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Willard's Farm (former)

  • 650011
  • 302 & 362-388 Old Cleveland Road East, Birkdale

General

Also known as
The Pines; Willard's Farm and Lot 2 on SP146445; Willards Farm
Classification
State Heritage
Register status
Entered
Date entered
8 March 2022
Types
Farming - Agriculture/Dairying/Grazing/Horticulture: Farm - dairy
Residential: Detached house
Utilities - Water supply: Water tank - utilities - water
Theme
2.4 Exploiting, utilising and transforming the land: Agricultural activities
Builder
Willard, James
Construction periods
1860–1890, Milking Shed (c1860s-1880s)
1860–1890, Garage / Shed (c1860s-1880s)
1860–1910, Residence (main house, hip roofed wing, kitchen) (c1860s-c1910)
1860–1947, Remnants of Former Wells and Windmill (by 1947)
1860–1947, Grounds and Setting (fences, gardens, mature trees, former area of cultivation, pasture and delineation of paddocks shown in the 1947 survey plan, and physical connection to Tingalpa Creek)
1881–1947, Water Tank and Stand (by 1947)
1881–1947, In-ground Water Tank (by 1947)
1904, Cream Shed (c1904)
Historical period
1870s–1890s Late 19th century
1900–1914 Early 20th century

Location

Address
302 & 362-388 Old Cleveland Road East, Birkdale
LGA
Redland City Council
Coordinates
-27.51243864, 153.2042014

Map

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Significance

Criterion AThe place is important in demonstrating the evolution or pattern of Queensland’s history.

Willard’s Farm (former) (established 1863), comprising a Residence (c1860s-c1910), outbuildings (c1860s-c1904) and farm and water supply infrastructure, is an early dairy farm complex in Queensland. It is important surviving evidence of the policy of successive Queensland Governments from 1860 until the mid-20th century, of raising revenue and enabling closer settlement through the lease and sale of land for agricultural purposes, a key catalyst in the development of Queensland.

The Milking Shed (c1860s-1880s) and Cream Shed (c1904) are important in illustrating the evolution of Queensland’s dairy industry, as new technologies were adopted and government legislation to regulate product safety in the industry were implemented.

Criterion CThe place has potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of Queensland’s history.

Analysis of fabric at Willard’s Farm (former) has the potential to contribute to information about the development of Queensland timber building construction techniques in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, in particular the transition from construction techniques using slab, rough-hewn, adzed and hand-sawn timber (Milking Shed, Garage / Shed, and part of the Residence), to milled timber construction (Cream Shed, and part of the Residence).

Criterion DThe place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a particular class of cultural places.

Willard’s Farm (former), an early farm complex developed from the mid-19th century to the mid-20th century in Queensland, has a high degree of integrity and is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of its type. These include: its location in a historical agricultural region; use of locally-sourced timber for construction, crafted using early carpentry techniques (slabs, rough-hewing, adzing and hand-sawing); a farmhouse (Residence); outbuildings for agricultural use (Milking Shed, Cream Shed, and Garage / Shed); water infrastructure (Water Tank and Stand, In-ground Water Tank, and former Wells and Windmill Remnants); the fenced separation of residential and agricultural functions (fence remnants); and mature trees and gardens in close proximity to the house. An understanding of the functional relationships between the farmhouse and outbuildings is facilitated by their surrounding open setting.

History

Willard’s Farm (former) is a farm complex comprising a timber-framed, timber-clad farmhouse. Located in the now-suburban, but formerly agricultural, area of Birkdale within the boundary of Redland City Council, the former farm was built in phases from the c1860s, as shown by its construction materials and methods, as well as associated farm elements (slab milking shed, former cream shed, storage shed (garage/shed) and water supply infrastructure), which also demonstrate early construction materials and methods. It occupies a large site that slopes gently to the west from the road and includes the house yard and part of an adjacent paddock. It has mature trees and plantings, and original fencing. It is rare early evidence of government-promoted agricultural settlement in Queensland.

Prior to European settlement, the Birkdale area was part of the traditional land of the Quandamooka People.[1] One of the first places in the Moreton Bay district where country land was sold soon after Separation was the locality of Capalaba. Situated about 14 miles (22.5 km) southeast of Brisbane, but close to Cleveland, the once-favoured port for the colony, it included fertile agricultural land.[2] A mail service from Brisbane to Cleveland commenced in 1861 and the town of Tingalpa was surveyed on the Brisbane side of Tingalpa Creek in 1863.[3]

James Willard, the original owner of the property, arrived at Moreton Bay from Plymouth on the ship Ascendant in June 1858, aged 22 years, with his younger brother, Stephen, aged 18 years. Both were labourers from Sussex. They had followed their brother, Edward, who arrived in Brisbane in August 1857, aged 19, on the Mary Pleasants. All were assisted immigrants, sought by employers to fulfil the shortage of labourers in the future Colony of Queensland. According to family history, James worked at Kedron Brook splitting timber and fencing; and took various jobs in bushwork before purchasing land.[4]

On 19 May 1860 James Willard married Margaret Jones at St John’s pro-cathedral in Brisbane. Margaret, a domestic servant, from Kilteagan in County Wicklow, Ireland, had arrived from Ireland on the British Empire in February 1859, aged 20 years.  Her occupation was also sought after in the region and the focus of immigration initiatives. Their marriage resulted in 11 children between 1861 and 1881.[5]

When Queensland became a self-governing colony in 1859, it had a population of about 25,000 people, no financial support and no money in its treasury. The government needed to generate income, so did this through the leasing and sale of land. Among the first actions of the inaugural Queensland Parliament when it met in May 1860 was the creation of four land acts to regulate the leasing and purchase of Crown land. The Alienation of Crown Lands Acts 1860 governed the sale of Crown lands, establishing the means of selling town, suburban and country land, and land in agricultural reserves.[6] It also allowed for European settlers to legally dispossess Traditional Owner groups from their ancestral land.[7]

Entrenched in this government legislation was the policy of promoting closer settlement of the land by suitable migrants, creating a class of yeoman farmers (farmers who owned and operated small farms), first in the Moreton Bay district and later throughout Queensland. This concept had been championed by Dr John Dunmore Lang in the 1840s and practised by David McConnel when he subdivided and sold land from his Bulimba estate to his farm workers in the 1850s. As an agricultural labourer, James Willard was an immigrant who fitted the desired profile of this yeoman ideal and was one of the many men who came to the colony for this purpose.[8]

The land on which Willard’s Farm is sited was purchased by James Willard and Mark Blundell of Brisbane, as tenants-in-common on 17 August 1863, after it failed to sell at auction. This land, Portion 46, comprised 45 acres (18.2 ha) bounded by Tingalpa Creek on the west and by the Cleveland road on the east. The Deed of Grant (Land Purchase Certificate) was dated 31 December 1863.[9] Evidence suggests that James Willard was living in the Capalaba area in the 1860s, after the land purchase. Family history reports that Willard built a hut near the creek and lived there until he built a house using timber removed from the block.[10]

When Europeans first arrived in the Redlands district in the mid-1800s there were approximately 5000 Aboriginal people living there. The Quandamooka people camped and fished along Tingalpa Creek. It is unknown when the Quandamooka people were dispossessed from Willard’s Farm, however, oral history accounts note that ‘each night the South Sea Islanders would sing in their slab and shingle-roofed shed in the small paddock behind the house, and the large Aboriginal population who lived in the dense surrounding bushland were quite mesmerised by the nightly concerts, and the property was surrounded by their glowing campfires’.[11]

In the second half of 1865 he and his brother Edward applied for timber licences which were granted for hardwood removal in January 1866. Local history states that the Willard’s bullock wagons took timber from Capalaba to the sawmill at Cleveland Point; which was operating from c1860s.[12] In August 1866 transfer of the whole of Portion 46 to James Willard was recorded, and the following month Willard mortgaged the land to the Queensland Building Society for £50.[13]

Willard’s house was constructed in stages and some of the techniques employed are a variant of conventional vernacular methods. Willard is likely to have built some of his growing family’s new house himself, with assistance from his neighbour, Daveson, possibly as early as the late 1860s.[14] Willard had bush carpentry skills, materials readily available through his timber licence and on his property, and a steam sawmill operating at nearby Cleveland.

