Toowoomba North State School facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Toowoomba North State School |
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Main entrance, Taylor Street
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| Location | 139 Mort Street, Toowoomba City, Toowoomba, Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia |
| Design period | 1939–1945 (World War II) |
| Built | 1938–1949, 1951–1957 |
| Architectural style(s) | Classicism |
| Official name: Toowoomba North State School | |
| Type | state heritage |
| Designated | 6 May 2016 |
| Reference no. | 650024 |
| Type | Education, research, scientific facility: School-state |
| Theme | Educating Queenslanders: Providing primary schooling |
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Toowoomba North State School is a historic school located at 139 Mort Street in Toowoomba City, Queensland, Australia. It was built between 1938 and 1957. The school was once known as Mort Estate National School. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on May 6, 2016, recognizing its important history.
Contents
The School's Early Days
Toowoomba North State School first opened its doors in September 1869. Back then, it was called the Mort Estate National School. It is located just northwest of Toowoomba's main city area. This school is special because it shows how state education and school buildings have changed over time.
The school still has a brick building from the Depression era, built in 1938 and extended in 1950. This building was part of a big project to create jobs during tough economic times. There's also a timber building from the 1950s, which was extended between 1951 and 1957. The school grounds are well-kept, with areas for playing, sports, and old trees. The school has always been a very important part of the Toowoomba community.
How Toowoomba Grew
European settlers first came to the Toowoomba area in 1840. A small settlement called Drayton started in 1842. A nearby area, known as "The Swamp," later became Toowoomba. Toowoomba grew quickly because it had better land and water. It also had good support from farmers and land buyers. In 1855, an easier road to Brisbane helped it grow even more. Toowoomba became a town in July 1860 and kept developing fast in the 1860s. Local people worked hard to get government money for town improvements.
Education in Queensland's History
Providing public education was very important to the early governments in Australia. After Queensland became a separate colony in 1859, it continued the "National schools" system. The Education Act of 1860 helped make education more standard. By 1875, Queensland had grown from four schools to 230. The State Education Act of 1875 made primary education free, required, and non-religious. This helped most Queensland children learn to read and write by 1900.
Starting a school was a key step for new communities. Local people often gave land and helped build the schools. The school community also helped with upkeep and new projects. Schools became a central point for communities. They showed progress and were a source of pride. Many people still feel a strong connection to their old schools, teachers, and classmates.
To make sure schools were built consistently and affordably, the Queensland Government created standard building plans. From the 1860s to the 1960s, most Queensland school buildings were made of timber. This was an easy and cheap way to build schools, even in faraway places. These standard designs were improved over time as needs changed. Queensland school buildings were known for their smart ways to control climate, light, and air. This standardization meant many schools across Queensland looked quite similar.
Toowoomba North School Opens
Toowoomba North State School opened on September 6, 1869. The land was given by a local politician and farmer, James Taylor. At that time, Toowoomba had about 3,000 people. The school started with a Boys School, which had 141 boys. There was also a Girls and Infants School, with 113 students. Both schools were in a brick building facing Mort Street. Within a year, the number of students had doubled!
Later, the Girls and Infants School moved to a separate brick building. This building faced Taylor Street and was on land also given by James Taylor in 1874. It was located behind the Boys School.
Toowoomba kept growing through the late 1800s and early 1900s. By the 1870s, it was the main city in the Darling Downs area. When the railway arrived in 1867, it helped the town grow even more. Toowoomba became a hub for other railway lines. The town's economy grew to include many small factories. Most government, service, and education jobs for the area were in Toowoomba. The town's growth also meant better buildings and public spaces. Swamps were drained, water supply improved, and gasworks provided lighting. Queen's Park also began to develop. Older, temporary buildings were replaced with more permanent and impressive ones.
Changes and New Buildings
In the early 1900s, the school committee asked for a new school. They felt the old buildings and grounds were not good enough. Around 1922, Toowoomba North School was allowed to buy more land. This included "The Farm," a large area across the street that was already used for sports. Another piece of land was bought to move the headmaster's house. This freed up more space on the Taylor Street side for school buildings and grounds. However, when Newtown State School opened in 1924, fewer students came to Toowoomba North. This made a new school seem unnecessary at the time.
By the early 1930s, the school buildings were in poor condition.
The Great Depression, which started in 1929, caused a huge slowdown in building work. To help, the Queensland Government started a large building program. This program aimed to create jobs for people who were unemployed. It also built useful, long-lasting buildings for the state.
