Booval House — Ipswich’s oldest two-storey brick home

Built 1857-1859 for banker George Faircloth on a 310-acre farm east of town, this 14-room Colonial-Georgian mansion even hosted Queensland’s first governor on his inaugural Ipswich tour.

After stints as a coal-family estate and, for 50 years, St Gabriel’s Convent, it was rescued in a million-dollar restoration—earning the National Trust’s John Herbert Gold Award—and remains a cherished private residence today.

🔢 By the Numbers

• 166 years old in 2025 (finished late 1859).
• 14 rooms in the original plan.
• 6 fireplaces, 14-inch ground-floor brick walls, 5 m × 5 m cellar.
• 310 acres at purchase; 40 acres under cotton in the 1860s boom.
• 4 818 m² (≈1.2 acres) current house lot.
• Sale milestones: £900 (1921) · A$230 000 (1997) · A$1.25 m (2017) · A$1.8 m (2021).
• A$1 million+ spent on conservation 1998-2002; project took the National Trust’s John Herbert Gold Award.

📜 Chronology & Ownership

• 1859 — Faircloth era: Brick mansion completed; Governor Bowen refreshes here.
• 1862 — Scandal hits: Faircloth dismissed after advancing £30 000 (≈A$9.5 m today)—about half the branch’s cash; estate mortgaged.
• 1868 — Auction: Ipswich businessman William Welsby buys the property.
• 1876 — Ferrett family: Coal-owner John Ferrett buys in; family shelters neighbours during the 1893 flood.
• 1921 — Catholic Church: Archdiocese acquires the house for £900.
• 1930 — Sisters of Mercy: Opens as St Gabriel’s Convent and Sacred Heart School.
• c.1980 — Vacant: Convent closes; building deteriorates.
• 1992 — Heritage listed: Added to the Queensland Heritage Register (Place 600549).
• 1997 — Dr John & Helen Jackson: Buy for A$230 k and launch award-winning restoration.
• 2017 — Dr Baartz: Purchases for A$1.25 m.
• 2021 — Dr Omar Mansour: Buys for A$1.8 m; Booval House continues as a lived-in heritage landmark.

These highlights only scratch the brickwork—tap the link below to dig into Booval House’s full 166-year saga.

Read More

✈️ Amberley Advantages

This week’s Spotlight taxis us back to 1938, tracing the deliberate search that put RAAF Amberley on the map.

Mid-1930s military buildup demanded a bigger, all-weather airfield close enough to shield Brisbane yet beyond enemy bomber range. Civil strips such as Archerfield were too short, boggy and crowded, so Cabinet ordered a fresh hunt.

By 1937 Air Board engineers were boring test pits and mapping flood lines across south-east Queensland.

Months of soil tests, contour surveys and costings—spanning Archerfield, Eagle Farm, Bulimba, Toowoomba and Dalby—ended in 1938 when Air Vice-Marshal Williams’ board declared Amberley unbeatable.

These quotes (all taken from 1937-1939) show why Amberley won:

• 🌧️ All-weather Surface:

  “Flat, firm, well-drained sub-soil; surface pooling cured by spoon drains.” — Air Board Minute (NAA - National Archives of Australia)

• 🛡️ Strategic Distance:

  “Six miles from Ipswich, fourteen [miles] by rail from Brisbane, yet beyond easy night-bomber range of the capital.” — Hansard (Parliament Record)

• 🌊 Sea Cover:

  “The station should be as near Brisbane as possible to guard the sea approaches.” — AVM Williams (press)

• 📏 Ample Space:

  “Area 882 acres gives unlimited room for future extensions of hangars and fuel stores.” — Air Board Minute (NAA)

• 🚂 Rail Link:

  “Within half-a-mile of the Ipswich–Brisbane rail; siding can carry heavy plant direct to site.” — Air Board Minute (NAA)

• 🛠️ Nearby Workshops:

  “Proximity to Ipswich railway workshops will materially reduce aircraft maintenance costs.” — Engineer’s memo (NAA)

• ⛰️ Elevated Ground:

  “Light loam over firm gravel; surface about 70 ft above Warrill Creek high-water mark—ample fall for spoon drains only.” — Engineer’s note (QSA - Queensland State Archives)

• 💰 Low Cost:

  “Acquisition cost £11 500; land now open pasture, compensation therefore light.” — Treasury file (QSA)

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Put your poster and linked blurb in this very spot for no more than a pub meal and beer. Last week, Marburg Hotel’s top spot earned 1,500 views and 26 clicks—more bang for buck than Facebook, Instagram, or print. Book now and own next week’s success story. Full details here →

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🧩 Scramble

From now on every Scramble word is a hint for the GuessWhere game.

📍 GuessWhere

How to play: Look close at the photo, guess where it was taken from in Ipswich. Click the link and drop your pin to see how close you can get.

