10/12/2025
Cooroy Rag’s colourful history spans generations
For more than half a century, the Cooroy Rag has woven itself into the everyday life of the town, surviving name changes, structural changes, relocations, multiple owners, technological change and even a return from closure. Through it all, the Cooroy Rag has continued to chronicle the heart of hinterland.
The Cooroy Noosa Genealogical & Historical Research Group Inc holds the oldest physical issue currently known, dated 18 December 1968. Vice-president and historian Julie Kinloch said the papers, though fragile, are carefully preserved and remain an important part of the town’s story. However, long-term resident Ron Bichel, now 94, remembers a Cooroy newspaper in broadsheet format circulating as early as the late 1940s, suggesting the publication’s roots run even deeper.
By the late 1960s, the town’s paper had become a small, typed newsletter roneoed (Roneo was a trademarked stencil-based mimeograph or duplicating machine) for local readers. Julie’s research identified one of the earliest known owners as Edna Smith, who bought the publication in 1969 when the Connolly family could no longer continue printing it. Edna produced an eight-page typed paper that kept locals informed and provided vital advertising space for small businesses. She later sold the publication to Donna Lomas who, after an accident, was unable to continue. Ownership then passed to a group of local women including Florence Duke, Dorrie Connolly, Jenny Duke and Edna herself.
By the early 1980s, the Cooroy Rag had evolved into an A4 stapled community newspaper. It was during this period that typist Lyn Ryan joined the team. “In those days you had to type fast and be accurate,” Lyn said. She brought legal-office experience, shorthand skills and more than 120 words-per-minute typing speed. Most stories arrived by phone, often hastily dictated, and Lyn hammered them out on a manual typewriter, forming long, narrow columns. Deadlines were tight and changes came constantly right up until printing.
The Cooroy Rag’s office moved frequently in those years, from the Masonic Hall to beneath Lyn’s home, then to a temporary shop near a solicitor’s office, and finally to the draughty, leaky butter factory. “We had big sheets of plastic to stop the rain blowing in,” she said. Despite the makeshift conditions, Lyn loved the job. Mondays were dedicated to typing; Tuesdays began at 3:30 am to meet the 11am print deadline. “It was a lot of work, but we had fun. We really enjoyed it.”
The mid-1980s marked a new chapter when respected local journalist and community advocate Margaret Chinn took ownership. A tireless worker, Margaret renamed the paper the Cooroy Rag in the early 1990s. She sourced stories, laid out the paper by hand, drove to Gympie to have it printed and then delivered bundles across the district. Her daughter Marianne remembered, “Mum was a force of nature. She would work so hard and never rest enough.” Margaret balanced the newspaper with family life, volunteer commitments, strawberry growing and cancer treatment. She continued working through illness until her passing in 2000. Her extensive collection of photographs from 1984 to 1996 now resides with the Cooroy-Noosa Genealogical & Historical Research Group.
The next chapter of the newspaper saw Judy Painter, Janette Webb, Deb Boyle and a team of passionate locals revive the Cooroy Rag as a not-for-profit incorporated association, ensuring profits were returned to the community through grants (similar to regional publications such as Eumundi Voice, Echo News and Brunswick Voice). In 2020, Covid-19 forced the Cooroy Rag to close temporarily, and all staff reportedly lost their jobs. After reopening, the paper faced challenges familiar to many regional publications: rising costs, shifts to digital media, and dwindling volunteer numbers. While numerous community papers across Australia folded, the Cooroy Rag has persisted, often held together by a skeleton team. Current manager Sarah Rollins has, in recent years, worked across multiple roles to keep the paper in print. She is committed to providing local hinterland communities with quality local news while supporting businesses of all sizes to connect with their community. Over time, the Cooroy Rag has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars back into the community it proudly serves.
Today, the Cooroy Rag remains a proud record of the people, places and moments that shape the town, carrying forward a legacy built by generations who believed deeply in the value of local news.
To mark the Cooroy Memorial Hall’s 100th year, coming editions will feature historic snippets from the Cooroy Rag’s remarkable past. Recording the history of the paper is important to the Cooroy Rag, so please contribute your knowledge, photographs and stories to the paper: [email protected].
