William Haughton & Co. Ltd Woolstore (former)

Eventually this area attracted Brisbane’s most important specialised wharves, devoted to the handling of wool. The wool stores themselves were constructed in response to the economic fortunes of the industry. Most of the stores were constructed during the two boom periods between 1909 and 1915, and in the 1920s. However some were built in the mid 1930s and the last two were constructed in the 1950s. Wool was railed to the stores, displayed under good lighting and stored until it was sold. It was then pressed and baled and trolleyed onto the wharves where it was loaded onto ships for export.

The site of this early woolstore was part of just over three acres purchased by David Ferdinando Longland in 1864. Following the subdivision of Longland’s property from 1884, about three quarters of an acre at the corner of Ann and Longland Streets at the end of Fortitude Valley closest to Newstead Teneriffe, was purchased by Denham Brothers (Rockhampton) Limited in January 1913. 

Denham Brothers was a partnership formed in Sydney by Digby Frank Denham (Premier of Queensland 1911-1915) and his brother. Denham Bros, produce and grain merchants opened a branch in Brisbane in 1886. From 1893 until 1902 Digby Denahm was a member and chairman (for 4 years) of the Stephens Divisional Board. At that time he was one of the leading businessmen in Brisbane and in June 1902 was elected to the Legislative Assembly as member for Oxley. 

In April 1913 Denham Bros applied to the Brisbane Council to have a new building constructed by day labour in Longland Street. The building was designed by Thomas Parker. Parker was City Engineer for Port Adelaide and was appointed to number of senior water management positions in South Australia. He also designed churches, warehouses and wharf sheds in Adelaide and Port Adelaide. In 1889 he was appointed Town Surveyor and Engineer of Waterworks in Rockhampton where he designed water supply and drainage works, embankments, bridges and wharves. After taking leave to visit England, he resumed private practice as an architect and civil engineer in Rockhampton from 1899 until c.1910, during which time he designed brick additions and a bond store and offices for McLaughlin & Co. Digby Denham had established a business in Rockhampton in the early 1890s and evidently knew Thomas Parker from there.

 

Following the completion of their new building, Denham Bros (Rockhampton) Ltd Stores operated in Longland Street. From 1915 Denham Bros (Rockhampton) Ltd wool merchants also operated at the premises. Evidently in response to some business dealings between themselves and Denham Bros, Wilson & Canham Limited produced a caveat forbidding the registration of any dealings on the property in 1916. Wilson & Canham Ltd then occupied the building and operated a hide store there from 1917. They gained title to the property in October 1921 and remained there until 1923. 

The wool boom of the 1920s prompted the construction of several new wool stores in the Newstead / Teneriffe area.  In June 1922 Robert McComas, a merchant in Melbourne, bought the property. From 1923 William Haughton & Co, hide and skin merchants, replaced Wilson & Canham as occupants of the building. Flourishing during the 1920s wool boom, William Haughton & Co had a new building designed by Richard Gailey Junior, the son of a prominent Brisbane architect. In 1925 they applied to have the new building constructed on the corner of Longland and Ann Streets by George Heaven, builder. At the time the property was still owned by Robert McComas of Melbourne, but the tender notice confirms that although Haughton did not own the property, his company had the building constructed. It was built adjoining the Parker building which can seen behind it in the drawing published in the Architecture & Building Journal article headed ‘New Wool Stores, Valley’. The building was fitted with up-to-date wool presses, conveyors and loading chutes, etc. With special attention given to the lighting on the top floor, the building contained one of the most modern wool-classing and wool sale rooms of the time. Title did not pass to William Haughton until McComas’ death in 1942.

As the effects of the great depression eased from 1933, wool prices were again bouyant and wool comprised 50 percent of Queensland’s total exports. As well as new woolstores being built, a number of companies expanded their premises. William Haughton and Co Ltd had additions to this woolstore approved in April 1934. The extensive alterations, including the addition of another storey, were estimated to cost £4,400. Photographic evidence indicates that the extra storey was added to the rear. An awning was added in late 1955.

By 1965 James Hardie & Co had expanded its operations from its factory complex to occupy this building across the road and to lodge a building application for offices, a showroom and carpark on this site. James Hardie & Co Pty Ltd bought the site and building in May 1966. Approval was given for an extension of time for the approved additions but this was found not to be necessary by December 1966. At this time permission to affix asbestos cement mouldings to the façade was refused. 

In 1979 additions to the woolstore for a proposed motor showroom were approved. Hardie & Co added fire stairs in April 1980 and the former woolstore was sold to Easi Stor Pty Ltd in August-September 1980. Easi Stor changed its name to Kennards Self Storage Pty Ltd, the current owners, in January 2000. Parts of the building have been leased to Lucent Technologies Pty Ltd and Hutchison 3G since 2002, and H3GA Properties (No.1) since 2006. 

From the mid-1960s, the importance of the Teneriffe facilities to the Queensland wool industry slowly declined, and the Teneriffe wharves, having failed to keep pace with technological changes, and lacking sufficient depth for container vessels, were supplanted in 1977-78 by the Port of Brisbane Authority's new river-mouth facilities at Fisherman's Island. Since the mid-1970s, many of the former woolstores at Teneriffe were recycled for office, storage and retail purposes. From the mid-1990s a number of former woolstores have been redeveloped as prestige residential apartments as part of the urban renewal and revitalisation of the Newstead–Fortitude Valley area.

The Longland Street façade of the rear building continues the three storey horizontal lines but with smaller windows, that are slightly recessed, and plain brick between them. The third storey added in the mid-1930s, is similar but without the recessing. Horizontal lines of render above the windows provide continuity with the front section. 

The rear of the building, facing Stratton Street, is a rendered version of the same façade to the lower floors, but with arched window banks on the upper storey. The roofline of the rear façade follows the ‘sawtooth’ roof section of this storey. The wall sections between the windows are punctuated by the vertical downpipes of each roof section. These elements combine to present an imposing and impressive façade to the Stratton Street.

No internal inspection has been carried out.

1. Architectural and Building Journal, 10 November 1925, pp. 57 and 63

2. Architectural and Building Journal, 10 April 1934, p. 11

3. Brisbane City Council. Building application Registers. 1913, 1934, 1925

4. Brisbane City Council. Building Cards. Longland & Stratton & Ann St, Valley

5. Brisbane City Council. Water Supply & Sewerage. Detail Plan 205. 5/5/1914

6. Brisbane City Council. WebBASX. Version 2.1, 2006

7. B. Carroll ‘A Very Good Business’: One hundred years of James Hardie Industries Limited 1888-1988, James Hardie Industries Limited, 1987

8. P. Clayton Remember Newstead: A proud history of James Hardie Newstead and its people, James Hardie & Coy Pty Ltd, 1992

9. D. J. Murphy, ‘Denham, Digby Frank (1859-1944)’, Australian Dictionary of Biography, Online Edition, Copyright 2006, published by Australian National University http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A080301b.htm Accessed 31/01/2007

10. Queensland Certificates of Title

11. Queensland Post Office Directories