Addresses
Type of place
Substation
Period
Interwar 1919-1939
Style
Free Classical
Addresses
Type of place
Substation
Period
Interwar 1919-1939
Style
Free Classical
This substation was erected circa 1938 to meet an increase in the demand for power supply to the Newmarket area. It was built just after the City Electric Light Company transferred its electricity supply back to the Brisbane City Council in 1935 as their franchise on the supply expired. City Architect Harold Erwood is believed to be responsible for the design. Still operational, the substation is now owned by ENERGEX and has continued to be upgraded in line with changing methods of electricity supply over the past 70 years.
Lot plan
L3_SP261255
Key dates
Local Heritage Place Since —
Date of Citation —
Construction
Roof: Corrugated iron;Walls: Face brick
People/associations
Harold Austen Erwood (Architect)Criterion for listing
(A) Historical; (D) Representative; (H) Historical associationInteractive mapping
Lot plan
L3_SP261255
Key dates
Local Heritage Place Since —
Date of Citation —
Construction
Roof: Corrugated iron;Walls: Face brick
People/associations
Harold Austen Erwood (Architect)Criterion for listing
(A) Historical; (D) Representative; (H) Historical associationInteractive mapping
History
Electricity during the mid to late 1930s was a topical issue within Brisbane and Queensland as demand for the utility grew. A Royal Commission into how best to organise and distribute electricity to the rest of South East Queensland commenced c.1935 and resulted in the State Electricity Commission Act of 1937.
Electricity Supply Department Annual Report and Balance Sheet for the years 1936-37 and 1937-38 disclose that there was an increasing demand in Brisbane for electricity. Profit for the financial year 1937-38 is given as 50,082.00.
During the period 1930 to 1935 the City Electric Light Company, who had supplied electricity to consumers in a number of areas throughout Brisbane through franchise, transferred its supply of electricity to the Brisbane City Council as the franchises expired. Thus, the Council assumed responsibility to supply electricity to Brisbane consumers.
The architect for the substation is thought to have been Harold Erwood, based upon the similarity in design with the Nundah sub-station (No:37) and his serving as City Architect at this time. Erwood served as City Architect from 1934 until 1940 on the salary of 475 p.a. He was appointed to the position after the death of A.H. Foster in 1934. Erwood also designed sub-stations at Kedron and Newstead.
The construction and operation of this sub-station and that at Nundah was dependant upon the arrival of switchgear for other substations. Both the Newmarket and Nundah sub-stations were to be equipped with switchgear from other sub-stations which were being upgraded with higher capacity switchgear. Operation of the sub-station was planned to commence in the ‘early months of the next financial year’ (1938-39). According to Osford-Jordan there were only two electricity substations erected during 1938.
Over the years the substation has received numerous additions to upgrade its performance. It is now part of the electricity group ENERGEX.
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:
References
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Detail Plan No: A 600. Dated 1.6.1927
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G. Greenwood and J. Laverty. Brisbane 1859-1959: A History of Local Government. Brisbane: BCC, 1959.
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Osford-Jordan, Christopher William. Study of the Architectural History of Brisbane Electricity Substations Before 1953. (Unpub Thesis University of Queensland) January 1984
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Reports and Proceedings of the Brisbane City Council. July 1933 - June 1934; July 1936-June 1937; July 1937-June 1938
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Watson, Donald and Judith McKay. A Directory of Queensland Architects to 1940. (St. Lucia: U of Q Press, 1984)
Citation prepared by — Brisbane City Council (page revised June 2022)