Addresses
Type of place
House
Period
Victorian 1860-1890
This is an image of the local heritage place known as Grigson's Cottage
Grigson's Cottage
Addresses
Type of place
House
Period
Victorian 1860-1890
Grigson’s Cottage was built circa 1877, probably by landowner and carpenter James J. Lovekin. The house is a variation on a 1860s-style workers’ cottage, designed in response to the unusually small allotment size and shape, as well as the gradient of the site. The Grigson family owned and resided in the house from 1880-1961. The house became the Wildlife House in 1980, before passing to its current owners.
Lot plan
L2_RP10649
Key dates
Local Heritage Place Since —
Date of Information —
Construction
Roof: Corrugated iron;Walls: Timber
Interactive mapping
Lot plan
L2_RP10649
Key dates
Local Heritage Place Since —
Date of Information —
Construction
Roof: Corrugated iron;Walls: Timber
Interactive mapping
History
Petrie Terrace was a high-density residential area early in Brisbane’s history. Located within walking distance from the central business district made it highly attractive in the 1860s, when Brisbane was without mass public transport. Workers’ cottages were erected close to their neighbours on small lots, while hotels, a school, the army barracks and a post office were added in the 1860s and 1870s. The area was so popular that the Petrie Terrace school, designed to accommodate 150 students, had just over 300 students enrolled on its inaugural day in 1868.
The lot on Clifton St was part of a portion of land reserved for a school, and sold as leftover land in the 1870s. James Lovekin was one of three purchasers of the land in 1872. Subsequently he and the other proprietors lost most of their land when it was resumed for the railway line to Ipswich (opened in 1875) and for road realignments. Lovekin’s new lot was just over six and a half perches. Legislation passed in 1885 forbade allotments smaller than sixteen perches.
Lovekin, a carpenter, probably constructed the dwelling himself. Its shape is a variation on the standard 1860s-style workers’ cottage, responding to the small lot size and shape, as well as the gradient of the land. Land resumptions and efforts to link Clifton St to Petrie Terrace, rather than Hale St (as it was originally) had given the street an unusual shape. The house was leased to a tenant and is listed as occupied in the 1878-79 Queensland Post Office Directory, by a railway labourer.
In 1880 Lovekin sold the house to Mary Ann Grigson, and the Grigson family took up residence. On the death of Mary Ann in 1890, the property was held in trust for her husband (John Marsh) and son (Edwin Henry). Edwin and his family continued to live in the property until his death in 1961. The house passed through subsequent owners, becoming the Wildlife House in 1980, before passing to its current owners.
This is an unusually-shaped gable roof nineteenth century cottage, surviving in one of Brisbane’s earliest suburbs. It was featured as a heritage place in the 1988 book Petrie Terrace Brisbane 1858-1988.
References
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Brisbane City Council, Properties on the Web, website
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Brisbane City Council, 1946 aerial photographs.
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Brisbane City Council’s Central Library, local history sheets
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Department of Natural Resources, Queensland Certificates of title and other records.
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Woodcock, Steve & Fisher, Rod, Petrie Terrace Brisbane 1858-1988, (Brisbane: Boolarong Press, 1988)
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John Oxley Library, Brisbane Suburbs – Estate Maps
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Queensland Post Office Directories, 1868-1949
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The Brisbane Courier, The Queenslander.
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Queensland Places: Petrie Terrace (website)
prepared by — Brisbane City Council (page revised March 2023)