Yeronga Fire Station

Yeronga Fire Station is a heritage-listed former fire station at 785 Ipswich Road, Yeronga, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by architectural firm Atkinson and Conrad, and built in 1934 by contractor William Allen Miller. It is a two-storey timber structure adjacent to Yeronga Park, and originally housed the station facilities on the ground floor and a residence for the superintendent on the first floor, a combination typical for Brisbane fire stations of this era.

The station was decommissioned in 1974, when operations were shifted to the new station at Acacia Ridge. It was subsequently used as offices for the Queensland State Emergency Service, but was put up for sale by the Department of Natural Resources in 1999; as of 2014, the building was being used as offices for a consulting firm. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 23 April 1999.

History

A modest, functional civic building, the former Yeronga Fire Station on the corner of School Road and Ipswich Road within Yeronga Memorial Park, is a prominent landmark on the busy Brisbane arterial, Ipswich Road,

Between 1860 and 1868 there were five attempts to form a fire fighting service for Brisbane. Each brigade struggled to survive unable to attract a viable subscription base and hampered by inadequate equipment and an unreliable water supply. The establishment of an effective fire service did not enjoy a high priority among civic and government leaders.

A fifth brigade, the City Volunteer Fire Brigade, was established in 1868 under rules which provided for better financial control and management through the Fire Brigade Board. These arrangements were consolidated by the Fire Brigades Act of 1881 under which it was established that the Brigade was to be funded for fire services from contributions by the Queensland Government, Brisbane Municipal Council, insurance companies and subscriptions. In 1889 the first full-time firemen were employed and a permanent fire brigade was established. A new headquarters, designed by Henry Wallace Atkinson, was completed on the corner of Ann and Edwards Streets (on a corner of the Normal School site) in 1890. This began a long association between the Fire Brigade and the various architectural firms with whom he was associated.

With the establishment of the South Coast railway in 1884, Yeronga was recognised as a desirable commuter suburb. Settlement of the suburb remained subdued until the interwar years when residential building activity increased dramatically, with the number of residences in Yeronga doubling. At this time, the Metropolitan Fire Brigades Board was attempting to respond to the increased fire fighting needs of the expanding Brisbane suburbs. In the 1930s, the Board was resiting old stations and erecting new stations under a program funded by Queensland Government, instigated by the Minister for Health and Home Affairs, Ned Hanlon. The former Yeronga Fire Station, the first fire station in Yeronga, was erected under this program by contractor William Allen Miller and opened by Mr William Brian Denmead, chairman of the Metropolitan Fire Brigades Board, on 18 April 1934. The new building housed the station facilities on the ground floor and a residence for the superintendent on the first floor. This combination of station and residence was the typical design for fire stations in Brisbane at this time. Similar, though larger, residential fire stations were built at Coorparoo in 1935 (Coorparoo Fire Station); Nundah in 1936 (Nundah Fire Station); Wynnum in 1938 (Wynnum Fire Station) and Hamilton 1941.

During World War II, Yeronga Park was used by the United States Army as a military camp. An effigy of Adolf Hitler was hung from the awning at the fire station.

The Yeronga Fire Station was decommissioned in 1974 when operations were relocated to the new Acacia Ridge Station. It was subsequently used as an office for the Queensland State Emergency Service, but was deemed to be surplus to requirements and put up for sale by the Department of Natural Resources in 1999. As of 2014, the building was being used as offices for a consulting firm.

Description

On the southeast corner of Yeronga Park, the former Yeronga Fire Station is a two-storey timber-framed structure, clad with weatherboards to the lower level and battened fibro sheeting to the upper level, beneath a red terracotta tiled gabled roof. A discreet awning with a pressed metal edging decorated with pateras