Mr Chair
I rise to speak in support of the submission to rename the Rebecca Street Park, Chapel Hill in honour of the Penhaligon family.
I was first approached some months ago by a local resident, Bev Walker, a descendant of the Penhaligon family who together with Judy Magub, the President of the Kenmore and District Historical Society made representations for this recognition to occur.
After being briefed on the Penhaligon family’s association over many years with the part of my Ward that included Rebecca Street Park, it seemed a “no-brainer”.
But as the Schrinner Administration always does with such matters, we first sought the views of the local community and a comfortable majority of respondents supported the idea.
Mr. Chair, the Penhaligon family were early settlers in the local area and owned the land on which Kenmore Plaza and the Kenmore Tavern stand today.
William Henry Penhaligon from Cornwall, England and his wife of German parents first settled an area from Chapel Hill Road, along Moggill Road through to the current day Montesssori School in the early 1880’s. Their 48 hectare property, Rosedale was a dairy farm with poultry, a piggery and a slaughter house.
William and his brother John also had a property where the Kenmore Anglican Church now stands on Moggill Road, where they broke in horses for the horse drawn trams.
William was also Secretary of the Kenmore Racing Club, an active member of the Kenmore School Committee and served for many years on the Indooroopilly Shire Council.
William and Christina raised four sons and five daughters. Four other children died in infancy and are buried in the Chapel Hill cemetery. Their eldest son William was part of the first contingent to the Boer War in 1899, while their youngest son Sydney was killed at Gallipoli.
William died in 1935, but Rosedale continued to operate as a dairy farm until it was sold to a private buyer after World War 2 for two thousand pounds.
Mr. Chair, in conclusion, the contribution of our forebears in the development of a modern and free country we enjoy today must never be forgotten. Through the renaming of this park, residents in my Ward will have the opportunity to appreciate and understand the history of this special part of Chapel Hill.
Thank you.