Elevated on stumps, the first stage of the house appears to have comprised two rooms with an enclosed back verandah and a detached kitchen at the rear and possibly a front verandah. This early core of the house is supported on a grid of large log bearers, half-notched over large timber stumps and adzed square on top, with pit sawn floor joists and flooring. The perimeter bearers also function as wall plates upon which the wall cladding sat within a frame of large adzed squared posts.[15]

Simple two-room cottages such as this were a very common house form throughout Australia in the second half of the 19th century. One room was made slightly larger than the other, with a centred front door opening into it, and was used as a living room. The other was the bedroom. Verandahs were located across the front, and sometimes across the back or around the house. Kitchen and washing areas were housed in separate detached structures at the rear and sometimes linked to the rear verandah by a covered walkway.[16]

The milking shed and garage/shed were also constructed using materials and techniques consistent with vernacular construction techniques and Willard’s bush carpentry skills. Both of these early outbuildings were constructed of timber slab, with adzed top and bottom plates. Tie beams and structural posts combined substantial square-adzed and rough-hewn timbers, and the longevity of these structures reflects their solid construction. Later modifications such as weatherboard cladding to gable ends, milled-timber roofs with corrugated metal cladding and various phases of cow bails in the milking shed, facilitated the continued use of these structures as part of the farm complex.

By the late 1880s Willard’s farm was a successful operation, which was praised in a contemporary source. A biography of James Willard in The Aldine History of Queensland states he:

 ‘purchased some land at Capalaba, on which he afterwards settled his wife and family. Here he devoted his energies, especially to the improvement of his land, cultivating farm produce to some extent, although dairy farming formed the chief element in his progress. Being very successful, and becoming more and more practically experienced with the capabilities of the land he had acquired, Mr Willard was soon in a position to increase his property.’[17]

This had occurred in 1871 when Willard selected nearby agricultural land (Portion 41) to the north of his original land purchase, (fronting the Cleveland road).[18] He then purchased the adjacent subdivisions: Subdivision 2 of Portion 42, 18 acres (7.28 ha) in June 1873 and Subdivision 1 of Portion 42, 96 acres (38.85 ha) in July 1876.[19] These were located between his first two holdings, Portion 46 and Portion 41.[20]

Development of the Capalaba-Cleveland area during the 1870s and 1880s was steady. In 1872 tenders were called to construct a bridge over Tingalpa Creek (upstream from Willard’s property), replacing the ford.[21] In 1876 Cleveland was described as a small watering place on the shores of Moreton Bay, 21 miles (34 km) from Brisbane, with a population of 250 people.[22] In 1879 divisional boards were established as a means of local government throughout Queensland, with the Tingalpa Divisional Board administering the area in which Willard’s Farm was established.[23] A branch railway line to Cleveland opened in 1889, providing access to Brisbane markets for farmers in the district. During the 1870s and 1880s, James Willard was active in the Capalaba-Tingalpa community. In 1871 he became a member of the Road Trust for the Cleveland Road, which was a local community organisation responsible for organising its upkeep. In 1879 he subscribed to the Capalaba School building fund in an effort to establish a school in the area, which occurred in July 1880; and in 1881 he was Chairman of the Capalaba Primary School Committee. In 1880 he nominated for election to the Tingalpa Divisional Board and served as a Board member in 1880 and 1881. In 1888 Willard was the successful tenderer for the forming and gravelling of 12 chains (0.24km) of the main Wellington Point Road and for erecting a guard fence for the Cleveland Divisional Board.[24]

In 1881, James Willard gained title to his selection, Portion 41. At this time he had made the following improvements to his land including on Portion 46: erection of a slab house with a shingle roof (it is unclear if this is referring to the earlier slab house or the current house), clearing of 20 acres of undergrowth, excavation of a waterhole, and fencing of the whole with a two-rail fence of split posts and rails. The associated Lands Department paperwork showed that James Willard had fulfilled the requirement of continuous residence during the ten year duration of the lease from February 1871, by residing on Portion 46.[25] Further evidence suggesting the site of the house in its current position on Portion 46 is a map of the district locating the homes of potential students at the proposed Capalaba Primary School, dating from April 1879.[26]

Willard increased his land holdings during the 1880s, selecting 418 acres of grazing land to the south of his property, near Coolnwynpin Creek at Capalaba, in July 1881 and his eldest son, William, selected 160 acres nearby.[27]

The description of the farm in The Aldine History of Queensland goes on to state,

 …his property…gives evidence of the skilful management bestowed upon it…certainly his farm more closely resembles those in the old country than any around it for many miles. As a proof of the great results to be achieved by patient and steady industry, Mr Willard’s prosperity affords a striking instance. He...can now fairly estimate the value of his properties at over £10,000.[28]

In the early 20th century, Willard’s farm included maize and sweet potato crops and a dairy herd.[29] From 1899 Willard took a leading role in the Cleveland Division when inoculation of cattle against tick fever was introduced, by serving on the Capalaba district committee and being one of the largest cattle owners who submitted stock for the demonstration of inoculation. Subsequently, Willard operated a cattle dip on his land adjacent to Old Cleveland Road (East) from 1904. A local resident recalled that ‘everybody brought their cattle to be dipped for ticks. It was always known as Willard’s dip’.[30] By 1958 dip had been filled in and by 2002 the associated structures had been removed.[31]

Later additions were made to the house c1910 and consisted of the construction of a rear wing, connected to the house by a covered walkway. Initially this provided two extra rooms and also connected to the original detached kitchen.[32]

A panoramic photograph of the property taken c1910 from the northeast, illustrates: the main wing of the house enlarged to its current form with bay window opening onto its northern verandah; the two room wing at the rear connected to the house by a covered walkway. It also reveals the absence of northern stair and northwest verandah. Most of the detailing visible in this photograph survives except for the roof shingles, front stair porch with double staircase and eastern verandah balustrade, replaced with a bench seat. Other photographs taken c1920 show the house, outbuildings and garden, including the front fence and entry gate posts.[33]

The milking shed shows evidence of evolving dairying practices. The overall form of the building has remained relatively consistent since at least the early 20th century, when images show the gable-roofed timber slab structure painted white.[34] However, changes in milking practices (from hand milking to mechanisation) are reflected in the fabric and layout of the milking shed. Timber notches in posts along the eastern slab wall indicate the locations of rails for the stall divisions. The stalls were offset from the timber slab wall to accommodate feed boxes. Cows were secured / released from the hitching uprights by means of a movable timber batten that was held in place by a timber peg.[35]

