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.
Modern history
Settlement and the development of the resort
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 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, a former 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 possibly 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 former 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. A small railway was introduced to run stores and supplies from the "Deep Water Jetty" to the resort. This was a rail system based on the sugar cane trains operated in the nearby "Sugar Town" of Mackay. Due to the huge tidal differences the jetty at the resort could only be utilised at certain times due to the depth of the water, whereas the "Deep Water Jetty" could be used around the clock. The island featured regularly on Bob Dyer's television show "Pick a Box". It hosted many television, media and other personalities with many spending their honeymoons at the resort. Some notables included John Farnham, John Laws, and Daryl Somers, as well as the English pop group "The Police". An engineering feat during its day saw an airstrip built on the island in 1965 which operated TAA aircraft including De Havilland Twin Otters. It was, however, a relatively short airstrip and several aircraft had accidents there including one of TAA's Twin Otters. No one was killed in any of the accidents there. A saltwater swimming pool was completed in 1972. The island was operated in a less-than-formal manner and many tourists came back year after year to enjoy that informality. There were several cyclones over this period and the island suffered considerable damage. It was also used as a stop-off point for numerous Royal Australian Navy vessels including the "Attack" class patrol boats and Landing Craft. In the 1970s Fitzroy McLean's sons, Ian, Mark, Fitzroy Junior, and Peter all worked on the island. In the late '80s the island's owners started demolishing villa style accommodation and constructed a new upmarket block referred to as the "Blue Lagoon" block. The Island also featured well in the Cruising Yacht Clubs with 2 notable events every year - "The Bowen to Brampton" and the "Mackay to Brampton" events. In 1985, Trans Australia Airlines purchased Brampton Island, upgraded the resort and subsequently sold it to P&O Resorts in late 1997. Three million dollars was spent on a major refurbishment of the resort before it was purchased by Voyages.
Celia Douty murder
On 1 September 1983, British resort worker Celia Douty was murdered in Dinghy Bay on Brampton Island. The crime remained unsolved until 2001, when it became the first murder in Australia to be solved using DNA profiling.
Light plane crash
On 3 April 2008, a single-engine Piper Cherokee crashed into the ocean just after taking off from Brampton Island. The pilot and four passengers survived and were rescued by helicopter.
Land use
National park
Most of the island is part of Brampton Islands National Park, which is home to a range of wildlife and plants. There are also 17.8 km of walking tracks and a campsite, which requires a permit to use.
Resort
The Brampton Island Resort accommodates up to 220 guests in 106 rooms and is popular with couples. The resort offers a number of free and paid-for activities, including fishing trips, snorkelling and scenic flights. The resort was operated by Voyages until 2010 when it was sold to Brampton Enterprises. In November 2010 Brampton Enterprises announced a major redevelopment of the resort which would involve closing the resort from 24 January 2011, until an expected reopening in December 2011.
