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Gold Coast City Council Southport stories 12 Community tales submitted for the Southport Heritage Walk 2009

for children to draw upon, but getting into trouble for ever even thinking of

walking on the green was enough of a deterrent!

Visiting friends homes up Bauer Street and past the Cable Station, with its

clean white picket fences, and always a couple of old men sitting on the

verandahs to give us a wave.

To the Pier Theatre for Saturday matinees, stopping to look for little fish in

the rock pools in front of the Pacific Hotel.

In double file, with towels thrown over our shoulders and holding hands, in a

straggly line from Southport Primary school to the pool at the Pacific Hotel for

swimming lessons.

Into town on a Saturday morning to spend my pocket money on treasures at

Woolworths in Nerang St. Walking everywhere in Southport felt safe.

Red bricksAll the big important buildings seemed to be made of them. The RSL. Shepherd House. The Blue Lagoon Hotel. Trittons Furniture

Emporium. Every building made of brick was red.

The placesCareys Corner Store. “Cash and Carry”. Mum’s family owned it. It had a verandah all around the corner of Nerang and Scarborough

Street and a wooden floor that echoed when you walked on it. It had everything. The flour and sugar came in big bulk bags and

they used to weigh it up with a set of scales and weights to put into brown paper bags. 1 pound of this. 1pound of that. I felt so

Southport Pier Theatre, circa 1950Image courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library


grown up when they let me do the weighing up and bagging. But that

was later on when Careys moved up Scarborough Street to the top of the

hill and it was no longer a “Corner Store”.

Uncle Cecil ran it then, and it was a smart brick building with huge panes

of display glass at the front. We thought it was very modern. But that’s

another story.

The very first Careys Store was the other end of Scarborough Street near

the Railway Station. My grandparents started it. Mum told stories of

being given the job of delivering butter to the big house Seabank which

was on the southern corner of The Esplanade and Short Street. She was

very young but as part of a grocer’s family she had to help out, and that

meant walking all the way with Uncle Eric, then 4 years old, tagging

along holding her hand. She was terrified of the wild cattle that used to

roam around Short Street so they ran as fast as she could past there, to the lane at the back of the house (now called Seabank Lane)

where deliveries were made to the servants. This house was huge and very grand, and it took up almost the whole block. It was later

cut into pieces and moved to make several homes.

Mum, Mavis Carey, and Uncle Eric later ran Careys Store together. Mum ran it alone during the war, but Uncle Eric was killed

fighting in Crete so when my father came home from the war and my parents were married my father Roy Shepherd also helped in

the store.

A large part of their business came from the wealthy graziers of Western Queensland who owned holiday homes in Southport.

They would telephone or post down their orders prior to arriving for their seaside holiday, and Mum would make up the grocery

Carey's CornerImage courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library

continued

Place : Growing up in SouthportTheme : Businesses – Pioneers, Identities and Family storiesAuthor : Erica Bates (nee Shepherd)


order and then take it to the homes and put it all away in readiness for the families arrival. I later bought one of these homes called

“Tongy” which was directly opposite the Southport Bar, and moved it to Gilston to become my first family home. Mum could

remember the “western” family, who owned it back then, and even remembered delivering and putting the groceries away in the

kitchen herself for them. That was Careys Corner Store service.

Allisons storeA couple of doors down Nerang Street toward the Broadwater from Careys Corner Store was the first Allisons. The outstanding

memory was the floor. It seemed to have a life of its’ very own. Every step on the wooden flooring was rich with sound and

movement. Walking from one side of the aisle to the other gave not just the echoing pattern of walking on a normal wooden floor,

but also a wonderful creaking sound and a slight bounce underfoot. It was heavenly for a child to try and make as little noise as

possible, or on a naughty day as much noise as your parents and the shop keeping staff could tolerate. I confess to usually doing the

latter.

This store had huge glass display windows which wrapped around the entrance into the store on either side. They were filled with all

the most fashionable items and displayed with great care.

Allisons “sales” were legendary. People lined the pavement and edges of Nerang Street waiting for the doors to open so they could

snap up a bargain. It was wall to wall people on those mornings.

My best and favourite memory was the day I was taken with my cousins Kim and Roberta, to Allisons Store to buy our first pair of

jeans.

