Recently I was researching my grandfather's role in WWI, and I came to wonder how he actually arrived at the Western Front in 1916. I discovered that he sailed out of Brisbane on the ship Commonwealth, departing from Pinkenba on 28 March 1916. I couldn't find any images of his particular departure, but the following two photographs show WWI troop carriers crammed with servicemen departing the wharves at Pinkenba.
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(Photo: SQL 73331)
Pinkenba - from the Turrbal aboriginal dialect, meaning "place of the tortoise".
The name is unusual, and so is the suburb now. The wharves are idle - most passenger liners pull in at Hamilton and cargo vessels at Port of Brisbane on Fishermans Island.
The railway station is idle too, shut down by Queensland Rail in 1993 after 111 years. During the Boer War, WWI and also WWII departing troops were transported on trains to this station then marched to the wharves. My grandfather was probably brought down to Commonwealth this way, and my father may well have travelled this way to serve in Borneo and PNG in WWII. The railway station structure remains, but is now surrounded by shrubs, grass, weeds and rubbish.
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(Photo: Seo75 via wikipedia.org)
Pinkenba State School has closed and was offered for sale in 2013. I can't tell you whether or not it was sold at that time, but the buildings were still there the last time I looked. There is a set of memorial gates at the school's entrance that commemorate those from the suburb who served in WWII.
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(Photo: qldwarmemorials.com.au)
There is another memorial in a nearby park that remembers those who volunteered for service in WWI. This memorial was unveiled in 1925 and is held on the state heritage list. Here is a current photograph.
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(Photo: © 2015 the foto fanatic)
Here is the memorial at the unveiling in 1925.
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(Photo: brismania.com)
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Pinkenba - from the Turrbal aboriginal dialect, meaning "place of the tortoise".
The name is unusual, and so is the suburb now. The wharves are idle - most passenger liners pull in at Hamilton and cargo vessels at Port of Brisbane on Fishermans Island.
The railway station is idle too, shut down by Queensland Rail in 1993 after 111 years. During the Boer War, WWI and also WWII departing troops were transported on trains to this station then marched to the wharves. My grandfather was probably brought down to Commonwealth this way, and my father may well have travelled this way to serve in Borneo and PNG in WWII. The railway station structure remains, but is now surrounded by shrubs, grass, weeds and rubbish.
Pinkenba State School has closed and was offered for sale in 2013. I can't tell you whether or not it was sold at that time, but the buildings were still there the last time I looked. There is a set of memorial gates at the school's entrance that commemorate those from the suburb who served in WWII.
There is another memorial in a nearby park that remembers those who volunteered for service in WWI. This memorial was unveiled in 1925 and is held on the state heritage list. Here is a current photograph.
Here is the memorial at the unveiling in 1925.
(Photo: SQL 16691)
And they are not the only monuments down this way. On 6th March 1963 the Queen opened a plaque commemorating the completion of the Moonie pipeline that brings oil to Brisbane's refineries.
This monument is stuck in the middle of nowhere, its only surroundings a desolate reserve of sorts and a heavily industrialised background. I wonder what the Queen thought when her vehicle pulled up here? There's the monument - set on a brick plinth between the trees at the end of the pathway that cuts in from the right of the picture.
(Photo: google.com.au)
Recent estimates indicate that the population of Pinkenba is around 350. Although only a few kilometers from the centre of Brisbane, it is a suburb constrained by industry and the Brisbane River on one side and Brisbane Airport on the other side.
Click here for a Google Map.
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