In 1932, the Forgan Smith Labor Government came to power. They promised to spend more government money to fight the Depression. Their building program included schools, government offices, hospitals, and more. Many of these projects helped Queenslanders for a long time. This included building many brick school buildings across the state. These schools were often designed in a classic style. This was meant to show stability and hope during a difficult time.
The government was very excited about these new brick schools. They saw them as symbols of progress and modern education.
In 1936, there was an idea to build a new brick school for Toowoomba North. But there wasn't enough money that year. In 1937, the Minister for Public Instruction decided to build one large primary school for boys, girls, and infants. It would hold about 500 children. The new building would be at the Mort Street end of the Taylor Street side. It would have rooms for manual training (woodwork) and domestic science (like cooking). The building was planned to leave as much space as possible for play and sports.
The Depression-Era Brick Building
Depression-era brick school buildings are easy to recognize. They often have two floors above an open area called an undercroft. They were built to hold up to 1000 students. These buildings usually had a balanced design with a main entrance in the middle. Classrooms were typically in a line, with a long verandah or hallway. This design allowed them to be built in stages. Classrooms often faced south, with the verandah on the north. The undercroft was used for covered play, storage, and bathrooms.
Each Depression-era brick school building was designed by a government architect. This meant they had different styles and decorations. These styles included Arts and Crafts, Spanish Mission, and Neo-classical. Over time, the size, decorations, and climate features changed. If a school needed special rooms, like for infants or vocational training, these were added to the plan. Andrew Baxter Leven was the Chief Architect during this time.
The brick school building at Toowoomba North State School cost about £22,090. It was built where the old Boys School stood. The new building had concrete stairs and a roof made of asbestos-cement slate. It had 10 classrooms for 400 students. The undercroft had a large play area, toilets, and a woodwork classroom. The first floor had five classrooms, teacher rooms, domestic science rooms, toilets, and a storeroom. The second floor had five classrooms and two teacher rooms. Three classrooms on each floor could be opened up into large assembly rooms using folding walls. The building was made of brick.
Before the building was finished, two extra classrooms were added to the eastern end of the second floor. This made a total of 12 classrooms.
The brick school building at Toowoomba North was officially opened on November 5, 1938. The Minister for Public Instruction, Harry Bruce, unveiled a bronze plaque at the main entrance.
A school magazine from 1938 described the large building. It noted that the hallways were enclosed with windows. The design also allowed for future additions. Inside, the walls were painted dark red below a certain line and light green above. Some rooms had brown and cream colors. The ceilings were white with brown strips. The outside plaster looked like stone.
The domestic science room had a tiled kitchen with a special floor. The woodwork room was in the undercroft. The building had a roof vent for air circulation. All materials came from southeast Queensland. Bricks were from Kleinton, and timber was from Filshie, Broadfoot.
School Grounds and Play Areas
School grounds were a very important part of Queensland state schools. Early on, play-based learning was encouraged, especially in primary schools. This meant schools needed outdoor play spaces and sports fields, like ovals and tennis courts. Trees and gardens were also planted to provide shade and make schools look nice. In the 1870s, a school inspector suggested adding shade trees to playgrounds. Arbor Day celebrations began in Queensland in 1890. Teachers believed gardening taught hard work, improved behavior, and developed good taste.
After the brick school building was finished, creating the school grounds and sports fields was a big job. First, the old buildings had to be torn down. In 1939 and 1940, the school committee kept asking for help to level the land and create gardens and play areas, like a vigoro pitch and basketball courts.
Growth After World War II
After World War II, there was a huge increase in the number of students. This was because of the "baby boom" – many babies were born after the war. Queensland schools became very crowded. To handle this, many new buildings were constructed, and existing ones were made larger.
The government wanted to build schools quickly and cheaply. However, education was not a top priority, so the department had a small budget. Also, educators started to prefer "lighter, loosely grouped, flexible" buildings instead of the older designs.
Soon after World War II, additions were made to Toowoomba North State School's brick building. In 1944, the school asked for an area under the school to be enclosed for a First Aid, Rest, and Reading Room. This was approved. In 1949, two new classrooms were added to the western end of the second floor to fit more students.
Student numbers at Toowoomba North State School grew so much that in September 1951, a new three-classroom building was approved. This building was to be built west of the main brick building. From 1950, the Department of Public Instruction started using new standard plans for school buildings. These were usually tall timber buildings with the ground floor used as covered play space. The most common type in the 1950s was a long, narrow building with a pointed roof. Stairs often led to a verandah facing north. Classrooms opened off the verandah and had many windows for light and air.
