Newstead House Board of Trustees, Heritage building in Newstead, Australia.
Newstead House is Brisbane's oldest surviving residence, a Colonial-Georgian cottage built in 1846 on the Breakfast Creek bank of the Brisbane River in Newstead. It was extended over time and is now painted and furnished in a late Victorian style, with the house open as a museum.
Andrew Petrie built Newstead House in 1846 as a small Colonial-Georgian cottage for Patrick Leslie, who sold it in 1847 to his brother-in-law John Clements Wickham. The property was called Newstead until it left Wickham's hands in 1859, after which it took the name Newstead House. Later leased to Attorney-General Ratcliffe Pring and to merchant George Harris, it was extended and is now furnished in a late Victorian style.
The house is said to take its name from Newstead Abbey in Nottinghamshire, the former Augustinian priory that became the Byron family home. The property was called Newstead until it left J.C. Wickham's possession in 1859, after which it became Newstead House. Concerts are sometimes held in the house and grounds, and the Friends of Newstead volunteers organise events for visitors.
The house stands in Newstead Park on the Breakfast Creek bank of the Brisbane River, with the grounds and park managed by Brisbane City Council. The former tramway substation in the grounds, closed with the tram system in 1969, now serves as a resource centre and management offices. The park's playspace on the southern side, near Newstead Avenue, has an Alice through the Looking Glass theme.
During World War II, the house served as quarters for American troops stationed in the region. This wartime chapter makes it an important location in Brisbane's military history.
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