The first hotels in Kangaroo Point
The first hotel licence was issued in 1844. By 1846 there were two hotels, The Bush Inn (Commercial Inn) and the Highlander’s Arms, owned by J M. Campbell, but closed after his death in 1849. By 1854 there was the Queen’s Arms opposite the Immigration Depot, the Pineapple Hotel in 1864, the Logan Hotel in 1878 and Sutton’s Hotel in 1909.
The Bush Inn became well-known because of the gruesome murder of Robert Cox. The story is well covered by Rosamond Siemon in The Mayne Inheritance (Brisbane, 1997).
It is claimed that at the Bush Inn at Kangaroo Point on 26 March 1848 Patrick had murdered Robert Cox, a sawyer and ex-convict, robbing him of some £350, and that it was this money that had allowed Mayne to establish himself in business in September 1849.
The book alleges that he framed William Fyfe—who was tried, convicted and executed for the crime. It also asserted that Mayne suffered from a hereditary form of insanity and that some days before his death he confessed to the murder to his priest. Such claims, however, are open to challenge.
The Kangaroo Point Hotel 1886 – 1914
The Kangaroo Point Hotel was built about 1885-1886 on the corner of Main and Wilson Streets (now Baildon Street), on the site of the earlier Logan Hotel dating back to 1878. It was designed by prominent Brisbane architect Richard Gailey who also designed many other well-known Brisbane buildings including the Jubilee Hotel in Fortitude Valley and the Regatta Hotel in Toowong.
The Kangaroo Point Hotel: 1924 – 2018
Since 1886 the hotel has had several owners who carried out various alterations. The most notable was in 1924 and involved the removal of the exterior verandahs, changing the look quite dramatically.
During WWII and the threat of invasion, American servicemen built several bomb shelters at the back of the hotel for workers of the Evans Deakin shipyards.
The hotel was renamed the Story Bridge Hotel after completion of the Story Bridge in 1940 and has been entered on the BCC Local Heritage Register.
In 1967 the hotel was bought by Barrie Deery and his wife Jessie. In 1978 they came across a photo showing the hotel as it had been in 1912, looking very elegant with the original verandahs. The photo inspired Barrie to restore the hotel to its former glory and after a decade of hard work and numerous setbacks the restoration was completed in 1994. After another major renovation in 2002 the hotel opened with a completely new look to cater for the changing clientele.
The Pineapple Hotel, Kangaroo Point
The heritage-listed Pineapple Hotel, 706 Main St. (corner of Baines St), Kangaroo Point is one of the oldest and most well known hotels in Queensland. It is also one of the few remaining family-run hotels in Queensland.
The hotel was established in 1864 in a wooden house on a large site fronting Main Street (then Ipswich Road). In 1886-7 the house was replaced by the present two-storey building designed by Brisbane architects John Hall and Sons, featuring the Victorian Filigree style. It is affectionately known as “The Piney” and has become a much-loved Brisbane icon.
Not surprisingly it was named after the many pineapple plantations which were in the Kangaroo Point area up until the early 1900s when they were rezoned residential. Its location in the corner of Raymond Park and close to the Gabba Cricket Ground has made it a popular watering hole for sports lovers and a home base for many sporting teams. The hotel has had many owners over the years who have restored and updated it to keep up with the times. In the 1920s it was called The Palmer Hotel when Paddy Palmer owned and updated the interior. It has been in the Singleton family for over 25 years and been extensively renovated and restored.
Barry T. I lived down the road in an old Queenslander in Baines Street in the early 70s.
It was directly across from the Women’s Cricket pitch and there was a family corner shop across the road from the Pineapple. Rent was $20 a week, 2 bedrooms, overgrown yard & toilet downstairs under the house.
Sandra H. I used to walk home from school with my sisters and brother and friends, we cut through the back of the Pineapple. There was a big park at the back of the hotel we would walk through there with our friends from school when we dropped them off we come on to Main St further up.
Marie A. We walked on the old grid on the footpath and you smell the old beer from underneath.They have great photos in their main restaurant. In the back part when you look up you see the old accommodation.We loved the mulberry tree at the back of the hotel
Carroll House
184 Main Street, opposite the Story Bridge Hotel.
What is now NightOwl Convenience store at the corner of Main Street and Baildon Street in Kangaroo Point is actually a heritage-listed building known as Carroll House.
The two-storey masonry building originally consisted of a corner store and three terrace houses on the corner of Main Street and Wilson Street (now Baildon Street), directly opposite and complementing the Story Bridge Hotel.
It was built around 1878, at the end of the settlement period in Brisbane (1842-1879). It is located on what was originally a three-acre parcel of land granted to William Wilson in 1844. By the mid 1860s the land had been reduced to 32 perches (817 sq. m) and changed hands several times until it was bought by James Darragh, owner of the then Kangaroo Point Hotel (now the Story Bridge Hotel). James sold it to Hugh Darragh who transferred it back to James in 1874. James Darragh built both Carroll House (ca. 1878) and the Kangaroo Point Hotel (1886) with bricks brought as ship ballast from Scotland.
Until the 1930s the building operated as a general store, a butcher, and a grocer with residential accommodation on the upper floor. From the 1930s there were various owners and alterations. The date 1983 shown on the roof gable refers to a renovation by the then owner, Tom Carroll and does not refer to when Carroll House was built. From 1997 to 2013 it was owned by Peter Willert of Ray White Real Estate who was proud to show off the original red bricks in some parts of the building which were left unrendered.
Carroll House was entered on the Local Heritage Register in 1997 as “a rare example in Brisbane of 1870s terraced corner shops/residences demonstrating the principal characteristics of the village lifestyle that once existed in Kangaroo Point”. The main features are the characteristic main façade; posts supporting awnings over the footpaths, upper level verandahs and pitched roofs.
In July 2013 the property was bought by KPT Land who own Night Owl Convenience stores. Since 2014 it is once again home to a general store, the 24-hour Night Owl Convenience Store as well as professional offices. As it is also the headquarters of Night Owl the building has been re-named Parliament House – a collection of owls is known as a parliament as owls are considered to be wise. The owl is a symbol for Athena, the goddess of wisdom, in Greek mythology.
General Store, Kangaroo Point, 1962
John McNeil Used Cars, 300 Main Street
John McNeil Used Cars site at 700 Main Street, Kangaroo Point in 1954 (Brisbane City Council) and the same address in July 2020 (Google Street view) part of the Pineapple Hotel extensions.
Auto Magic Car Wash in Main Street
Holden nostalgia: Photos taken in 1965 of EH and FC Holdens in an auto magic car wash similar to the one built in Main Street, Kangaroo Point.
