Addresses
Type of place
Shop/s
Period
Federation 1890-1914
Style
Italianate
This is an image of the local heritage place known as Pearsons Buildings
Pearsons Buildings
Addresses
Type of place
Shop/s
Period
Federation 1890-1914
Style
Italianate
This brick commercial building was constructed in 1890 for Thomas Pearson, a contractor, of Kangaroo Point. Finished in the Italianate style, it is a remnant of a period when this part of West End experienced significant commercial expansion.
Lot plan
L11_RP11147
Key dates
Local Heritage Place Since —
Date of Citation —
Construction
Roof: Corrugated iron;Walls: Masonry - Render
Criterion for listing
(A) Historical; (E) AestheticInteractive mapping
Lot plan
L11_RP11147
Key dates
Local Heritage Place Since —
Date of Citation —
Construction
Roof: Corrugated iron;Walls: Masonry - Render
Criterion for listing
(A) Historical; (E) AestheticInteractive mapping
History
Boundary Street in West End began to attract a number of residents and small business people in the 1870s. The farming community that West End was at this time gradually evolved into a residential area and various stores appeared to service this clientele. Horse-drawn trams ran from Breakfast Creek to The Boundary Hotel in the 1880s, providing an impetus for both residential and commercial development. The number of shops and houses constructed in this area and in the later 1870s and 1880s is indicative of the growth of Boundary Street and surrounding areas at this time. While this section of Boundary Street, between Jane and Vulture Streets contained a mixture of residences and commercial properties in the later 1870s, it had developed to an extent that by the late 1880s it was almost exclusively commercial.
This building was constructed circa 1890. Charles Cutbush, commercial traveller, had acquired this allotment and the one behind in 1874. It would appear that he built his residence here in Boundary Street after taking out a £300 mortgage in 1879. Title passed to John Wilson, landowner and proprietor of the nearby Boundary Hotel in 1883, which was subsequently passed to David McLeod later in the same year. McLeod mortgaged this property a number of times throughout the 1880s. He presumably constructed a number of shops here in this period.
Thomas Pearson, contractor, of Kangaroo Point and of the firm Pearson and Sons of South Brisbane acquired this property in 1890. He immediately commenced the construction of "Pearson's Buildings", premises which comprised five individual shops. Tenants ranged from the West End Pharmacy to James Hunter's West End Boot Palace, but a number of tenancies remained vacant throughout the 1890s, perhaps due to the depression of that decade.
John Jackson bought this property in 1902. In 1924 it passed to the draper James Malouf. Both these owners maintained the building as a rental property.
Description
This Italianate commercial building situated on Boundary Street has quite an extensive façade featuring five pairs of semi-circular arched windows on first floor level. This is also reflected in the parapet which is separated into five different portions by urns on pedestals. The central bay of the five has a small raised triangular classical pediment, and the other bays Italianate balustrading. Below this is a cornice and a blank frieze. Mouldings surround the upper portion of each arch and each has an ornamental keystone. A horizontal moulding runs as a band along the springing line of the arches. Another such band occurs at the sill level of the windows. A suspended awning runs across the front of the building, with modern shop-fronting below. The date "1891" occurs in the pediment.
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:
Citation prepared by — Brisbane City Council (page revised September 2020)