The new building at Toowoomba North State School was built facing east-west. It was about 30 meters from the brick building. It had one set of stairs in the middle of the north verandah. It also had hat rooms at each end of the verandah. Because the land sloped, part of the undercroft was too low for playing. This building was finished in late 1951 or early 1952.
The building was soon made bigger. In 1953, plans were made for one more classroom to be added to the east. This addition matched the existing building and included a second staircase. In 1955, plans were drawn for two more classrooms to be added to the east of the previous addition. These were built in 1956 and were slightly different. They had different windows and external cladding that went down to the ground.
In 1956, plans were made for timber vocational training rooms to be added to the west end of the building. In 1954, the Department of Public Works had created a new standard design for these types of buildings. They were tall with a verandah on one side. They had a large room for manual training (like woodwork) or domestic science (like cooking and sewing). Smaller rooms for things like laundry or storage were also included. The one at Toowoomba North State School was a long, low building. It had a large woodwork and metalwork room, a saw room, and a teacher's room. It also had a large cooking and dressmaking room, with a laundry, storeroom, and dining room on the verandah. This addition was finished in 1957. It allowed the old domestic science and woodwork rooms in the brick building to become four new classrooms.
The 1950s timber school building stopped being used for vocational classes in 1964. This was when Grade 8 students moved from primary school to high school. The domestic science room then became a general-purpose room. In the 1970s, the large manual training room was split into two. One part became a classroom, and the other a library. The old saw room became a janitor's storage room. The large domestic science room was divided into a music room and a stock room. A small health room was also created. At some point, the western verandah was enclosed with timber windows.
School Grounds Today
The school grounds have been changed and improved over time. The playground around the brick building was paved with bitumen starting in 1947. At the same time, concrete garden edges were laid, and shrubs were planted along Taylor and Mort Streets. On October 10, 1959, the school's swimming pool opened at the western end of the grounds.
Toowoomba North State School had its highest number of students in 1963, with 1111 pupils. This was the largest enrollment of any school in Toowoomba at the time. However, after Grade 8 moved to high school in 1964, the number of students dropped to just over 900.
More changes happened to the school grounds. In 1966, the government bought a house called "Finchley" with over an acre of land. It was on the south side of the school. The house was torn down, and the land was cleared to be used as a playground. The teacher's house stayed on the Kingston Street side until 1962, when it was sold. Some old trees along Mort and Taylor Streets were removed or trimmed in the mid-1970s. A pre-school center was added across the street in Taylor Street in 1976.
The inside of the Depression-era brick school building has also changed since the 1960s. Some original folding walls between classrooms have been removed. Cloakrooms have become offices and staff rooms. Some doors and windows have been replaced. The ceiling of the first-floor hallway has been redone. New ceilings, walls, and kitchen areas have also been added in some rooms. New fire escape stairs were built at the east and west ends of the building in 2008.
The 1950s building is still used for classrooms and staff. It no longer has vocational training rooms. Changes to this part of the building include new walls and doors. The western verandah has also been enclosed. The classroom part of the building is mostly the same. Inside, some wall and ceiling linings have been replaced. The verandah staircases have been replaced, and a new staircase was added at the east end of the verandah.
Toowoomba North State School celebrated its 100th birthday in 1969. They published a school history book and had a day of celebrations. This included a lunch for old teachers and students, a special service, and the opening of the A E Horne Centenary Library. Students marched, and there were displays of old and new school items.
In 2016, the school still operates from its original location. It still has the Depression-era brick school building and the 1950s timber school building with its additions. The grounds have a swimming pool, play areas, and old shade trees. Toowoomba North State School is very important to Toowoomba. It has been a key meeting place for the community, hosting many events. Generations of students have learned there since it first opened.
What the School Looks Like
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Toowoomba North State School is in Toowoomba, northwest of the city center. It sits on a long, two-hectare piece of land. This land is bordered by Mort Street to the east, Taylor Street to the north, and Kingston Street to the west. To the south, it's next to Gilbert Street, Dunster Lane, and private homes. The school buildings are in the northeast part of the site. Playing fields are to the south and west. Many old trees line the edges of the school. The largest building is a brick school building (Block A) from 1938, located at the eastern end. To its west is a timber school building (Block B) from the 1950s. This building has a classroom section and a former vocational training section.
Block A: The 1938 Brick Building
Block A is a large, two-story brick building with a basement area called an undercroft. It has a balanced design and faces Taylor Street to the north. The main entrance is in the middle, with a T-shaped staircase leading up to it. The building has a hipped roof covered with concrete tiles. A tall, pointed vent called a flèche stands in the center of the roof. Newer stairwells added to the east and west ends of the building are not part of its original historic design.
