Enoggera Presbyterian Church and Hall (former)

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. With the passing of Edward Pickering in 1887 the large land holding was slowly subdivided into one to two acre lots.

The first church in the area was established in 1867, the foundation stone being laid by the first Governor of Queensland, Sir Bowen. Built by the Nicolson family, St. Matthew's Church of England represented the fledgling Anglican community's need for a place of religious worship. The Catholic presence in the area was strong with the Redemptorist Fathers building their monastery in 1929 and the Good Shepherd Sisters establishing a convent in 1930. Our Lady of Dolours Catholic School was established in 1932.

In 1911 the population of the Enoggera district was 702 and by 1920 the population had risen to 1136. A need for community facilities emerged in the early twentieth century. Prior to the construction of the Pickering Street Church in 1915 the Presbyterian congregation in the area held their services at Malcolm Finlayson's residence `Bowerbank', with services led by Reverend James Milliken of Wilston.

The Enoggera Presbyterian Church, the first in the area, was built in 1915. In this year a thirty-three perch lot was purchased by the Presbyterian Church of Queensland from the former Pickering farm. Importantly this coincided with the purchase of land by the Commissioner for Railways. Prior to this in 1899 a branch line to Enoggera was built, mainly to service the Newmarket saleyards, but in 1916 was extended to Gaythorne, the station then known as Rifle Range Station (this name stemmed from the Commonwealth Government rifle range on the southern side of Samford Road). The extension of the rail line helped to facilitate the development of the Gaykrne acea.

In a letter dated 19 July 1915 to the Presbytery Clerk, Brisbane, Malcolm Finlayson on behalf of the congregation wrote, "At a meeting of a Presbyterian Residents in the District of Enoggera...it was reported that a site for a Presbyterian Church had been secured in a suitable locality." With the acquisition of the land Tenders were called for the construction of a timber church. At a cost of £462 the church was built by Messrs. Pye and Fischer and opened on 7 August 1915. The services were conducted by Reverend James Gibson and Reverend James Milliken.

On 17 May 1915 The Brisbane Courier reported the stump-capping ceremony taking place prior to the construction of the Church, it stated

The stump-capping ceremony in connection with the Presbyterian Church about to be erected at Enoggera was performed on Saturday afternoon by the Moderator of the Assembly Rev Jas. Walker.. .Mr. Park extended a hearty welcome to the Moderator on behalf of the community, and said he did not think there were more enthusiastic Presbyterians to be found anywhere than at Enoggera...Mr. Finlayson stated that the land on which the church was being built had been purchased for 90.. .This had been augmented by a donation of 50 from Mr. W. R. Black, and many other contributions.1

The financial contribution given to the congregation by W. R. Black was important in assisting the purchasing of the land on which the Church was to be built. Black was an important figure in the Presbyterian Church in Brisbane at this time. William Robert Black was a Northern Ireland born immigrant to Queensland, arriving in 1880. He worked his way up from humble coal delivery in Brisbane to owning his own coal delivery business from 1885, and he soon had a fleet of twenty-six vessels transporting coal on the Brisbane and Bremer Rivers. By purchasing large tracts of land west of Ipswich, Black established several collieries. He used the very latest technology available in that period to extract the maximum amount of coal in a minimum amount of time. Black retired from his lucrative business ventures in 1920. As a devout Presbyterian he began to donate much of his accumulated wealth to the church and played a role in the church community. W.R. Black's first generous donation to the Presbyterian Church was twenty-two acre `Dorrington Park' at Ashgrove. Several equally generous donations followed including two large parcels of land in Oxley and Chelmer on which children's homes were established.

Shortly after the Church was opened a Sunday school was built as a connecting building at the rear of the church. In 1939 a timber hall was built beside the church, this was a welcomed addition for the Presbyterian community. During the Great Depression the front fence and gate were constructed from cement and steel as a relief scheme for workers. With the creation of the Uniting Church in 1977 that joined the Methodist, Congregational Union and Presbyterian Churches Gaythorne parish was joined with the Enoggera parish in the same year. In 1979 several alterations were made to the original church. This included the construction of a brick porch at the front of the church.

The Hall features a gable roof, weatherboard walls and a centrally located gable-roofed entrance porch. The interior contains timber VJ timber boarding to the walls and a coved fibrous cement ceiling with decorative mouldings. The windows are timber multi-pane casements.

The perimeter fence is rough cast stucco with piers separated by bays topped with a tubular steel fence.

1. The Brisbane Courier, Monday 17 May 1915 p9

2. EPA Cultural Heritage Citation, “Strathern”

3. Historic Titles, Department of Natural Resources and Water

4. Queensland Post Office Directories

5. Metropolitan Water and Sewerage Survey Maps 1949

6. Bardon, R. 1949, The Centenary History of The Presbyterian Church of Queensland, Brisbane

7. Gaythorne Uniting Church: Celebrating 75 Years of Witness and Service, 1915-1990

8. Letter, July 19 1915, M. Finlayson representing the Enoggera Presbyterian Church to The Presbytery Clerk, Presbyterian Church Archive, Brisbane

9. Letter, September 24.1915, M. Finlayson representing the Enoggera Presbyterian Church to The Presbytery Clerk, Presbyterian Church Archive, Brisbane

10. Letter, September 2 1915, M. Finlayson representing the Enoggera Presbyterian Church to The Presbytery Clerk, Presbyterian Church Archive, Brisbane

11. Immigration, Youth and Culture, Ed. Ralph Fones, Oxley-Chelmer History Group, p. 13

12. Donald Watson and Judith McKay, Queensland Architects of the Nineteenth Century, South Brisbane: Queensland Museum, 1994

13. Brier-Mills, Margery, ‘Black, William Robert (1859-1930)’, Australian Dictionary of Biography (online edition)