A Queensland judge recuperating in Japan so appreciated the coolness and utility of the house in which he stayed, that he decided to buy one — and ship it back to Brisbane. Within the year, three carpenters and two plasterers from Japan arrived to assemble the flatpack. This was brave of them since in those …
Jim MacDonald They plodded the streets of New Farm moving the goods that we needed and consumed on a continual basis. I particularly remember them working through the World War II era. The nation was desperately short of petrol because it all came from overseas and there was a massive demand for it to keep …
WHAT a year! We have celebrated our 25 years with attendances of over 100 for most of the 10 meetings, four of them over 140! We know that this area has a long and interesting history (by Queensland standards) and these attendances are proof of the interest in learning more about our past. Our email …
In April 1933, a cocktail party was held at “Montana” in Jordan Terrace, Bowen Hills. Hosting the event was Maude ‘Lores’ Bonney and her husband Harry. Its aim was to give Mrs Bonney an opportunity of saying au revoir to her friends prior to her epic flight to England. Among the guests were Captain and …
In the early 1930s, the Gates Hygienic Laundry began operations in Teneriffe at 281 Harcourt Street and continued until the 1980s. During WWII, the laundry did an enormous amount of work for the armed forces. The feature photo shows ‘emergency drying’, with every available surface—including the roof of the family home, as well as hedges, …
At the recent State Library of Queensland’s 2019 Memory Awards ceremony, the winner of the John Oxley Library Community History Award was Caylie Jeffery. You’ll remember that Caylie was our popular inaugural speaker for 2019. This prestigious honour came in recognition of her Under the Lino project for its innovating engagement in the documenting and …
IN the November NFDHS Newsletter you may have read the article (p 6) about the three ex-felons who proved to be the first white men to see the Brisbane River (1823). After trekking about 40km along the southern side of the wide stream, the men discovered a native canoe which enabled them to cross the …
It’s an unprepossessing building on Brunswick Street. A yellow-and-red facade set north of the busy mall, with buses and cars rushing past at all hours of the day and night. There’s nothing to tell the passer-by that a group of determined women once scraped together the funds to buy the building, or that it is …
How a group of women have preserved the art of embroidery in Queensland Read More »
September 2018 marks the 120-year anniversary of the opening of McWhirter & Son, the cash drapery that went on to become one of Queensland’s biggest and best-loved department stores. In 1894, my great-great grandfather James McWhirter senior began working for T.C. Beirne in his namesake business, and would stay there for four years – three …
WHAT a transformation between 2008 and 2016 in the area between Evelyn Street and Skyring Terrace, Newstead. In the photo below, the Gasometer is hidden behind the trees at the base of the crane on the right hand side. Before any of this recent development which was officially announced in 2007, the land was used …