“Never a jail cell”: Myth about Gladstone building dispelled as huge reno begins
A building in the heart of Goondoon Street with a rich Gladstone history is getting a fresh look. Here’s the full story.
Gladstone
Don't miss out on the headlines from Gladstone. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Gladstone’s oldest building - constructed in 1868 and having survived the 1949 - is being renovated, with plans to transform it into a “business hub”.
The former RSL at 7 Goondoon Street was once due for redevelopment under the ownership of infamous businessman Michael McGurk, until it fell through and he was murdered in Sydney on a contract killing.
Fast forward to the 21st Century and fifth generation contracting business Youngs have been hired to undertake the renovations.
Historian has already been made again at this early point, with a shovel that was pulled from the wall during renovations believed to have been left there when Youngs were last renovating the building in 1984.
Brayth Young, son of Youngs Contractors director Michael Young, pictured so the memory will never be forgotten.
It is understood the site will be available for new business ventures as early as February 2024.
The area is already zoned for childcare and medical centres, commercial tenancies and hospitality venues.
Originally designed for construction in 1968 and completed in 1969, the site is understood to be Gladstone’s oldest standing structure, and has withstood events like the 1949 cyclone.
The building has been home to the Gladstone Quadrille Society in 1869 and the English Church Community 1873, and was Gladstone’s first ever public building.
A Gladstone historian has dispelled the widely held belief among locals that the bars on the windows in the basement were for jail cells, explaining it was a bond store and tobacco and liquor was kept there.
Paulette Flint said the barred windows beneath the building’s foundations were commonly misconceived as jail cells.
“The reason for the bars on the windows is because it used to be a bond store … items that people needed to pay tax on, like tobacco and liquor were kept in there,” Ms Flint said.
“It was never a jail cell.”
A demolition approval was granted by Gladstone Regional Council in 2009, which Ms Flint protested by trying to heritage list the building.
Fortunately, the building was never knocked down.
It is unknown when the demolition fell through.
“The front facade of the building is still the same … the windows are the original windows, and behind the plaster is the original brick,” Ms Flint said.
The building was used as the Gladstone branch of the RSL from 1946 until 2004, when liquidators took over the building.
Until 2023, the building has been vacant and is understood to have been used for shelter by squatters, with graffiti on the walls and relics of the once grand building in disarray.
Ms Flint said she hoped the new appearance of the building would honour some of the history of the original.
“I’ve been dreading the day they demolish it,” she said.
“If it can be refurbished without being demolished, I think that’d be a wonderful thing.
“I think some of the heritage should not only be preserved, but presented to the public.”
More Coverage
Gladstone sale and auction results, week ending September 8
See the latest auction and sales results in Gladstone for last week.
‘My parents were forced to make the toughest call possible’
Tracy Johnson was just eight when her parents were forced to make a heartbreaking decision.