Ipswich Memories – Moustaches and Beards
In the spirit of the month of November and more specifically the Movember Foundation, The Viva Cribb Local History Room has created a special moustache and beard display which shows members of the old Ipswich community in all their moustachioed glory. We have trawled through Ipswich’s photographic archives to...
Ipswich remembers : Tag Day 1914
Tag Day was a fundraising initiative established in December 1914 in an effort to support British and Irish families whose fathers, brothers and sons were fighting in The Great War. Patriotic tags and badges were an important form of fundraising during World War 1. Many tags and badges...
Made in Ipswich – Chamber of Manufacturers
On 24 October 1929, representatives from manufacturing firms in Ipswich and the surrounding district formed an association with the principal aim of fostering a preference for locally manufactured goods. One of the ways the Chamber of Manufacturers fulfilled their aim was by exhibitions of locally made goods. At the...
Brickworks and Potteries of Ipswich
In the early pioneer days Ipswich was a hub of industrial growth. From its early establishment as the town of Limestone, Ipswich was the producer of many primary materials for Queensland’s early houses and buildings. Some of the more prominent factories included several saw mills, cotton plantations, a...
Hancocks Timber Mill, North Ipswich
Thomas Hancock senior came to Australia from Cornwall with his family in 1856 and moved to the West Moreton District in 1864. He and his sons worked as Sawyers in the Pine Mountain area and established a sawmill in the Rosewood scrub area around 1867. Cut logs were...
Percy Manders – Boating on the Bremer
In 1932, as an addition to his trucking business, Percy Manders purchased a 40 foot cargo vessel from Foggitt Jones Pty Ltd and began operating a regular transport service between Brisbane and Ipswich. This vessel, Eclipse, carried 18-20 tons of mixed cargo and made three return trips each...
Ipswich Houses: Fairy Knoll
The historic home known as “Fairy Knoll” is located on the corner of Whitehill and Robertson Road and is a masterpiece to behold. Built in 1901 for Thomas Hancock Junior and his wife Louisa (nee: Hayne), the house sits atop a large hill that overlooks the city of...
Ipswich: Our Military Heritage
Ipswich’s first defence forces were established in 1860. With the Crimean War in 1854-56 and the Russian scare in 1859, the Government at the time believed that the Ipswich and Brisbane area needed to be able to defend itself if an attack ever came their way. Colonel Charles...
Commemorating The First World War – Private George William Elliott
This year marks 100 years since the beginning of World War One. Many local families of the time sent their sons, brothers, fathers, husbands and uncles to war, not knowing if they would ever see them again. There were many Ipswich men who joined the war effort between 1914...