Liberty Hall, Ipswich facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Liberty Hall |
|
|---|---|
Building 2016
|
|
| Location | 84 Limestone Street, Ipswich, City of Ipswich, Queensland, Australia |
| Design period | 1840s - 1860s (mid-19th century) |
| Built | c. 1857 |
| Official name: Liberty Hall - Mary Tregear Hostel, Current name - Mary Tregear Hostel, Liberty Hall | |
| Type | state heritage (built) |
| Designated | 21 October 1992 |
| Reference no. | 600583 |
| Significant period | 1850s (fabric) 1850s-1880s (historical) 1942- (social) |
| Significant components | cellar, residential accommodation - main house, kitchen/kitchen house |
| Lua error in Module:Location_map at line 420: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
Liberty Hall is a special old house in Ipswich, Queensland, Australia. It's known as a "heritage-listed" building, which means it's important to history and protected. This two-storey house was built around 1857. It is also called the Mary Tregear Hostel. The house was officially added to the Queensland Heritage Register on October 21, 1992.
The Story of Liberty Hall
This historic house, Liberty Hall, was built between 1857 and 1860. It was originally made for Edward Quinn, who was the Chief Constable at the time. Imagine a police chief living in this grand house!
Early Owners and the Campbell Family
In 1877, the house was sold to James Sloane. After he passed away in 1887, his wife took over the property. Later, it seems a blacksmith named Hugh Campbell rented the house.
Hugh's father, Donald Campbell, was a very important person in Ipswich's early days. He was one of the first free settlers to arrive in 1842. Donald was a blacksmith, and his business was well-known. It's even said that his smithy (blacksmith's workshop) shod the horses for the famous explorer Ludwig Leichhardt!
Hugh Campbell followed in his father's footsteps, becoming a blacksmith himself. He took over the family business when his father died in 1857. The Campbell family's home and business were originally on the corner of East and Limestone streets. When a new building was constructed there in 1887, they moved their operations further up Limestone Street.
Hugh Campbell was a popular figure in Ipswich. He was known for being very generous and welcoming. People say the house got its name, Liberty Hall, because of his great hospitality. It was a common saying back then for a place that was always open and friendly.
Liberty Hall and the Country Women's Association
Hugh's three sons bought the house in 1910. The family's blacksmith business closed in 1916, and Hugh passed away in 1917. However, the house stayed in the Campbell family until 1942.
In 1942, a wonderful organization called the Queensland Country Women's Association (QCWA) bought Liberty Hall. They decided to use the house as a hostel for girls from the country who came to work in the city. They also moved an old army building to the site to use as a meeting hall. The QCWA renamed the property the Mary Tregear Hostel. This name honored Mary Tregear, who was the first president of the Ipswich branch of the Country Women's Association.
Over the years, the property changed a bit. In 1964, some of the land was separated, and a coal research laboratory was built there. The old army hut was replaced with a new brick hall. A kitchen wing was also added to the back of the house around the 1960s.
What Liberty Hall Looks Like
Liberty Hall is a two-storey brick house with a special roof that is half-gabled. It has a basement cellar too! The roof is made of corrugated iron. The front of the house is built very close to the road. At the back, there's a single-storey kitchen area made of timber. This part of the house is a little lower than the main house.
There's also a brick meeting hall with a flat roof on the eastern side of the property.
Inside the Main House
The original two-storey part of the house has a painted finish on the outside that looks like ruled lines. The windows have solid frames around them. The front of the house is designed to be perfectly balanced, with a front door in the middle and two pairs of sash windows on either side. Upstairs, there are three more sash windows.
On the ground floor, you'll find a central hallway that leads to a small timber staircase. There are four rooms on this level, and one of them has a fireplace with a simple wooden frame. The walls are painted plaster, and the wooden details are very simple. The ceilings are made of fibro (a type of fiber cement) with wooden cornices, and the doors have four panels.
Upstairs, there's a narrow hallway from the top of the stairs. This level has five small bedrooms and a toilet. All the walls upstairs are made of wide wooden boards that fit together like a puzzle. The doors are also simple wooden doors. The ceilings on the upper level are also made of these wooden boards.
The Cellar and Kitchen Wing
Underneath the entire ground floor of the original house, there's a basement cellar. It goes all the way to the retaining wall near the footpath.
The kitchen wing at the back of the house is supported by concrete stumps. It includes a kitchen, a storeroom, a dining room, two bathrooms, and a toilet. The outside walls of this wing are made of asbestos cement sheeting, and it has casement windows. Stairs at the back lead down to an enclosed landing.
Why Liberty Hall is Important
Liberty Hall was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on October 21, 1992, because it meets several important rules.
A Glimpse into Queensland's Past
This place helps us understand how Queensland's history has changed over time. It shows us what life was like in the past.
A Rare Old Building
Built between 1857 and 1860, Liberty Hall is one of the oldest buildings in Ipswich. It's a rare example of a simple town house built in the colonial Georgian style. This means it has a classic, balanced design from that time period.
Beautiful and Valued
Even though its roof has been changed a little, the house still looks very balanced and beautiful. People in Ipswich value it because it adds to the lovely look of the street in the city center.
Connected to Important People and Groups
Liberty Hall has strong ties to the Queensland Country Women's Association (QCWA). It's especially important for its role in providing a safe place for country girls to live while working in the city. It's also connected to the Campbell family, who were among the first free settlers in Ipswich after 1842, and to Edward Quinn, an early senior police official.
