A memorial is an object which serves as a focus for the memory of something, usually a deceased person or an event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or art objects such as sculptures, statues or fountains and parks.
The Gympie Region is a local government area in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia, about 170 kilometres (110 mi) north of Brisbane, the state capital. It is between the Sunshine Coast and Hervey Bay and centred on the town of Gympie. It was created in 2008 from a merger of the Shires of Cooloola and Kilkivan and part of the Shire of Tiaro.
Queensland is the second-largest and third-most populous state in the Commonwealth of Australia. Situated in the north-east of the country, it is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean. To its north is the Torres Strait, with Papua New Guinea located less than 200 km across it from the mainland. The state is the world's sixth-largest sub-national entity, with an area of 1,852,642 square kilometres (715,309 sq mi).
The Gympie War Memorial Gates were unveiled in 1920 by Edward, Prince of Wales. The gates were designed by George Rae, of Brisbane. Monumental masonry firm A L Petrie and Son of Toowong undertook the stonework whilst an unknown local blacksmith produced the ironwork. The memorial honours the 167 local men who fell in the First World War and the two who fell in the Boer War.[1] The gates were unveiled on 3 August 1920.[2]
Edward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire, and Emperor of India, from 20 January 1936 until his abdication on 11 December the same year, after which he became the Duke of Windsor.
Brisbane is the capital of and the most populated city in the Australian state of Queensland, and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of 2.5 million, and the South East Queensland region, centred on Brisbane, encompasses a population of more than 3.5 million. The Brisbane central business district stands on the historic European settlement and is situated inside a peninsula of the Brisbane River, about 15 kilometres from its mouth at Moreton Bay. The metropolitan area extends in all directions along the floodplain of the Brisbane River Valley between Moreton Bay and the Great Dividing Range, sprawling across several of Australia's most populous local government areas (LGAs)—most centrally the City of Brisbane, which is by far the most populous LGA in the nation. The demonym of Brisbane is "Brisbanite".
Petrie is a suburb in the Moreton Bay Region, Queensland, Australia.
The township of Gympie was established after the discovery of gold by James Nash in 1867. This was the beginning of the first large goldrush in Queensland, and the town developed to support and supply the prospectors who came to the area.[1]
In 1919 the Queensland Institute of Architects held a design competition for a memorial on behalf of the Gympie and Widgee District Soldiers' Memorial Fund. George Rae, then a young draftsman in the Brisbane office of Lange Powell won the competition. He also won the competition for the design of the Toowong War Memorial in Brisbane.[1]
The Queensland Institute of Architects was a professional society for architects in Queensland, Australia. It operated from 1888 until 1930, when it became a chapter of the Australian Institute of Architects.
Widgee is a rural locality in the Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. At the 2011 census, Widgee had a population of 788.
Lange Leopold Powell (1886–1938) was a noted architect who designed many important buildings in Brisbane and the state of Queensland. He started practice in 1909; his major works included St Martin's War Memorial Hospital and the Masonic Temple, Brisbane (1928)
George Rae was born in Glasgow, Scotland and arrived in Brisbane in 1914. Between 1919 and 1922, he was articled to architect L L Powell. He left to travel to Sydney and worked as a draftsman in various offices until 1924. Whilst in Sydney, he studied at Sydney Technical College and also with Professor Leslie Wilkinson. Returning to Brisbane in 1924, he again worked with L L Powell, firstly as chief draftsman and then as an associate. He became a registered architect in Queensland in 1929.[1]
Glasgow is the most populous city in Scotland, and the third most populous city in the United Kingdom, as of the 2017 estimated city population of 621,020. Historically part of Lanarkshire, the city now forms the Glasgow City council area, one of the 32 council areas of Scotland; the local authority is Glasgow City Council. Glasgow is situated on the River Clyde in the country's West Central Lowlands. Inhabitants of the city are referred to as "Glaswegians" or "Weegies". It is the fourth most visited city in the UK. Glasgow is also known for the Glasgow patter, a distinct dialect of the Scots language that is noted for being difficult to understand by those from outside the city.
The Sydney Technical College, now known as the TAFE New South Wales Sydney Institute, is a technical school established in 1878, that superseded the Sydney Mechanics' School of Arts. The college is one of Australia's oldest technical education institutions.
Leslie Wilkinson was a professor of architecture at University of Sydney. His whole life was dedicated to architecture as both an academic and practising architect.
