ISBN 978-1-923645-53-0
PAPERBACK
Tides of Memory
A Living History of Yorkeys Knob
Tides of Memory begins with a simple truth: a place is never only land and coordinates. It is woven from memory, shaped by relationships and carried in the stories people tell. Yorkeys Knob is not just a headland on a map, but a living shoreline of experiences — marked by beauty, resilience and the quiet continuities that tie generations together.
The stories held here rise from interviews, community gatherings, family albums and treasured keepsakes. They are created in companionship — with residents who opened their homes, their archives, and their hearts. Through this shared making, a deeper trust forms and a legacy grows — one that stretches beyond the final printed page.
Across four chapters spanning the late twentieth century to the present, voices of the community speak to changing seas, shifting climates and the evolving rhythms of daily life. Their testimonies trace how Yorkeys Knob bends and transforms, yet holds close the values that anchor it.
This book is also an invitation — to listen, to wander, to explore further. The Tides of Memory Interactive Map continues the journey: follow the QR code to walk through stories mapped onto place. And as you travel through these histories, we welcome your reflections on how we remember, write and share the living fabric of a community.
About the Author
Dr Daniela Vávrová
I’m a visual anthropologist, independent researcher, and former Curator at the Cairns Museum, with roots in Bratislava, once part of Czechoslovakia. My work has always been driven by curiosity – about people, cultures and the ways we understand the world through images, words, and sensory experience. Since 2005, I’ve spent long stretches of time in the East Sepik Province of Papua New Guinea, where my PhD project and film, Skin Has Eyes and Ears, grew from close relationships and everyday observations. These days, my skills in storytelling, ethnography and visual communication have taken on new forms through cybersecurity work and private investigations. Life in remote Yorkeys Knob keeps me grounded and inventive as I juggle research, parenting my 11-year-old son, helping at Yorkeys’ Gem Rent-a-Car, and creating photographic calendars featuring the place I call home.
You can find more of my work at danielavavrova.net.