Keith Fowler

Inducted into the Shell Rimula Wall of Fame in 2021.

Keith John Fowler, nicknamed “Meggsy”, was born in Shepparton, Victoria, in September, 1932.  As a youngster, he worked on the family orchard, helping his father cart their fruit with their International truck and trailer to the local SPC cannery.  Keith left Shepparton in 1953 and headed to Queensland.

Arriving in the Mackay area, he commenced work at North Eton Mill as a greaser for a short time.  It was at this time he met and married Dorothy Hutchinson whose parents owned the Eton Store.  They moved into the house next door to the shop and welcomed their only child, Robert, in 1957.

Around this time Keith bought his first truck, a Ford V8 petrol, working at Mirani Council during the day and carting molasses for local cane farmers at night.  Keith had Leyland trucks for a short time, then Bedfords, followed by an AEC truck to cart cane to Farleigh Mill.  By the 1960`s he had AB Internationals, a Commer, two Bedfords, an AEC and tippers. He had a fleet of Volvos, ACCOs and a Mercedes by the seventies, carting both locally and interstate.

One of the Volvos, an F88, was the first to be brought into Australia in 1968.  It was restored and is now on permanent display at the National Road Transport Hall of Fame.  One of Keith’s proudest moments was attending the Brisbane Truck Show in 2003 and seeing his old truck restored to its former glory.

When his son, Rob, joined the business in the eighties, they moved into earthmoving operations, securing crushing and screening plants to crush ballast for the North Eton Mill and gravel for Mackay City Council.  By the nineties, Keith had reduced his fleet to six Volvos and one Kenworth.  Before retiring in the early 2000’s due to ill health, Keith was still driving a Volvo F12 carting cane harvesters.

Keith passed away suddenly in January, 2014.