Addresses

At 35 Melford Street, Petrie terrace, Queensland 4000

Type of place

House

Period

Federation 1890-1914

Style

Queenslander

This is an image of the local heritage place known as Maxwell's Residence (former)

Maxwell's Residence (former)

Maxwell's Residence (former) Download Citation (pdf, 73.67 KB)

Addresses

At 35 Melford Street, Petrie terrace, Queensland 4000

Type of place

House

Period

Federation 1890-1914

Style

Queenslander

This low-set Federation style house was built in the early 1890s for James and Catherine Maxwell at a time when Petrie Terrace was becoming a fashionable place to live. Although the house was extended in 1970, the house retains much of its original form including a detached kitchen, which is a rare feature of surviving nineteenth century houses.

Also known as

35 Bell Street (former)

Lot plan

L18_RP10683; L19_RP10683

Key dates

Local Heritage Place Since —

Date of Citation —

Construction

Roof: Corrugated iron;
Walls: Timber

Criterion for listing

(A) Historical; (B) Rarity; (E) Aesthetic

Interactive mapping

City Plan Interactive Mapping

Also known as

35 Bell Street (former)

Lot plan

L18_RP10683; L19_RP10683

Key dates

Local Heritage Place Since —

Date of Citation —

Construction

Roof: Corrugated iron;
Walls: Timber

Criterion for listing

(A) Historical; (B) Rarity; (E) Aesthetic

Interactive mapping

City Plan Interactive Mapping

History

The site containing this residence was originally part of a crown land purchase made by Joseph Baynes on 16 September 1861. Baynes paid ₤63 for 1 acre and 2 roods of land described as Brisbane Town Allotment 302.

Godfrey Freeman White, a contractor, amalgamated Lot 302 with his own Lot 303 on 16 July 1862. He then subdivided the land into blocks suitable for housing and commenced a land sale on 3 August 1863.

By the 1880’s, Petrie Terrace was developing into a fashionable Brisbane address, with the result that a number of new housing estates were offered for sale in the side streets running off the terrace.  These included the Bishops Hill and Petrie Terrace Estate of 1883 and the Caxton Street Estate of 1889.   

  

James and Catherine Maxwell purchased Subdivisions 18 and 19 of Lot 302 on 30 April 1885. They obtained two small, vacant blocks, totalling 14 perches of land, in what was then called Bell Street.

In the 1887 edition of the Queensland Post Office Directories, J. Maxwell is listed as living at 4 Twine Street, Spring Hill. Then Maxwell disappears from the Queensland Post Office Directories for a number of years.

On 25 March 1893, Maxwell mortgaged the site for ₤150 through Johannes Engelinoler (?). His first listing at Bell Street was in 1893 edition of the Queensland Post Office Directories. His occupation was noted as a cooper (barrel maker). 

He sold the property to James Douglas on 14 February 1894. Douglas was a railway guard who probably was based at the nearby Roma Street rail yards. 

The residence was extended in 1970 at a cost of $450.

It is also now known as 62 Pratten Street.

This is an 1890s low-set, residence that has retained much of its original form, including its detached kitchen.  The street survey conducted by the Brisbane City Council’s Heritage Unit in 2001, revealed that, while there are a number of 1890’s residences located around Petrie Terrace, only a few of these have retained their detached kitchens. Of those that are left, many of the detached kitchens have been incorporated into the main residence such that all that is left of the kitchen is its distinct roofline. The Maxwell’s Residence’s location at the end of two narrow Petrie Terrace streets also makes it unique.

Statement of significance

Relevant assessment criteria

This is a place of local heritage significance and meets one or more of the local heritage criteria under the Heritage planning scheme policy of the Brisbane City Plan 2014. It is significant because:




References

  1. Brisbane City Council, Properties on the Web, website

  2. Brisbane City Council, 1946 aerial photographs.

  3. Brisbane City Council, post-1946 Building Cards

  4. Brisbane City Council, Sewerage Map No. , 2 February 1927

  5. Brisbane City Council’s Central Library, local history sheets.

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

  7. John Oxley Library, Brisbane Suburbs – Estate Maps

  8. Queensland Post Office Directories, 1868-1949


Citation prepared by — Brisbane City Council (page revised June 2022)

Federation 1890-1914
Queenslander
House
At 35 Melford Street, Petrie terrace, Queensland 4000
At 35 Melford Street, Petrie terrace, Queensland 4000 L18_RP10683; L19_RP10683
Historical, Rarity, Aesthetic