Queensland heritage snapshots
Cultural heritage places provide evidence of our past and present and reflect Queensland's diversity. We’re surrounded by buildings, places, trees, ship wrecks, lighthouses, towers, and other significant places which are landmarks in our lives. Browse through our on-line album of diverse heritage snapshots. They’re all entered in the Queensland Heritage Register.Stock Exchange Arcade - the golden gallery
It may not be Wall Street but this arcade in Charters Towers was once a stock exchange, thriving on the success of Queensland’s most important gold field. The arcade symbolises the wealth and confidence of Charters Towers during the gold rush from 1871 to 1899.
Built in 1888 and called the Royal Arcade, it was originally used for shops and offices. With the gold rush came the need for a centrally-located stock exchange, established in the arcade in 1890. After 1899, Charters Towers’ mine yields gradually diminished, along with its population. The stock exchange closed in 1912.
In the 1970s, the building was restored by its present owners, the National Trust of Queensland. The building is now used for offices, shops, and an art gallery.
Why not stroll down the golden arcade which used to be the centre of Queensland’s busiest mine field? It’s in Mosman Street, Charters Towers.
Mary Watson’s Monument — the Lizard Island heroine
A concrete, plinth-like water fountain stands in north Queensland’s Cooktown, as a reminder of the lack of understanding between settlers and indigenous Australians in the 1800s. It was built by Cooktown residents
in 1886 in memory of Mary Watson and her infant son, who perished from thirst. It’s Queensland’s only public monument to a woman, other than a head of state.
Mary Watson lived on Lizard Island with her husband. In September 1881, she was left alone with her infant son and two Chinese employees when a group of mainland Aborigines arrived on the island. It’s thought the Aborigines speared and killed one of Mary’s Chinese employees.
Fearing further attacks, Mary escaped in a cut-down, iron tank with her son and a Chinese employee. They pulled into one of the Howick Islands, but eventually perished. If you want to drink from Mary’s monument, it’s in Charlotte Street, Cooktown, Queensland.
Eumundi War Memorial Trees — trees of life
Almost every Queensland town has a war memorial to honour those who didn’t return from war. Residents of south-east Queensland’s Eumundi chose towering trees to honour fallen World War I soldiers.
An avenue of fig, camphor laurel, jacaranda, flame, and lilly pilly trees, planted during and after World War I, honours 20 Eumundi men who didn’t return from the war. The memorial is one of few which uses trees to commemorate fallen soldiers.
Originally, only figs were planted. Now, just five of the original figs are standing and the others have been replaced by different tree species.
The trees represent public expressions of grief for the dead. They also show the widespread nationalism of the era. Why not enjoy the shade of these majestic, memorial trees while strolling around Eumundi’s Saturday morning markets? They’re in Memorial Drive and Gridley Street, Eumundi.
Warwick East State School — back to school
From Backhouse, came a schoolhouse! Prominent, early Queensland architect Benjamin Backhouse designed Queensland’s oldest remaining school — Warwick East. Built in 1864 and originally called the Warwick National School, it was a brick building at a time most schools were timber.
With its gabled, corrugated iron roof, the school shows the development of Queensland’s education system and Warwick’s growth as a country town during the 1860s.
By 1911, Warwick East School’s site was, according to parents’ letters, ‘unfavourably situated’, ‘bounded by an open sewer’, and a ‘miserable hovel’. While the building was altered slightly, it remained on its original site. The early brick building is now used as a school hall.
Blackall Woolscour — click go history’s shears
Do you remember that classic Australian ballad Click go the shears? Just like that ballad, the Blackall Woolscour reflects the development of our wool industry. And, it’s the only remaining woolscour in Australia.
The lanolin-laden scour and rustic buildings are 4km north-north-east of Blackall, Queensland. Built in 1908 by the Blackall Proprietary Woolscouring Company, the woolscour used steam to scour and remove grease from wool, making it lighter to transport. It operated until 1978 when scouring became too expensive.
The wool industry has played a significant role in Queensland’s economic, social, and political development. Places important to the wool industry’s history, such as the Blackall Woolscour, are critical in illustrating Queensland’s diverse cultural heritage.
Low Islets Lightstation — the nautical navigator
With its white tower and red-domed roof, the Low Islets Lightstation stands out like a beacon against the reef’s sparkling waters. Located off Port Douglas in North Queensland’s picturesque Great Barrier Reef, the lighthouse and surrounding buildings were built in 1878 in response to the dramatic expansion of regular coastal shipping along the Great Barrier Reef.
The lightstation, which was automated in 1993, is an example of an early navigational aid. Its beam can be seen from 26 nautical miles away. Unlike other states, Queensland lighthouses were built on isolated islands, away from populated areas and mains power. This is testimony to the tenacity of the people who built and operated them under harsh conditions.
The Low Islets Island Lightstation is a popular tourist spot on the westernmost part of the Low Islets group, 13km north-east of Port Douglas, in Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef.
The SS Yongala Wreck — the vanishing vessel
Once a grand passenger ship, the SS Yongala now sits, covered with barnacles, on the ocean floor off Townsville’s coast. All 121 passengers and crew drowned when the ship was wrecked in a cyclone in 1911. It is Queensland’s worst maritime disaster.
Built in 1903 and owned by the Adelaide Steamship Company, the ship transported passengers between Melbourne and Cairns. No one knew what happened to the ship on that fateful night. It wasn’t until 1958 that divers located the wreck. But its identity was confirmed in 1974 when researchers matched the ship’s Chubb safe serial number with company records.
The wreck is protected under the Historic Shipwreck Act 1976. If you want to explore it, you need a permit. Contact the Maritime Archaeology Section of the Museum Tropical Queensland, Townsville (07) 4726 0625
Mt Morgan Railway Station — golden age of rail
The elegant and finely detailed Mt Morgan Railway Station stands as a symbol of Queensland’s golden days.
Opened in 1898, the railway linked one of Queensland’s major gold mining towns, Mt Morgan, to Rockhampton. Because Mt Morgan’s wealth was not spent in the area, the station stands as one of the town’s grandest buildings.
By 1902, Mt Morgan’s water supplies dried up and the mine and town were kept going by the trains which hauled water from Stanwell. Sadly, the once golden railway from Kabra, to Mt Morgan, to Wowan closed in 1987. But the station, yard, and a short section of the track remain for trainspotting tourists.
Gas Stripping Tower — dressing history
What is the very tall, iron tower standing near the banks of the Brisbane River? It’s Australia’s only surviving gas stripping tower, and part of the riverscape along the Milton-Toowong reach of the Brisbane River.
Built in England in 1912, it was erected in Brisbane’s West End for the South Brisbane Gas and Light Company, which supplied gas to the south of the river. The 21m high tower was used to remove ammonia from raw coal gas.
By 1949, more sophisticated techniques were used to remove impurities from gas and the tower was no longer used. When the gasworks closed, the National Trust of Queensland reassembled the tower in West End’s Davies Park, 150m away from its original site.
You can picnic under this tower of cultural heritage significance. It’s in Brisbane’s Davies Park, Riverside Drive, West End, Queensland.
Last updated: 28 November 2003
