Woodlands, Marburg facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Woodlands, Marburg |
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Woodlands, 2014
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| Location | Seminary Road, Marburg, City of Ipswich, Queensland, Australia |
| Design period | 1870s - 1890s (late 19th century) |
| Built | 1889 - 1940s |
| Built for | Thomas Lorimer Smith |
| Architect | George Brockwell Gill |
| Official name: Woodlands, Marburg Campus, Ipswich Grammar School, St Vincent's Seminary | |
| Type | state heritage (landscape, built, archaeological) |
| Designated | 21 October 1992 |
| Reference no. | 600734 |
| Significant period | 1880s-1940s (fabric) 1880s-1980s (historical) |
| Significant components | driveway, lookout /observation deck, grotto, shed/s, burial site, cellar, views to, garden/grounds, lawn/s, tower - observation/lookout, strong room, trees/plantings, dormitory, tank - water, decorative finishes, scullery, residential accommodation - main house, classroom/classroom block/teaching area, steps/stairway, views from, chapel |
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Woodlands is a grand, old house in Marburg, Australia. It's a special place because of its history and beautiful design. An architect named George Brockwell Gill designed it, and it was built between 1889 and the 1940s.
Woodlands has been known by a few names over the years, including Marburg Campus, Ipswich Grammar School, and St Vincent's Seminary. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on October 21, 1992, which means it's protected as an important part of Queensland's history.
The Story of Woodlands
Woodlands is a large, two-story brick house. It was built between 1889 and 1891 for a man named Thomas Lorimer Smith. He was very important in the Marburg area. Thomas was a successful businessman who worked with timber and sugar.
The Smith Family and Early Marburg
Thomas Lorimer Smith and his wife, Mary Stuart, raised their family at Woodlands. Before this big house, they lived in a smaller timber home near their saw mill. In the late 1880s, they decided to build a grander home on a hill overlooking their businesses.
Thomas's father, Charles Smith, came to Queensland in 1862. He started a saw mill in 1865. Thomas joined his father's business around 1866. The Smith family was among the first to settle in the Rosewood Scrub area, buying a lot of land. In 1876, Thomas and his father built a new, bigger saw mill near Marburg. This mill opened in 1877.
Thomas Smith's Businesses and Innovations
After his father retired, Thomas took over the saw mill. He named his property Woodlands. He made the saw mill bigger and also started growing sugarcane and making sugar in the early 1880s.
Thomas was very modern for his time!
- In 1882, he built a sugar mill next to his saw mill.
- He added a sugar refinery in 1884.
- In 1885, he installed an electric light system to light up his mills, offices, stables, and even his home.
- He set up a telephone line between Marburg and Walloon, the nearest telegraph station, also in 1885.
- In 1886, he built a large rum distillery.
- By 1889, his sugar mill and distillery were considered the most advanced in Southern Queensland.
- He even built steel tramways on his property to transport sugarcane to the mills.
Thomas Smith was a very important person in Marburg. He was a Justice of the Peace and helped build the Marburg School of Arts. He even donated land for a church.
Designing the Mansion
The plans for Woodlands were drawn up in 1889. The architect was George Brockwell Gill, who worked for Samuel Shenton's architectural firm in Ipswich. Gill was a talented young architect from London. The Smith family later said that Gill was the main designer of their beautiful home.
Building Woodlands took over two years. The Smith family moved into their new home in July 1891. The bricks for the house were made nearby, possibly right on the property. The beautiful red cedar wood used inside came from the Brisbane River Valley and was milled at Woodlands. A skilled craftsman named Joseph Klee worked on the timber panels for more than a year.
Changes at Woodlands Over Time
In the 1890s, sugar farming became less profitable in the Marburg area. Thomas Smith had to take out a large loan on his property. In 1906, parts of the Woodlands Estate were sold off. The Smith family kept the main Woodlands house and some land. The sugar mill closed around 1919.
Thomas Lorimer Smith passed away in 1931. His family owned Woodlands for another decade.