The concrete floor slab, which occupies the length of the main gable-roofed milking area, is possibly related to a later milking arrangement, as the concrete is formed to finish at the timber bottom plate and is clear of the feed box area. The concrete floor slab provided an impervious surface, with a drain running the length of the shed enabling washing of the milking area. Other modifications relate to the introduction of a mechanised milking system. Metal pipes run above the bails for the length of the shed. Remnant machinery remains mounted on a timber platform in the rafters at the northern end of the milking area, and a room in the northwest corner of the building - set lower than the milking area - has a concrete slab and upstand mount.[36]

The addition of the gable-roofed cream shed to the complex in the early 20th century also reflects the upgrade of farm infrastructure to adapt to evolving farming practice. In 1904, the Dairy Produce Act was introduced, which regulated premises where dairy produce was manufactured and prepared.[37]  In accordance with this legislation, the cream shed was constructed away from the milking shed and had a washable concrete floor. The timber-framed building was lowset on timber posts, with the concrete floor elevated on timber tongue-and-groove boards supported by rough-hewn log joists and adzed bearers. The shed had wide eaves and ventilation openings on the east and west sides to keep the cream cool. A skillion extension and decorative metal hood over the door were added later.[38]

The garage/shed, originally of timber slab construction, located at the end of the unsealed driveway, also retains evidence of previous modifications and uses. The gable-roofed structure is visible in early 20th century images of the farm. In one image from c1920s, a horse and cart are standing on the unformed driveway at the northern end of the shed. The shed has an open layout and open ends to the north and south. A loft located at the southern end is constructed of logs and is lit by a six-light casement window in the gable end wall, which appears to have replaced a painted door evident in photos from the early 20th century.[39] A doorway and window on the east wall, both of later construction, are modifications which demonstrate how these functional structures were adapted to facilitate their ongoing use.

James Willard died on 2 October 1914 and his property was transferred to his wife, Margaret. With her death on 15 June 1916, the property was transferred to the Willards’ eldest son, William, and their unmarried daughter, Margaret, as tenants-in-common.[40] The Queenslander in 1916 described the property:

for years travellers to Cleveland during the coaching days – and more recently in increasing numbers since the advent, of the motor car – after journeying the great part of the distance through the seemingly endless bush on either side, came suddenly upon the picturesque Willard homestead, with its delightful bit of old-world-looking garden, its weather-worn outbuildings, its landmark of tall sentinel-like Norfolk pines, and, more striking still, the broad, spacious, well-grassed paddocks of some hundreds of acres, gently sloping toward Capalaba [sic] Creek, winding its course below, a welcome change of scene on this forest-shrouded road over hill and dale.[41]

After William’s death in 1923, his estate was transferred to his brother, James Willard, Jnr.[42] In early 1924, Willard’s Farm was offered for lease and its furniture and stock were offered at auction on 8 February 1924. At this time there were approximately 30 cows on the farm. From 1927 to 1937 Margaret and James Willard leased Willard’s Farm to several share farmers. The Toms family resided there during the 1930s and a newspaper report in 1933 reported the family had bought the property, but there is no title evidence for this. The name, ‘The Pines’, was adopted for Willard’s Farm by the Toms family.[43]

In November 1938 Willard’s Farm (Portions 46, 42 and 41) was transferred to Herbert Clive Daniel. He is attributed with replacing the shingle roof with metal sheeting. In April 1940, all of his dairy herd, pigs and farm machinery were sold as part of a ‘genuine dispersal sale’. Daniel subsequently sold the property to Rosemary Innes Cotton in June 1941.[44]

World War II (WWII) brought dramatic change to Willard’s Farm.  Most of its land, primarily on Portion 42, was requisitioned by the United States of America (US) Army during the war for the establishment of a vital radio receiving station. Constructed in early 1943 by the US Signal Corps, it became an integral part of the South West Pacific Area (SWPA) Campaign General Headquarters’ communications network, under the direction of US Supreme Commander, General Douglas MacArthur. As part of the then technologically advanced global Army Command and Administration Network (ACAN), the US Army Radio Receiving Station was one of the main centres for radio communications during the South West Pacific campaign. The station worked in conjunction with the Hemmant Transmitting Station, located 9km northwest. At war’s end, the Commonwealth’s Post Master General’s Department (PMG) took over the station. It continued to be used as a radio receiving and frequency testing facility until its closure in 2017. The Cotton family remained on the farm through the war but their farming lands were considerably reduced due to the possible interference of the radio signals as well as high-level security on the radio receiving site.[45]

After the war, the Commonwealth Government’s Postmaster General’s department acquired the approximately 159 acres (64 ha) of the former communications centre, being most of Portions 46 and 41, and subdivisions 1 and 2 of Portion 42.[46] Following negotiations between the Cottons and the Commonwealth Government, an agreement was reached which would see the Cottons compensated £4000 for the compulsory acquisition of Portions 41, 42 and most of 46 in 1951. Within Portion 46, the Cottons would retain 4 acres, 3 roods and 16 perches on which the farmhouse and auxiliary structures were located. A lease agreement for the rental of the farm land that had been acquired by the government was given to the Cottons for £170 per annum, specifically for the grazing of the dairy herd and not for other agricultural purposes, which might disrupt the radio signals at the communications centre.[47]

At this time, the farm layout was indicated in a survey of the adjacent radio receiving complex.[48] The survey noted that three paddocks to the southwest had been cultivated. A narrow paddock that aligned east-west connected to the northwest corner of the farm, where water troughs and a shed were located. While these built elements are no longer extant, two substantial timber fence posts (one recently fallen) and a low stone wall remain in-place in the vicinity of where the paddock connected to the yard and indicate the former layout of the farm complex. Water infrastructure documented in the 1951 survey included the elevated tank, which operated as part of a gravity-fed system across the larger farm. Water was pumped to the elevated tank from wells closer to the creek. Likely remnants of the wells and windmill remain approximately 200m west of the farm house, close to Tingalpa Creek, as detailed in the 1947 valuation, ‘two wells have been sunk in the vicinity of the creek and water is engine pumped from them by a windmill to an elevated G.I storage tank near Residence’. The concrete (brick and concrete rendered) in-ground water tank located adjacent to the kitchen, which, at this time, provided a reserve supply of water, was described as having ‘a diameter of 13 feet [3.96m] and a depth of approximately 18 feet [5.4m]‘.[49]

The Cotton family sold the remaining property in 1980. The property was described as follows: ‘The house…is divided into two sections. There are three bedrooms, a lounge and bathroom in the front section. An open verandah connects the back section where the kitchen has been built in true pioneer style. There is also a large dining room…. “The Pines” is set on two hectares of land. There is an old dairy and stables made from slab timber. They are still solid buildings and make useful storage areas’.[50] Another article stated that outbuildings included ‘a two-bedroom cottage, a maid’s cottage, a coach and harness shed and stables’.[51]

From 1957, part of the northern part of the original farm was leased as grazing land to Mrs Winifred Jean Porter, who ran a small dairy. By the early 1970s she had been residing in a caravan beside the former cattle dip site. In 1971 Mrs Porter purchased a small WWII Allied Works Council (AWC) ‘CA’ type building which had previously been located on Portion 41, and had it relocated to where she was residing along Old Cleveland Road East. This structure was part of the Department of Civil Aviation’s brick receiving station, established in 1959 to the north of the US Army Radio Receiving Station (former), and the small building was referred to as a ‘temporary equipment building’, it’s dimensions being 19ft x 15ft. Its original location is unknown, however, the hut was not located on the US Army’s receiving station during WWII.[52] This hut became Mrs Porter and her daughter, Ann’s, home, who continued to graze their herds of cattle and goats. On her passing in 2019, Ann was affectionately known in the local area as the goat lady.[53] 

Willard’s Farm was sold again in 1985. At this time a detailed description of the farmhouse and its associated farm elements was recorded by The National Trust of Queensland. The following description is a summary.

