education

The school was also located in a place of prominence, at the top of the second hill in Mount Shamrock. The selection of this position by residents can be considered deliberate as adequate flat land was available behind the residential and business area. Churches and administrative buildings such as courthouses in nineteenth-century Queensland settlements often occupied a hilltop position but there were no municipal or administrative buildings in Mount Shamrock. Instead, the school building fulfilled these roles, being the venue for public performances, community dances, and other entertainment, the location where visiting clergymen held church services, and the venue for elections, public meetings, and receptions for visiting dignitaries. The location was not selected for practical reasons; there was considerable debate over location between residents when the school building from Paradise was moved to Mount Shamrock (QSA 15567). Despite the identification of more suitable and accessible locations, the school remained in a focal position on the hill, overlooking the town, visible to all. Source: "Streets and stamper batteries – an ‘industrial’ landscape of gold mining townships in nineteenth-century Queensland" by GERALDINE MATE AUSTRALASIAN HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY, 32, 2014

For Mount Shamrock, a 19th-century gold-mining town outside of Biggenden in Queensland, we get a picture of a mining town where the mine was an important feature in the town, yet also a town where the relationships between the residents are important enough to transcribe onto a map and are features of the everyday social milieu. Government authorities saw it as “a mine of great promise” (Annual Report of the Department of Mines 1896) with the locals promoting a “settled and business-like aspect” (Maryborough Chronicle 1887). Elsie Bilbrough, a young teacher who recently arrived from England, saw wilderness, flooding, and disorder. Source: blog.qm.qld.gov.au/2017/05/16/meaning-in-maps/

Originally inhabited by the Turrbal Aboriginal people, the area known as Enoggera was named from the misspelling of the Aboriginal word, Euoggera, meaning 'place of water' or 'place of breeze'. European settlement in the Enoggera area can be traced back to 1845. However, it was not until 1871 that the first school opened on Great Northern Road (now South Pine Road) to 26 students under the guidance of teacher, Mr John Chasely Towell. By the end of 1871, the average daily attendance at the school was 43 students. The school was a social pivot for the community—concerts, dances and meetings were held in the school building and the grounds used for Sunday School picnics. The original school building is now located at the Enoggera Memorial Hall. With the district population increasing rapidly and rising school enrolments, it was deemed necessary to construct a new school building. On 2 September, 1916, the new school opened on the current site, built to cater for 305 students. Source: enoggerass.eq.edu.au/OurSchool/History

In July/August, 2021 I visited Flinton a couple of times and took a photo of that very building: live.staticflickr.com/65535/51788644779_ce0bca049e_k.jpg