Strolling the

Flood Plains
of Hill End

Recreation
Inundation
Redevelopment

No.

A STREET WALKERS GUIDE

TO WEST END NO. 4

INTRODUCTION
As the Brisbane River snakes its way
towards Moreton Bay it creates a series
of peninsulas Kangaroo Point, the
CBD, New Farm and upstream of these,
Kurilpa Peninsula. Kurilpa is the Aboriginal
word meaning place of the water rat. In
the local Aboriginal language, the suffix
pa or ba means place of or belonging
to. Thus Pinkenba place of tortoises;
Woolloongabba place of swirling waters.
Alongside the platypus, the water rat, with
its webbed hind feet and white-tipped
tail, is one of Australias two amphibious
marsupials. It is rarely sighted but still
found along the banks of the Brisbane
River.
1895 map showing land holdings

a tangled mass of trees,

vines, flowering creepers....
towering scrub palms...
beautiful and rare orchids
and the wild passion flower
1823

WELCOME
Welcome to No. 4 in the
West End Making History
Groups series of self guided
walks. This walk begins at
the West End Ferry Terminal
and ends at Davies Park, a
distance of approximately
2km (4km return).
Allow two hours. Take
water, sunscreen and a hat.

Strolling the

Flood Plain
s
of Hill End

Recreation
Inundation
Redevelopm
ent

Stroll

ing th

Flood e
of Hill Plains
End

Recre
Inund ation
Rede ation
velop
ment

No.

A STREET
TO WEST WALKERS GUIDE
END NO.
4

No.

A ST
TO WREET WAL
EST EN KERS
GUID
D NO
E
.4

Refer to the map in the

centre pages for detailed
directions.
Cover photo: 1890 flood, Kurilpa Point. SLQ Image 108982

This area is bordered by water on three

sides - almost an island. Like any island, its
identity has been shaped by its physical
separation, its isolation and its sense of
difference. At its narrowest point, the
peninsula is less than two kilometres
across. Bounded by the St Lucia, Milton
and South Bank reaches of the river,
approximately five kilometres of the
riverfront is parkland.
It has not always been so.
Europeans arrived in 1823. One of the
most enchanting spots was an immense
jungle in the western portion of South
Brisbane...a tangled mass of trees, vines,
flowering creepers....towering scrub
palms...beautiful and rare orchids and the
wild passion flower.(1) A convict of the
times reported Kingfishers, some scarlet
breasted, others white, all with backs of
azure blue darted hither and thither.(2)
Before European settlement this area was a
source of food for the original inhabitants.
Later it became a prized area for farmers.
Thousands of years of regular flooding had
created a rich alluvial flood plain.
This is the story of the changing face of
the peninsula with particular focus on
the riverfront from Orleigh Park to Davies
Park. Another publication, A Street Walkers
Guide to West End No. 3. Walking with the
Water Rats takes in the industrial history of
the area between Davies Park and Kurilpa
Point.

The walk
begins
here.
Orleigh Park 1893 flood. SLQ Image 61441

1 Orleigh Park
The Brisbane River catchment
and its tributaries extend north
towards Kilcoy including the
Stanley River, west along Lockyer
Creek towards the Toowoomba
Ranges, and south-west beyond
Ipswich along the Bremer River.
If you were standing at this point
on the riverbank in 1841, 1890,
1893, 1974 or 2011 you would
have been in more than a metre
of water. Look back up Hoogley
Street and you will see a small
shop. In both 1974 and 2011
the flood extended well up its
walls. The owner purchased the
property only weeks before the
1974 inundation and watched
again in 2011 as his shop
became an island.
As you look west along Orleigh
Park you can imagine why this
area was sought-after land for
riverfront housing. The early
land holdings consisted of large
blocks which extended from the
river back to present day Gray
Road.
The 1893 flood was disastrous.
It peaked three times in the one

month (February). It swept away

an estimated thirty houses on
the Hill End and Orleigh Estates.
All but one of the impressive
houses on Orleigh Parade were
destroyed. The land then lay
vacant for over twenty years.
In 1914 the Hill End Progress
Association petitioned the
council to establish a park.
Officially opened in August
1917, the name is believed
Hoogley Street. Photo Cara Gartland
to come from the name of
the house, belonging to John
Williams which was swept away
in the flood (Orr/O descendant
of; Lee living near a meadow
or arable land).
The first tenement in
South Brisbane, a building
of brushwood posts and
weatherboards, had been built
here by John Williams in the
1840s. The area was originally
referred to as Coombes Swamp.
It later became known as Hill
End. Williams also established
the first business in the colony
in South Brisbane defying the
convict era ban on private
enterprise.

Image Healthy Waterways Limited

The Planting of Orleigh Park

The large trees in the park were planted by the council and
residents as part of a beautification scheme commencing around
1918. Originally planned as an avenue of majestic weeping fig
trees (Ficus benjamina), the park now also includes eucalypts,
tulip trees, hoop pine, ponga oil trees and figs of various varieties Moreton Bay, Hills weeping fig and white figs. Even a Chinese elm,
regarded as a weed, has found its way into the mix.
Weeping Fig

Moreton Bay Fig

Ferry terminal c 1926. BCC-B54-225

West End Ferry Terminal 2012

2 West End Ferry

There has been a ferry crossing here since 1920
but two other local services predate it. Row
boat cross-river services had begun at Toowong
in 1876 and Milton in 1900. This West End - St
Lucia service has always been motorised.
In 1925 the council declared ferry services free
but in 1928 that decision was reversed. The
fares were: adults 1d (1 penny); bikes (including
the rider) 2d; sheep 1d, cows 2d, horses 3d. In
1926 the New Farm to West End tram line was
extended to terminate here.
The new ferry terminal, built after the 2011
flood, is designed to resist the inevitable next
flood.

