Greycliffe Homestead is a heritage-listed
homestead
Homestead may refer to:
*Homestead (buildings), a farmhouse and its adjacent outbuildings; by extension, it can mean any small cluster of houses
*Homestead (unit), a unit of measurement equal to 160 acres
*Homestead principle, a legal concept th ...
at 48 Gladstone Road,
Biloela
Biloela ( ) is a rural town and locality in Shire of Banana, Central Queensland, Australia. It is situated inland from the port city of Gladstone at the junction of the Burnett and Dawson highways. Biloela is the administrative centre of Banan ...
,
Shire of Banana
The Shire of Banana is a local government area located in the Capricorn region of Queensland, Australia, inland from the regional city of Gladstone. The shire was named after the first township in the region (Banana), which in turn was named ...
,
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
, Australia. It was built from onwards . It was added to the
Queensland Heritage Register
The Queensland Heritage Register is a heritage register, a statutory list of places in Queensland, Australia that are protected by Queensland legislation, the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. It is maintained by the Queensland Heritage Council. As a ...
on 21 October 1992.
History
Greycliffe Homestead is a slab dwelling formerly on Greycliffe pastoral station and relocated to Biloela where it has served as the headquarters of the
Banana Shire
The Shire of Banana is a local government area located in the Capricorn region of Queensland, Australia, inland from the regional city of Gladstone. The shire was named after the first township in the region (Banana), which in turn was named fo ...
Historical Society since 1979.
[
]Ludwig Leichhardt
Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt (), known as Ludwig Leichhardt, (23 October 1813 – c. 1848) was a German explorer and naturalist, most famous for his exploration of northern and central Australia.Ken Eastwood,'Cold case: Leichhardt's dis ...
explored the Callide and Dawson Valleys in 1844. Thomas Archer
Thomas Archer (1668–1743) was an English Baroque architect, whose work is somewhat overshadowed by that of his
contemporaries Sir John Vanbrugh and Nicholas Hawksmoor. His buildings are important as the only ones by an English Baroque architec ...
took up Eidsvold pastoral run and Charles Archer
Charles Archer (1861–1941) was an administrator in British India, he served as the Chief Commissioner of Baluchistan province four times. He collaborated with his brother William in translating three of Ibsen's plays: ''Rosmersholm'', ''Lady ...
moved further north settling in the region of what is now Biloela. Other European pastoralists soon followed them in the 1850s, when this district was still a part of New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
(prior to the separation of Queensland
The Separation of Queensland was an event in 1859 in which the land that forms the present-day State of Queensland in Australia was excised from the Colony of New South Wales and created as a separate Colony of Queensland.
History
European sett ...
in 1859). In 1863 Frederick Barton took up Greycliffe.[
It is not certain when William Nott moved onto the run, but in 1871 he married Sophia Collins. Their first two children died, but in November 1875 Helen Brenda Nott was born and as she was the only one of their subsequent children not to have been born on Greycliffe, the Nott family may have moved to Greycliffe in 1876. In January 1877 Alfred David became the first of seven more children born on the property. In 1878 the lease was transferred to Frederick Brackner, but in 1879 Nott acquired the lease himself. In 1884 he took up further land and in later years further leases extended the run.][
The original form of the house was a large rectangular room with a ]fireplace
A fireplace or hearth is a structure made of brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are used for the relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a room. Modern fireplaces vary in heat efficiency, depending on the design.
...
at one end. This was extended and eventually included two bedrooms separated by a passage in the core section, an encircling veranda
A veranda or verandah is a roofed, open-air gallery or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front and sides of the structure.