The cladding in parts is 10 inch wide weatherboard. The early origins of the building are evidenced by such things as adzed stumps, pit-sawn timbers on log bearers. Other site features include a well, a water tank on high stumps and 4 sheds… Of these items the cow bails appears to be the oldest structure with evidence of a shingled roof and adzed vertical slabs to the walls. The garden is replete with ancient mango trees and Norfolk Pines. It is probably the oldest residence in the district.[54]

The land was subdivided in 2004 and the southern section (Lot 1 SP146445), without farm buildings, sold. The remaining property was purchased in March 2015 and retained the early farmhouse set in a large garden with mature trees, the slab milking shed with remnant cow bails, the former cream shed, garage/shed, an elevated stand with water tank, front fence with pedestrian and vehicle gates, and the remnant stone wall and gate posts within the property.

In 2016, following community efforts to save the farm buildings from possible demolition, the Redland City Council bought the property and included Willard’s Farm (Lot 2 RP211270) in the Redland City Plan ‘Heritage Overlay’. In 2019 Lot 2 SP146445, which was in Commonwealth Government ownership was also sold to the Redland City Council.[55] In 2021 it remains in the ownership of Redland City Council.

Description

Willard’s Farm (former) is a farm complex situated on Old Cleveland Road East, Birkdale, approximately 21km southeast of Brisbane central business district (CBD). It occupies a large site that slopes gently to the west from the road and includes a house yard and part of an adjacent paddock. The farm complex is located close to the road and comprises a residence with several associated outbuildings, structures and landscape features.

Features of Willard’s Farm (former) of state-level cultural heritage significance include:

  • Residence (c1860s-c1910), comprising:
    • Main House
    • Hip-roofed Wing
    • Kitchen
  • Milking Shed (c1860s-1880s)
  • Cream Shed (c1904)
  • Garage / Shed (c1860s-1880s)
  • Water Tank and Stand (by 1947)
  • In-ground Water Tank (by 1947)
  • Grounds and Setting, comprising:
    • Fences
    • Gardens
    • Mature trees
    • Former area of cultivation, pasture and delineation of paddocks shown in the 1947 survey plan [48], and physical connection between the farm complex and Tingalpa Creek
  • Remnants of former wells and windmill (by 1947).

Residence (c1860s-c1910)

The residence consists of three timber structures connected by covered walkways and verandahs: a gable-roofed Main House facing the road to the east; a Hip-roofed Wing to the northwest; and a low-profile skillion-roofed Kitchen to the southwest.

Main House

The Main House is located a short distance from the entrance gate which aligns with the front stairs. The house is a single storey building, rectangular in plan with open verandahs to the east (front) and north, and an enclosed verandah along the west (rear). The front verandah features a gabled pediment centred over the front door and timber steps; and there is a faceted bay window to the north verandah. Recycled materials are evident, including a (former) stair stringer incorporated as a verandah floor beam at the southern end.

The earliest portion of the main house is supported on a grid of large log bearers half-notched over stumps and adzed square on top to carry pit-sawn floor joists and flooring. The extension to the south has square rough-hewn transverse bearers, supporting mill-sawn joists and flooring. The front and north verandah floor height appears to have been altered, joists replaced and floor boards overturned.

The house core is rectangular in plan and comprises three front-facing rooms under the gable roof, and two rooms on the rear enclosed verandah separated by an enclosed porch. In the central front room, the front door aligns with the rear door and the northern wall has a large opening into the adjacent room. Doors at the north and south ends of the house connect the front rooms to the rear enclosed verandah rooms.

Features of the Main House also of state-level cultural heritage significance include:

  • location within the complex
  • highset, gable-roofed form with a separate hip roof to the verandahs, featuring an east-facing gable-roofed pediment
  • roof, including its: corrugated metal cladding (replaced timber shingles, c1930s); turned timber finials to each end of the ridgeline; decorative timber bargeboards; and shingle battens (visible above the verandah rafters and under the eaves to the gable ends; and likely also concealed under roof cladding)
  • pediment, including its: turned timber finial; decorative timber fretwork infill; decorative timber bargeboards; and decorative metal ridge cap
  • east (front) and north verandahs, including:
    • stop-chamfered timber posts, with collars and decorative brackets
    • timber floor boards
    • unlined ceiling, with exposed roof frame
    • decorative cast-iron balustrade with timber top rail to north verandah
    • timber board valance to south end of front verandah
    • front stair location, centred with the front door
  • exterior wall cladding of timber boards of varying profiles and widths reflecting the various phases of modification and additions, including:
    • To the core:
      • wide (285mm) chamferboards to front wall
      • 150mm weatherboards to north and south walls, and gable ends
      • 185mm chamferboards to northern bay window
      • single-skin V-jointed (VJ), tongue-and-groove (T&G) vertical boards with exposed mid-rails to west wall
    • To the enclosed verandah:
      • single-beaded 140mm vertical boards that finish on an adzed bottom plate
  • adzed timber posts to northeast and northwest corners of core
  • early interior layout:
    • three front rooms (north, central and south), including their:
      • double-beaded, horizontal timber board wall lining (central and north rooms)
      • double-beaded, vertical timber board wall lining (south room)
      • timber board-lined, coved ceilings
    • enclosed verandah, with central entrance porch, north and south rooms, including:
      • unlined, single skin walls
      • timber board-lined, raked ceiling
  • bay to north room, including narrow, low-waisted, glazed doors to the faceted corners; and fixed, four-light central window
  • timber panelled front (east) door; timber ledged and battened door to enclosed west verandah; and narrow, boarded timber doors connecting the front rooms and enclosed verandah at its north and south ends
  • double-hung timber-framed windows (two-light to the east and north, six-light to the west); timber frame to the south (sash has been removed); and timber-framed casement windows (two-light) to the enclosed verandah’s south end
  • timber shutters to western and northern windows
  • extensive early timber joinery, including:
    • turned finials to the gable roof and pediment
    • decorative fretwork features to the verandah post brackets, gable bargeboard and the pediment infill
    • chamfered posts and a low timber bench balustrade to the front verandah
  • timber lattice gates between Main House and Hip-roofed Wing
  • timber floor boards (most are concealed by recent linings)
  • western verandah connection to Hip-roofed Wing
  • early timber sub-floor frame: log bearers, rough-hewn bearer, pit-sawn floor joists, and some mill-sawn joists
  • timber lattice screens enclosing the understory to north, east and west sides

Hip-roofed Wing

The Hip-roofed Wing is highset and aligned at right angles to the Main House and Kitchen. There are open verandahs on the north and west sides, and covered walkways to the south and east.

The interior layout comprises two rooms of unequal size, with the western room larger than the eastern room. The eastern room has been converted for use as a bathroom, and there is evidence that the western room has been enlarged (c1941-46) (marks in the ceiling and floor linings, and change in the sub-floor frame details). Both rooms have coved ceilings.

The sub-floor structure comprises early hand-sawn bearers and joists, supported by a combination of recent posts and stumps. Recent fabric partly-enclosing the understorey is not of cultural heritage significance.

Features of the Hip-roofed Wing also of state-level cultural heritage significance include:

  • location within the complex
  • highset, hip-roofed form
  • corrugated metal roof cladding
  • single-skin exterior walls with vertical timber board lining (140mm), and externally-exposed framing: cross braced to the south, east and part of the north wall; and with mid-rails to the west and remainder of the north wall
  • timber beaded board-lined, coved ceilings to interiors
  • southern verandah, including its: timber chamfered timber posts with timber collars; timber floor, timber double-beaded board ceiling lining
  • northern verandah’s decorative cast-iron balustrades with timber top rails (may have been re-used from Main House)
  • early timber sub-floor frame: hand-sawn bearers and joists.