Fares 1928
Adults 1 penny
Bikes
2 penny
Sheep 1 penny
Cows
2 penny
Horses 3 penny

The first City

Cat ferry,
launched in
1996, is named
after West
End. What is it
called?
A Kurilpa

Continue along the path until it veers

towards the rivers edge.

3 Montague Road St Lucia Produce Ferry

Imagine that Montague Road (behind you)
extends through the park and across the
river. On the opposite side is a street which
disappears into the river. This is Austral Street
which was the St Lucia end of a mechanical,
winch-driven ferry used to transport
livestock and produce from the farms of St
Lucia and Fig Tree Pocket to the Roma Street
Markets via Montague Road.

Can you see the pylon from the

original landing which is still
visible in the water at low tide?
Clue. Youll find it about three metres out
from the bank beyond the mangroves.

Montague Road flooded as far as Drury

Street in the 1974 and 2011 floods and as far
as Forbes Street in 1893.

Continue 300 metres to the

forecourt of the South Brisbane
Sailing Club.

Sailing boat, Toowong Reach c 1900. SLQ Image 182989

4 South Brisbane
Sailing Club
The South Brisbane Sailing Club built this clubhouse in 1955, fifty
years after it began life as the Victoria Sailing Club in the basement of
the Victoria Hotel, close by the Victoria Bridge in South Brisbane. Over
time boat design has changed from timber and canvas to carbon
fibre and fibreglass, though wooden boats still sail from here each
Saturday afternoon. There are brass markers on the front door of the
clubhouse indicating the river heights in the 1974 and 2011 floods.

Where is north
from here?
Clue: The answer is
under your feet.

The hall piano floated off the stage,

over the counter, into the kitchen area
In each flood the boats have been
saved. In 1974 the boats were
removed to the upper level where
they were thought to be safe. Club
members returned to find them
floating at ceiling height. Not
everything survived. The hall piano
floated off the stage, over the
counter, into the kitchen area with a
clearance of only one inch. With no

way of getting it out, club members

reluctantly took to the piano with
sledge hammers to remove it.
The river slows as it navigates this
sharp bend. After the floods of 2011
a sandy beach approximately fifty
metres in length had been created
along the riverfront.
This is also home to the West End
Canoe Club.

How tall
are you?
Measure
yourself
against the
flood markers
on the door.
Were the
floodwaters
over your head
here?

Follow the
river to the
top of the
rise opposite
Forbes Street.
SBSC 1974 Flood. Courtesy SBSC

5 Cranbrook
Aboriginal Girls
Home 1885
You are standing on what was, for a period, an Aboriginal Reserve.
By 1890 Hill End and South Brisbane were desirable residential suburbs
for Brisbanes elite and there was a high demand for Aboriginal domestic
servants. In 1900 the State Government purchased a large private home,
Cranbrook, on the banks of the river as a receiving point for aboriginal and
half caste girls going into service or passing through Brisbane. (3)

Map of Aboriginal Girls Home - Hill End BCC Plan No. 627 c 1927

The home had been initiated by Frances

Meston, the states first Protector of
Aboriginal Girls (1899-1900) and matron of
the home. She was the wife of Archibald
Meston, journalist, politician and property
manager, who had advised on the drafting
of the Aboriginal Protection and Restriction
of the Sale of Opium Act, 1897 (Qld) and
was the Southern Protector of Aboriginals,
Queensland (18981903). Though the
girls were under the care of the Protector
of Aborigines they often laboured under
harsh conditions. Marnie Kennedy, who
worked as a domestic servant as a young
girl, recalls the breakfast bell waking her
at 4:00am after which she had to spend
the day setting and waiting on the table,
cleaning the large dining room and lounge,
doing the washing and ironing for up to
eight people and then working in the
dairy.(4)

Sophie Mumming Domestic Servanrt c 1900 -1910.

SLQ Image 68943

Though the girls were under the care of the Protector of

Aborigines they often laboured under harsh conditions
In 1904 the allotments on which the house stood were declared an
Aboriginal Reserve to allow this activity to operate under the Aboriginal
Protection Act. In 1906 the home was closed after public criticism of its
operation. In 1908 the land was removed from the Aboriginal Reserve
list. Today a memorial to the Stolen Generation marks this site. To the
far left are the remains of the original steps which the girls used after
arriving by boat.
In 1969 the land was resumed by council for inclusion in the West End
Riverside Drive Parklands.

Walk north from the circles and find the Bringing

Them Home memorial.

Where are the

steps used by
Aboriginal girls
arriving here?
Clue Stand in the
middle of the two rings
of concrete (which
reference the ceremonial
bora rings of Aboriginal
culture). Face the river
and move south-west
towards the water

In 1998 the Brisbane City Council installed six plaques around the city as memorials to The Stolen
Generation, the Aboriginal and Islander children who were forcibly removed from their families and culture
between 1900 and 1971.

