Brampton Island
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Brampton Island Queensland |
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 Brampton Island
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| Coordinates | 20°48′09″S 149°16′35″E / 20.80250°S 149.27639°ECoordinates: 20°48′09″S 149°16′35″E / 20.80250°S 149.27639°E |
| Area | 4.6 km2 (1.8 sq mi) |
Brampton Island is an island in the Cumberland Group, off shore from Mackay in Queensland, Australia. The island lies within the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, and the majority of the island forms the Brampton Islands National Park, however there is a resort located on the island. The highest point of the island is Brampton Peak, 214 m above sea level.
The traditional Aboriginal owners of Brampton Island are the Ngaro people, although no permanent population was present when Captain James Cook passed through the area in June 1770. The island was eventually given its European name in 1879, when Staff Commander Bedwell of the Royal Navy recognised the group of islands and named each after towns in the county of Cumberland.
In 1916, Joseph Busuttin and his family became the island's first European settlers. The island's resort was first established in December 1933 when two of the Busuttin's sons welcomed passengers from the P&O ship SS Canberra. Busuttin's sons then sold the resort and left in 1959.
There were several owners briefly over the next two years, Carapark and Hotels of Australia. In 1961, the island was purchased for 80,000 pounds by the McLean family which had been operating Roylen Cruises from Mackay which was started by Tom McLean MBE an ex-World War II Army Engineer. Tom had been with the Dock's company in PNG and spent considerable time on and about the Fairmile "B"s. In due course there was a fleet of fairmiles operating from what was possible Australia's worst positioned port of Mackay.
Tom McLean's son Fitzroy, who previously had been the Master of an ex-World War II fairmile, Roylen Star, became the manager of the island. He was the ultimate host and proved to be a considerable drawcard over many years. Another ex Roylen skipper, Ray Smith, became the Assistant Manager. The resort developed quickly with the aid of the Roylen Cruise fleet, operating a system called Cruise n Stay, by utilising both vessels and the accommodation at the Island. These cruises toured the reef and Whitsunday's, often returning to Brampton to drop off people wishing to stay there. Brampton was perhaps the most idyllic of all the islands as it was protected by Carlisle Island and the resort was positioned facing the north so the prevailing and often blustery Southerly winds had no effect on the island or its pristine beaches. With the addition of Brampton, came an influx of tourists and tourist dollars.
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