Kitchen

The Kitchen is a highset, timber-framed, and skillion-roofed structure that is aligned approximately north-south (parallel to the Main House). It is connected to, but set lower than, the Main House and Hip-roofed Wing.

The interior layout comprises a single room, with a pantry addition to the northwest corner, and a small porch with a stair in the northeast corner.

The sub-floor structure comprises recent timber stumps supporting square adzed perimeter bearers and log floor joists adzed square top and bottom.

Features of the Kitchen also of state-level cultural heritage significance include:

  • location within the complex
  • highset, skillion-roofed form
  • corrugated metal roof cladding
  • single-skin exterior walls with vertical board lining and externally-exposed framing: cross braced to the south and north (partially concealed by pantry); and with mid-rails to the east and west
  • pantry to northwest (c1890s-1910s), including its beaded timber board exterior and interior wall linings, and narrow opening into the Kitchen interior
  • northeast porch, with its timber frame, stair (including vertical timber board lining to the subfloor of the landing; alignment likely altered) and floor board
  • beaded board timber, ledged door to the east (accessing the porch)
  • timber-framed double-hung window, and its straight, timber-framed, corrugated metal-clad hood to the south; and timber-framed colonial-hung windows to west (six-light), and to north of pantry (two-light)
  • timber French doors to south verandah
  • triple-beaded timber board ceiling lining
  • timber skirting boards
  • timber floor boards (concealed)
  • early timber sub-floor frame: adzed perimeter bearers, and log joists adzed square top and bottom.

Features of the Residence not of state-level cultural heritage significance include:

  • recent floor linings, including carpet and linoleum
  • recent electrical fittings and fixtures, including air-conditioning unit to Main House, and fuse box, cables and conduit to east elevation
  • PVC downpipes, poly-pipes, and recent drains
  • to the Main House:
    • front (east) stair (replaced in the same location, but to a different alignment)
    • seat balustrade to front (east) verandah
    • stair to north verandah (c1980s)
    • recent plywood sheets concealing timber floor board damage
    • recent metal stumps
    • plywood sheets concealing doors and windows.
  • to the Hip-roofed Wing:
    • northern and western verandahs (c1980-85), with their roof, floor, and structural frame; and the northern verandah’s decorative cast-iron balustrades with timber top rails (match the Main House, but appear to be of more recent construction)
    • eastern room: recent toilet and basin fixtures and lacquer and drain to timber floor to accommodate a shower
    • western room: recent decorative wallpaper finish, dado rail and ceiling rose
    • interior partition (c1980s)
    • non-original skirting and architraves
    • timber French doors to the north and west verandahs
    • two-light, timber-framed, double-hung windows to west verandah
    • enclosed understorey, including timber posts on stirrups; metal rectangular hollow section (RHS) posts; CCA treated stumps; timber lattice; plywood sheeting; concrete-block retaining walls; brick retaining walls; and concrete slab floor.
  • to the Kitchen:
    • CCA treated timber stump
    • bi-fold timber French door to the west (former chimney and hearth location)
    • skillion-roofed extension over stair and landing to the northeast (c2000s)
    • western verandah (continuous from Hip-roofed Wing), including its roof, floor, frame and balustrades (c2000s)
    • timber-framed double-hung windows fixed to the inside of square window openings to the north and west
    • recent fixtures and fittings, including gas stove, rangehood, sink and its associated benchtop and pipes, and wall-hung shelves
    • treated timber retaining wall to the east and south of understorey, and excavation to this area.

Milking Shed (c1860s-1880s)

The milking shed is a long (approximately 24m x 7m) slab timber, gable- and skillion-roofed structure situated to the south of the Residence and aligned approximately north-south. The main shed section has a gable roof, and a skillion roof runs along the western side where the floor level is at a lower (approximately 550mm lower) level. The south and north walls are open below a tie beam, with timber weatherboard wall cladding and centred doorways above. The north elevation features a half-height door and the wall under the skillion is clad with timber slabs and weatherboards.

The interior layout reflects the functional requirements of the milking process. The milking bails, comprising 11 stalls, are located along the eastern wall and occupy approximately two-thirds of the main shed section. This section has a concrete slab floor that slopes down to the west toward a drain running along the length of the shed. Timber posts, some with two-rail balustrades between, align along the western edge of the concrete slab and support the junction of the gable and skillion roofs. A concrete ramp accesses the main shed section from the western skillion-roofed space. A room at the north end of the western skillion-roofed space has a concrete slab floor with an up-stand.

The milking bails retain fabric from various phases of construction and use. The bails comprise an alignment of 11 timber log posts (offset from the eastern wall by approximately 550mm and set at 1600mm centres) supporting a square adzed top rail. The top rail has slots where vertical timber battens (two remaining) slide across (to keep the cow’s heads in place) and are secured / released by round timber pegs. Posts along the eastern wall (also spaced at approximately 1600mm centres) have two mortices, which indicate the location of previous stall division rails.

Features of the Milking Shed also of state-level cultural heritage significance include:

  • location within the complex
  • lowset, gable roof form, with western skillion
  • corrugated metal roof cladding (replaced timber shingles)
  • gable ends, including their: timber weatherboard cladding; centred doorways (the southern of which retains hinges and a small section of a timber boarded door); and square adzed external tie-beams
  • timber structure: posts and bearers (combination of round and square adzed); square milled rafters; and rough-hewn log tie-beams
  • vertical timber slab walls, with square adzed top and bottom plates to east and north walls (below the tie beam)
  • timber-framed window to north (mullions and glazing have been removed)
  • half-height boarded timber door to north
  • northwest corner enclosure: timber weatherboard and timber slab cladding to the northern wall
  • concrete slab floors, drains and upstands
  • concrete ramp to western side of main shed
  • early dairy machinery and pipes, including: metal pipes in the roof space extending the length of the bails, and remnant machinery mounted on tie-beams at the north end of the main shed section.

Features of the Milking Shed not of state-level cultural heritage significance are:

  • polycarbonate roof sheets (replacing corrugated metal sheets)
  • chicken wire fence to southwest end
  • non-dairying related tools and machinery
  • northwest corner enclosure’s: corrugated metal wall cladding to the west; and flat sheet and timber board wall cladding to the east
  • recent timber frames (including battens and props)
  • recent signs.

Cream Shed (c1904)

The Cream Shed is a lowset, gable-roofed, timber-framed structure to the northwest of the Milking Shed. Its north (front) elevation features an off-centre door (its small access stair has been removed, however a timber stump indicates its former location). To the east and west elevations are centred casement windows, and low-level ventilation openings.

Internally, the shed comprises a single room (approximately 3.5m x 2m). It has a flat ceiling and a concreted timber floor.

Features of the Cream Shed also of state-level cultural heritage significance include:

  • location within the complex
  • lowset, gable roof form
  • corrugated metal roof sheets (no gutters)
  • unlined soffits
  • single-skin, timber-framed walls, with internally exposed timber frame and cross-braces, and clad externally with vertical VJ timber boards, and
  • VJ timber ceiling lining
  • timber boarded front (north) door
  • evidence of timber stair to north (timber stump)
  • timber-framed, single, four-light casement windows to east and west elevations
  • ventilation openings, set at a low level to the east and west walls
  • elevated concrete slab floor on T&G timber boards
  • rough-hewn log joists and adzed bearers
  • round timber stumps
  • open, skillion-roofed lean-to extension to west, including its roof frame and corrugated metal roof sheets.

