Anzac Cottage

Importantly for the development of the area, South Pine Road ran through Mitchelton and Gaythorne and was one of the main routes from Brisbane to the Gympie Gold fields in the 1860s. In this period Stamford Road was a dirt track that was primarily used for the transportation of sheep to the Melrose slaughter yards at Grovely. 

The area in the late nineteenth century was predominately rural. Many early farmers grazed cattle or sheep as well as growing crops such as vegetables and sugar cane. Several farmers in this period introduced vineyards and winemaking to the region. The Pickering family in particular grew grapes and produced a red wine they labelled as ‘Rose Hill’. Pickering Street, Gaythorne was named after this pioneering family whose farm was situated adjacent to the Rifle Range (Gaythorne) railway station. The Nicholson family also had a vineyard and were locally renowned for their underground wine cellar. Along various parts of Kedron Brook Chinese farmers established market gardens and lived in small dwellings along the brook. Their produce was sold at the Roma Street Markets. 

The coming of the railway to the Mitchelton area assisted in the increase of development and population. In 1899 a branch line to Enoggera was built, mainly to service the Newmarket saleyards but it was later extended facilitating the development of the suburbs of Mitchelton and Gaythorne. By 1916 the line reached Gaythorne, the station then known as Rifle Range. 

The name stemmed from the Commonwealth Government rifle range on the southern side of Samford Road. With the commencement of the First World War in 1914 the rifle range’s proximity to the station facilitated its use as a military camp.  The war had a major impact on the Mitchelton and Gaythorne areas as several large military camps were established on Frasers Paddock (Enoggera Army Barracks) and Bells Paddock for the training and accommodation of troops prior to their departure to war from the Pinkenba wharves. Enoggera Barracks became a permanent army barracks as a result of the war. 

The Anzac Cottage Trust was established in Queensland in 1915 in an effort to ease the hardship experienced by the widows and children of soldiers and sailors killed in the First World War. The scheme provided timber cottages, mostly built on donated land and constructed by volunteer labour. Much of the material used for the construction of the cottages was supplied at cost price by many Brisbane businesses. 

In September, 1915 the Anzac Cottage Trust was established in Brisbane as a sub-committee of the Queensland War Council. The committee’s objective was to acquire land for the construction of homes for the widows and dependants of enlisted men, both military and naval, killed in the war and to establish new homes on the land. The proceeds for the establishment of the cottages were funded from the profits made by the Queensland lottery “Golden Caskets”, lottery numbers three, four and five. This was an initiative of the Anzac Cottage Committee headed by Harry Coyne, MP. 

The committee was also responsible for delegating who would occupy the houses. A prerequisite for occupancy was that the widow was to be of ‘good character’, remain unmarried and respectable. The widow was to pay a small rent of 1/6 per week as well as the rates and other expenses. The land was to be held in perpetuity by the Public Curator, with the widow or dependant signing a lease. The rental paid was to fund the ongoing maintenance of the cottages. If the widow was to re-marry it was required that the cottage be vacated. 

In Brisbane thirty-eight Anzac Cottages were built, in 1917 the first one was opened in Wynnum. 9 Dalmarnock Street is a rare surviving example of a Queensland Anzac Cottage and as such plays an important role in Brisbane’s First World War history and the impact the conflict had on the Brisbane community in this period.

1. EPA Cultural Heritage Citation, “Strathern”

2. Certificates of Title, Department of Natural Resources and Water

3. Queensland Post Office Directories

4. Metropolitan Water and Sewerage Survey Maps 1949