St James Parish Hall, Toowoomba, Heritage-listed church hall in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia
St James Parish Hall is a single-storey building at 112 Russell Street with a brick base, roughcast exterior and a steep terracotta-tiled roof with three turrets. Its walls use Harry J. Marks's patented hollow-wall system: a metal frame lined with chicken wire and stucco render. The northeast porch retains decorative timber arched brackets and a balustrade.
James Taylor funded the hall, completed in 1912 opposite St James Anglican Church (c. 1868), as a memorial to his parents, the Hon. James Taylor and Sarah; his father had given the church land about 45 years earlier. Archbishop of Brisbane St Clair Donaldson opened it on 1 May 1912. It was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register on 28 March 1995.
The hall is also known as the Taylor Memorial Institute, named for James Taylor, who funded it as a memorial to his parents, the Hon. James Taylor and Sarah. Its 1912 opening included reading rooms, a library and a lounge, and the building remains a parish venue for Sunday school and meetings.
The hall fronts Russell Street opposite St James Church, with Baty Lane at the rear; the northwest porch has a ramp for disabled access, while the northeast porch keeps its timber arched brackets and balustrade. Only three of Marks' extendable casement windows still work, sliding on metal tracks and pivoting 360 degrees; the rest were converted to standard casements. The c. 1950 rear kitchen extension is not part of the heritage listing.
Architect Harry J. Marks patented a "hollow wall" system here: a metal frame lined with chicken wire and stucco render, cheaper than brickwork but finished to look solid. The extendable casement windows slide along metal tracks and pivot a full 360 degrees; only three survive unmodified.
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