10 Corvi Street, Mitchelton

Although James Taylor did not hold public office and has not been found to be an important person in the history of the district, the history attached to the construction and siting of this house displays important themes in the history of the district. Around the turn of the century this area of what was then known as Enoggera, was populated by timber getters, vignerons and dairy farmers. Little subdivision of original portions had occurred and housing generally consisted of a mix of substantial homes and small cottages. Taylor’s home was not a fine architect designed home, such as the Ferguson family’s ‘Ivanhoe’ or ‘Glen Retreat’, home to the manager of the Queensland Deposit Bank. However it was typical of the large homes of less illustrious citizens that were built on farmland – this one on an elevated site taking advantage of views both across Samford Road, and towards the mountains in the south-east; high above the low lying areas that were less desirable places to live, but not on the exposed top of the hill.

The Enoggera district was the last area of Brisbane to be serviced by a public railway. The line from Mayne, terminating at Enoggera was not opened until 1899. This contributed to the slow development of the area as it was only practical for residents to work locally or to be able to afford their own means of transport to the city. Further development occurred with the extension of the line from 1916 when Gaythorne (then called Rifle Range) station was opened. Mitchelton and Grovely stations followed in 1918, although Mitchelton remained the main terminus in the years prior to the second world war.

Portion 340 was transferred intact to Giovanni Corvi in 1907. Corvi however is not recorded as living in the district until much later. James Taylor remained in Fraser’s Road until about 1914. That year, John (the anglicised version of Giovanni) Corvi is recorded as having a shop in Bell (later Wardell) Street, Enoggera. By 1919, John Corvi is recorded as having his private residence in Fraser’s Road and a shop in Samford Road. With the extension of the railway, the district became more populated and farms generally started to give way to more suburban development. In 1916, the population was considered sufficient to warrant the establishment of Grovely State School (later Mitchelton Infants’) and by 1920 the Redemptorist fathers, who built the monastery in Church Road in 1929, were invited to the district to tend to the requirements of the growing local Catholic population. Giovanni Corvi contributed to this residential development, subdividing his property in 1926, annexing 12 acres and 2 roods to trustees. The remaining 3 acres 30.0 perches was subdivided in 1929 into residential allotments of just over 24 perches which were transferred to members of the Corvi family. The presence of this southern European family in the district prior to the extension and relaxation of immigration policies after the second world war, is an important exception to a fairly general restriction of non-British immigrants.

An area of 2 roods 16.7 perches was kept around the house and Corvi modernised the exterior of the house in 1930 adding a gable and external decorative elements to the verandahs that were popular at the time. The land was further subdivided following the deaths of Giovanni Corvi and his widow, Annie Corvi in 1935 and 1936 respectively. The land surrounding the house was divided to its present size in 1951.

The 1920s and 1930s were periods of increased development in the area, and the land surrounding this house was the first on this side of Samford Road to be developed into suburban blocks. Aerial photographs taken in 1946 clearly show this house surrounded by the only cluster of houses on this side of Samford Road after Taylors Road, while the preceding and opposite areas show close settlement. Existing housing stock surrounding this house indicates the stages of this early development.

This house, although altered to accommodate flats, and the way it is placed on the site, remain tangible testaments to the early development of this part of the district. Its initial construction at the turn of the century as the home of a local dairyman, and changing context and use from the 1920s, demonstrate historical and social themes that are important to the local community.

1. Kerr, John, Brunswick Street, Bowen Hills and Beyond – the railways of the northern suburbs of Brisbane, (Brisbane: Australian Railway Historical Society, 1988)

2. McKellar's Map of Brisbane and Suburbs. Brisbane: Surveyor-General’s Office, 1895

3. Queensland Certificates of Title

4. Queensland Post Office Directories

5. John Oxley Library Photographic Collection. Suburb - Mitchelton