You are at the

beginning of Riverside
Drive. This is the
highest point along
the floodplain. In 2011
it was above the flood
height while in 1974 it
was a tiny island in a
sea of brown water.

Riverside Drive under construction. BCC-B54-16532 & 37672

6 Riverside Drive Fifty Years in the Making

The proposal to create a riverside drive dates from the 1930s when Lord Mayor, Alderman A. J. Jones
announced plans for the beautification of Brisbane. Work on a riverfront drive from the William Jolly Bridge
to Davies Park commenced in 1949 and was completed in the 1970s. Work then began on stage two, where
31,000 cubic metres of excavation-fill from the King George Square carpark was used to stabilise the riverbank
from Davies Park to Orleigh Park. By 1986 parkland extended almost three kilometres along the bank of the
river.
The strip was shared by cars, picnickers, pedestrians and cyclists. By day it played host to casual users; by night
it became an unofficial racetrack, or an alternative to Mount Coot-tha for a back-seat romance. Once a year it
provided ringside seats to view the GPS (Great Public Schools) Head of the River Rowing Regatta.
Stage three, which extended from Victoria Bridge to the South Brisbane Dry Dock (Goodwill Bridge), began in
1968 under Lord Mayor Clem Jones. It later hosted World Expo 88 and then became part of the South Bank
Parklands. In 1995 a land swap negotiated by Lord Mayor Jim Soorley secured Kurilpa Point as public land,
finally creating continuous riverside parkland from Orleigh Park to Kangaroo Point.

Work on a riverfront
drive from the
William Jolly Bridge
to Davies Park
commenced in 1949
and was completed
in the 1970s.
8

Kurilpa Peninsula has changed rapidly since 1980. The

former industrial area of docks, fish-markets, manufacturing
and import/export businesses at South Brisbane has been
transformed to house city parklands, arts and cultural
institutions and is home to major corporations. West End has
once again found itself an attractive residential area but at a
cost. Numerous boarding houses have been redeveloped with
the resulting loss of affordable housing. Many artists, students,
and boarding house residents can no longer afford to live here.
On the positive side, some grand character houses have been
restored to their former glory.

In recent years the council has developed a number

of plans for the peninsula, the result of which has
included the closing of part of Riverside Drive to
vehicles.
Under the South Brisbane Riverside Neighbourhood
Plan (2011), the most significant change allows
intensive apartment development up to twelve
storeys to the south of Davies Park and up to fifteen
storeys to the north. At the city end of Montague
Road this height limit is extended to forty storeys
(under the draft 2014 Kurilpa Riverfront Renewal

Master Plan) to allow for commercial office space.

These changes have the potential to increase
the local population by up to 25,000 putting
considerable strain on local infrastructure and
amenity.
The process of consultation between the local
community, Brisbane City Council and the State
Government regarding the future vision for the
peninsula has been difficult. At issue is the scale and
pace of change and the sense that the wishes of the
community have fallen on deaf ears.

Continue to
the river end of
Ferry Road.

7 Ferry Road Toowong Ferry

In 1843 the first regular ferry service
began in Brisbane between Russell
St, South Brisbane and North Quay.
It carried livestock, passengers and
vehicles between the farmland south of
the river and the central market area of
the city.
In 1876 a local entrepreneur established
a new service connecting the western
suburbs to South Brisbane and so
began the Toowong ferry service. The
20 foot open row boat was propelled
by one man and could take up to
sixteen passengers - quite a feat given
the powerful tides and the often
strong winds. It was not until forty-four
years later that a powered vessel was
introduced here.

Toowong Ferry 1920 (Cranbrook Homestead far right). BCC-B54-A1081

Percys wife, Elizabeth, obtained

her ferry masters licence in 1943
becoming the first female ferry
master in Queensland.

Percy Hanlon memorial

In 1920 Percy Hanlon began a motorised ferry service with a

capacity of thirty passengers. Percys wife, Elizabeth, obtained her
ferry masters licence in 1943 becoming the first female ferry master
in Queensland. The Hanlons retired in 1953 after thirty-three years.
The Brisbane City Council continued the service until 1974 when the
pontoon was washed away and never replaced.

Milton Reach c 1907. SLQ Image 141876 3. Row boat 1890 flood. SLQ Image 108982;

Murders, deaths and

drownings.
...the media
dubbed it
the Lesbian
Vampire
Killer case.

10

This stretch of the river has seen more than its fair share of
tragedy. There were a number of drownings and suicides in
the vicinity of the ferry crossing one involving a woman
who jumped from the moving ferry midstream; another
who jumped from the Toowong pontoon whilst the ferry
was on the West End side. Others have met their fate in
sailing and boating accidents.
The most infamous death occurred in 1989. It involved a
council worker who was murdered in Orleigh Park by two
young women. It was sensationalised by the media which
dubbed it the Lesbian Vampire Killer case.

ABC Studios, Ferry Road

Cultural Centre South Bank

8 Ferry Road Studios (left side as you face Ferry Road)

The ridge (the original river bank), which begins
at the site of the Aboriginal Girls Home, follows
the river north creating a narrow strip of land
partially protected from flooding. The Australian
Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) Ferry Road
Music Studios were built here after the floods
of 1974. They were state-of-the-art rehearsal,
performance and recording studios and home to
the Queensland Symphony Orchestra (QSO).
ABC Radios first ever broadcast was in Sydney
on 1 July 1932 and featured live music played
by the National Broadcast Symphony Orchestra.
After World War Two, the ABC established
full-time orchestras in every state. The QSO,
established in 1947, was the second of these and
was a partnership between the ABC, the State
Government and the Brisbane City Council. Since
2012 the ABC and the QSO have been housed at
the ABC studios, South Bank.