I can remember walking down that creaky floor past timber cabinets piled high with various articles of clothing displayed for sale,

right to the very back of the store. The counter seemed very high and was made of old scratched up, and well worn polished timber,

with glass on the top and goods displayed under the glass. Shelves of carefully folded clothing lined the back wall.


We sat on stools in front of the counter while we waited for the storekeeper to measure us, then off to the fitting rooms to try on

the precious items. Jeans! (We were tomboys of course…) And not just any old jeans, but Amco jeans. Television advertising was

doing its’ job on the youth of Southport and all the very hip Amco ads on TV with the music of the Amco jingle, had us craving to be

a part of the new American inspired jean revolution.

We may have been living in what was considered to still be a country town, but we had the coolest jeans in the world and that

made us feel very up to date and modern. I think we were about 11 or 12 at the time.

Allisons was a very important part of the Southport family’s shopping life. At that stage a trip to Brisbane to go shopping for clothes

was a very big deal. Our mothers wore gloves and hats and we all dressed up for that exciting experience! Shopping in Southport

was a little more relaxed.

Allisons later closed this wonderful old store that was so full of character, and opened a ladies fashion boutique further down

Nerang Street on the corner of the arcade, and they opened a second shop on the other side of the Street where they sold School

uniforms, work wear, bowls clothing etc. In later years I bought school uniforms for my own children at that particular shop, while I

remember my mother buying a number of exquisite Crimplene ensembles and hats from Allisons fashion boutique on the arcade.

continued

Place : Growing up in SouthportTheme : Businesses – Pioneers, Identities and Family storiesAuthor : Erica Bates (nee Shepherd)

In the late 50’s I was a milkman in Southport. Bottled milk from SC Dairies in

Scarborough Street was 18 cents a litre then. Milk money was left out with the

empties (bottles) by the customer and milk was delivered in the wee small hours.

Because I ran between houses where most milkmen walked, I got the nickname of

Peter the flying milkman. One of my customers sometimes collected her milk from

me in her “baby doll” pyjamas – I recently found out she was still at the same

address…..after 50 years! I called in again and we shared a cup of tea and a chat.


Ford Mainline Ute used for milk deliveriesImage courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library

Southcoast Dairy Coy.Image courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library

Place : Southcoast Dairy Coy.Theme : History and DevelopmentAuthor : Peter J. Bracken “The Flying Milkman”


Davenport Street, Southport between Nerang and Young Streets was the

site of the Regent picture theatre. The concrete floor of the theatre sloped

down from Nerang to Young Street. During the movies, by accident or

otherwise, glass drink bottles would roll the length of the theatre making

a great noise as they did so. The young children used to sit at the bottom

of the theatre so they could collect these bottles and get the deposit on

them.

Regnant Theatre (later renamed the Regent Theatre)Image courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library

Place : Regent Picture Theatre, SouthportTheme : Heritage Places - Theatres & EntertainmentAuthor : A.J. Burrows


The Council Bathing Pavilion opposite Railway Street – you only had to walk 3

metres out of this building and you could jump into the water, not like now, as

the bank has been built up. There was a wooden slippery slide built in the river

and this was always popular. When you came out of the river to go to the pavilion

you had to walk through a water trough to wash the sand off your feet.

Southport Bathing PavilionImage courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library

Slippery slideImage courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library

Place : Council Bathing Pavilion, SouthportTheme : Heritage Places - SwimmingAuthor : A.J. Burrows


Huntington Lodge, Marine Parade, between Queen Street and the Pacific Hotel

was an area with very large house blocks and wealthy people. Where Huntington

Lodge now stands was a large house set well back from the road and with a row

of palm trees along the front fence. During the war an RAAF Wirraway fighter

aircraft crashed in their front yard. In the descent it cut the tops off of 2 of these

palms, it burst into flames and killed the Pilot and the air gunner. When I saw it,

it was lying the correct way up and with its motor pointing towards the road. The

fire either made the machine guns fire or it was the bullets exploding in the heat. I

remember hearing the guns going off, I was a pupil at the Southport State School.

