Fred was born in 1901 in Lowood on the 11th January, the fourth son of August and Augusta Feldhahn. Fred was enrolled at the Tarampa State School in 1907, he attended the Tarampa State School while they lived at Tarampa, but also as a child he accompanied his father on inspection visits to his father's property at Buaraba.
At the age of 12, Fred left school and went to live at Buaraba in the barn. He joined the Light Horse Regiment, spending time at Redbank, Enoggera and a short spell in Sydney.
Later a soldier settlement house was moved on to the Buaraba property.Fred was 33 years old when he married Alice Prince, the daughter of Henry Prince and Hanora Herschel Prince. Alice lived outside of Gatton at Tent Hill Lower and the courtship took place via horse and sulky. Leading up to the wedding, Fred had trouble getting to the ceremony fording flooded creeks on the way from the recent rains, it took him a week to get to Gatton for the ceremony going via Lowood.
Fred and Alice started their married life on the property at Buaraba. Both beef and dairy cattle were raised, the dairy cows being milked by hand until the power came in the late 50's and machines were installed.
Fred carried cream to Esk using a horse and cart and later by truck, which, during the war years had to be fitted with a gas producer. During flood time he had to swim the creeks carrying two cans of cream at a time. Sweet potatoes, corn and lucerne were the crops grown.
He also carted pigs and calves to Lowood sales for farmers in the district. For meat supplies the family killed their own, and also carried on the old Feldhahn German tradition of making wurst. The regular family outing was a weekly trip to the movies at the old Lyceum Hall in Esk.
To celebrate the end of the war, Fred put gelignite into an axle housing and created the "big bang", so much so that the pet kangaroo wasn't seen for a week! This same kangaroo was filmed for "The Sons of Matthew".
In 1966 Fred retired to live at Caloundra when Ray married and took over the family farm. The home at Caloundra then became the holiday home for the children and grandchildren. Meantime Fred and Alice became active members of the Senior Citizens, playing cards and indoor bowls. Alice continued on with different kinds of craft and teaching crafts at Moorchydore.
They returned to Gatton to live out the rest of their retirement. Alice was asked to judge fancywork and different crafts in the local shows.
Alice died in 1988, Fred carried on living by himself with the assistance of Ivan and his wife, Jean, but after a number of mishaps he moved to Brassell Village in 1993 where he lived his remaining years, to the year 1996.
Ivan Frederick Feldhahn was born the eldest child of three children of Fred and Alice Feldhahn of Buaraba on the 13th January, 1935 in the Gatton Hospital.
As a young boy, he along with his younger brother Ray first attended primary school at Esk, staying with friends during the week and returning home to Buaraba on weekends.
He furthered his schooling at Atkinson's Lagoon when his sister Shirley started school, while Buaraba school closed for a short period. One year later, the Buaraba school was reopened and Ivan's primary school years were completed there. In his final year of primary school, he traveled by train, one day a week, to the Lowood Rural School where he learnt skills in woodwork and metalwork.On the 23rd June, 1952, at the age of 17, Ivan started an apprenticeship with Stubberfield and Brooker of Gatton as a carpenter. He stayed with his Auntie, Beattie Clarke in Gatton, until he married on the 21st April, 1956 to Jean Mavis Kleidon.
He built their first home in Cochrane Street, Gatton where they lived for 15 years and then he built a new home at 20 Highview Ave, Gatton.
Since completion of his apprenticeship Ivan worked as a partner with Don Beckman and later on Ivan began a new homes and renovation business in partnership with wife Jean, (I & J Feldhahn Homes) where he established a well respected name in the building industry for quality work, he also was well respected for his placidness towards others while in difficult situations.
In later years Ivan's interest in the cattle property at Buaraba plus interest still in farming as a boy, led him to establish a mango and macadamia nut plantation there.
With a keen interest in traveling he and Jean traveled to many different places in Australia and over to some of the Australian Islands over the past years.
In recent years he built their retirement home at Bribie Island. His sporting interests included tennis and golf in his younger years, and always enjoyed fishing.
His compassion, generosity and kindness for people in need were coupled with his good sense of humor.
Ivan never got a chance to retire and permanently live at Bribie, as he passed away at the Wesley Hospital in Brisbane, on the 23rd August, 2002 from a brain tumor, and was buried on the 26th August, in the Gatton Cemetery.
