Oxley Methodist Church Hall

Prior to the construction of the Oxley Methodist Church hall the Oxley Methodist community attended services and events at the Oxley Progress Hall, the Darra Methodist Church or the Graceville Methodist hall.  In the mid-1920s the Oxley Methodist community began to raise money for the construction of a new church hall to be used for services, Sunday school and Church events. In 1927 a thirty-two perch block of land was purchased along Oxley Station Road by the Oxley Methodist community, the trustees were George Iredale Bourne, Edwin Proctor and William Brown. 

A continued fund-raising effort conducted by the Oxley Methodist community soon had raised enough money for the construction of the hall. Events such as fetes and concerts were organised. On Monday 13 October 1930 The Brisbane Courier published an article ‘Church Activities: Oxley Stump Capping’. The ceremony was to celebrate the commencement of construction of the timber building. The ceremony was attended by respected Methodist community members including Reverend A. A. Mills, President of the Methodist Conference, Reverend J. A. Heaton, ex-President of the Methodist Conference, Reverend R. P. Pope, secretary of the Methodist Conference, Reverend H. Ralph Heaton, minister in charge of the circuit, as well as other dignitaries including Mr. Nimmo, M. L.A and Walter Taylor. 

The cost of construction of the new hall was estimated to be approximately £600. The report in The Brisbane Courier stated, “The building which is being erected primarily as a Sunday school hall, will be of wood, with a gable roof, and will measure 48ft. by 26 ft. There will be a vestibule porch, approached by double steps. The structure will be lined and ceiled …the floor of hardwood, crow’s ash, and stringy bark boards alternating, and the windows are to be of arctic glass”.1 In October, 1930 the Church hall was recorded in the Register of New Buildings. The estimated cost of the work was £590; the builder was Mr Gregory of Nundah. 

On Saturday 17 January, 1931 the Oxley Methodist Church hall was officially opened. The opening ceremony was attended by the Oxley Methodist community and officials as well as the Lord Mayor, Alderman W. A. Jolly. The Lord Mayor commented “on the remarkable progress of the Oxley district during the last 10 years, adding that he regarded the erection of the Methodist Church Hall as one of its coping stones”.2  The cost of the hall once completed exceeded the initial estimate, “the amount raised for the building fund since February 1926, was £458/19/8, and £853 had been spent on the property - £132 for the land, £590 on the hall, and £131 for furniture.”2 

Once completed the Oxley Methodist Church hall became the preaching centre for the Methodist Church community in the district. The hall is historically significant to Oxley as an interwar timber ecclesiastical building constructed by the Oxley Methodist community in response to the increased settlement in Oxley and the need for adequate spiritual centres. 

1. The Brisbane Courier, Monday 13 October 1930, p.3

2. The Brisbane Courier, Thursday 22 January 1931, p.19

3. The Brisbane Courier, Thursday 22 January 1931, p.19

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

5. Judy Gale Rechner, Brisbane House Styles 1880 to 1940: a guide to the affordable house, Brisbane: Brisbane History Group Studies No. 2, 1998

6. Historic Titles, Department of Environment and Resource Management

7. Queensland Post Office Directories

8. Metropolitan Water and Sewerage Survey Map

9. Rev R S C Dingle ed Annals of Achievement: A Review of Queensland Methodism 1847- 1947, Queensland Book Depot, Brisbane, 1947

10. Jenkins, Lesley, A Celebration of Culture: A Social History of Darra, Living in Brisbane, 2003

11. Fones, Ralph, Oxley! A Mind of its Own, Oxley-Chelmer History Group, 2006

12. Grantham, Lona, Heritage Tour: An Historical Tour of Oxley, Oxley-Chelmer Historical Group, 2003

13. The Brisbane Courier, Monday 23 September 1929, p.9

14. The Brisbane Courier, Saturday 9 November 1929, p.14