Shire Clerk's Cottage

The Queensland Government set aside approximately 0.8ha of land on Tingal Road, for the Board’s use, which was accepted. Tenders were finally called in March 1890 for the erection of the buildings, and that of J.G. Gross was accepted.

The hall and clerk’s house were completed by August 1890. The former Kianawah Divisional Board was renamed the Wynnum Divisional Board in 1892. Ten years later in 1902 a Wynnum Shire Council was created. Wynnum was declared a municipality in 1913. The property came under the control of the Brisbane City Council upon the amalgamation of the shires to form Greater Brisbane in 1925.

The house is most strongly associated with Joe Sands, a long-serving official of successive local authorities in the area. He and his family were resident in the cottage between 1907 and 1935. He combined the duties of Town Clerk and Engineer and is credited with much influence on the growth of the district and on the provision of roads, drains, bridges, parklands and waterfront improvements.

The old Council hall was demolished in 1976 and the Leisure Centre was built in its place in 1978. The cottage was acquired for use by the Leisure Centre in 1980 and restored in 1984.

The exposed external walls on the southern and eastern sides of the house are clad in chamferboards. The remaining external walls are protected by the verandah and feature single-skin, exposed frame walls of exemplary simplicity and workmanship. The interior features original T&G floors and VJ walls. Large back-to-back fireplaces serve the living room and kitchen.

The area beneath the house has been partially excavated and enclosed to provide additional gathering spaces for the 50 & Over Centre. The materials used are not in keeping with the house above but the spaces are generally set back from the battened screens and to not affect the principal views of the house. Access to the undercroft spaces is from the back of the house and again, this allows the views of the house to remain uncompromised.

The cottage is surrounded by well-kept lawns. The forested embankments of Wynnum Creek form a leafy backdrop to the pristine cottage and create a picturesque scene from Tingal Road and the adjoining 50 & Over Centre. An original post and rail timber fence delineates the top of the creek embankment in front of the house.

Although the cottage has undergone a series of minor modifications, including the aforementioned undercroft, it is still remarkably intact. The extensive lawns and forested embankments provide a setting that enhances appreciation of the former Shire Clerk’s Cottage.

1. Brisbane City Council Heritage Unit, ‘Shire Clerk’s Cottage Wynnum’, Conservation Management Study Site Report (June 2001)