Features of the Cream Shed not of state-level cultural heritage significance are:

  • recent timber posts and timber lattice screen to skillion-roofed extension
  • metal sunhood over front door (not original)
  • recent electrical fittings and fixtures; pipes; and conduits.

Garage / Shed (c1860s-1880s)

The Garage / Shed is a long (approximately 11.5m x 4.5m) timber-framed, gable-roofed structure sited to the northwest of the Residence and aligned approximately north-south. Timber slabs cladding to the east and west walls, and a loft at the southern end of the structure (including its timber floor) have been removed.

The interior layout comprises a single open-plan space, with timber framing exposed to the roof space. The shed is open to all sides (originally only to the north and south ends).

Features of the Garage / Shed of state-level cultural heritage significance include:

  • location within the complex
  • lowset, gable roof form
  • corrugated metal roof cladding (most timber roof framing has been replaced)
  • gable ends, including their timber weatherboard cladding, and centred openings (boarded timber door to the north; and two timber-framed, six-light casement windows to the south)
  • rough-hewn timber log tie beams (140mm); and squared timber tie beam indicating the northern extent of the former loft
  • squared length of timber set into the earth floor, indicating the northern extent of the former loft above
  • earth floor.

Features of the Garage / Shed not of state-level cultural heritage significance are:

  • recent square timber structural posts on metal stirrups; their concrete footings and timber struts
  • recent concrete blocks at ground level to east and west sides.

Water Tank and Stand (by 1947)

Located between the Residence and the Milking Shed, the water tank is set on a 5-6m high timber stand. The base of the stand is enclosed to form an outdoor shower.

Features of the Water Tank and Stand of state-level cultural heritage significance include:

  • location within the complex
  • tank stand, comprising six rough-hewn timber posts in a square plan, with a platform of milled timber bearers, joists and boards (posts are cross-braced with milled timbers)
  • cylindrical, corrugated metal tank
  • narrow-profile corrugated metal-clad outdoor shower enclosure.

Features of the Water Tank and Stand not of state-level cultural heritage significance are:

  • water heater (associated with shower).

In-ground Water Tank (by 1947)

South of the Residence (Kitchen) is a cylindrical In-ground Water Tank that is approximately 4m in diameter. Constructed of brick, with concrete render to the upper section and in patches to the lower section, it is deep with its walls extending approximately 500mm above the ground level.

Features of the In-ground Water Tank of state-level cultural heritage significance include:

  • cylindrical form and location within the complex
  • brick and concrete render construction: render to the upper 600mm, and face brick below (the upper courses of bricks are deteriorated and damaged, with missing and replaced bricks and patchy render)
    • some face bricks are loose and feature circular machine-made marks and the maker’s mark ‘B’ in their rectangular frog
  • indentation in the concrete render to north side of the tank.

Features of the In-ground Water Tank not of cultural heritage significance are:

  • PVC pipe diverting rainwater from the Kitchen roof, and PVC pipe connected to the east side of the tank below ground level
  • recent safety fences surrounding the In-Ground Water Tank
  • timber planks and debris.

Grounds and Setting

The established grounds, comprising lawn areas and mature plantings, provide an understanding of the place’s landscaped, rural setting. Early perimeter fences and gates define the front (Old Cleveland Road East) boundary, and other built features within the site contribute to the interpretation of its historical functions as part of a working dairy farm.The buildings and mature vegetation are largely concentrated on the eastern side of the site, while the western and northern sides generally comprise open areas of lawn with scattered mature trees and adjacent areas of former cultivation, pasture and delineation of paddocks.

Features of the Grounds and Views of state-level cultural heritage significance include:

  • painted, scalloped, timber picket fence along the front (Old Cleveland Road East) boundary, including evidence of early gate entrances:
    • pedestrian entrance (centred with the entry stair to the Residence): square timber posts, topped with a wide cap and ball finials (gate and southern ball finial removed)
    • driveway entrance (north of the Residence (Main House)): square and round timber posts, with fence tapering in away from the road (gates removed)
    • south of the Milking Shed: fence return away from road (timber-rail and braced gates and round posts removed).
  • evidence of early timber and wire fences running east-west to the northwest of the Miking Shed
  • alignment of former unsealed driveway (clear of structures), entering from Old Cleveland Road and running around the northeast, north and west sides of the Garage / Shed
  • low stone wall with two timber posts (one no longer standing) at the northwest corner of the site, indicating a former gate from the pastures to the farm yard
  • open areas of lawn at the western side of the sit
  • mature trees, including:
    • a row of three mature Norfolk pine trees (Araucaria heterophylla) running east-west, to the north of the Residence
    • mature Chinese fan palm tree (Livistona Chinesis) between the Residence and the Norfolk pine trees
    • mature mango tree (Mangifera indica) to northwest of Cream Shed
    • three mature frangipani trees (Plumeria sp.) to northwest, northeast and southeast of Cream Shed
    • mature Camphor Laurel (Cinnamomum camphora) to the southwest corner of the site
    • mature piccabeen palm trees (Archontophoenix cunninghamiana): one east of the Water Tank and Stand, one north of the Residence, and ten in a row along the southern side of the former driveway
    • two mature Bunya pine trees (Araucaria bidwillii) to the west of the Garage / Shed.
  • former area of cultivation, pasture and delineation of paddocks shown in the 1947 survey plan, and physical connection between the farm complex and Tingalpa Creek
    • undeveloped character 
    • remnant fence posts.

Features of the Grounds and Views not of cultural heritage significance are:

  • recent chain- and barbed-wire security fences to site perimeter
  • security spot-lights and associated wires and poles
  • vegetation not previously mentioned
  • metal storage container at the western side of the site
  • recent timber pergola east of the Garage / Shed
  • recent un-milled timber at the northern end of the site
  • recent septic system and its surrounding safety fences
  • regrowth and exotic vegetation in the area of cultivation, pasture and delineation of paddocks shown in the 1947 survey plan.

Former Wells and Windmill Remnants (by 1947)

Historical documents indicate two wells and a mill were extant in the vicinity of Tingalpa Creek by 1947, with water pumped to the elevated metal storage tank near the residence. The likely Former Wells and Windmill Remnants are located approximately 200m west of the Residence, on a level site above the steep eastern banks of Tingalpa Creek. The remnants comprise timber posts arranged around a depression in the ground, and various metal components visible on and in the ground.

Features of the Former Wells and Windmill Remnants of cultural heritage significance include:

  • timber posts, including:
    • three round posts arranged in a triangular plan, standing approximately 1.25 metres high, one post retains a large metal bolt near its top
    • small post to the west side of the site
    • large round post to the east side of the site
  • metal components, including: large U-Shaped metal bracket, cut and folded flat metal sheets, long curved narrow metal L-profile channel visible on and below ground surface on eastern side of site
  • evidence of former wells: soft ground and depression indicating the location of well shaft (filled), and potential subsurface well shafts and linings.

Features of the Former Wells and Windmill Remnants not of cultural heritage significance are:

  • recent in-ground L-profile metal pegs
  • piles of cleared vegetation.

