|
Prior to purchase by Alexander McPherson in 1863, the Nudgee Beach area was used by the indigenous Turrbul people, for hunting, fishing and gathering. The last aborigine to live in the area was King Johnny. He was laid to rest in 1892 at the sacred burial ground on Dinah Island, just to the north west of the reserve.
The 33 acre allotment was transferred in 1865 to the Rt Rev Quinn, Catholic Bishop of Brisbane. Rev Quinn (sometimes referred to as Rev O'Quinn) appointed four nuns as trustees of the land for the Sisters of Mercy St Vincent's Orphanage at Nudgee (Heritage Location 16).
The land was a popular holiday camping ground, but it was earmarked to become the site for a retirement home for the nuns. However, in 1916 the land was subdivided and began to be sold at auction. The seaside village of Nudgee Beach began to take shape.
As people settled, the community developed. The Nudgee Beach Progress Association was responsible for the early development of the Nudgee Beach Recreational Reserve. They built a small concert hall, a change room for bathers, a shelter shed and an ambulance building.
A small shop transferred to the land was used as a meeting hall. The shelter shed still stands; the other structures being removed when building materials were scarce after World War II. The Progress Association also built a cricket ground on which the locals played Saturday afternoon fixtures.
In 1926, the local community also banded together to build the Nudgee Beach School of Arts. The building was used for church services, voting, weddings, as a library and after some contention, as a school. The first teacher was Miss Fanning and Nudgee Beach's oldest resident, Reg Fleming was one of the first enrolled. The building was condemned and demolished in 1970.
O'Quinn Street was of course named in honour of Bishop (O') Quinn.
The other Nudgee Beach streets (Fortitude, Chaseley and Lima) were named after Dr James Dunmore Lang's three immigrant ships that arrived in Moreton Bay in 1849.
Over the years, the Nudgee Beach Recreational Reserve has seen quite a few changes. From its European beginnings as a prospective retirement village for nuns and a popular camping ground; the reserve has now developed into a peaceful and popular seaside park.
|
|
