Stamford Estate, Indooroopilly, 1888 (Map of the week)

State Library of Queensland has an extensive collection of historical maps of Queensland, some of which have been digitised and can be viewed online.

Plan of the Stamford Estate, Indooroopilly Railway Station, 1888. John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland

This real estate map for 1888 is advertising 169 allotments of land for sale at the Stamford Estate in the Brisbane suburb of Indooroopilly.  Interestingly the map details existing properties such as the Stamford Hotel and the family residences of H.G. Stanley, Newman Wilson, Hunter, and W. Chapman.

Early houses built at Indooroopilly. John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland. Image APE-021-01-

Prior to the sale extensive publicity was published in newspapers such as the Brisbane Courier, The Telegraph and the Queensland Figaro. The advertisements were keen to point out the close proximity of the blocks to the Indooroopilly Railway Station –

"Ponder on the facilities of reaching a home situated on the Stamford Estate. You walk up Edward Street, take your seat in a first-class railway carriage, and in a few minutes you are at your destination. No dirty roads, no overcrowded omnibuses, no enforced society of persons whom you care not to meet."

"The Stamford Estate offers all these advantages, together with all the benefits of fresh air, salubrious locality, and health-invigorating scenery."

Advertisements also point out that investments in land close to rail transport can be lucrative, citing Toowong and Taringa as examples -

"Fortunes that have been made by common-sense buyers at Toowong...In the High Street, land purchased for £500 per acre has been resold at £4,000 per acre...At Taringa, without any access for vehicles at the station, land is selling at £4 per foot frontage."

Full page advertisement in Queensland Figaro, 3 November 1888

Street in Indooroopilly, Brisbane, Queensland ca. 1890. John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland. Neg 96011

According to the map, the Stamford Estate covered parts of Belgrave Road, Grosvenor Road, Montague Road, Musgrave Road, Clarence Road, Short Street, Westminster Road and Indooroopilly Railway Station Road (Station Road).

L. Bagster & Co. Family Butchers in Station Road, Indooroopilly, Brisbane, ca. 1895. John Oxley Library, State Library of Queensland. Neg 10572

A public auction was held at the site on November 10, 1888. The Brisbane Courier newspaper reported "successful sale" with 29 allotments sold at a grand total of £4,036.

You can view a higher resolution image of this map through our One Search catalogue.

Myles Sinnamon - Project Coordinator, State Library of Queensland