Norman Park Ferry Reserve

No commencement date has been discovered for the Norman Park ferry service. A service may have been operating, perhaps intermittently, some time before 1898. On 4 August 1898 tenders were called for the renewal of the lease for the Norman Park Ferry Service following petitions of 48 ratepayers. It is recorded that the service was leased to a private operator for 3 years in January 1903. 

As the cross river ferry services developed Balmoral Shire assumed control of the Norman Park, Hawthorne and Bulimba services. 

On 6 August 1912 a motor launch was introduced into the Norman Park service, augmenting the earlier row boat service. By 1917, small boats were being constructed at the base of the reserve. The ferry “Medora”, built on the riverbank next to the jetty, ran from Norman Park to New Farm, terminating at the Customs House in Creek Street. By 1928 it was estimated that 600 residents were using the service per day. 

One of the many rationalisations of the Greater Brisbane Council was the amalgamation of all Brisbane River ferry services under the newly formed civic authority. The Brisbane City Council assumed control of the Norman Park Ferry Service in 1927. 

In January 1929 a concrete pontoon was installed. However in the flood of 1931 the pontoon was swept from its moorings and sunk. The gangway and landing were also smashed. 

There was a general decline in the patronage of the ferry services from the late 1980s. For a time a zig-zag service including stops at Norman Park, New Farm, Hawthorne, Merthyr Road, Bulimba and Teneriffe operated. This service was suspended in 1991.

The CityCat ferry service was introduced in 1994 and many of the smaller ferry services ceased operation around this time. Norman Park cross river service continued to operate and a new pontoon was erected in 1996. By 1998 the service was suspended due to lack of patronage. Reintroduced briefly in 1999, the service finally ceased operation in December 2000.

An asphalt drive and path leads from Wynnum Road, down the eastern side of the reserve to the waiting shed. The edge of the path is marked by timber bollards and a planted bed of low shrubs. The rest of the site features a grassed area, shaded by a row of jacarandas at the top, and sweeping down to a stone river wall. The Energex equipment is housed in a chain wire enclosure. 

The ferry waiting shed is a simple hipped roof pavilion with terracotta tiles and weatherboard cladding. The ends of the rafters are exposed. The shelter rests on a concrete plinth, which forms the finished floor. A set of concrete steps leads down from the waiting area towards the jetty. 

The waiting area occupies the eastern end of the shed. The adjoining amenities room was added c.1954 (date of drawing). Internally, the waiting area walls are unlined, exposing the studwork and cross-bracing. Large openings on the north and south side are framed by open lattice panels and accommodate the pedestrian path between the jetty and Wynnum Road. A simple slatted timber bench is strutted off the bottom plate of the wall frame. Two timber rails fixed to the studs serve as backrests. The ceiling is lined with fibre cement sheeting with timber cover-strips to the joins. Above the top plate, a small section of the ceiling is raked, but most of the ceiling is flat. Access to the waiting area is now barred by a pair of steel framed chain wire mesh gates to each opening. 

The jetty remains intact and features a timber walkway and concrete pontoon. There is now no public access to the jetty. The jetty and waiting shed appear to be in good condition despite not being used for several years.

1. Brisbane City Council - City Assets Branch Conservation Management Study Stage 1 Report. November 2002