It was built for the official visit of the Governor of Queensland, Sir Anthony Musgrave, to Bundaberg in his 1888 tour of the area.

Using South Sea Islander labour, William Gordon Farquhar of the Hummock plantation constructed a lookout for the Governor and his party facing east, with a view over the cane fields of the Shire of Woongarra.

[1][2] From the deck of HMS Norfolk, Lieutenant Matthew Flinders took a bearing on a small volcanic outcrop, five kilometres to the south of Mon Repos beach.

Farquhar retained control, dying in 1909, aged 67, having seen the Hummock crush for the last time in 1893 when the plantation amalgamated with Nott Brothers' adjoining Windermere.

Although the soil was good and two crops per year could be obtained, the inundations of pests and disease, the expense and difficulties of transport, and the lack of a strong market, combined to erode farmers' profits.

By October 1882, when the Millaquin refinery went into production, crushing mills were operating at Ashgrove, Avoca, Fairymead, Glenmorris, Grange, Kepnock, Mabbro, Summerville, Windermere and Woodbine plantations.

Sugar was embraced wholeheartedly by the Woongarra farmers, particularly when they could obtain cheap indentured labour from the South Sea Islands to help clear the scrub and work the cane fields.

They were not brought directly to Bundaberg until 1879, but prior to this planters obtained Islanders via Maryborough, whose sugar industry had been established in the late 1860s.

[1] It was during Farquhar's time at the Hummock that the Governor of Queensland, Sir Anthony Musgrave, undertook a northern tour and visited a number of towns, including Bundaberg.

With Samuel Griffith, who became Queensland Premier in November 1883, Musgrave shared a deep enthusiasm for Australian Federation.

Tours encourage a sense of community within the places visited and was an opportunity to display progress made and to receive recognition for achievements.

The ceremonial and social aspects of governors' tours followed a similar pattern established in Britain during the late eighteenth century.

Following his welcome, the Governor was usually escorted into the town where he paused at the nearest official building, usually the court house, so that addresses of welcome could be made.

One of the more unusual aspects of the tour was arranged for the Vice-Regal party was at the Hummock, Farquhar had fixed up a retreat at the highest available point.

According to reports at the time, both the Governor and Lady Musgrave expressed delight at so picturesque a scene, and spoke approvingly of the general aspects of that portion of the district.

Most planters considered the use of South Sea Islanders for field work, especially clearing of stumps and rocks in preparation for planting, essential in establishing a successful sugar plantation.

In Rockhampton, "a marquee of green branches" topped with the Royal coat of arms, was erected near the quay for the reading of speeches.

The platform constructed for Sir Anthony's Vice-Regal party is rare as an example of a more permanent feature associated with a governor's tour.

[1] Sir Anthony's Rest is located on a cane field in the area known as "The Hummock", approximately five kilometres east of Bundaberg.

Sir Anthony's Rest is significant as a rare physical remnant of a governor's tour to an area, particularly as most shelters for visiting Vice-Regal parties were of a temporary nature.

Importantly, Sir Anthony's Rest, has a strong association for the present local South Sea Islander community and the experiences of their ancestors in Queensland.

[1] The place has a special association with the life or work of a particular person, group or organisation of importance in Queensland's history.