References

[1] Queensland Government, Map 1, South East Queensland’s Traditional Owner Groups, August 2017.
[2] Mary Howells, Living on the Edge: along Tingalpa Creek, a history of Upper Tingalpa, Capalaba and Thorneside, Redlands Shire Council, n.p., 2000, p. 20; Queensland Government Gazette, (QGG) 1863, p.59.
[3] Howells, Living on the Edge, p.14.
[4] NSW State Archives. <http://srwww.records.nsw.gov.au/ebook/list.asp?Page+NRS5316/4_4795?Ascendant_19 June 1858/…>, accessed 14 Jul 2015; Queensland State Archives (QSA), Index to Registers of Immigrant Ships Arrivals 1848-1912, Series ID13086; W Frederic Morrison, The Aldine History of Queensland, Aldine, Sydney, 1888, n.p.; Queensland Family History Society (QFHS), Queensland Founding Families: Biographies of families living in Queensland prior to Separation from NSW, 2nd ed. QFHS, Indooroopilly, Qld, c2009, n.p; Jennifer Harrison, ‘“Good ploughmen and useful servant girls’: Immigration to pre-Separation Moreton Bay’, History Queensland, v. 20, n. 11, Aug 2009, p.537.
[5] Harrison, ‘”Good ploughmen and useful servant girls”’, p.538; Margaret Kleinschmidt, ‘Government and Immigration, 1859-1866’, Royal Historical Society of Queensland Journal (RHSQJ), v. IV, n. 5, Dec 1952, pp.723-24; QFHS, Queensland Founding Families, n.p.; Queensland Marriage Register Index 1860, Ref: B38; QSA, Index to Registers of Immigrant Ships’ Arrivals 1848-1912, Series ID: 13086; Queensland Birth Register Index; Queensland Death Register.
[6]‘Alienation of Crown Lands Act, 1863, Browse Land Legislation 1833 - 1910 (for Queensland) | QUT Digital Collections  Accessed October 2021; Kay Cohen, ‘Public Service Boards 1859-1920’ in Kay Cohen and Kenneth Wiltshire, eds, People, Places and Policies: Aspects of Queensland Government Administration 1859-1920, UQP, St Lucia, Queensland, 1995, p.97; Ross Fitzgerald, From Dreaming to 1915: A History of Queensland, UQP, St. Lucia, Qld, 1985, p.133; W Ross Johnston, The Call of the Land: A History of Queensland to the Present Day, Jacaranda Press, Brisbane, 1982, p.51; Beverley Kingston, ‘The Origins of Queensland’s “Comprehensive” Land Policy’, Queensland Heritage, vol. 1, no. 2, May 1965, p. 4; Kingston, ‘“Comprehensive” Land Policy’, pp. 6, 8; Raymond Evans, A History of Queensland, CUP, Cambridge, 2007, p.78.
[7] Val Donovan, ‘Exploration and Settlement: Conflict in Queensland, an Overview’, Queensland History Journal, Volume 23, 2018, p.584.
[8] A A Jordan, ‘Dr Lang – Emigration Supporter’ RHSQ Journal, v. 6, n. 1, 1959, p.240; 'David Cannon McConnel's second 'bump of hope': Bulimba house and farm 1849-53', in Brisbane History Group (BHG) papers no.6, BHG, Brisbane, Ch. 4; Harrison, ‘”Good ploughmen and useful servant girls”’, p.537; D.B. Waterson, Squatter, Selector, and Storekeeper: A History of the Darling Downs, 1859-93, Sydney University Press, Sydney, 1968, pp.103-6.
[9] The land was proclaimed on 12 April 1860 and selected by James Willard and Mark Blundell. Portion 46, County of Stanley, Parish of Capalaba. DNRM, Deed of Grant 7324; 11th Paragraph, Regulations of the Alienation of Crown Lands Act 1860, QGG 1859-60, p.448; Alienation of Crown Lands Act 1860, Section 46. See: Para 11, Regulations of the Alienation of Crown Lands Act 1860, QGG, 1 Dec 1860, p.448.
[10] Carolyn Cossill (descendant), Pers. Comm, 4 Aug 2015; Barry Kidd, Redlands Illustrated History: the beauty, charm and history of the magnificent Redlands districts of Queensland, Barry Kidd, Queensland, 1979, p.38.
[11] Redland Libraries, Quandamooka, Redlands Coast Timelines: Local History as Recorded Since European Settlement, Redlands Coast/Redland City Council, <https://www.redland.qld.gov.au/info/20126/history_and_heritage/182/our_quandamooka_origins> Accessed February 2022, p.20; J G Steele, Aboriginal Pathways in Southeast Queensland and the Richmond River, University of Queensland Press, Brisbane, 1984, pp.110-114.
[12] Queensland Government Gazette 1866, p. 59; Applications for timber licences were made between July and December 1865 and granted in January 1866; Redlands Centenary Souvenir 1850-1950, self-published, 1950, n. p. cited by Howells, Living on the Edge, p.21; Theophilus Pugh, Pugh’s Almanac, Theophilus Pugh, Brisbane, 1864, n. p.; ‘Cleveland’, The Courier, 17 October 1863, p.3.
[13] DNRM, Land Purchase Certificate No 7324; QSA, Item ID: 2324356, Legal Agreements; In 1867 Mark Blundell was selecting land on the Darling Downs; QSA, Item ID: 39196, File – Land Selection.
[14] Howells, Living on the Edge, p.24.  
[15] Converge – Heritage and Community, Willard’s Farm Conservation Management Plan, Redland City Council, October 2016, pp.19-20.
[16] Robin Boyd, Australia’s Home, Penguin Books Australia, 1952, p.16; Peter Bell, Timber and Iron: Houses in North Queensland Mining Settlements, 1861-1920, University of Queensland Press, 1984 pp.60-66.
[17] Morrison, Aldine History of Queensland, n. p.
[18] DNRM, Survey Plan M3111.
[19] DNRM, Certificate of Title No. 29160 for Sub 2 Portion 42; Certificate of Title No 29160 for Sub1 Portion 42; Index to Register of Leases 1861-1868, Series ID 16128, Series ID 16150, p.77.
[20] This purchase was pre-dated by his mortgaging Portion 46 again in June 1876 for the sum of £65; DNRM, Certificate of Title No. 29160 for Sub 2 Portion 42; Certificate of Title No 29160 for Sub1 Portion 42; Index to Register of Leases 1861-1868, Series ID 16128, Series ID 16150, p.77.
[21] Howells, Living on the Edge, p.14.
[22] Queensland Post Office Directories 1876, Country directory.
[23] QSA, Divisional Boards Establishment and Function, <http://www.archivessearch.qld.gov.au/Search/AgencyDetails.aspx?AgencyId=10402> Accessed October 2021.
[24] Howells, Living on the Edge, p.30; Divisional Boards Nominations’, Brisbane Courier, 3 Feb 1880, p.3; ‘General News, The Queenslander, 7 Feb 1880, p. 180; QSA Item ID: 869149, Minute Book - Tingalpa Divisional Board 10/12/1879-31/12/1885: Pugh, Pugh’s Almanac 1880, p.485.
[25] QSA, Item ID32683, File – land selection. Brisbane, 1452.
[26] QSA Item ID14132, 14132 Administration file, Capalaba School.
[27] Other land purchases in the Capalaba area include six blocks of probably residential land near Birkdale Railway Station and at Cleveland, which were listed in his wife’s estate in 1916; ‘The Land Court’, The Week, 9 July 1881, p.6; He was issued a Certificate of Title for selection 1458 [QSA Item ID: 32683, File – Land Selection 8 Apr 1868-31 Mar 1887. William Willard selected Portion 119 – selection 3917; QSA Item ID: 35401 File - Land Selection 8 Apr 1868-31 Mar 1887; Resubdivisions 19-21 and 60-62 of Subdivision A of Portion 82 and subdivisions 128 and 129 of Portion 14, county of Stanley, parish of Capalaba cited in ‘Government Notices, Transmission by Death’, The Telegraph, 9 October 1916, p.6.