Located across the river from the old ABC radio

studios at Toowong, staff used to joke that they
deserved a direct ferry service or at least a row
boat. Many staff believed a ghost inhabited the
Ferry Road studios not a musical ghost, more a
door-slamming in the early hours of the morning
type ghost.
Architecturally it was designed in the brutalist style
of the mid to late 20th century when modernism
dominated, with the Queensland Performing
Arts Complex and Art Galley and Museum being
Brisbanes best known examples. The construction
of the ABC studios building was at the expense of
one of two impressive colonial residences which
stood at the end of Ferry Road. One of these
survives and is located at Mount Tamborine.

The Ferry Road studios were the centre of

orchestral music making in Queensland for thirtyseven years. A few facts:
The QSO began with 45 musicians, now numbers
71, and performed 31 concerts In its first year
Brisbane born Patrick Thomas, appointed
conductor in 1973, was Australias first local chief
conductor
Notable artists to perform with the QSO include
Nigel Kennedy (British violinist), and Jose Carreras
(Spanish tenor)
The QSO recorded the score for the film Mission
Impossible here in 2000.

Una Morgan Trio - Patrick Thomas on left. SLQ Image 201914

11

Toowong towards Hill End with pine trees in background. 1884. SLQ Image 151002

Araucaria cunninghamii
Hoop Pine or Queensland Pine

At the river end of Ferry Road is

an impressive group of mature
pine trees (two Bunya Pines
Araucaria bidwillii, a hoop
pine and a Queensland kauri
pine Agathis robusta). All are
over 100 years old and were
possibly planted as part of a
wind break in the 19th Century.
Hoop pines, in particular, were

Bunya Pine

once common in the South

Brisbane-Hill End scrub. In the
1880s these magnificent giants
were felled to provide timber for
Brisbane homes. The honeycoloured timber was often
used for flooring. The supply
was exhausted in less than ten
years. In 2012 council approved
the removal of two mature

Hoop Pine

bunya pines from this site

which developers argued were
dangerous because of their large
fruit. These remaining trees are
protected under councils Natural
Assets Local Law 2003. Kauri
pines can live up to 300 years,
hoop pines to 450 years and
bunyas to 500 years. Each can
grow to heights of 40-60 metres.

Kauri Pine

Walk 100 metres along Riverside Drive and take a right turn after you pass the twin set of white
apartments named Waters Edge.
Walk through the open landscaped area.
12

10 Coombes Swamp
This detour showcases the changing face of
the Montague South Precinct. The pathway
you walk through which takes you to Duncan
Street is public parkland owned by the Brisbane
City Council and set aside as the developers
contribution to the amenity of the local
community.

1893 Flood map.

Museum of Lands, Mapping and Surveying, Qld

At Duncan Street turn left.

Here lagoons teemed

with birds and other
ground and water-based
wildlife

1893

This was a large wetland area, Coombes Swamp,

named after one of the first landholders. Here
lagoons once teemed with birds and other
ground and water-based wildlife . When the river
flooded in 1974 and 2011 this again became a
giant pond of water but endowed with none of
the splendour of the original lagoon. Sensibly,
domestic housing has been built above the flood
line on the high side of Montague Road which
was also an important pathway for Aboriginal
people. Major industry has also tended to build
along the Montague Road ridge. Conversely, this
low lying area has become home to distribution
warehouses and smaller, specialist light industries
which are gradually being replaced by large
apartment blocks, presumably with pumping
systems installed to cope with inundation of
their basements in the event of further flooding.
Busby Glass Recycling Centre (still operating in
Toowoomba) and the Amcor Cardboard Box
factory were formerly located here.

1974

This precinct will eventually become part of a

500-plus apartment development in six mediumrise buildings spread over three hectares.
Images courtesy DNRM, Qld 2014

2011

13

14

15

River Walk 1 to 14

Davies Park
15 to 23

West End Ferry

Orleigh Park

St Lucia Produce Ferry

South Brisbane Sailing Club

15 Souths Rugby League

Football Club

Cranbrook Aboriginal Girls Home

16 The Environment

Riverside Drive

17 Speedway

Ferry Road - Toowong Ferry

18 Swimming pools

Ferry Road Studios

19 Rowing and the River

Araucaria cunninghamii

10 Coombes Swamp

20 Jane Street Community

Garden

11 Montague Road south - major

industry

21 West End Markets

22 West End Partisans

12 Victoria Street

23 Last thoughts

13 Gas Stripping Tower

14 Davies Park
16

11 Montague Road south major industry

No major industries survive in this precinct. The
Thomas Dixon Boot Factory building and its
tannery on Montague Road are the only remaining
structures which attest to the industries which were
once based here. The interesting modern design
of the DHA building and the former imposing
gas storage tanks of the South Brisbane Gasworks

have been, or soon will be, replaced by apartment

buildings. Unlike Teneriffe/Newstead and their Wool
Stores and Gas Works, West End is struggling to
retain this aspect of its heritage.
For more detail on these industries see West End
Walk No. 3. Walking with the Water Rats.

