Herston - Exhibition Grounds

The site of the Brisbane Exhibition Grounds was originally used by the Queensland Acclimitisation Society and the present day Bowen Park is a remnant of those gardens.

Part of the Acclimatisation Society's land was later used by the Agricultural and Industrial Association of Queensland, from 1875, with the first show being held a year later, as the Queensland Intercolonial Exhibition. The admission prices to this first show were, judging day, five shillings; opening ceremony, two shillings and sixpence; general admission, one shilling.

Sample bags, now known as show bags, were originally true "sample" bags given away free, and containing such samples as :

miniature cans of fruit
lollies, mints, biscuits
cake mixes, puddings
sugar, flour, preserved fruit,

but at the first show, there was only a single sample bag available, this containing examples of coal.

Brisbane Exhibition, 1908

The first Exhibition Building, built of wood, was destroyed by fire in 1887. The replacement Exhibition Building was built in 1891, in only twenty-three weeks. It contains some 1,300,000 bricks and employed around three hundred men during its construction.

First Exhibition Building, ca 1877

Present Exhibition Building, 1895

The Exhibition Building remains one of the architectural icons of Brisbane as well as being an imposing landmark in the Herston landscape.