The masons, A L Petrie and Son were the largest monumental masonry firm in Queensland at this time and were responsible for many First World War memorials throughout the state.[1]
The Henderson family donated their Union saw mill site for the Gympie Memorial Park and additional land was acquired at a later date.[1] One of the objections was that the memorial park site was not on Mary Street, the main street of Gympie, but on the street behind it, Reef Street. So the Hendersons also donated land with a 31 feet (9.4m) frontage from Mary Street through to Reef Street to create a passageway to the memorial park. The memorial gates stand on Mary Street at the entrance to the passageway.[3]
The cost for the gates was £800 and although the memorial was for the whole of the Widgee Shire, the funds were raised primarily by public subscription and the Gympie City Council.[1]
Australia, and Queensland in particular, had few civic monuments before the First World War. The memorials erected in its wake became our first national monuments, recording the devastating impact of the war on a young nation. Australia lost 60 000 from a population of about 4 million, representing one in five of those who served. No previous or subsequent war has made such an impact on the nation.[1]
Even before the end of the war, memorials became a spontaneous and highly visible expression of national grief. To those who erected them, they were as sacred as grave sites, substitute graves for the Australians whose bodies lay in battlefield cemeteries in Europe and the Middle East. British policy decreed that the Empire war dead were to be buried where they fell. The word "cenotaph", commonly applied to war memorials at the time, literally means "empty tomb".[1]
Australian war memorials are distinctive in that they commemorate not only the dead. Australians were proud that their first great national army, unlike other belligerent armies, was composed entirely of volunteers, men worthy of honour whether or not they made the supreme sacrifice. Many memorials honour all who served from a locality, not just the dead, providing valuable evidence of community involvement in the war. Such evidence is not readily obtainable from military records, or from state or national listings, where names are categorised alphabetically or by military unit.[1]
Australian war memorials are also valuable evidence of imperial and national loyalties, at the time, not seen as conflicting; the skills of local stonemasons, metalworkers and architects; and of popular taste. In Queensland, the soldier statue was the popular choice of memorial, whereas the obelisk predominated in the southern states, possibly a reflection of Queensland's larger working-class population and a lesser involvement of architects.[1]
Many of the First World War monuments have been updated to record local involvement in later conflicts, and some have fallen victim to unsympathetic re-location and repair.[1]
Description
Boer War pillar, 2015Great War pillar, 2015
The First World War Memorial Gates are situated in Mary Street, Gympie. They are located at the entrance to a block of land which stretches from Mary Street to Reef Street. The gates are flanked by a hotel on one side and a shop on the other, forming a walkway to the Gympie Memorial Park behind. The area between the two buildings is paved with planting down each side. Brick toilet blocks are located at the Reef Street end.[1]
The Gates comprise two large and two small sandstone pillars with wrought iron swing gates and a wrought iron ornamental arch supporting a central lantern. An identical set of the smaller pillars are located in the walkway behind, also with an ornamental arch and lantern.[1]
The inner pair of pillars on the main gate are larger than the outer pair, however all four pillars have the same basic structure with differences in detailing.[1]
Names of the fallen in the Boer War and World War I (left-hand side), 2015Names of the fallen in the World War I (right-hand side), 2015
All pillars sit on a substantial plinth capped by a torus moulding. From this rises a shaft of banded sandstone which culminates in a stepped element. The entire front face of the pillar projects slightly forward.[1]
The outer pillars are each surmounted by stylised eternal flame finials of sandstone. The front faces bear sandstone plaques with the words The Great War and appropriate dates on the western side and The Boer War and appropriate dates on the eastern side. The lower sides of each plaque is embellished with relief carved festoons of tropical fruit.[1]
The inner pillars are the same standard design as the outer pillars, but at a larger scale. They are surmounted by large urns, draped with swags. The front faces display marble plaques with leaded names of the local Fallen Heroes from the Boer and First World Wars. Above each plate are relief carved laurel wreaths with drapery behind. At the foot of the western pillar is a marble plaque with an inscription to the memory of the fallen.[1]
Green painted wrought iron swing gates allow vehicular traffic between the inner pillars and pedestrian traffic between these and the outer pillars. The gates have central arches at the top and simple decorative elements. Connecting the two inner pillars is an ornamental archway comprising scrollwork and scalloping and two flat plates. On one plate is the word Gympie, while on the other is the word Widgee. A decorative lantern is located at the centrepoint of the arch.[1]
Located behind the main gates is a second set of pillars, similar in design to the main outer pillars. The front faces bear marble plaques with the leaded names of the locals men who served in the Vietnam and Second World Wars. They are joined by the same decorative arch as the front pillars and have the words Lest We Forget on the flat plates. A lantern also hangs from the centrepoint.[1]
Heritage listing
Gympie and Widgee War Memorial Gates was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992 having satisfied the following criteria.[1]
The place is important in demonstrating the evolution or pattern of Queensland's history.
War Memorials are important in demonstrating the pattern of Queensland's history as they are representative of a recurrent theme that involved most communities throughout the state. They provide evidence of an era of widespread Australian patriotism and nationalism, particularly during and following the First World War.[1]
The place demonstrates rare, uncommon or endangered aspects of Queensland's cultural heritage.
