RHSQ Commissariat Store

Museum

The Royal Historical Society of Queensland's home is the Commissariat Store building in William Street, Brisbane. This old building is a reminder of Queensland's days as a convict settlement.

The two original storeys of the Commissariat Stores were constructed by convict labour under the direction of the colony's Commandant, Captain Logan.

The building was erected with Brisbane tuff or porphyry hewn from a quarry at Kangaroo Point and with sandstone dressings from the quarry near today's Albion Park Racecourse.

This section of the stores is the second oldest building in Queensland. In 1913, the top brick storey was added and the roof refixed.

The riverside site of the stores is located on what was a gateway to the infant colony. Prisoners and guards disembarking would make their way past the building to reach the other buildings of the settlement. The park along side the Commissariat Stores, in fact, has been developed by the State Government and named after the first Commandant of the Colony, Lieutenant Miller.

Commissariat Store building

The Commissariat Store building in William Street, Brisbane, is a reminder of Queensland's days as a convict settlement. The building has been the subject of an extensive restoration and renovation project by the Queensland Department of Public Works. The picture was taken from Queens Wharf Road.

In conjunction with that project the State Government undertook an historical archaeological excavation of the site and uncovered further convict-constructed works in the form of brick-made drains which are now featured in the basement area of the restored building.

On each floor of the Commissariat Store there are exhibitions. Curator Janice Hess and her assistant Robyn Stephensen set up displays on the middle floor of the Store. They decide on a topic and look for museum items and useful photographs from the Society’s huge collection of nearly 62,000 photographs and digital images. They research the history of the topic and items including their provenance. Jan and Robyn can take months researching and organising their exhibitions. The most recent one is on ILLUMINATED ADDRESSES.

To learn more about the history of the Commissariat Stores and the early colonisation of Brisbane, take our Tour through time.

The Commissariat Store is available for hiring for small functions such as book launches, exhibitions, chamber music concerts and corporate events.

Volunteers are very welcome at RHSQ. Volunteer guides are available Tuesday to Friday from 10.00 am to 4.00 pm to guide visitors and groups the museum.

For more details and to make bookings contact the Manager Allan Bell, (07) 3221 4198, Tuesdays to Fridays during business hours.