Addresses
Type of place
Boarding house, House
Period
Federation 1890-1914
Style
Queenslander
This is an image of the local heritage place known as Residence 'Monahilla'
Monahilla
Addresses
Type of place
Boarding house, House
Period
Federation 1890-1914
Style
Queenslander
This elegant Federation style timber house on the bank of Enoggera Creek was built for Michael Crowe, a publican, circa 1909. At this time, Newmarket's transformation from a rural area to a residential suburb was well underway and Enoggera Road was already a busy thoroughfare. The house remained a private residence until at least 1953 after which it appears to have been a boarding house for country visitors, and later, elderly gentlemen, before being converted back into a single dwelling.
Also known as
Rosie's Boarding House
Lot plan
L1_RP81369
Key dates
Local Heritage Place Since —
Date of Citation —
Construction
Roof: Corrugated iron;Walls: Timber
Criterion for listing
(A) Historical; (E) AestheticInteractive mapping
Also known as
Rosie's Boarding House
Lot plan
L1_RP81369
Key dates
Local Heritage Place Since —
Date of Citation —
Construction
Roof: Corrugated iron;Walls: Timber
Criterion for listing
(A) Historical; (E) AestheticInteractive mapping
History
As the route to the saleyards at Newmarket and the northern towns of Gympie and Kilcoy, Enoggera Road was a busy thoroughfare for both people and stock, and by the 1890s boasted a Wesleyan church, a hotel and several businesses including a wheelwright, blacksmith and butcher. The tramline was constructed along Enoggera Road at Kelvin Grove in 1901 and extended to Newmarket in 1903, encouraging residential development.
The house is situated on land which was included in portions 280 and 281 purchased by Deed of Grant by Robert Davidson in 1859. In 1866, an area of 2 acres along Enoggera Creek (sub C) was sold to Joseph Bancroft, a distinguished Brisbane surgeon and scientist, who owned several portions of land in the vicinity of Enoggera Creek. The suburb of Kelvin Grove takes its name from a house built by Bancroft in the area, named after gardens near Glasgow that he had frequented.
After Bancroft's death in 1894, the 2 acres of land on the north side of Enoggera Creek along with several acres of land on the other side of the creek passed to Mrs Ellen Hulme, under the terms of Bancroft's will. Mrs Hulme, a widow who resided in Kelvin Grove Road on the opposite side of Enoggera Creek, sold the land to Michael Crowe in 1909.
Available records suggest that the house, which was named Monahilla, was built for Michael Crowe circa 1909-10. He lived in the house until 1927 when the Crowe family moved to an interwar style house on the corner of Thurlow Street and Enoggera Road, also named Monahilla. From 1912 to 1916, Michael Crowe held the victualler's licence for the Newmarket Hotel on Enoggera Road. One local resident recalls that the Crowe family moved away from Enoggera Creek in an effort to improve the health of their children. After the death of Michael Crowe in 1932, his widow continued to live at this address until around 1940. The house at 4 Enoggera Road remained in the Crowe family until 1953.
In 1954, the subdivision was divided into two lots of one acre each. The house has since changed hands several times. According to the present owner, the house was at one stage a boarding house for country visitors, and during the 1960s became a boarding house for elderly men, known as Rosie's Boarding House with 15 or 16 rooms. The front railings on the house's verandah were recently removed as they had rotted, and were replaced with railings in keeping with current safety regulations. The previous owner reroofed the house, excavated underneath, added a tennis court and built a sandstone wall along the northern side of the yard.
Statement of significance
Relevant assessment criteria
This is a place of local heritage significance and meets one or more of the local heritage criteria under the Heritage planning scheme policy of the Brisbane City Plan 2014. It is significant because:
Supporting images
Unknown photographer,
‘Brisbane residence, 'Monahilla', at Newmarket, 1900',
John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland.
'Monahilla' was the first residence of the Crowe family. Michael Crowe first took up residence at Enoggera Road beside the Enoggera Creek, ca. 1910-11. (Information taken from: Queensland Post Office Directory, 1909-10, 1911-12.)
References
-
JOL photographs, Newmarket
-
Post Office Directories
-
Queensland Government Gazette, 1894, 1912
-
Titles Office Records
-
Ward, R.B. et al. Australian Dictionary of Biography, Vol 3, 1851-1890. Melbourne: MUP, 1969
Citation prepared by — Brisbane City Council (page revised June 2022)