CHILDERS
Childers are another of those mid-size
towns that displays an enormous amount of civic pride. Childers
proudly display its rich and long term history. Many buildings
carry heritage status and the monument to the Kanaks also demonstrates
an acknowledgment to the ‘slave’ period .
The ‘old’ buildings are preserved,
three museums  
in the main street and the Childers War Memorial is a tribute to the
fallen that has few peers. 
The sugar cane industry features prominently in
Childers and has sustained the town over the years. Fruit and
vegetable cropping is common on the lands around town. Tourism is a
growing industry in Childers, with a number of the preserved historic
buildings in town becoming tourist attractions.
In June 2000, Childers, as a community
confronted a horrific event that through fire, an old timber building
and the stuff that will forever remain inexplicable, a very tragic
event where 13 Backpackers died. The 10th anniversary of
the ‘Childers Tragedy’ is being acknowledged in just over a week.
(Written on the 9th June 2010). The
hostel reopened in 2004, and includes a memorial, that is sensitively
executed and displayed, to those young people that were lost in the
blaze.
It now acts as an art gallery exhibiting works from local artists.
The Hotels are both vintage and classic.  
The Churches in Childers are represented with mid
century transition buildings.    
The community pride is such that when traveling to
(not through) Childers, be sure to ensure this is a stopover
destination.
This place has a lot going for it.
Heritage diary
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