-nine, a fronton or Basque handball court was built beside Trebonne pub to play pelota mano, a traditional game where competitors hit a ball against a wall and try to score points.

One of only two courts left

Today the Trebonne court is one of only two pelota mano courts left in Australia. Historian Bianka Vidonja Balanzategui said the game held particularly strong cultural importance to the Basque community.

“This game is of particularly strong cultural importance.”

The heart of Trebonne

The handball court became the gathering point for the entire community.Trebonne had two grocers, a service station, two bakers, a sawmill, a post office, a pub and a butcher, but everything revolved around the court.

“That was the gathering point: people coming to play pelota.”

Mechanisation ends the era

The introduction of the mechanical harvester in the nineteen seventies reduced the need for physical labourers. Most Basque workers returned home and the sound of the ball against the wall stopped.

Heritage listing and mural

The court cracked and faced demolition until Hinchinbrook Shire Council acquired the site. In two thousand one it was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register. A mural was painted in two thousand eleven.

Trebonne's decline and revival

Trebonne is now a shadow of its former self.In May the pub called final drinks, leaving only a nursing home, a state school and a mechanic.Yet Basque culture is experiencing renewed interest across Australia.

Keeping the history alive

Marie-V Wherry still lives in her childhood home and tells visitors about Basque history in north Queensland. She said it is important to share that history and remind people that Basque people were in Trebonne.

“We still are.”