Unlike Teneriffe/Newstead
and their Wool Stores and
Gas Works, West End is
struggling to retain this
aspect of its heritage.

DHA Montague Road, 2014

DHA Montague Road, 2014

Turn left at Kurilpa

Street and return to
the river.
On returning to the
river, turn right and
proceed 100 metres to
Victoria Street

Dixons Tannery, Montague Road 2014

Former gate South
Brisbane Gas Company
(SBGC), Montague Road
2014

17

12 Victoria Street
a bridge among
many
In Brisbane people often refer to themselves
as northsiders or southsiders. Quite
understandable when, until the construction
of the South-East Freeway, there were only
three crossing points for vehicles between the
mouth of the river and West End. The river was
the dividing line.
Over the years the city custodians have
developed a series of plans to overcome this.
Of the inner-city traffic bridges proposed since
1970, only the Go Between Bridge has been
constructed. The 1990 Brisbane Traffic Study
proposed four new bridges, one of which was
to link Toowong to Victoria Street at this point.
Previously the Wilbur Smith Scheme
(1965), from which the South-East Freeway
emerged, had proposed a link between
Woolloongabba and Toowong via Hockings
Street, a few streets north. In the 1930s a

The perceived impact of

these bridges on community
life and on the village of
West End was the driving
force behind the protests.
bridge from Boundary Street to the University
of Queensland campus was designed but never
completed; in the 1990s the same crossing
was proposed as a light rail link. All of these
have been resisted by a majority of the local
community.
The perceived impact of these bridges on
community life and on the village of West
End was the driving force behind the protests.
While some of these crossings may have been
more devastating than others, locals held that
maintaining community identity and cohesion
was more important than traffic convenience.

Continue along Riverside Drive to the

Gas Stripping Tower.
18

Brisbane Gas Company 1890. SLQ Image 33587

13 Gas Stripping Tower

This tower was relocated here in 1988
as a bicentenary gift from the Allgas
Energy Company.
Gas arrived in Brisbane in 1865 when
the Brisbane Gas Company constructed
a gas production and distribution
facility at Petrie Bight. Allgas, formerly
the South Brisbane Gas and Light
Company, built and operated a
gasworks at nearby 321 Montague
Road from 1885.
Initially gas was used for street lighting
in the Queen Street city area. Later
domestic use grew as gas, and coke
heating and cooking, became more
popular. The gas was produced from
coal which was supplied from the West
Moreton Coal Fields (Ipswich) by barge
and later rail.

At its peak the Montague Road site

had a capacity of 1,517,000 cubic feet
of gas. The advent of natural gas in the
1960s meant the old plant was retired
and demolished in 1974, though the
three gasometers remained in use until
1999 .
The Gas Stripping Tower, also known
as a cast iron scrubber was built
in 1912 and became obsolete by
1948. The tower was the final step in
the purification process to remove
ammonia and tar from the gas. The gas
was piped in at the bottom, sprayed
with water and the clean gas was
removed at the top. The water used
in the process was drawn off at the
bottom and sold as ammoniacal liquor.

How high do you think the Stripping Tower is?

Gas
Stripping
Tower

A 21 metres
Brisbane
Gas
Company
site 2014

19

14 Davies Park Early History

Davies Park has been the centre
of both water and land-based
sport and recreation for the
southern Brisbane communities
for over a century.
Originally known as The Dairy in
the 1880s, this land was owned
by the Hardgrave family. In 1899
the Mayor of South Brisbane,
Alderman John Davies, fought
to have sixteen acres of land
purchased for recreational
purposes. In 1901 the land was
acquired and called the West
End Recreation Reserve. It was
renamed Davies Park in 1913 two
years after Ald. Davies death. A
parcel of land fronting Montague
Road and earmarked to
complete the recreation reserve,
is still privately owned more than
100 years later. Unlike Musgrave

Follow the walking path to

Souths Clubhouse.

Park and other council parks,

Davies Park was not developed
at council expense but by the
various clubs leasing the land.
Although clearing of native
vegetation was undertaken a
number of large shade trees
have survived, some over one
hundred years old.
In recent years there was a
move to return the park to
a community space with
the removal of fences, the
reconfiguration of the ovals
and the purchase of the final
block of land. Yet, despite
strong community support, one
hundred years after the naming
of the park, Ald. Davies vision
remains incomplete.
Of the sixteen acre site,
approximately eight acres are

In 1974 you would be standing in water at this point.

In 2011 only the ovals were inundated.

Aerial view of Davies Park 1932. Photo courtesy Tony Webb

20

held by the Southern Suburbs

Rugby League Football Club
(Souths) as a sporting lease. The
main oval has hosted various
football codes including, rugby
league, rugby union, Australian
rules and soccer. The park has
housed tennis courts, a riverswimming enclosure, a council
pool, rowing sheds, was home
to the South Brisbane Cricket
Club (1920-1970) and, for a time,
a speedway. More recently the
park has hosted beach volleyball,
balloon flights and numerous
music events and festivals. Only
during the war years, when
it was used as a campsite for
servicemen, has it been alienated
from community use.

