Newstead House, Brisbane’s oldest European-style residential property, is welcoming visitors again for the first time since 2021 after major conservation works to preserve the living history of this colonial-era abode. An official re-opening Open Day was held on Saturday 6 July 2024.
With a prominent riverside position in Newstead Park, the location known as Garranbinbilla to traditional peoples has also been a significant site for millennia. Evolving from a modest two-level Georgian cottage established in 1846 to the grand homestead of today, Newstead House occupies a part of Brisbane’s origin story from Moreton Bay colony to a world-class city.
The Victorian home was built by Andrew Petrie for Scottish settler and future politician Andrew Leslie. It has housed many prominent families and influential identities over the years, including US troops stationed in Brisbane during World War II. Now a living house museum and listed on the Queensland Heritage Register, the iconic landmark has contributed to the city’s social, cultural and historic lore for 178 years.
The three-year conservation presents period furnishings and elements to reflect when local businessman George Harris and his family were in residence from 1862 to 1890. Exterior and interior works included replacing roof tiles with Welsh slate shingles to match original materials; stone and brick conservation; repairing timber frames, flooring and screens; extensive drainage and refinishing internal floors.
Extensive research ensured adherence to period style, such as repainting the main residence in a blue shade to reflect the colour scheme used by the Harris family and using another hue for the annexe to highlight that it was erected in another era. Wallpaper remnants were used to recreate interior treatments with screen-printed patterns, while ceiling lighting was replaced with a museum-quality, floor-lit system.
The Newstead House Board of Trustees oversaw the refurbishment, ensuring the sensitive handling and storage of the heritage building and its historical collection. Newstead House will reopen for self-guided tours from 2 August 2024 as well as immersive educational visits and public and private event hire.
