St Mark's Anglican Church and Dunwich Public Hall

Two buildings either side of the ferry landing at Dunwich on North Stradbroke Island are structures associated with the Benevolent Asylum which operated on the island from 1865 to 1947. Its purpose was to house the old and infirm, the disabled and inebriates. The red brick Dunwich Public Hall on the eastern corner of Ballow Road and Junner Street was built in 1913 as the men’s mess hall. It seated 400 men and had a scullery and servery at one end. Food from the nearby kitchen was transported via a tramway although often arriving cold. The building now serves as a community hall overlooking the football oval that was once the asylum’s village green. Further along Ballow Street to the north-west, is St Marks Anglican Church. The 1907 building was financed by The Queensland Governor and his wife, Lord and Lady Chelmsford. It was designed by Diocesan Architect Robin Dods. The first chaplain served the inmates and staff at both Dunwich and the St Helena prison. The unusually steep pitched roof of this quirky little timber church is a gem in the streetscape, complementing the hall as tangible reminders of the benevolent asylum.