After school I went down to look at the crash, even though the teachers told us

not to. When I got there the fire had been extinguished and an open parachute

was draped over the tail of the plane and over the cockpit area.The Southport SchoolImage courtesy of The Southport School ©

Place : Huntington Lodge, Marine Parade, SouthportTheme : Heritage Places - WWIIAuthor : A.J. Burrows

Image courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library


The original town water supply for Southport came from a well built into the swamp at the rear of the present State school in Queen

Street, This was the old No. 2 oval at the old showgrounds. This square concrete well was about 5-6 metres square. The railway line

used to run over this swamp on a long bridge. The swamp was full of blue water lilies. There were many eels and small fish in the

swamp and fresh water crayfish in the water holes leading into the swamp.

In the early 1900s Southport had 28 gas street lights. My grandfather,

William Henry Burrows, had the contract to light them in the evening

and extinguish them in the morning. He used to ride around the town

on his push bike with my father, Charles Henry Burrows, born 1902, on

the handle bars of the bike and a short ladder over his shoulder. These

lamps were hard to light in cyclonic weather or when a strong wind was

blowing. The gas producing plant and also the first electrical generator,

when built, were both in Nind Street, Southport.

Place : Town Water Supply, SouthportTheme : Heritage Places – early water supplyAuthor : A.J. Burrows

Place : Gas Street Lights, SouthportTheme : Heritage Places - LightingAuthor : A.J. Burrows

Nerang Street with gas lightImage courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library


On Marine Parade, just south of the eye surgery, was a very large

residence. During the War it was used as a convalescent house for RAAF

crews. After the War it was broken up into, I believe, 6 sections – one

going to St. Hilda’s School and the other five were made into houses in

Price Street, Southport.

CLARIFICATION - Mr J. Maddock Hughes purchased property in 1915 and built the home in 1916. The property was called Seabank. They resided until 1941 and it was taken over by the RAAF. It served as the convalescent home for the next 5 years. In 1946 purchased by Mr W H Chandler who converted the home into five flats then acquired by a Melbourne buyer (Reference was South Coast Bulletin 30/1/1957 p.32). Seabank is now remembered in a street which runs off Short Street and through the centre of the original estate.

Residence of Mr & Mrs Maddock Hughes, The Esplanade, Southport circa 1937Image courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library

According to my father, Charlie Burrows, born Southport 1092, when he was a boy the site of the Pacific Hotel was the campsite for

aborigines. They had several humpies built there. They were probably members of the Kombumerri tribe. The nearest drinking water

would have been at Sundale. The locals used to shoot wild ducks there.

Place : Maddock Hughes House, SouthportTheme : Heritage Places - HousesAuthor : A.J. Burrows

Place : The Pacific Hotel, SouthportTheme : Heritage Places - Southport PubsAuthor : A.J. Burrows


Martin’s chemist shop on the north east corner of Nerang and Scarborough

Streets, Southport – now the TAFE building. This was the only shop where you

could get medicine or mixture for man or beast. If you were sick they would make

up a mixture for you. If the fowls or cat were sick they would make something up

for them also.

The Pier Theatre was built out into the Broadwater over rock ledges which were

covered with oysters. Under the theatre you could also find pearl shells, fan shells

and other shellfish. At high tide these were covered by water and from the top

seating around the swimming baths, you could always see stingrays swimming

around the shell beds.

Place : “Martin’s Corner”, SouthportTheme : History and Development - The Four CornersAuthor : A.J. Burrows

Place : The Pier Theatre, SouthportTheme : Heritage Places - Theatres & EntertainmentAuthor : A.J. Burrows

W.E. Martin's Chemist Shop, circa 1938Image courtesy of John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland

Southport Pier Theatre, circa 1950Image courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library


The Pier Theatre complex consisted of a theatre, a jetty out to the

swimming baths and a boat landing area. On the Eastern end of the jetty

was a double storey rotunda or band shell. On the upper level of this

building during the War, the army had a look out tower and on the walls

they had pictures of all Japanese war planes.

On the river bank opposite the Pacific Hotel the catholic nuns had a dressing/change hut built on the waters edge where they

used to change and swim in the river. No-one else swam there as there were many rocks with oysters growing on them. The main

swimming area was near Tuesley’s jetty, opposite Railway Street.

Place : The Pier, SouthportTheme : Heritage Places – Southport Pier, WWIIAuthor : A.J. Burrows

Place : Nuns dressing/change hut, SouthportTheme : Heritage Places - SwimmingAuthor : A.J. Burrows

Southport pier and picture theatre, circa 1930sImage courtesy of Gold Coast City Council Local Studies Library

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