GuessWhere →

🤔 Trivia

🏛️ City Plan 2025 Commits $2.22 B, Charts 662k Growth

Councillors adopted Ipswich City Plan 2025 and its Local Government Infrastructure Plan on 29 May, locking in $1.38 B for transport, $821 M for parks and $19 M for community hubs— a $2.22 B trunk-infrastructure program. The scheme supersedes 2006 rules on 1 July, charting growth to 251,314 dwellings and an ultimate population of 662,158 residents across Ipswich.
Media release →
My rundown →

🚧 Mt Crosby Overpass: Night Works & Southbound Lane Return

TMR has switched to overnight shifts (8 pm – 5 am, about four weeks weather-permitting) to carve out a temporary southbound lane across the Mt Crosby Road overpass. Crews are removing the western footpath, nudging guardrails, widening the deck and stripping old cabling. While tools are out the bridge runs one-way: northbound traffic detours via Pine Mountain Rd and the Warrego Hwy off-ramp, and the existing southbound River Rd detour stays.
QLD Traffic Alert →
ABC Full Story →
TMR Facebook Update →

🏗️ Gas Main Rupture Closes Booval Block

A two-car crash ruptured a high-pressure gas main at Clifton and Alexandra Streets on Monday, forcing police to declare a five-hour exclusion zone across four roads; one driver was hospitalised as residents sheltered indoors until 4:30 pm. 7News →

🏉 Jets Beat Clydesdales 42-12 At Home

Ipswich Jets scored seven tries to beat Western Clydesdales 42-12 in Round 11 of the Hostplus Cup at North Ipswich Reserve. The win lifts Jets to 4-5 and gives locals momentum for next week’s trip to Mackay. Recap →

🏃‍♂️ Blues Down Maroons 18-6 In Origin Opener

NSW Blues beat Queensland 18-6 before 52,483 fans at Suncorp on 28 May. Zac Lomax bagging a double and Payne Haas running 198 metres to secure Game 1. Queensland now face a must-win Game 2 in Perth on 18 June to stay in the series. Full Breakdown →

🌌 Rare Aurora Dances Over Peak Crossing Skies

A severe G4 geomagnetic storm from sunspot 4100 lit Peak Crossing, Springbrook and Lake Moogerah on Sunday night, painting vivid purple-red curtains rarely seen this far north; scientists say elevated activity may persist until 3 June. View Pic Here →

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Wednesday (4th June)

🆓 Ipswich Art Gallery — Kids’ CLAY “Creature Feature” workshops, 10 AM & 1:30 PM info

💵 Ipswich Civic Centre — History talk Crossing the Divide (Blue Mountains expedition), 10 AM details

💵 Brighton Homes Arena — Goodness Enterprises Fund-raiser dinner & charity auction, 6:30 PM tickets

🆓 Monte Lane Wine Bar — Popular quiz night (drinks 💵), 6:30 PM book

🆓 Booval Freemasons Centre — Learn heartfulness meditation, 7–8 PM info

🆓 General Public (Nicholas St) — Trivia (free, food & drink 💵), 6:30 PM info

💵 Redbank School of Arts — Samoan Independence Day Bingo Special, 7 PM

🆓 Hotel Commonwealth — Music Bingo with prizes, 7 PM details

💵 Brothers Leagues Club, Raceview — $25 poker (reg 6 PM), 7 PM start

🆓 Banshees Bar & Artspace — Open-mic, 7 PM info

🆓 Orion Hotel — Karaoke, 8 PM-late

Thursday (5th June)

🆓 Jets Leagues Club — Free travel presentation (RACQ & Touring Holidays), 10 AM info

💵 St Thomas’ Hall — Sound-bath meditation with bowls & gongs, 6 PM details

🆓 Club Services Ipswich — Trivia Thursday, 6:30-9 PM info

🆓 Banshees Bar & Artspace — Karaoke, 7 PM-late details

💵 Studio 188 — Aussie hip-hop star JK-47 live, 7:30 PM tickets

Friday (6th June)

💵 Castle Hill MTB Park — Rocky Trail schools race, 9 AM-1:30 PM info

💵 RVSSC Performing Arts — Student dance showcase, 6:30 PM tickets

💵 Banshees Bar & Artspace — Alt-country rockers The Emmavilles, 7 PM tickets

💵 Ipswich Civic Centre — Comedy: Jimeoin’s Pandemonium, 8 PM tickets

Saturday (7th June)

🆓 Summerland Camels, Harrisville — Fermented Food Festival, 9 AM-3 PM info

💵 Castle Hill MTB Park — Fox Superflow race (Sat & Sun), 9 AM-3:30 PM info

💵 Banshees Bar & Artspace — “Above the Bar” life drawing, 4-6 PM tickets

💵 Ipswich Civic Centre — Joe Cocker tribute The Joe Cocker Express, 7:30 PM tickets

💵 Racehorse Hotel — Comedy night with Emma Krause, 8 PM tickets

Sunday (8th June)

🆓 Blackstone Hall — Heartfulness meditation, 9-10 AM info

🆓 Marburg Pacing Association — Country family race-day at the trots (free entry)

💵 Ipswich Civic Centre — OCB Natural Bodybuilding comp, from 10 AM tickets

💵 Ipswich Grammar — Ladies High Tea with live music, 2-5 PM tickets

💵 Cambrian Centre — Youth choir concert Choralation 2025, 2:30 PM tickets

Monday (9th June)

🦗

Tuesday (10th June)

🆓 Ipswich Civic Centre — MSA Springfield Arts Gala (student vocal & stage acts), 6:30 PM details

🧩 This Week's Answers

📊 Last Week’s Results

—Jamey
Ipswich Insider (Facebook, Instagram)
Eastern Heights, Ipswich, QLD 4305

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