Maryborough Courthouse | |
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Maryborough Courthouse, 2008
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Location | 170 Richmond Street, Maryborough, Fraser Coast Region, Queensland, Australia |
Coordinates | 25°32′16″S 152°42′18″E / 25.5379°S 152.705°ECoordinates: 25°32′16″S 152°42′18″E / 25.5379°S 152.705°E |
Design period | 1870s - 1890s (late 19th century) |
Built | 1877 |
Built for | Queensland Government |
Architect | Francis Drummond Greville Stanley |
Architectural style(s) | Classicism |
Official name: Maryborough Court House, Maryborough Court House and Government Offices | |
Type | state heritage (built) |
Designated | 21 October 1992 |
Reference no. | 600714 |
Significant period | 1870s (historical) 1870s-1940s (fabric) |
Significant components | court house, office/s |
Builders | John Thomas Annear |
Maryborough Courthouse is a heritage-listed courthouse at 170 Richmond Street, Maryborough, Fraser Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Francis Drummond Greville Stanley and built in 1877 by John Thomas Annear for the Queensland Government. It is also known as Maryborough Court House and Government Offices. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
The complex was the first large court building designed for a rural town in Queensland. It was the forerunner for several other buildings in regional areas. The building is rectangular in form with corner towers and connecting verandahs, and was constructed in rendered brick, with timber work forming the verandahs. The building stands as part of the historic Wharf Street precinct in central Maryborough. The courthouse has been in continuous use by the supreme, district and magistrates courts of Queensland since it was completed in 1878, making it the longest serving and oldest courthouse in use in Queensland.
The Maryborough Courthouse was constructed in 1877 to the design of the then Queensland Colonial Architect, FDG Stanley for use as both a courthouse and as offices for Queensland Government departments. The building is the second Maryborough Courthouse replacing an earlier 1860s building constructed on another site.
The original township of Maryborough was situated, not in its current place, but on the north of the Mary River, after wharves were established in 1847-1848, to provide transport for wool from sheep stations on the Burnett River. In 1852 the growing town was gradually transferred further south where ships were better able to navigate the river. Development followed and by March 1861, Maryborough was declared a municipality (the Borough of Maryborough) and Henry Palmer was appointed as the first Mayor.