Invicta House

The company progressively purchased a parcel of land on the corner of Elizabeth and Edward Streets between 1919 and 1922, after which work was begun on the construction of a purpose-built warehouse building with office space. The building was completed in 1923 and was given the name of ‘Invicta House’ after the ‘Famous Invicta’ brand of clothing of which Hooper & Harrison was the sole proprietor in Brisbane.

The construction of the building contributed to the further development of the CBD’s principal warehouse precinct. The eastern portion of the CBD, roughly bounded by Elizabeth, Edward, Alice and George Streets, developed as a warehouse and light industry precinct in the late nineteenth century. This section of the city was once known as Frogs Hollow because it was a low-lying, marshy area prone to flooding. In the mid- to late-nineteenth century, the area was largely filled with small residences, boarding houses, and small businesses. From the 1880s, warehouses and small factories that were attracted to the area (as it was close to the wharf facilities located along the Town Reach of the river) progressively replaced many of these earlier buildings. This process reached its apogee in the 1920s.

Brisbane’s CBD also experienced a substantial building boom during the 1920s. According to the editor of The Architecture & Building Journal of Queensland, 1923 was the year that “The Building Boom” was manifestly apparent. The article stated: “Among the architects’ offices a very fine assortment of work is to be found either actually commenced or on the board” with Invicta House being one of the examples mentioned.1 The construction of Invicta House was considered integral to the beginning of the CBD building boom.

Following the construction of Invicta House The Architectural & Building Journal of Queensland published an article drawing particular attention to the fact that the building was fireproof, serviced by a lift and particularly well lit, even in the basement. The qualities of the interior were thus described:

The reinforced concrete stairs are rendered to the first floor level in Terrazzo with wrot iron palisading and maple handrails.  The entrance hall has a panelled dado in Queensland maple wax…The offices and mouldings to doors are similarly treated and give a most pleasing effect.2 

In February 1924, it was reported that Invicta House was a “handsome warehouse, occupying one of our most promising business centres.”3 The cost of the building was given as approximately £25,000.  With its modern appearance, the building made a distinctive contribution to the warehouse precinct in the eastern part of the CBD.

The architectural firm of Atkinson & Conrad designed the building. This firm (1918-37) was one of the more prominent architectural firms operating in Brisbane in this period and was responsible for a number of significant buildings in Brisbane, including the Masonic Temple in Ann Street (1930), Brisbane Boy’s College (1931) and the Courier-Mail Building in Queen Street (1937). Atkinson & Conrad also designed Pioneer House, the building adjacent to Invicta House. Walter Taylor, who is best known for construction of the Walter Taylor Bridge in Indooroopilly, constructed the building.  The use of reinforced concrete in the construction of Invicta House was a hallmark of Taylor’s construction method in this period.

Hooper & Harrison continued to operate from the first floor of Invicta House until at least the 1950s, while the other floors were leased by a variety of different tenants. The most prominent kind of business activity was warehousing, consonant with the building’s original design. By the 1940s, however, an accountant and the real estate agent, Ray White had offices there. 

Ownership of the building passed to Labor Enterprises Pty Ltd, the commercial arm of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), in 1961, though they occupied the building from 1958. The then Labor-owned radio station, 4KQ, also operated from Invicta House from the late 1950s. Invicta House was, until 1972, the state ALP headquarters. Political conditions for the ALP were mixed during their period of occupancy of Invicta House.  On the one hand, the federal and state branches of the Party had fallen into disarray following a split in Labor ranks in the 1950s.  This split effectively stymied ALP re-election both federally and in Queensland in this period. At local government level, however, the situation was much different. A Labor administration, headed by Clem Jones, was elected in 1961. The Jones era of municipal government (1961-75) in Brisbane is historically significant. According to one historian: “Clem Jones will be remembered very much for bringing Brisbane into the modern era”.4 As Lord Mayor of a Labor administration, this legacy reflects the broader significance of the ALP and its state headquarters in Brisbane. 

This darkish face brick building takes advantage of its two frontages with symmetrical facades of similar design incorporating attenuated pilasters dividing the building in the vertical bays typical of the style. A decorative cornice and vestigial pediment above the door mark the Edward Street entrance. The windows have vertical proportions. 

Exterior changes have been minimal except for the street level where the external walls have been painted cream and roller doors have been introduced.

1. Brisbane City Council, Properties on the Web, post-1946 building approval cards

2. Brisbane City Council, 1946 aerial photographs.

3. Brisbane City Council, Sewerage Map, 1913

4. Brisbane History Group, Brisbane’s Commercial Heritage 1900-1940: Three walking tours of the CBD, Brisbane History Group Inc., 2002

5. Cole, J. R., Shaping a City: Greater Brisbane 1925-1985, Brisbane, William Brooks Queensland, 1985

6. Coutts, J.V.D. (ed.), The Architectural & Building Journal of Queensland, 1923-24

7. De Gruchy, Graham. Architecture in Brisbane. Brisbane: Boolarong, 1988

8. Department of Natural Resources, Queensland Certificates of title and other records.

9. Fitzgerald, Ross, A History of Queensland from 1915 to the Early 1980s, Brisbane, University of Queensland Press, 1982

10. G. Greenwood and J. Laverty. Brisbane 1859-1959: A History of Local Government. Brisbane: BCC, 1959.

11. Job, William, The Building of Brisbane 1828-1940, Brisbane, University of Queensland Press, 2002

12. John Oxley Library, photographic collection.

13. John Oxley Library, newspaper clippings files

14. Johnston, W. R., A Documentary History of Queensland, Brisbane, University of Queensland Press, 1988

15. Mahlstedt & Son City of Brisbane Detail Fire Survey, Map No. 16, 1951

16. Murray, Robert, The Confident Years: Australia in the Twenties, Ringwood, Victoria, Allen Lane, 1978

17. Queensland Post Office Directories, 1868-1949

18. Ward, Ian ‘The Early Use of Radio for Political Communication in Australia and Canada: John Henry Austral, Mr Sage and the Man from Mars’ Journal article; The Australian Journal of Politics and History, Vol. 45, 1999. http://www.questia.com/PM.qst;jsessionid=FvNJLTpRyQthfCphSczb1hhyFjyFgtT82g7qY4hGknZ11yrLQ1pS!15464514?a=o&d=5001313166 Accesssed 23 Oct 2006

19. W. R. Johnston, The Call of the Land: A History of Queensland to the Present Day, Brisbane, The Jacaranda Press, 1982, p. 144

20. The Architectural & Building Journal of Queensland, 8 January 1923, p.8

21. The Architectural & Building Journal of Queensland, 7 July 1923, p.64

22. The Architectural & Building Journal of Queensland, 7 February 1924, p.8

23. John R. Cole, Shaping a City: Greater Brisbane 1925-1985, Brisbane, William Brooks Queensland, 1985, p. 286