Brisbane 1859 to 1959: a history of local government

The foundation of local government in Brisbane pre-dated by a matter of months the proclamation of Queensland as a separate self governing Colony. It is not unfitting that the centenary of municipal government, which so nearly coincided with Queensland separation, should he commemorated by a history of one hundred years of local government in the Queensland capital. This book is the outcome of a decision by the Brisbane City Council that one fitting way to mark the occasion would be the publication of a permanent and detailed record of municipal government in Brisbane. The Town Clerk extended an invitation to me to make myself responsible for the book. Several things induced me to accept his invitation. There was the belief that the University should respond to legitimate requests for assistance; not less important were the assurances of the Town Clerk that what was in mind was a serious and indeed scholarly study, that Council documents would be made available, and that there would be full freedom in presenting the material. These promises have been more than honoured. I can only express to Mr. Slaughter and to the staff of the Council my very real appreciation of the continuous and generous co-operation extended both to me and to Mr. Laverty. Our demands at times must have seemed important, especially when made upon busy men; they were, however, invariably met with coutesy and helpfulness. The book is a commemorative volume sponsored by the Council; it is at the same time an independent piece of historical investigation. Responsibility for the text rests with myself and Mr. Laverty. We have attempted to present as faithful a record as possible of municipal activity in Brisbane from the time of the first agitation for local urban self-government. The events of the early years may seem remote and even trivial; but the period of beginnings is seldom unimportant. Insofar as space would allow, the record of municipal activity has been set against the background of the growth of the city itself, since any account of local government which is divorced from the problems peculiar to the area must lose much of its significance. This is a large volume, but space has been the greatest problem. The amount of material available is enormous; indeed, during the last four years Mr. Laverty has assembled a collection of local government documents which in range and detail must certainly be unique in this country. In organizing the book I have been guided by the need to maintain a proper balance between developments in various periods; selection has been rigorously practised and much that might have been retained has been excluded. This is a history and not a political treatise. It was a history that the Council had in mind, and to that extent the objective was set. From the point of view of local government studies in this country it is of the first importance that the historical record be available. Those who write upon local government in the United Kingdom have the enormous advantage of an established framework of historical knowledge. In Australia the record is largely unknown, and the political scientist is forced either to become his own historian or to essay contemporary discussion in ignorance of the background development. This book appears under joint authorship. It has, I feel, been a genuine partnership. I have been responsible throughout for the programme of work, for the shape of the volume, for close editorial supervision of all sections, and for the writing of much of the book. Laverty has amassed the material with remarkable thoroughness and considerable personal initiative. The quality of his work was such that I felt that he should contribute several of the chapters and that the work should appear jointly. No list of acknowledgments could hope to include all who have given generous assistance. Illustrative material was kindly provided by the Library Board of Queensland, the Queensland Historical Society, the Courier-Mail, the Telegraph, the Queensland Government Tourist Bureau, the Commonwealth News and Information Bureau, and various Brisbane photographers. The Librarians of the Oxley and Queensland Parliamentary Libraries placed whatever material they had at our disposal. The University of Queensland supplemented assistance from the Council in the form of research grants. Of the assistance provided by officers of the Council I have already spoken, but to this should be added my personal appreciation of the active encouragement and genuine interest displayed throughout by the Lord Mayor, Alderman T. R. Groom. I would also like to thank the publisher, Mr. Oswald Ziegler, not only for his skill but also for his tolerance in handling a book which was inevitably delayed from time to time by other inescapable obligations. In a more personal sense I am indebted to the Research Assistants of the Department, to Mrs. Heather Kenway, to Mr. Don Dignan, and to Mr. Bruce Knox, for gathering specialist material, for many pertinent suggestions, and for much patient checking. Last, though in no sense least, there is my very great debt to my secretary, Miss Peggy Burke, who has become highly expert at the technical job of preparing a manuscript for publication. Not only has she sacrificed innumerable evenings to work upon the manuscript but whenever I showed a tendency to flag she insisted upon checking and re-checking. Her insistence has eliminated many errors and produced numerous improvements.

Gordon Greenwood