Michael Friedrich Feldhahn third child of Michael and Dorothea born on the 31st January, 1839 Trampe, Prussia, Germany. He was only 10 years of age when his father died in Hohen Gustow, Prussia.
Michael married on the 16th August, 1863 Litzlow, Prussia to Luise Wilhelmine Brege born 4th May, 1838 at Battin, Prussia, daughter of Christoph Brege and Luise Meissner of Lutzlow, Brandenberg, Prussia.
They spent their first years of married life in their native country, but having ambitions and with little chance of realising them in troubled Germany, they decided to immigrate to the new "promised land", Australia.Michael and Luise and Michael's sister Friedericke and her husband Gottfried Sprenger along with Friedericke and Gottfried's first child Gustine, aged 1 year and 5 months, decided to set sail on the 23rd October 1864 from Hamburg, Germany aboard the ship, the "Beausite" and arriving in Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia on the 7th February, 1865.
They were part of three hundred and two passengers of which half were single men. Very few single girls were listed. The medical supervisor was Doctor Lang.On the 5th June, 1866 Michael's mother died back home in Hohen Gustow, Germany leaving behind 1 major child (over 21 years), Caroline and 1 minor child, Ernestine and 2 children in Australia, Michael and Friedericke. Michael was only 26 at the time.
The Feldhahns can claim to be part of one of the early waves of German migrants to settle in Australia. Michael selected 40 acres of virgin land in 1869 as Leasehold at Vernor, commonly known as the "scrub"), on the outskirts of Lowood, after 5 years made Freehold. Like most of the German immigrants, they were poor of worldly possessions and worked very hard to establish themselves on their land.
Being a Godfearing man, Michael took strength from his religion and often took services in the Baptist faith, including officiating at the opening of the new German Baptist Church in Lowood on the 8th July, 1900.
While residing at Vernor the three eldest children attended the Harrisborough Vested Primary School, (now known as Fernvale State School), which opened in 1874.
The school building had originally been a cotton store. Due to the Civil War in America, cotton growing was a thriving profit crop for some years. Schooling for our early settler children was spasmodic as the children were often kept home when help was needed on the farm.The family later moved to Lowood where they bought land and a grocery store. Luise known as "Minna" died in 1901 and is buried in the Vernor Cemetery.
Michael later remarried, his second wife was a widow Mrs. Peiper formally Ernestine Schultz, born 1852, died 10th August, 1916. Interred in the Vernor Baptist Cemetery.
Michael died of Gout in Ipswich Hospital on the 13th January, 1918 and was interred in the Lowood Cemetery on the 14th January, 1918.
The German ship Beausite left Hamburg on the 23rd October, 1864, and cleared the coast of Germany on the 25th of the same month. She was only four days getting down the English Channel, and on the 29th October she had fairly entered the Atlantic Ocean. She made a rather long passage to the Equator, in consequence of meeting with contrary winds off the Canary Islands. The Line was crossed on the 28th November at 8 p.m., and on the 26th December she passed the meridian of the Cape of Good Hope. Throughout the passage thus far she had very fine weather. Indeed the whole of the run from Hamburg to Moreton Bay has been remarkable for the prevalence of light winds; and during the time she was running her easting she was frequently delayed by calms. In the region of Tasmania she met with head winds, which prevented her passing through Bass Straits, and she rounded the island on the 26th January, 1865. Thence she was 13 days in making Cape Moreton, which was rounded at 7.20 a.m. on the 6th February. She anchored in Brisbane Roads the same afternoon; having made a run of 104 days from coast to coast. Several vessels were sighted, but all at too great a distance to be made out.
The Beausite brings an addition of nearly 300 souls to our population, of whom about one half are single men. The proportion of single women is very small. On the passage out the immigrants, who were under the superintendence of Dr. Lang, enjoyed good health. The only deaths were those of eight children, who died of disorders incident to infancy on a sea voyage. The passengers are unanimous in expressing their satisfaction at the treatment they have received at the hands of Captain Bruhn and Dr. Lang, and to former gentleman a numerously signed address has been presented.
Dr. Purdie, the health officer, visited the Beausite on the 8th instant, in the Diamond, s., and mustered and passed the immigrants. The single females and the families were brought up to town on that day by the Diamond. It was intended to convey the single men from the vessel to the depot in the ketch Perseverance, in tow of the steamer, but owing to the violence of the wind this could not be done, and they were left on board the ship. The Diamond made another trip to the Bay yesterday, and returned in the evening with them and all the passengers' luggage.