Then: Northgate-Virginia School of Arts
In April 1918, the Northgate-Virginia Progress Association appointed a committee which appealed to residents for financial assistance to build a School of Arts. By January 1919, the receipt of £70 ($140) was sufficient encouragement to appoint trustees to manage a fund. Chairman of the trustees was Mr H. W. Gibbon, and Mr Ham, the honorary secretary, was referred to in newspaper reports as the ‘grand old man of Northgate and Virginia’.
The Northgate-Virginia School of Arts, an attractive hardwood structure in Ridge Street, Northgate, was built at a cost of £1,483 ($2,966) and opened by the Governor, Sir Matthew Nathan, in the presence of a large gathering on 20 January 1922. The building comprised a spacious hall, with library accommodation, and several useful anterooms.
Now: Northgate Community Centre
Over the years, the School of Arts was financially maintained by funds from library subscriptions, government assistance, social functions, and hall rentals.
Locals remember the years when the hall was the home of the Ritz Picture Theatre, especially the Saturday afternoon matinees with its serials, where something catastrophic would happen at the end of each episode. This was encouragement to come the following Saturday to see the next episode.
Taken “From Pioneering Days”, by Nundah & Districts Historical Society Inc.
Nundah & Districts Historical Society Inc. | Ph: 3260 6703 |
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