[28] Morrison, Aldine History of Queensland, n.p.
[29] Maize: ‘Wellington Point Agricultural Show’, The Queenslander, 6 Jul 1901, p.46; Sweet potatoes - ‘Wellington Point Show’, The Week, 29 May 1896, p.3; ‘Country News, Wellington Point‘ The Queenslander, 7 May 1904, p.34; ‘Wellington Point Show’, Brisbane Courier, 16 Jul 1906, p.5; ‘Wellington Point Annual Show’, The Telegraph, 19 Sep 1907, p.7; ‘Wellington Point 18th Annual Show’, The Telegraph, 12 Oct 1908, p.3.
[30] ‘Tick Inoculation’, Brisbane Courier, 23 Jan 1899, p.3; ‘The Tick Pest’, Brisbane Courier, 24 Feb 1899, p.6; Jack Guy, Birkdale, oral history interview cited by Tracy Ryan, Passing the Time: Tales of the Redlands. Redland Shire Council, n. p., 1996, p.49; A cattle dip was shown on a 1951 plan of the property; NAA, Commonwealth of Australia, Department of the Interior, Property & Survey Branch – Qld, Drawing No: L&S2634, 14 Nov 1951; ‘Country News’, Brisbane Courier, 2 May 1904, p.2.
[31] NAA, ‘Letter to the Chief Property Officer from Senior Leasing Officer’, 12 September 1958, Item No. QL583 – 1, p.283; QImagery, Aerial Photographs.
[32] Converge – Heritage and Community, Willard’s Farm Conservation Management Plan, p.13.
[33] Randall Photographic Collection supplied by Helen Duggan.
[34] Randall Photographic Collection supplied by Helen Duggan.
[35] Converge – Heritage and Community, Willard’s Farm Conservation Management Plan, Redland City Council, October 2016, pp.21-22.
[36] Ibid,. pp.21-22.
[37] Dairy Produce Act, 1904, Dairy Produce Act of 1904 (4 Edw VII, No 18) (austlii.edu.au) Accessed October 2021.
[38] Converge – Heritage and Community, Willard’s Farm Conservation Management Plan, Redland City Council, October 2016, p.27.
[39] Randall Photographic Collection supplied by Helen Duggan.
[40] Margaret Willard left this real estate and personal estate worth more than £1115 to her offspring, William and Margaret; QSA, Series ID4486, Margaret Willard.
[41] ‘Passing of the Pioneers’, The Queenslander, 1 Jul 1916, p.40.
[42] DNRM Certificate of Title No. 237152; Queensland Birth Register, 1875, Ref: B19473.
[43] ‘Ideal property for Lease’ and ‘High Class Furniture and Stock’, The Telegraph, 30 Jan 1924, p.10; The property was leased to Thomas Richard Charles Brown for seven years. He transferred the lease to Victor Ginns and Johns Ginns in 1932, but in July 1932 it was leased again, this time to William Littmann and John Fitzpatrick for five years; DNRM Certificates of Titles Nos 237156 and 237157; ‘Historic home bought by private buyers’, Wynnum-Redlands Herald, 19 March 1980, p.8.
[44] ‘Dairy Clearing Sale’, The Courier-Mail, 16 April 1940, p. 20; ‘Historic home bought by private buyers’, Wynnum-Redlands Herald, 19 March 1980, p.8; DNRM, Certificate of Title No. 392237.
[45] Entry on the Queensland Heritage Register, US Army Radio Receiving Station (QHR 650249); ‘US Army Signal Corps Capalaba Radio Receiving Site at Old Cleveland Road East, Capalaba near Brisbane, Queensland During WW2’,  US Army Signal Corps, Capalaba Radio Communications site, near Brisbane, QLD during WW2 (ozatwar.com) , accessed October 2021.
[46] DNRM Cert of Title No 483053 and Cert of Title No. 483052; Entry on the Queensland Heritage Register, US Army Radio Receiving Station (QHR 650249).
[47] National Archive of Australia (NAA), ‘Lease agreement between Rosemary Innes Cotton and Commonwealth of Australia’ 1951, Item No.22924927; NAA, ‘Memorandum of Transfer, Commonwealth of Australia to Rosemary Innes Cotton, 1951, Item No.22924927; NAA, ‘Letter to Redland Shire Council from Deputy Crown Solicitor, Commonwealth Government: Land at Capalaba: Compulsory Acquisition 1st July 1948’, 7 June 1951, Item No.22924927,  .
[48] National Archives of Australia (NAA), 1947, Valuation Portion 41, 42 and 46, Freehold Property at Capalaba, James Thorpe & Co., Auctioneers and Valuers; National Archives of Australia (NAA), 1951, Detailed Survey Radio Receiving Station, Capalaba, LS2634.
[49] National Archives of Australia (NAA), 1947, Valuation Portion 41, 42 and 46, Freehold Property at Capalaba, James Thorpe & Co., Auctioneers and Valuers; National Archives of Australia (NAA), 1951, Detailed Survey Radio Receiving Station, Capalaba, LS2634.
[50] ‘Work Never Stops on ‘Pines’, The Courier-Mail, 10 Dec 1980, n.p.
[51] ‘Historic home up for auction’, The Courier-Mail, 13 Feb 1980, n.p; The two bedroom cottage, used for housing farm labourers, was located on what is now Lot 1 SP146445 and has been demolished.
[52] National Archives of Australia, Capalaba Remote Receiving Station and Power House Site Plan, 1959, Item No. QA1959/460; National Archives of Australia, ‘Letter from Deputy Director Post and Telegraph, PMG to Allied Works Council’, 28 August 1944, USAFIA (United States Army Forces in Australia) – Construction and installation of rhombic antennae – Capalaba, Queensland, Series No. MP721/1, Item No. W509/22, 1943-1946;  National Archives of Australia, 1951, Detailed Survey Radio Receiving Station, Capalaba, LS2634.
[53] National Archives of Australia, ‘Memorandum from Chief Property Officer to Officer-in-Charge, Land and Property Section’, 14 January 1957, Item No. QL5831, p.473; National Archives of Australia, ‘’Letter from Department of Civil Aviation to Department of the Interior’, 16 July 1971, Item No. MP7211, p.583; Redland City Bulletin, ‘Obituary’, 27 September 2019, <Birkdale's goat lady Isabella Alcock, long-time resident of Willard's farm, dies aged 84 | Redland City Bulletin | Cleveland, QLD> Accessed 26 November 2021.
[54] National Trust of Queensland, ‘The Pines’, File no. RED 2/4, draft citation and file notes.
[55] ‘Councillor wants role in Birkdale land discussions’, Redland City Bulletin, 18 June 2015; ‘Losing our history’, Redland City Bulletin, 18 July 2015; ‘Residents to discuss historic homestead’ Redland City Bulletin, 12 August 2015; Redland City Council, Redland City Plan, ‘Heritage Overlay Map’, Heritage_Place_Ml_OM_013 (1).pdf, Accessed October 2021; Entry on the Queensland Heritage Register, US Army Radio Receiving Station (QHR 650249).  

Image gallery

Location

Location of Willard's Farm (former) within Queensland
Licence
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Last reviewed
1 July 2022
Last updated
20 February 2022