Goomeri Hall of Memory

While most communities built a memorial of some kind honouring those who served in WWI, Goomeri opted for a more practical response, with the construction of a memorial hall. The Goomeri Sub Branch of the Returned Services League received its charter in January 1926. A committee was formed comprising local community leaders including Messrs Mayne, Stanton, Wimberley, Maudsley and Wise. While accepting plans drawn up by Maryborough architect POE Hawkes, the committee could not raise finance for a new structure. The committee purchased a timber store from Nanango and re-erected it on this site in May 1926, essentially to Hawke’s design. The hall was opened on 28 July 1926, and individual brass plaques to local fallen soldiers were unveiled inside, along with a memorial to the recently deceased committee chairman, John Mayne. The hall was leased as a picture theatre, ensuring a regular income, whilst also used for community activities. Further memorials were unveiled after WWII. During the 1940s, the hall lessee was one of the first operators in the country to install a cinemascope. The Kilkivan Shire Council assumed responsibility for the hall in 1971 and it remains a much loved community asset.