This particular memorial is rare as it also commemorates those who fell in the Boer War.[1]
The place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a particular class of cultural places.
The monuments manifest a unique documentary record and are demonstrative of popular taste in the inter-war period.[1]
Unveiled in 1920, the Memorial at Gympie demonstrates the principal characteristics of a commemorative structure erected as an enduring record of a major historical event. This is achieved through the use of appropriate materials and design elements.[1]
The place is important because of its aesthetic significance.
As part of the Memorial Park, the Memorial Gates contribute to the aesthetic qualities of the townscape. They are also of aesthetic significance for their high degree of workmanship and design.[1]
The place has a strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group for social, cultural or spiritual reasons.
The Memorial Gates have a strong and continuing association with the community as evidence of the impact of a major historic event and as the focal point for the remembrance of that event.[1]
The place has a special association with the life or work of a particular person, group or organisation of importance in Queensland's history.
They also have special association with Brisbane architect George Rae as an early example of his work, and with Brisbane masonry firm, A L Petrie and Son.[1]
Related Research Articles
St Agnes Anglican Church, Esk is a heritage-listed churchyard at Ipswich Street, Esk, Somerset Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by John Hingeston Buckeridge and built in 1889 by Lars Andersen. It is also known as St Agnes Rectory and Church Hall. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
Boer War Memorial is a heritage-listed war memorial at Crescent Street, Gatton, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by William Hodgen and produced by Toowoomba mason William Bruce. It was built in 1908, and was unveiled on 3 August by Governor of Queensland, Lord Chelmsford. The memorial honours four local men who died in or as a result of the war, and is one of only three known Boer War memorials in Queensland. It is also known as the Fallen Soldiers Memorial and the South African War Memorial.
Toowong Memorial Park is a heritage-listed memorial and park at 65 Sylvan Road, Toowong, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by George Rae and built c. 1922 by Andrew Lang Petrie Monumental Works. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 4 September 2007.
Windsor War Memorial Park is a heritage-listed park with war memorial at 311 Lutwyche Road, Windsor, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was built in 1925. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
Anning Monument is a heritage-listed memorial at the corner of Hemmant and Tingalpa Road and Boonoo Street, Hemmant, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was designed and built by William Busby in 1903. It is also known as Hemmant Boer War Memorial. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
George Rae was an Australian architect. He designed some of Brisbane's best interwar apartment buildings. A number of his works are listed on the Queensland Heritage Register.
Charleville War Memorial is a heritage-listed war memorial at Edward Street, Charleville, Shire of Murweh, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by George Brockwell Gill and built in 1924 by R C Ziegler and Son. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
The Boer War Memorial is a heritage-listed memorial at Warwick Street, Allora, Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1904 to 1940s. It is also known as Queen's Park and War Memorial Park. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
Montville Memorial Precinct is a heritage-listed memorial precinct at Razorback Road and Main Street, Montville, Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 28 August 2008.
The Bank of New South Wales is a heritage-listed former bank at 242 Mary Street, Gympie, Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Richard Gailey and built from 1890 to 1891 by T. Kelly. It is also known as Widgee Shire Council Chambers, Coolooa Shire Council Chambers and Gympie Regional Council Chambers. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 15 April 2011.
Gympie Memorial Park is a heritage-listed memorial at River Road, Gympie, Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Harry Moore and Alfred Herbert Foster and built from 1919 to 1921. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 18 September 2009.
St Patrick's Roman Catholic Church is a heritage-listed church at Church Street, Gympie, Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Francis Drummond Greville Stanley and built from 1883 to 1935. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 20 February 1995.
Queensland National Bank is a heritage-listed former bank and former town hall at the corner of Channon Street and Nash Streets, Gympie, Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by John Richard Hall and Claude William Chambers and built from 1876 to 1877 by Andrew Collins. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 15 April 2011.
Gympie Stock Exchange is a heritage-listed former bank building and former stock exchange at 236 Mary Street, Gympie, Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Francis Drummond Greville Stanley and built from 1881 to 1882. It is also the former Australian Joint Stock Bank and the Neilson, Stanton and Parkinson Building. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 15 April 2011.
Apple Tree Creek War Memorial is a heritage-listed memorial at Bruce Highway, Apple Tree Creek, Bundaberg Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed and built in 1921 by Andrew Lang Petrie. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
Miriam Vale War Memorial is a heritage-listed memorial at Blomfield Street, Miriam Vale, Gladstone Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built in 1921. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
Dalby War Memorial and Gates is a heritage-listed memorial at Patrick Street, Dalby, Western Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed and built in 1922 by Harry Shill and British firms. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
The Digger Statue is a heritage-listed memorial at 57 Heeney Street, Chinchilla, Western Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Andrew Lang Petrie and built in 1919 by A L Petrie & Son. It is also known as Chinchilla WWI Memorial and Chinchilla Soldier Statue. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 1 August 1999.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
