From Garden City to Worker's Paradise: Global Histories of a Brisbane Suburb Study Notes

Geographic Context: Inala was a 1950s satellite town located approximately $11 \text{ miles}$ ( $19 \text{ km}$ ) southwest of the Brisbane General Post Office, just out of sight of the main Ipswich Road.
Historical Land Ownership: Prior to the mid-1850s, the land was populated by the Jagara Aboriginal People. It was later known as Woogaroo in the colonial period and used for sheep grazing, cattle, and horse breeding. During World War II, the site housed military installations including Camp Darra and a munition depot.
The Name Inala: The name was selected from four Aboriginal names provided by the University of Queensland, meaning "a place of peace" or "a good place to camp."
The Serviceton Co-operative: Founded in May 1946 by Hock Davis, an Australian serviceman demobilised in 1945. Davis was inspired by the cooperative achievements of kibbutzim he witnessed while stationed in Palestine.
Co-operative Membership and Goals: The Serviceton Ex-Servicemen’s Co-operative Society aimed to provide houses for veterans through self-help and collective manufacture. Members paid a capital fee of up to $£100$ . The society purchased $850 \text{ acres}$ of land in 1947 for $£6 \text{ per acre}$ .

Architectural Design: The Sydney-based firm Hennessey & Hennessey, Co., led by Jack F. Hennessy Junior, drafted the master plan in 1948.
Garden City Principles: Inspired by Ebenezer Howard, the plan combined urban and rural life features. It included curvilinear streets following the topography, a $132 \text{-foot-wide}$ main avenue, and high points reserved for parks and public use.
Planned Amenities: The development was envisioned to include over $2,000 \text{ homes}$ , schools, theaters, shops, churches, sporting ovals, swimming baths, and playgrounds.
Economic Hybridity: The project was a unique hybrid of the 19th-century Garden Movement and the Australian spirit of self-help cooperative construction. Unlike passive adaptations of suburbia, it included plans for cooperative ownership of retail and manufacturing facilities.

The Magnitude of Need: Following the war, $450,000$ men and women returned to Australia, leading to a national shortage of $300,000 \text{ houses}$ . In Queensland, $4,218 \text{ families}$ resided in homes made of calico, canvas, or makeshift bark shelters. The state needed between $30,000$ and $40,000$ urgent dwellings.
Intervention: In 1950, the Serviceton Co-operative Society, plagued by land-use disputes, material shortages, and lack of capital, sold the land to the Queensland Housing Commission (QHC).
QHC Mandate: Formed at the end of 1945, the commission aimed to ensure no Australian family paid more than one-fifth of their weekly income in rent.

Import Strategy: To bypass local material and labor shortages, the QHC imported prefabricated houses from Europe. Contracts signed in March 1950 included:
- Ets LeCorche Frres (France): $886 \text{ houses}$ .
- Mo Konga Trhus AB (Sweden): $700 \text{ houses}$ .
- Legnami Pasotti (Italy): $1,000 \text{ houses}$ .
Costs and Logistics: The total projected cost for the satellite town was $£20 \text{ million}$ . Commonwealth migration and import dispensations allowed these houses and their fittings to be imported without tariffs.
Design and Adaptation:
- Visual Uniformity: To avoid the "dull soul-destroying" appearance criticized by political figures like T.A. Hiley, the QHC utilized $16 \text{ color variations}$ , a mix of hip and gable roofs, and varied elevations.
- Materials: Timber frames sheeted with chamferboards, weatherboards, or asbestos cement tiles. Roofing used $22 \text{-gauge}$ corrugated aluminum alloy or asbestos cement.
- Climatic Criticism: Local architects, including R.W. Voller, criticized the "butter box" designs for being unsuitable for tropical climates, noting that compact rectangular shapes and shallow eaves provided insufficient shade and ventilation.

The Labor Force: Houses were shipped alongside workers. In January 1951, two aircraft carriers arrived at the Brisbane Port. Gus Savini, an Italian worker, noted that truckloads of house kits (Styles A, B, C, or D) arrived at the bush site for immediate assembly.
Ethnic Tensions and Anecdotes: One report noted $160 \text{ French tradesmen}$ arriving who were actually Germans who could not speak English, leading to the establishment of on-site language classes.
Local Success: The Adelaide-based company Boss Brothers was more successful than European contractors. Operating from a factory in Darra, they used an innovative pour-in-situ concrete process, completing wall structures for a house in only $7 \text{ hours}$ . They built nearly $2,000 \text{ houses}$ and public structures like the $1,000 \text{-seat}$ Ritz Picture Theatre.

Project Delays: By 1953, only $1,100$ of the $2,516 \text{ imported houses}$ were finished.
Political Conflict: Prime Minister Robert Menzies and local opposition used the incomplete Zillmere and Serviceton developments to attack the state's housing policies.
Contract Terminations: The French firm LeCorche Frres ceased work in July 1953 with only $179 \text{ houses}$ receiving final certificates. The Swedish firm Mo Konga Trhus AB entered a High Court dispute with the commission.

Early Residents: The first $28 \text{ tenants}$ moved in on 25 February 1953. By $1955–1956$ , the population reached $7,000$ .
Immigrant Demographic: Roughly two-thirds of original residents were from the Wacol Camp for Displaced Persons, representing countries like Poland, Hungary, Ukraine, the Netherlands, Latvia, and Romania. In 1954, $24.6 \text{\%}$ of Inala’s residents were born overseas, compared to the Queensland average of $11.95 \text{\%}$ .
Affordability: Rent for a two-bedroom imported house was $£2/17/6 \text{ per week}$ . Each house included electric stoves, wash boilers, and approximately a quarter-acre of land.

Biological Infestation: The imported houses used European and Yugoslav pine (cut in Brescia, Italy) infested with the borer $Q. Hylotrupes$ . Unlike Australian borers that eat only sapwood, the European species caused severe structural damage similar to white ants.
Fumigation Program ( $1958/9$ ):
- The government spent approximately $£350,000$ to treat $2,643 \text{ houses}$ .
- Process: Buildings were wrapped in large canvas and plastic covers secured with sandbags, then filled with poisonous methyl bromide gas.
- At Zillmere, some houses were so badly infested they were burned down.

Common Resident Experiences: Residents like Mrs. W.R. Hayward described the homes as "heavenly" due to electric appliances and hot water. However, some complained about local disturbances, such as one resident in 1954 reporting that seven horses jumped her fence and destroyed her garden.
Indigenous Experience: Historian Kelly Greenop noted that Indigenous Jagara traditional owners were among the first to settle in the suburb, finding it a place of refuge and acceptance despite external social stigmas associated with public housing.