Kirkston

Said to be one of Brisbane’s most architecturally accomplished buildings of its time, Kirkston was built in 1889 by one John Young of Young’s Shop and Residence and designed by GHM Addison who was responsible for Brisbane’s distinctive red brick and white stone churches.

Originally a residence for solicitor John Flower of still operational law firm Hart and Flower, it incorporated all the opulent trappings of the height of the boom in which it was built and is still beautifully intact today. In keeping, the interior is a lavish feast of the prominent materials of the time stained glass, oak, walnut and Tasmanian blackwood.

Whilst the house sits at the peak of a windy residential lane called Flower Street (once the driveway),the heritage listed gate posts and adjacent weeping figs that date from the same time can be seen at the entrance to the street. The story goes that local children used to vie to open the gates when the horse and carriage bearing Mrs Hart arrived, in the hope that she would give them lollies.