15 Southern Suburbs
District Rugby
League Football
Club Souths
Souths, originally the West End Rugby League Club
(1908), then Carlton (1922) and Southern Suburbs (1933),
has been leaseholder on the site since 1910. No. 1 Oval
has been used exclusively for rugby league since 1930.
Souths original jersey was black but later changed to
red and white. However, a shortage of dye during WW2
forced a return to plain black. In the post war period a
white V was added. The magpie crest was not adopted
until 1960.
In 1965 Souths built a modern clubhouse on the site.
In 2002 the club merged with the Logan Scorpions
renaming themselves Souths Logan. Davies Park
remains their home ground.
During the war, Souths continued to field teams but
trained at nearby Musgrave Park while Davies Park
served as a US military base often frequented by General
Douglas MacArthur, supreme commander of the SouthWest Pacific.
It wasnt until 1945 that they won their first premiership
but others followed in 1949, 51 and 53. Bill Tyquin was
captain-coach of the 1949 team, and went on to become
president and a delegate to the Brisbane Rugby League.
The Bill Tyquin Oval was named after him in 1978.

Harry Bath 1940, age 16. SLQ image 165539

Local man and legendary Australian coach Harry Bath,

is regarded as the best rugby league player never to
have played for Australia.
Bundaberg-born Mal Meninga made his first grade
debut with Souths in 1978 as an 18 year old. He was
a police officer at West End Police Station at the time.
Wayne Bennett played for Souths and was coach
in 1979 and again in the mid 1980s. Local man and
legendary Australian coach Harry Bath is regarded as
the best rugby league player never to have played for
Australia.
Since 1933 eighty players have represented their
state, of whom thirty-three represented Australia.
Many were local West End boys including Bill Tyquin,
Harry Bath and Harold Mick Crocker. Other household
names include: Henry Holloway, cousins Greg and
Mick Veivers, Elton Rasmussen and Gary Belcher.

21

17 Speedway
In 1927 Davies Park became home to the
first purpose-built motorcycle speedway
in Australia. The Davies Park venture is
regarded as sowing the seeds of international
speedway with many of the accepted
practices pioneered here. Without a shadow
of doubt we have to thank the Australians for
putting speedway racing on the map in this
country (England). The brilliant band of riders
who came to England under the banner of
Brisbane promoter A J Hunting showed us
that even the best Englishman was a raw
novice (5).
West Indian mahogany

16 A word about the

Environment
You have walked through a canopy of giant figs
and nearby, between the rowing sheds, is a tree of
such significance that council required the design
of these facilities be built around it. It is a rare
West Indian mahogany, famous as the timber from
which Chippendale furniture is made and related to
Australian red cedar (Cedrella toona). To its north is a
mature white beech (Gmelina leichardtii). Both trees
are over 100 years old.
The giant figs which dot Davies Park are under
the close watch of council arborists as they have
been found to be infected with Phellinus noxius, a
pathogenic fungus which causes a form of root rot
which cannot be cured. Its natural habitat is rainforest
but in recent years has been found in recreational
parks and gardens in coastal Queensland. It is a normal
part of the growth and decay cycle particularly in subtropical forests. As a precaution sections of the park,
particularly adjacent to the gas stripping tower, have
been fenced off to minimise damage.

It is a rare West Indian

mahogany, famous as
the timber from which
Chippendale furniture is made
22

The speedway, which was a quarter mile

oval track encircling the existing playing field
hosted twice weekly meets. It was surfaced
with decomposed granite and surrounded
by a high wire safety fence. The opening
on August 6, 1927 was attended by 14,000
patrons. After 128 meetings it closed in
1932 largely due to the Great Depression,
falling patronage and the rising demand for
local riders to compete overseas. In a sense
it was a victim of its own success. The final

Swimming enclosure (Dutton Park) 1921.

SLQ Image 156901

South Brisbane Swimming Baths c 1914. SLQ Image

164372

Pre-race at Davies Park 1927. Photo Tony Webb

blow came when it lost the

support of its promoter A J
Hunting, Director of Olympia
Speedway (Brisbane) Ltd.
Hunting was an entrepreneur
who subsequently took
speedway to Argentina,
France, England and major
cities of Australia. He also
created a professional one
day cricket format in 1933
decades ahead of the Packer
version in 1977 (6).

Proceed to the river end

of Jane Street.

Posters courtesy Tony Webb

18 Swimming pools
At one time, the Brisbane River was crowded
with bathing enclosures and floating baths.
Although these were extremely popular they
regularly got swept away in floods and there
were problems with sanitation. At Davies
Park an enclosure, including dressing sheds

Davies Park Pool c 1930. SLQ Image 60753

and caretakers cabin, was

erected on the river near
the end of Jane Street. A
second, opened in 1902,
was situated at South
Brisbane, at the end of
Montague Road. Another
was located upstream at
Dutton Park.
The Davies Park baths
was a bathing enclosure
extending into the open
water. Floating baths on
the other hand had a 12
inch pipe with a valve
in the river wall which
allowed the pool to fill as
the tide rose; the valve
then automatically shut
and held the water as the
tide receded.

Later local councils began

to construct purpose-built
swimming pools. In June
1921 the South Brisbane
Municipal Council called for
tenders to build a concrete
pool adjacent to Davies
Park. The only dissenting
voice, Alderman Burton,
said that he objected to
any bath which required a
mechanical system to fill it.
The pool went ahead
and was opened on 10
December 1921. Entry
was: adults 2d, children
1d and schoolchildren 6d
per dozen. The pool was
removed in 1967, the same
year that the Musgrave Park
Pool was completed.