Woodlands Becomes a Seminary
In 1944, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane bought Woodlands. Archbishop Duhig wanted to offer a home to missionaries from the Society of the Divine Word. These missionaries had to leave New Guinea during World War II.
The missionaries accepted the offer and opened St Vincent's Seminary at Woodlands in 1945. This was the first mission seminary in Queensland. The main house was updated, and new buildings were added for classrooms and dormitories.
Woodlands Today
St Vincent's Seminary closed in 1986. The property was then sold to the Ipswich Grammar School. The school used Woodlands for weekend activities, workshops, and conferences.
In 2002, a local family bought Woodlands. Today, it is used as a place for events and as a special holiday accommodation.
What Woodlands Looks Like
Woodlands is a large, impressive brick building with two main floors. It has wide verandahs (porches) all around it. It also has a cellar, an observation deck, and a tower.
Outside Features
- Roof and Tower: The roof has two main sections, and in the middle, there's a masonry (brickwork) tower. This tower rises about 15 meters (50 feet) above the ground, offering amazing views of the countryside.
- Verandahs: Curved roofs cover the open verandahs. They have cast-iron columns, decorative trim, and railings on the upper level.
- Main Entrance: The southern side of the house has a grand entrance with a double-story porch. It has the name "Woodlands" and the year "1868" on it. (The year refers to when Charles Smith first bought land in the area, not when the house was built.) This side has large bay windows and overlooks a hidden grotto area.
- Driveway: The main entrance for visitors is on the east side, where a driveway circles a large lawn.
Inside Features
- Hallway: A wide hallway runs through the middle of the ground floor. The doors have special designs with glass panels above and on the sides.
- Main Rooms: The dining rooms and sitting room on the ground floor have beautiful plaster ceilings with fancy designs. The doors are made of cedar wood with glass panels. The dining and sitting rooms have walls covered in full-height cedar wood panels. Some fireplaces are made of dark grey or white marble.
- Strong Room: In the northwest corner, there's a strong room with thick walls and metal vents.
- Kitchen and Scullery: The kitchen is a large room. There are also storerooms and a scullery (a small room for washing dishes).
- Stairs: There are two sets of stairs leading upstairs. They have beautifully carved cedar railings and large newel posts (the main posts at the ends of the railings).
- Upper Floor: The upper floor has ten bedrooms. Some still have their original walls and decorative ceilings.
- Cellar: From the ground floor, stairs lead down to the cellar. The cellar walls are made of rough sandstone.
Grounds and Surroundings
Woodlands is set in a beautiful rural area with views of rolling hills. The grounds include:
- A picturesque graveyard on a hillside.
- A large, hidden grotto (a cave-like area).
- An olive grove and other special trees, like Bunya pines.
- Old dairy buildings.
- Three other buildings that were once part of St Vincent's Seminary, now called Bougainvillaea House, Poinciana House, and Jacaranda House.
Why Woodlands is a Heritage Site
Woodlands is listed on the Queensland Heritage Register because it's a very important place.
- A Glimpse into History: It shows how Queensland developed, especially the Marburg area, as a place for sugar farming in the late 1800s.
- A Rare Example: It's unusual to find such a grand mansion built in the countryside in Queensland. It shows the kind of life a successful businessman like Thomas Lorimer Smith wanted.
- A Great Example of Design: The house is still very much like it was originally built. It shows what a grand, two-story brick house with wide verandahs, an observation tower, and a sandstone cellar looked like. It also has an old water system and beautiful gardens with olive trees and Bunya pines.
- Beautiful to Look At: Woodlands is very beautiful. Its formal design, the use of brick and stone, the large rooms, and the fine cedar wood inside make it special. The decorative verandahs and its location on top of a ridge also make it stand out. You can even see it from the main Ipswich-Toowoomba road!
- Connected to Important People: The house is a great example of the work of architect George Brockwell Gill. It also has a special connection to Thomas Lorimer Smith and his family. Later, as St Vincent's Seminary, it was important for the work of the Society of the Divine Word in Queensland from 1945 to 1986.