The building looks very elegant. It has red brick walls with decorative parts made of plaster on the first and second floors. The base of the building looks like stone blocks. Dark brown bricks are used for columns, which have simple plaster tops. The main entrance has a triangular top (a pediment) over a doorway on the first floor. This doorway has a decorative plaster frame. The pediment is supported by columns, and a round vent is in the middle. The words "TOOWOOMBA NORTH STATE SCHOOL" and "1938" are carved below the pediment. Smaller triangular tops are above the classroom sections on either side of the entrance. They are also over the main staircases and old cloakrooms on the south side of the building. A second entrance to the undercroft is at the base of the eastern side. Other entrances are at the western end of the building.
Windows are placed evenly and have sets of timber, three-light casement windows with smaller windows (fanlights) above them. Some windows at the west end of the north side have been replaced with louvres. Double-hung sash windows are next to the southern entrance. Grated openings let light and air into the undercroft play space. The main entrance doors are large, panelled timber double doors with fanlights. Other old entrance doors include a half-glazed, boarded door to the girls' toilets and half-glazed double doors to the northwest entrance.
The inside of the building is mostly symmetrical. Classrooms are along the south side, connected by hallways along the north side. Originally, the undercroft had manual training rooms, boys' toilets, and play space. The first floor had five classrooms, domestic science rooms, an entrance hall, two teacher rooms, girls' toilets, and a storeroom. The second floor had seven (later nine) classrooms and two teacher rooms. This layout is still mostly the same. Some changes include removing original folding walls between classrooms, making some rooms double-sized. The manual training and domestic science rooms at the eastern end are now classrooms. The first-floor hallway has been extended. Old cloakrooms next to the staircases are now staff rooms or other functional spaces.
Classrooms and teacher rooms have plaster walls with picture rails, sloped skirting boards, and flat ceilings with timber strips in a square pattern. Some ceiling sections show where old folding doors used to be. One set of original timber folding doors is still in the westernmost classroom on the second floor. Bronze plaques celebrating the school's opening are in the entrance hall.
Hallways have plaster walls, red concrete floors, and sloped concrete edges. The second-floor hallway ceiling still has its flat panels with timber strips. However, the ground-floor ceiling has been replaced. Hallway windows are usually three-light, double-hung sashes with fanlights. Classroom doors are panelled double doors with fanlights. Other old timber doors, like half-glazed double and single doors, are still there. The internal staircases have red concrete steps and metal railings with timber posts and top rails.
The boys' and girls' toilets have concrete floors, plaster walls, and ceilings with timber strips, similar to the classrooms. They still have their original toilet stall partitions with timber doors.
Because the land slopes, the undercroft is partly underground at the western end. The central area of the undercroft is mostly open play space. It has rectangular brown brick columns with rounded corners. The floor is concrete, and steel beams support the timber floor above. Old timber benches are along some walls. The space under the main entrance has been enclosed to form a tuck shop and storage. More storage areas have been fenced off at the western end. The former Manual Training rooms at the eastern end of the undercroft are still used as classrooms and storage.
Block B: The 1950s Timber Building
Block B is a T-shaped timber building. It has a former vocational training building (from 1957) at the western end, connected to a classroom section (from 1951, 1953, and 1956) with six classrooms. Both parts of the building have gable roofs covered with corrugated metal sheeting. Because the site slopes, the building is low at the western end and high at the eastern end. There is play space under five of the classrooms. A verandah runs along the north side of the classroom section. A hallway through the middle of the vocational training building connects to an enclosed western verandah.
The classroom section has timber cladding. It has large groups of windows along the southern wall. The classrooms were built in stages: two in 1956, one in 1953, and three in 1951. You can see the different building times by the windows used. The 1951 and 1953 classrooms have casement windows and fanlights. The 1956 classrooms have timber awning windows. The westernmost classroom stands on round timber posts. The other classrooms are supported by a mix of modern metal poles, square timber posts, concrete stumps, and timber walls.
Windows and fanlights on the north verandah have been replaced with sliding aluminum windows. However, the original openings and timber frames are still there. All classrooms are entered through timber double doors, most with modern handles. However, the doors to the 1956 classrooms are half-glazed board doors without fanlights, and one still has its old hardware. The north verandah has a timber floor, bag racks instead of railings, and a sloped ceiling lined with flat sheets and cover strips. Original glazed screens are still in the far eastern corner. Three sets of stairs provide access.