23

Rowing eight 1931. Photo courtesy

Rowing Qld.

Head of the River, 1932. SLQ Image 102603

19 Rowing and the River

On your left, are a series of modern rowing sheds. In all, nine
rowing clubs are based on the St Lucia and Toowong/Milton
reaches. Upstream on the opposite side of the river, three rowing
clubs are located at the St Lucia campus of the University of
Queensland. The Toowong/Milton reach hosts the other six. The
first rowing sheds in Davies Park date from 1949.
The new buildings you see were built in 2001 by the council
in partnership with Rowing Queensland. The Commercial

Rowing Club, now based here,

was established in 1877 and is the
oldest amateur sporting club in
Queensland. The GPS Schoolboys
Head of the River rowing regatta was
held on this reach from 1918 until
1976 when crowds of up to 25,000
would line the banks. The inaugural
Brisbane Schoolgirls Head of the
River was held here in 1990.
In 1976, after 58 years, the vagaries
of tides and currents resulted in the
Schoolboys regatta being relocated
to the more predictable waters of
the Hinze Dam (1976-86), Wivenhoe

20 Jane Street
Community
Garden
The irony of a community garden
on a flood plain is that occasionally
it gets flooded. In 2011 the garden
was destroyed and replenished
simultaneously when the river
deposited another layer of sediment
here.
The garden, which hugs the border
of Davies Park, has been here for
more than ten years. Its sister garden
at Paradise Park in Highgate Hill,
commenced six months earlier. Both
were initiated by local community
organisation Spiral Hub with the
support of the local Councillor.

24

How many team members in a

rowing eight?
A Nine - the coxswain steers the boat.

Dam (1987-2005) and since 2007 at Lake Kawana. The

Schoolgirls followed in 1995.
Rowing can prove dangerous. In 2012 a CityCat and a
rowing pair collided in the misty pre-dawn; and in a story,
oft retold at the South Brisbane Sailing Club, a 16 foot
sailing skiff once sliced clean through a rowing eight at
high speed.

Poster 1920. http://www.rowinghistory-aus.info/

Who was Arthur Baynes?

Hint There is a monument to him at
the entrance to the rowing sheds off
Jane Street near the river.
Arthur Baynes. http://www.rowinghistory-aus.info/

Much of the success of the gardens was achieved

through Work for the Dole grants. These provided workers
equipment and some funds for a coordinator. The goal was
to provide a productive role for the marginalised in our
community. Both gardens continue to have a community
development and a sustainable environment focus.
Individual plots are rented to enthusiastic locals and a team
of volunteers maintains the common land. Wander through.
Dont interfere with the plots but admire the seasonal
vegetables.

Proceed back along Jane Street.

Can you find some herbs

growing in the common
area of the garden?
Tip They have a distinctive smell
and are used in cooking. You might
find a curry leaf tree, rosemary,
spearmint, lemongrass and
asparagus.

Walk to the intersection of Jane St and Montague Rd and turn right past the Bill Tyquin
entrance gate. Proceed along the boundary fence of Davies Park and then follow the
access lane into the area behind the main oval.

Rosemary

Asparagus

Curry leaf

Lemongrass

Spearmint

25

21 West End Markets

Come Saturday morning, as the sun rises over
the city, a conga line of market stalls snakes
its way along this alleyway and makes its way
to the river side of Souths clubhouse. It has
become a weekly social event for many.
In 2001 Paula Hackney created the original West
End Markets. It was taken to another level as
the Green Flea Market between 2002 and 2009
when entrepreneur Peter Hackworth was the
driving force. In 2009 a Sydney based company
successfully tendered for the management
rights. Now named the Davies Park Market it
has devotees from all corners of the city, some
of whom arrive on bikes as part of a riverside
circuit popular with serious and recreational
cyclists. It has, at times, almost become a victim
of its own success, so crowded does it become.

a conga line of market

stalls snakes its way along
this alleyway

26

22 West End Partisans

There is a David and Goliath story lurking under the fig trees
on the back oval at Davies Park. Here, on a field (rugby league
field 2) much less tended than the main oval, a small group
of soccer enthusiasts have trained and played each week for
almost twenty-five years. Not only do they love soccer but they
also share a passion for politics and social action. They began as
a Sunday afternoon group here in 1995. At the same time there
was another group of enthusiasts playing at Orleigh Park. Davies
Park was mainly anarchist in politics, Orleigh Park, International
Socialist (IS). Many of the Orleigh Park gang eventually found
their way to the Partisans.

There is a David and Goliath story lurking under the

fig trees on the back oval at Davies Park.

Photo courtesy Partisans FC

Not only do they love soccer but they also

share a passion for politics and social action.

27

Sign on day. Photo courtesy Partisans FC

The players have backgrounds

in circus, theatre, protest
movements, non mainstream
church groups and environmental
activism. Occasionally, when
he is passing through Brisbane,
perhaps on the run from
international law enforcement
agents, Ciaron OReilly will be
seen with dreadlocks flying, as
he plays alongside some of the
original team, now in their fifties.
The only time OReilly has allowed
himself to be bailed-out from the

lock-up was at the end of the first

ever season when they made the
semi-finals. He played a shocker.
They lost.
Their name, the Partisans, was
inspired by original member
Adrian Candatens family, who
were Italian Partisans during
WW2 and whose loyalty was to
their immediate community. The
clubs colours, purple and yellow
came from the colour scheme
of the Sitting Duck cafe, formerly
in Boundary St, West End; a local

social enterprise partially initiated

by the West End anarchist group
in the early 90s.
The club now has as many as five
teams under its umbrella playing
in a range of competitions in any
one season. The two womens
teams have taken the name, the
Partisanistas.

