Queenslander (architecture)

thumb|A high-set [[Victorian architecture|Victorian-era Queenslander with a large veranda]]

thumb|A [[Federation architecture|Federation-style suburban Queenslander in Hendra]]

thumb|A Queenslander in [[Toowong]]

Queenslander architecture is a modern term for a type of residential housing, widespread in Queensland, Australia. It is also found in the northern parts of the adjacent state of New South Wales, and shares many traits with architecture in other states of Australia, but is distinct and unique. The form of the typical Queenslander-style residence distinguishes Brisbane's suburbs from other capital cities. The Queenslander is considered Australia's most iconic architectural style.

This style developed in the 1840s and is still constructed today, displaying an evolution of local style. The term is primarily applied to residential construction, although some commercial and other types of construction are identified as Queenslander.

Characteristics

The quintessential Queenslander is a single detached house made of timber with a corrugated iron roof located on a separate block of land. The underfloor space is often high enough for additional uses such as storage, a carport, or even as extra living area in the cool, dark spaces beneath the building. The underfloor area was sometimes decoratively screened at the perimeter with timber battens. At that time, there was also a belief that tropical diseases were caused by prolonged exposure to 'bad air' close to the ground (Miasma theory). Mosquitos tend to become less common farther from the ground (insect netting or window coverings were not common at the time). Another advantage of being constructed on stumps is that the buildings are highly adaptive. Raising, lowering, reorienting, or completely relocating Queenslanders is relatively easy.

The main living areas of the house, being raised from the terrain, are a series of rooms on a platform floor. Traditionally, planning and fenestration encouraged cross-ventilation for passive cooling in a variety of innovative methods, including fanlights, ceiling roses, and alignment of doors and windows to allow uninterrupted air flow. The veranda is the most typical inclusion in the plan, and can be used day and night as a semiexternal living space. In Brisbane, many people have tables and chairs for dining and a daybed or sleepout on their verandas. Whirly birds placed on roofs allow for hot air to be drawn out of ceiling spaces.

Typically, the Queenslander is suited to the warm temperate climates and the subtropical climate of Queensland of high rainfall and mild to hot, humid climate with average summer temperatures in the range of . However, the type is found across the state and outside of Queensland, in both colder and hotter locations, usually with adaptations to suit.

History

thumb|right|A low-set Queenslander c. 1935With timber plentiful and the preferred building material in Queensland after 1900, a new product emerged to fill the need for housing stock – “Ready to Erect” homes provided by timber merchants with all of the pieces already pre-cut and readily available for ordering. The homes were cheaper than the other options for home building - either working with an established builder or employing an architect. However, it would appear that “ready to erect” houses (or mill cut houses) were more suitable to the Queensland house than those constructed in other Australian states or climates. The companies that offered this product in Brisbane were primarily Brown and Broad of Newstead and Campbell Brothers of Creek Street Brisbane. Brown and Broad began the “ready to erect” home building phase, with their products announced in 1915. The motto of the company was “Houses built in half the time.” However, their catalogues also emphasized reliability and quality, and the fact that their tradesman were all expert in their own trade. By 1922, the ready to build homes had spread to northern New South Wales, with an indication that this “ready to build” product may be a “Queensland phenomenon.” There were some other timber companies in Queensland that had also adopted the concept of ready to build homes.

Owing to their simplicity of construction, standardised designs were produced through the 1920s and 1930s. Despite these advantages, tastes changed and the style fell out of favour after the Second World War. The need for cheaper homes first had large verandas reduced to small landings. Subsequently, internal walls were no longer made of timber and were made of fibreboards, such as asbestos sheeting or fibre/gypsum panels. Additionally, after the war, surplus military earthmoving equipment became common and preparing sites for construction was then possible and the relative cheapness of construction on stumps diminished. Land availability decreased and preferences moved towards lower-maintenance types of housing.

thumb|A modern adaptation of the Queenslander style

Current

Many old Queenslander buildings, both residential and commercial, have been demolished to make way for more modern buildings, particularly in the inner urban area of Brisbane, contributing to Brisbane's gentrification. However, community awareness of urban heritage has had local governments implement conservation measures to protect the unique 'tin and timber' character of neighbourhoods and towns dominated by Queenslander architecture. While master-planned housing estates are indistinguishable from those in other states, many custom-built homes are designed in a more modern version of the Queenslander style, particularly holiday houses in coastal areas. Many Queenslander-style homes are being removed/relocated to save them from demolition when the land is being developed.

Stump caps

thumb|upright|Stump-capping ceremony during the construction of the Bald Knob Public Hall, 1924

As white ant (termites) pose a serious problem in Queensland to timber dwellings, Queenslander buildings have stump caps (also known as ant caps). These are metal plates placed on top of each stump shaped to make it difficult for white ants to reach the main part of the building. However, accumulations of dirt or ants' nests can enable the caps to be traversed by the white ants, so regular inspections are needed to ensure the stump caps are in good condition and for early detection of white ant entry to the main structure.

Not being built of stone or brick, Queenslander architecture cannot have a foundation stone. However, the desire for the traditional ceremony of laying a foundation stone, particularly for churches and other community buildings, evolved a new tradition in Queenslander buildings of a stump-capping ceremony, where an ant cap was ceremonially affixed to one or more stumps. Since an ant cap cannot have a commemorative message (unlike a foundation stone), sometimes a plaque or other method of commemoration was subsequently added to the building to record the occasion for posterity, but mostly such stump-capping ceremonies left no permanent commemoration.

References

External links

Queensland house – Queensland Museum
Sustainable Queenslander House Renovation
Timber and Tin Revisited: Modifications to the Queensland House Using Burra Charter Principles
House Histories - Research the history of your Queenslander (State Library of Queensland)
<nowiki>Timber and tin [documentary, Brisbane, Qld: Bannah Chadwick Productions for the National Trust of Queensland,1976</nowiki>]
Built Heritage (State Library of Queensland)
Corley Explorer (State Library of Queensland)