Normal School

Queensland was declared a separate colony from New South Wales on 10 December 1859 and in the following year the Queensland Parliament faced the task of providing an education system for the new colony. The Normal School was established as the National School in April 1860 and operated on a mixed basis until 1862 when a new building built by Petrie was erected within the grounds of the Brisbane Boys and Brisbane Girls Primary Schools. The new building was called the Normal School where the name “Normal” was used to indicate that the school operated on a non-denomination basis.

The original building was designed by architect Christopher Porter with construction undertaken by Andrew Petrie. The buildings were demolished in 1927/1928 to make way for new government offices erected around Anzac Square on the corner of Adelaide and Edward Streets. 

Client: Queensland Government Location: Ann Street, Brisbane CBD Year: 1862