Youre now almost back to the

gas stripping tower described
in Section 13.

The walk finishes here under the giant figs,

a constant companion along this stretch of
the river.
House washed off its foundations in Orleigh Street
West End during the Brisbane floods 1893

28

References.
1. Steele, J 1975, Brisbane Town in Convict Days
1824-1842, University of Queensland Press, St Lucia,
Brisbane.
2. The Brisbane River 100 Years Ago, The Brisbane
Courier, 22 March 1930, p. 10.
3. Thom, B 1987, Excluded exploited, exhibited in
R. Fisher & R Sumner (eds) Aboriginal, Alien, Ethnic,
Brisbane 1897-1910, Brisbane History Group, Kelvin
Grove, Brisbane.
4. Robinson, S 2003, Aboriginal child domestic
servants in late 19th and early 20th century
Queensland, Aboriginal History, vol. 27, p. 166.
5. Webb, T 2010, Speedway Tonight: the Story of the
Davies Park Speedway, Boolarong Press, Brisbane.
6. Professional Cricket, The Courier Mail, Brisbane, 14
September 1933, p10

22 Last thoughts Plans, Planning and the River

Who defines a community? Is it town planners
and politicians? Is it developers who urge
progress on the peninsula? Is it the river
which has shaped this peninsula and which
reminds us of the limitations of our human
ambition? Or is it the community members
themselves?
As the population of West End swells,
projected to quadruple in the next ten years,
the need for good planning, adequate public
space and services to meet the needs of the
population will be imperative.
The local community, with the river as its
constant companion, will continue to struggle
with the many challenges of change. In
an inner-city area where land has become
extremely valuable and where there are
competing demands, these issues are thrown
into high relief. One can only hope that the
community and its collective spirit will survive
in a form which retains the things which make
this community special and which continue
to attract new residents to the area.

As the population of
West End swells, the
need for good planning,
adequate public space
and services to meet the
needs of the population
will be imperative.

We hope you
enjoyed this walk.
To pass by the former South Brisbane Gasworks
site and the Thomas Dixon Boot Factory return
via Montague Road, or enjoy the river and
retrace your steps along the waterfront.

Research and Writing Steve Capelin with the West End Making History
Group (WEMH)
Editing Larah Seivl-Keevers (Back Deck Editorial Services)
Design Georgia Wilson (The Drawing Room)
Artwork Gavan Fenelon

Acknowledgements
Key documents referred to in the preparation of this booklet:
Brisbane City Council 1992, South Brisbane Area Heritage Study, Part A, Heritage Unit, Brisbane City Council,
Brisbane.
Cohen, Kay 1996 West End Riverside Parks Brisbane An Historical Study, Brisbane City Council, Brisbane.
Hanlon, P 2000, Oh-ver History of the Brisbane Cross River Ferries, P Hanlon, Brisbane.
Webb, T 2010, Speedway Tonight: the Story of the Davies Park Speedway. Boolarong Press, Brisbane.
Thanks to people who assisted with information, photography and advice.
Keith Foster, Claire Booth, Libby Anstis, Chris Sleight, Whitney Woods-Venini, Mick Capelin, Paul Ryan, Andrew
Guerin, Neil Mercer, Souths Logan Rugby League Club, Cara Gartland, Tony Webb, South Brisbane Sailing Club,
Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Darryl Eyles, Rowing Queensland, Brisbane City Council.
WEMH - Tim Quinn, Phil Vanderzeil, Pam Bourke, Fiona Stager, Helen Abrahams, Steve Capelin.
Photos: Steve Capelin unless otherwise credited. All photos used with permission.

29

A Street
Walkers
Guide To
West End
No.1

Beyond
the
Boundary

A walk through West Ends

Aboriginal, Greek and Activist history.

to

A Street Walkers Guide

West End

A neighbourhood walk
through the streets of West End
to

No.3 West End

A Street Walkers Guide

Strolling the

Walking with the Water Rats

ur

...

ark
s P nd
vie eyo
Da b
ilpa oint to and
P

Flood Plains
of Hill End

Recreation
Inundation
Redevelopment

No.

A STREET WALKERS GUIDE

TO WEST END NO. 4

Current publications in the Street

Walkers Guide to West End series
Walk 1 A Neighbourhood Walk through the Streets of West End
(Zenovia Pappas, 2010, revised 2013, Steve Capelin)
Walk 2 Beyond the Boundary.
A Walk through West Ends Aboriginal, Greek and Activist history (Steve Capelin, 2012)
Walk 3 Walking with the Water Rats
Kurilpa Point to Davies Park and Beyond (Tim Quinn, 2014)
Walk 4 Strolling the Flood Plains of Hill End
Recreation, Inundation, Redevelopment (Steve Capelin, 2014)

You can find more information and copies of this guide on our web page

www.streetwalkersguidetowestend.com
Proudly supported by Brisbane City Council

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