Connection through place

The Good Tea 

Donated by QMIR Berghofer Medical Research Institute 

From humble beginnings in a ramshackle, run-down hut in Herston, Brisbane in 1945, the Queensland Institute of Medical Research, now known as QIMR Berghofer, is renowned for its rich history of scientific discoveries. 

At QIMR Berghofer, we seek to discover and deliver better treatments and diagnoses for some of the world’s deadliest diseases. Every day, our team of 1000 scientists, support staff, and students lives out the Institute’s purpose to achieve better health and wellbeing through medical research. In progressing this research from hopeful theory to daily reality, we are saving lives. 

Did you know ... 
Drinking tea on a regular basis lowers your risk of developing ovarian cancer by 30 percent (40 percent if you drink green tea). But let it cool! Drinking hot tea (or coffee) within the first four minutes increases your chances of developing throat cancer by five times. 

Parliament House 

Donated by Michael Sullivan 

 
From its opening in 1927, Parliament House, Canberra, had the Australian Coat of Arms – for most of the time – on its cups and saucers. Coffee was not served until after World War II. Originally in black only, it has been in colour for many decades. 

Sherwood Uniting Church Ladies Guild Teacup 

Donated by Margaret Cullen-Erickson 

This teacup reminds me of the hard work over many years of Ladies’ Guilds at many churches and other organisations.  

These hardworking women cheerfully provided much needed sustenance at working bees, social events, weddings, funerals and baptisms, and financially supported many worthwhile causes through fundraising lunches, morning teas, fashion parades and cake stalls.  

At Sherwood Uniting Church, the Guild catering was legendary, and many family recipes were savoured and swapped whilst enjoying a cuppa together. These events didn’t just provide food for the body: over the washing up, confidences were shared, grievances aired, condolences offered, and solutions worked out.  

In recent times other ways of fundraising have come to the fore, and the Ladies Guild members have hung up their aprons for now, but we remember their efforts and hope that we continue to reflect their approach to practical community service in our own way today. 

Twenty-Nine Murray Street 

Donated by Suzanne Gardiner (nee Crowe) and Michael P. Sullivan O.A.M 

In 1948, two Brisbane sisters – Mrs Rita McLean and Mrs Vera Crowe – acted on an inspiration to establish a wedding reception and function venue. It was the first of its kind in Queensland. 

It became known as “Twenty-Nine Murray Street” and was located at Wilston in Brisbane. 

The two sisters were later joined by their brothers Keith and Douglas Sullivan who became partners in what was a very successful business, with 21 years of family involvement before being sold to Richard and Naomi Magnus in 1969. 

All the crockery and glassware were embossed with the Twenty-Nine Murray Street logo as it appears on this cup and saucer. 

Generations of Queenslanders have fond memories of celebrating weddings, 21st birthdays, debutante balls, school functions or anniversaries at this former iconic Brisbane landmark. 

Goldicott 

Donated by Michael Sullivan 

This commemorative teacup that tells the story of a significant house in the Brisbane suburb of Toowong. 

Known as Mount St Mary's Convent (Goldicott), this concrete house was erected in 1885 for engineer Charles Lambert Depree and his family, using a construction method patented by Depree in Queensland in November 1871. 

Goldicott was Brisbane's first poured concrete house, constructed in the monolithic – or one stone – process, using Depree's patented system of movable formwork and apparently built to his design. 

Goldicott remained the property of the Depree family until 1902, when it was purchased by the Sisters of Mercy. The Sisters were to staff a new parish school to be established in nearby Holland Street, Toowong, and were seeking conveniently located accommodation. They took up residence in Goldicott, which was renamed Mount St Mary's Convent, in 1903. 

This teacup marked the centenary of Mount St Mary's Convent in 2002. 

The Chevron, Surfers Paradise 

Donated by Julia Duffy 

In the late 1950s, Surfers Paradise was coming into its own. Movie stars such as Laurence Olivier and Audrey Hepburn had visited in the late 1940s, putting it on the map for the jet-setting rich and famous. 

As a result, my parents – Pauline and Allan – decided to go there from Sydney for a holiday, without the kids. We must have been looked after by my Dad's aunt, and I have a vague memory of them coming home with ‘his and hers’ beach towels with Surfers Paradise embroidered across them. 

But for me, Mum's cup and saucer set is the far superior and definitely longer-lasting souvenir, boasting a picture of their glamourous destination: the Chevron Hotel, Surfers Paradise. 

Wikipedia tells us that in 1958, the first and second accommodation wings of the Chevron opened. This was followed in the early 1960s by the main block, which included a 24-lane bowling alley underneath, and a large convention centre: the Corroborree Room. In 1987, most of the Chevron was demolished and in the early 2000s, the Chevron Renaissance was built at the same address. 

So, Pauline's cup and saucer set now has the status of an historical artefact. She would be especially pleased I think that is now on display at State Library. Apart from being a sun-seeker, she was also a great reader and believed strongly in government funding for the arts. 

I don't remember her actually being a big tea drinker – but maybe that's just as well – otherwise it mightn't have survived for half a century.