All classrooms are about 6.4 meters by 7.3 meters. They have flat internal wall and ceiling linings. Some older linings can be seen by the type of cover strips used. In the 1956 section, a large opening between classrooms remains, but the folding doors shown on original plans have been removed. Old, half-glazed double doors are still in the middle wall between the 1953 and eastern 1951 classrooms. Between the 1951 classrooms, one connecting door has been closed off, and another has been removed, creating a large opening.
The vocational training building has timber weatherboard cladding. It stands on square concrete stumps. Most windows are timber awning windows, with double-hung sash windows in the hallway and verandah walls.
The inside of the vocational training building generally has flat wall and ceiling linings with cover strips. The original layout of rooms is mostly the same. Domestic science rooms are to the south, and manual training rooms are to the north. However, new walls have divided the two larger training rooms. A series of rooms, once used for storage and smaller training, are still in the verandah space. Changes to the building include fully enclosing the verandah, adding a bathroom, removing some partitions, and adding new doors and openings. The building has various doors, mostly modern, but some old half-glazed double and single doors remain. The verandah has a sloped ceiling. Both the hallway and verandah have timber cladding on the walls.
The undercroft of the classroom section has a concrete floor. Low concrete retaining walls surround the western end. Timber bracing walls under the 1956 classrooms are lined with diagonal timber boards. A storeroom with timber-clad walls and timber board doors is in the southwest corner.
School Grounds and Trees
The school grounds have many old trees. These include rows of camphor laurels along the western and northern edges. Other special trees, like camphor laurels, pines, eucalypts, a flame tree, and maples, are near other boundaries and south of Blocks A and B. A swimming pool (built in 1959) is at the western end of the grounds. Block A is set back from the streets and surrounded by gardens, paths, and a playing field. It stands out and adds to the look of the street.
Why Toowoomba North State School is Special
Toowoomba North State School was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register on May 6, 2016, because it meets several important criteria.
It shows how Queensland's history has changed. Toowoomba North State School, started in 1869, is important because it shows how state education and school buildings in Queensland have developed.
The school has a great example of a government-designed Depression-era brick school building (1938, extended 1949). This building shows how architecture responded to the ideas about education at the time. It also has a timber school building from the 1950s (1951) with additions (1953, 1956, 1957). This building was built to deal with a lack of buildings and a growing population after World War II. The school is set in landscaped grounds with areas for assembly and play, sports facilities, and old trees.
The Depression-era brick school building was part of a government program in the 1930s. This program helped the economy and provided jobs for people who were unemployed during the Great Depression.
It shows the main features of its type of place. Toowoomba North State School shows the main features of Queensland state schools. These include teaching buildings built to standard government designs. It also has large, landscaped sites with old trees, play areas, and sports facilities. The school is a good, well-preserved example of a suburban school complex. It has a Depression-era brick school building and a 1950s timber school building, which includes classrooms and a vocational training building.
The Depression-era brick school building is a good, well-preserved example of its kind. It shows the main features of Depression-era brick schools: it has two stories with an undercroft, a high-quality design with classic influences, a brick outside, and a balanced layout around a central entrance. The building's plan has a typical linear layout of classrooms, offices, and storerooms, accessed by long hallways.
The 1950s timber school building combines two standard timber building types used by the Public Works Department. These show how timber classrooms changed after the war. It has a classroom section and a former vocational training building.
The classroom section was designed to be extended over time. It shows how a standard, modular classroom type developed. You can see this in the different window types between the earlier (1951, 1953) and later (1956) parts. Features of this type include its tall form with a north verandah, flat internal linings, and classroom sizes.
The former vocational training building still has the features of its type. It is a long timber building with a verandah. It has large rooms for manual training and domestic science classes, plus smaller storage and training rooms.
It is important for its beauty and design. The Depression-era brick school building at Toowoomba North State School is beautiful because of its elegant design, large size, brick exterior, and high-quality materials. It shows the ideas of progress and permanence that the Public Works Department wanted to convey.
The building's strong shape, classic design, and elegant look make it stand out on the street. It contrasts with the smaller homes and businesses around it. Because it is prominently located on a corner, the building is a landmark in the area.
It has a strong connection to the community. Schools have always been important to Queensland communities. They often have strong and lasting connections with former students, parents, and teachers. They provide a place for social events and volunteer work. They are also a source of pride, showing local progress and hopes.
Toowoomba North State School has a strong and ongoing connection with the Toowoomba community. It was started in 1869 thanks to local fundraising. Generations of Toowoomba children have been taught there. The school has played a big part in the educational development of Toowoomba. It is a key community gathering place for social and commemorative events, with wide support from the community.
See also
- History of state education in Queensland
- List of schools in Darling Downs
