Mount Gravatt State School: Head Teacher's Office, Adjoining Classrooms & Arbor Day Trees

European settlement began in the district as early as the 1860s with the initial land being surveyed in 1864. As settlement occurred and land was cleared the Mt Gravatt district became a predominately farming community with dairy farms, agriculture, vineyards and associated industries such as slaughter yards and mills. A fraction of the labour used for land clearing in this period was from South Sea Islanders (then known as Kanakas).

In the area now known as Mt Gravatt the predominant pioneering families were the Klumpps and the Angers, each with an initial sixty acre selection. Later these settlers were joined by families such as the Kessels, Hughes’, Newnhams, Dawsons, Clauss’ and Grieves’, also intent on establishing farms in the district. The majority of early settlers to the district were of German origin, often enticed to immigrate to Queensland by the Government’s policy of land grants. Agriculture (including fruit orchards and vineyards), cattle, sheep and poultry farming, and horse breeding were the principle sources of income for the settlers. Secondary industries such as a wool scour and abattoirs were also established in the late nineteenth century. Several Chinese families settled in the district and established market gardens and several Afghan and Indian families also moved into the area. The population of Upper Mt Gravatt was slow to increase in this period due to lack of infrastructure and facilities. This was, however, gradually changing.  

As the Logan road proved to be the main thoroughfare and trade link to the Logan district and onwards to the coast it was still a rough bush track. An important advancement occurred in the district in the early 1860s with the Cobb and Co. coach service re-directing their Brisbane to Pimpama service through Mt Gravatt. Several hotels were established along the Logan road, including the Glindemann’s ‘German Bridge’ Hotel and the Mt Gravatt Hotel. These hotels were primarily used as passenger pick up and set down points for the coach company as well as to provide guests with overnight accommodation and meals. A changing station for the coach’s horses was located along the Logan road at Upper Mt Gravatt. The coaches also played an important role in the delivery of mail to the more remote areas along the Logan road, including Upper Mt Gravatt. Having this service available to the early settlers was extremely important as it reduced their isolation, albeit marginally. It also encouraged further settlement, as a postal service was perceived as a benefit. The first official Post Office was established at Mt Gravatt in 1877.

The traffic along the Logan road increased in the late nineteenth century. A constant flow of dray wagons carrying various loads of produce both to and from Brisbane, as well as cattle being driven to markets or abattoirs traversed the track. The building of the Victoria Bridge, connecting the North of Brisbane with the South assisted in the Logan road becoming the main thoroughfare to the south coast of Queensland. 

The original Mt Gravatt School opened on 29 June 1874 on land that is part of the current school site. It was located centrally for the local farming community, being built at the foot of Mt Gravatt and beside the main thoroughfare of Logan Road. The first building was a slab hut with an iron bark roof that accommodated teacher John Beach and the 30 students who became the school's first enrolments. A teacher's residence with detached kitchen, a buggy shed, and play-shed were soon added to the site.

In 1894, the school changed status from a Provisional School, where the majority of facilities were paid for by the local community, to a State School where 80% of the costs were covered by the Queensland Government. As need arose, additions were built onto the main school building. In 1901, the teacher's residence was converted into the Infant's school building and the headmaster, Samuel Jackson moved into an adjoining cottage on land owned by Amandus von Senden. 

The growth in the population of Mt Gravatt after World War One saw the number of enrolments outstrip the facilities available at the school. The local community and school staff pushed for a new, larger school.  On 13 June 1930, the Department of Public Instruction (later the Education Department) purchased an acre of land around the site to allow for the school's expansion. Three new classrooms and a Headmaster's office were erected on the site in 1930. A fourth classroom was added to this building in 1933. That this work was undertaken by the State Government during the early stages of the Great Depression shows the persistence of Headmasters Robert Stubbin and Martin Jones and the people of Mt Gravatt.

The 1874 school building was moved to the Mt Gravatt Showgrounds in 1930. It was demolished by the Brisbane City Council in 1974. The teacher's residence/ Infants school was moved to 99 Dawson Road to become a private home while the detached kitchen became the basis of a residence at 28 Invermore Street.

1. Brisbane City Council, Properties on the Web, post-1946 building approval cards

2. Brisbane City Council, 1946 aerial photographs.

3. Brisbane City Council’s Central Library, local history sheets

4. Department of Natural Resources, Queensland Certificates of title and other records.

5. John Oxley Library, Brisbane Suburbs – Estate Maps

6. Queensland Government, Queensland Pioneers Index 1829-1889, (Brisbane: Department of Justice and Attorney General, 2000)

7. Queensland Post Office Directories, 1868-1949