Reflections on New Farm

By Gloria Grant and Gerard Benjamin

Mary Ryan's New Farm Bookstore has sold 1000 copies of Reflections on New Farm in 8 months. Almost 2000 copies have been sold altogether since the launch in November 2008 and a reprint has been ordered.

FEW SUBURBS in Brisbane can boast a higher 'brand recognition' than New Farm, yet it's not widely known that this was the site of the 'new farm' worked by convicts from 1828, that the remains of 1870's lime kilns can still be seen on the river bank below Moray Street, or that Dulcie Markham, known as the "Angel of Death" because of her Sydney and Melbourne underworld notoriety, took up residence here in the 1940's.

Some may remember that New Farm was home to a submarine base during World War II, but few would have an inkling that New Farm was once the suburb of choice for Brisbane's wealthy merchants, lawyers, leading citizens and state premiers.

These and many more stories are recorded in Reflections on New Farm, a book published by the New Farm and Districts Historical Society Inc.

"People have been asking for a book about the history of New Farm for a long time. At last it's been achieved," said Society President Ross Garnett whose own family arrived in the suburb in the 1880's.

"Oral histories from long-time citizens have been collected for many years, but up until now, their true worth has not seen the light of day," he said.

Reflections on New Farm is more than simply an historical narrative of the New Farm peninsula from when it was called 'Binkin-ba' by the local Aborigines. The book is liberally interspersed with recollections of more than 30 residents, the earliest of which was recorded in 1974.

The book is indebted to people such as Fred Matthews. Born in 1904, he remembered when the man who lived at Wynberg before it became the residence of Queensland's Catholic archbishops owned one of the first cars in New Farm, 'a bright red Mercedes'. Fred's forebear began one of Brisbane's first nurseries (corner of Merthyr Road and Brunswick Street) and another family member patented 'Matthews Fire Alarm' and started a factory in Annie Street.

Reflections on New Farm touches on the familiar features of one of Brisbane's oldest suburbs, including the Park, the Powerhouse, the old sugar refinery site (now Cutter's Landing), along with the churches, schools, shops and long-gone industries, as well as the influence of various communities.

Almost every chapter gives voice to those who remember how New Farm used to be…

The Foreword has been written by Councillor David Hinchliffe who recounts his experience of New Farm from when he arrived in the 1960's and lived in Merthyr Road.

The 176 page book is liberally illustrated with around 160 photos. Copies may be purchased from the

New Farm and Districts Historical Society Inc.
PO Box 1141
New Farm QLD 4005

Email: .

The book is now available from Mary Ryan's New Farm Bookstore and from New Farm Editions in the Merthyr Centre.