A NEW display honouring a seaside pioneer will be unveiled at the Beachport National Trust Museum in the coming months.
It is apt the Railway Terrace facility will describe the life of Danish immigrant Franz Max Heinrich Bevilaqua as he commissioned its construction over 140 years ago.
The two-storied stone structure stored wool and grain and Mr Bevilaqua was a shipping agent for the Adelaide Steamship Company and the Mount Gambier Steamship Company.
After only a few years, Mr Bevilaqua sold the building and moved on to other business pursuits.
Official records describe a varied working life after he arrived in South Australia in 1855, with roles including a hatmaker, storekeeper, merchant and farmer.
In a nod to the colonial era, his name has appeared on a sign outside the museum since it was established in 1971.
Bevilaqua’s Ford in modern-day Canunda National Park also perpetuates his name in this area.
In modern terminology, Beachport National Trust secretary Elaine Donaldson said Mr Bevilaqua was a “mover and shaker”.
Ms Donaldson said fellow National Trust member Rhonda Burleigh was the coordinator for the upcoming display and a date for its opening had yet to be fixed.
She said Ms Burleigh was chiefly responsible for the last major display a few years ago which tells the story of Beachport’s rich railway heritage between 1879 and 1956.
“Photos and diaries relating to Mr Bevilaqua were donated by the family back in the 1970s when we were setting up the museum,” Ms Donaldson said.
“He is buried at Lyndoch.
“We get people here inquiring about him.
“One of the rooms in the museum will be used for the display.”
She is among a rostered group of 20 volunteers who keep the doors of the museum open almost year-round.
It can be viewed each day from 10am to 4pm with the exception of Good Friday, Boxing Day and Christmas Day.