Although the form ''veran ...
h with subsidiary rooms and a detached kitchen. The rooms were ceiled with stretched calico
Calico (; in British usage since 1505) is a heavy plain-woven textile made from unbleached, and often not fully processed, cotton. It may also contain unseparated husk parts. The fabric is far coarser than muslin, but less coarse and thick than ...
and walls were decorated by gluing chintz
Chintz () is a woodblock printed, painted, stained or glazed calico textile that originated in Golconda (present day Hyderabad, India) in the 16th century. The cloth is printed with designs featuring flowers and other patterns in different colou ...
directly to the timber.[
In 1903, William Nott died and the eldest of his surviving sons, William Ingliss, managed the property. His two brothers and a sister, Emma, served overseas in ]World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
while another sister, Jessie, helped to run the station.[
In the 1920s the homestead was repaired and the ]roof shingle
Roof shingles are a roof covering consisting of individual overlapping elements. These elements are typically flat, rectangular shapes laid in courses from the bottom edge of the roof up, with each successive course overlapping the joints below. ...
s were replaced by corrugated iron
Corrugated galvanised iron or steel, colloquially corrugated iron (near universal), wriggly tin (taken from UK military slang), pailing (in Caribbean English), corrugated sheet metal (in North America) and occasionally abbreviated CGI is a bu ...
sheeting. In 1923, Frederic Nott and his family moved to Darling Plain and in 1924, Bill Nott also moved away, although Greycliffe remained in the family. In 1929 Sophia Nott died aged 83. Emma and a nephew, Robin Nott, lived on the property. In 1972 she died at the age of 92, being the last person to live in the homestead building. When Robin Nott also died, his wife and sons took over the running of the property. It was sold in the late 1970s.[
After the sale of Greycliffe station, the Banana Shire Historical Society feared that the vacant homestead might decay or catch fire. They therefore acquired the building in 1979 and removed it from the site in two sections. At the time this approach to preserving buildings was considered by many to be a valid way to save places valued by the community. It was relocated away at Gladstone Road, Biloela where it became premises for the Society. It is open to the public by arrangement. The detached kitchen has not survived the move.][
]
Description
The former Greycliffe homestead is now located on the corner of Gladstone Road and Lawrence Street, Biloela. The site has several other buildings on it including a slab hut, a new timber shelter for machinery and a concrete toilet block.[
The homestead is a single storey timber building set on low timber stumps. The roof is hipped and clad in corrugated iron. The house is constructed of timber slabs on a pole frame and has an encircling verandah incorporating subsidiary rooms. There is a tourist office in the room on the front left hand side of the verandah. The rear verandah has storage rooms and a kitchen. At least one room has a modern steel security door and some rooms are lined with modern material.][
The core of the building consists of a large living room with a fireplace at one end. This has a simple timber mantelpiece and is brick lined. There are two bedrooms separated by a passage. The fabric ceilings have not survived the removal. There are timber steps to the front of the building and the rear is reached by a ramp.][
]
Heritage listing
Greycliffe Homestead was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register
The Queensland Heritage Register is a heritage register, a statutory list of places in Queensland, Australia that are protected by Queensland legislation, the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. It is maintained by the Queensland Heritage Council. As a ...
on 21 October 1992 having satisfied the following criteria.[
The place is important in demonstrating the evolution or pattern of Queensland's history.
Greycliffe homestead illustrates the pattern of early European exploration and settlement of Queensland where the development of pastoral properties preceded agriculture and the establishment of towns. As an early homestead in the Leichhardt Pastoral District, it has associations with the development of the pastoral industry in Queensland.][
The place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a particular class of cultural places.
Greycliffe demonstrates the principal characteristics of an early homestead building constructed from materials found on the property and illustrates the building techniques traditionally used for such buildings.][
The place has a strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group for social, cultural or spiritual reasons.
The homestead is valued by the community as demonstrated by the project to preserve it as an important part of the history of the area, and it is associated with the historical society whose focus it has been since the late 1970s.][
The place has a special association with the life or work of a particular person, group or organisation of importance in Queensland's history.
Greycliffe homestead is associated with the Nott family who, as early pastoralists, contributed to the development of the area.][
]
References
Attribution
External links
{{Commons category-inline, Greycliffe Homestead
Queensland Heritage Register
Biloela
Homesteads in Queensland
Buildings and structures in Central Queensland
Articles incorporating text from the Queensland Heritage Register