garden

From GARDENING AUSTRALIA: Newstead House is Brisbane's oldest surviving residence. I love its tranquillity, its history but I especially love its gardens. The property was first established in 1846. Since then has been the home of a Darling Downs grazier, a Moreton Bay District police magistrate, and other prominent businessmen and politicians, until it was taken over by the local government in 1918. The homestead originally had a garden planted for food and the front lawns were created to establish a visual connection to the river. But we are interested in the trees. Newstead Park, like many other 19th-century heritage properties, is home to some great irreplaceable assets - grand old trees. Some favorites are: * Crow's ash Flindersia australis a magnificent tree from tropical Australia. The specimen in the park was probably planted before the house was built so it must be over 160 years old. It produces dense foliage, large leaves and then creamy white flowers. * A tree that's unique to Newstead House is a crepe myrtle known as Lagerstroemia speciosa. It was planted about the same time as the house was built and it's claimed to be the largest tree of its kind in the southern hemisphere. * Another was the Ficus virens or Cunningham's fig which sits in the centre of the round-about at the entrance to Newstead House. It was there before the house was built which makes it over 200 years old. These grand old trees perfectly complement the grandeur of the house and garden and are an essential part of our history and environment. These trees are irreplaceable and need to be preserved for future generations. Source: www.abc.net.au/gardening/factsheets/newstead-house/942940...

This pic was taken in the grounds of the Medlow Bath Hydropathic Establishment, in the Blue Mountains...the railway line is over to the right...the Belgravia Hotel (then part of the Hydro complex) is in the background...the casino/ballroom is more or less out of view to the left (here we only get to see the brick archways at the entry level and the shadow cast by the parapet)... Just going on the digitised newspapers, I gather the name 'Hydro Majestic' came into use in about 1906...so it might well have been known as the 'Hydro Majestic' at the time this pic was taken... trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/164909488/16884764 - this pictorial feature on the Medlow Bath Hydropathic Establishment appeared in the Sydney Mail, 20th July, 1904...a few weeks after it opened...the panorama taken from the railway side (see 2nd page of link) puts you in the picture re the location...I've discovered that there are surprisingly few historical pics of the Hydro Majestic up on Trove or Flickr...

This postcard includes the panorama that appeared in the Sydney Mail pictorial (link above)... www.flickr.com/photos/hwmobs/35439897516/ Pic of the Belgravia Hotel... www.flickr.com/photos/uon/11941303413/

Blue Mountains Library, Local Studies for your interest...

covid convict Thank you!

St Joseph's Church was designed by Townsville architectural firm Charles Dalton Lynch and Walter Hunt, and was constructed by Townsville building firm Rooney Ltd in 1920-1921. The new settlement of Cleveland Bay, established in 1864 at the mouth of Ross Creek, was part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brisbane. The first church in the new parish, St Joseph's, was opened by Fr Connolly in 1872. The new timber building was located on The Strand close to the site of the present church. This church, which was the first constructed in the town, was destroyed by flood waters which swept the building out to sea during torrential rain in 1892. Because of the focus on the expansion of the Catholic Church across North Queensland during the later part of the nineteenth century, planning for a new St Joseph's Church did not begin until 1918. The new building was designed by Townsville architectural firm CD Lynch and Walter Hunt. The foundation stone was laid by Bishop of Rockhampton Joseph Shiel in January 1919. The building was constructed by Joseph Rooney of the well known north Queensland building firm of Rooneys Ltd. The new church was opened on Sunday 10 July 1921 . Since the construction of the first church on the site in 1872, St Joseph's Church and parish has been a focus for Catholic community worship and activity. Key church organisations have been located close by, including the parish presbytery, a Catholic orphanage, St Joseph's Primary School (established in 1875) and St Patrick's Secondary Day/Boarding School. St Joseph's Church, a reinforced concrete structure with a corrugated iron gable roof to the nave and lower skillion roofs to the side aisles, is located on a level site fronting Fryer Street to the southeast. The church consists of the original central section which has had arcades added to both sides with vestries at the rear. Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Joseph%27s_Church,_North_Ward