Welcome to Wynnum
'Wynnum-by-the-sea' is how some residents refer to their home suburb. The whole Wynnum area, including Manly and Lota is focussed on Moreton Bay, with the more prestigious streets providing unbroken views to the islands. See popular street views. There's always a cooling breeze and the Esplanade caters for morning walkers, joggers and cyclists with long stretches of waterfront parkland and bikeways. No matter how hot it is in the city, the temperature always seems to drop a few degrees along the mangrove boardwalk near Elanora Park, Wynnum North.

The recently renovated salt water Wynnum Wading Pool on the Esplanade is very popular and also of historic importance as it was originally constructed during the Depression years of the 1930s. The Wynnum Pier is a favourite spot to gaze out into the bay and breathe in the salt air. Another popular spot at Wynnum is the historic Waterloo Bay Hotel built in 1889 and recently renovated and there are plenty of parks with shady trees and great sea views to enjoy fish and chips or a BBQ. There is a strong sense of community in Wynnum and a thriving local shopping village in Bay Terrace. Although 16 kilometres from the city, the suburb is an easy commute of approximately 40 minutes by train. The suburb's demographic is changing from being a suburb of retires to one of families and there are plenty of schools, both private and public.

Statistics
Over 40% of households in this area are comprised of couples with children. A further 40% households are couples without children.
Stand alone houses account for 79% of all dwellings in this area. Townhouses accounting for a further 2%.  Wynnum is situated at the mouth of the Brisbane River, making it popular with those who love the water. The housing in this area comprises mainly of post-war Queenslanders as well as modern brick and tile dwellings.

Shopping
The Wynnum / Manly area is well serviced by commercial and retail precincts, which continue to thrive as the area gains in popularity. Wynnum has access to all the major supermarket and retail chains; there is also Manly Harbour Shopping Village and street shopping available. Capalaba and Westfield Carindale shopping centre are in neighbouring suburbs that are 10 - 15 minutes away.

Schools and hospitals
The Wynnum Hospital is located in Whites Road. The closest TAFE is at Alexandra Hills about 10 minutes away. There are a number of public and private schools (about six primary, two secondary, and six kindergartens).  Wynnum State High School is a co-educational state high school. You can also search for other playgroups, childcare, kindergartens or schools in Wynnum.

Leisure
There are plenty of bike and walk ways, a community swimming pool and a seawater wading pool available to residents. In the summer there are many outdoor activities such as canoeing, rollerblading, and biking. From yoga to dance classes check out what leisure activities are happening in and around Wynnum. There is also a yacht club in nearby Manly and this attracts a lot of interest from people from all over the region.

Location
19.5km east of Brisbane CBD.

Features
Bayside lifestyle, Wynnum/Manly Yacht Club, Wynnum Hospital, easy access to Wynnum, Wynnum Central and Wynnum North rail stations

Profile
Wynnum is about 20km and 30 minutes by car from Brisbane's CBD, and, like the nearby suburb of Lota, has been rediscovered by residents who want to live near the ocean. The area has a yacht club in nearby Manly which attracts a lot of interest from people all over the region. Wynnum is serviced by a train line and the journey to the Brisbane CBD takes about 35 minutes. The Wynnum Hospital is located in Whites Road. There are a number of public and private schools (about six primary, two secondary, and six kindergartens). The closest TAFE is at Alexandra Hills about 10 minutes away. The suburb has access to all the major supermarket and retail chains; there is also Manly Harbour Shopping Village and street shopping available.

Capalaba Shopping Centre and Westfield Carindale, in nearby suburbs are 10 to 15 minutes away. Plenty of bike and walk ways, a community swimming pool and a seawater wading pool are available to residents. In the summer there are many of outdoor activities such as canoeing, rollerblading, and biking. There is a School of the Arts and municipal hall where local activities are held. Over 50 per cent of houses accommodate families, retirees and older residents, who make up the majority of the population. There is a wide cross section of couples and families attracted by the extensive redevelopment around the waterfront precinct and the inspired street scaping around the Wynnum and Manly areas.

With very little land left in close proximity to the waterfront, homebuyers wanting the bayside lifestyle are renovating older homes and cottages. The Wynnum/Manly area is well serviced by commercial and retail precincts, which continue to thrive as the area gains in popularity.

Aboriginal history
The Wynnum area was occupied by the Winnam (meaning ‘pandanus') people. They lived a semi-nomadic lifestyle with several campsites within their area and adjacent islands. Elanora Park was an aboriginal campsite and was known as ‘Blacks Camp' until 1976. The coast and river provided abundant seafood. Pandanus, bangwall (fern root) and other plants were eaten and small mammals and birds were hunted, particularly the flying foxes on St Helena Island, where inter-tribal feasts and corroborees appear to have taken place.

As settlement grew the aborigines were confined to the coastal fringes. While agriculture was not possible, the good fishing and hunting meant they could survive. By the 1870s closer settlement around Brisbane was making this outskirts living impossible. The main destroyers of the Moreton Bay Aborigines were new diseases brought about though contact with the white population. Diseases such as smallpox and tuberculous decimated the indigenous population.

Urban development
Three cedar cutters were blown off course from Sydney in 1823. They were wrecked on Moreton Island and, with the help of local aborigines, explored the coast and inland until they met up with John Oxley’s party. It appears likely that they crossed to the mainland at Emu Point and travelled north along a native path, much of which is now Tingal Road, to the top of Lytton Hill where they became the first white people to see the Brisbane River.

From 1824 to 1839, Moreton Bay was a penal colony and no free settlement was allowed, but in 1842 this restriction was lifted. The area was surveyed by James Warner in 1859 and the first land auction took place in 1860. Among the earliest purchasers were Shepherd Smith, general Manager of the Bank of New South Wales, and John Balfour, who selected four blocks, comprising 87 acres in all, which stretched from Wynnum creek to Wynnum North State School and down to the bay. Most of the initial settlement was concentrated in the Wynnum North region. Grazing, viticulture, farming and fishing were the primary occupations for these early settlers.

In 1882, the first subdivision in the area took place, at Manly Beach Estate, but the first subdivision in Wynnum was the East Wynnum estate in 1884. In 1888, the estimated population of the Lytton to Lota district was 200 with 50 households. The arrival of the railway in 1889 ensured that the area continued to boom. It was a popular holiday spot, with many guesthouses and camping sites, and at one stage around half the houses in the area were solely used as holiday homes. Farming and fishing were the primary occupation, with it being for a time the second largest fishing catch in Queensland.

In 1902, the Wynnum Shire Council was created and in 1913 it became the Town of Wynnum, before being amalgamated into Greater Brisbane in 1925.

Notable residents
The Green family had a timber yard where G and B Motors now stands. John Greene was a builder and sawmiller. His sons were building contractors in Wynnum and built most of the early buildings, including the Misses Greene School for Girls in Bay Terrace (later Moreton Bay Girls College), established by their five sisters. They also built and operated the Star Theatre, which burned down in 1959, and Sam Greene published the Waterloo Bay Leader. Sam Greene was elected Alderman in 1913 and his son John was the last mayor of Wynnum and the second Lord Mayor of Brisbane.

Englishman Edward Kelk and his brothers bought land near Hemmant and named their property Lindum-mere after the Roman name for Lincoln (after their home Lincolnshire). In 1869, Edward built a house not far from Pleasantville. The Kelks built Kianawah sugar mill in the 1860s and pioneered the growing of sugar in the area.

Joe Sands came to Wynnum as the Shire Clerk in 1907. He and his family lived in the Shire Clerk’s Cottage, where they kept milking cows, poultry and a vegetable garden. In 1913, when Wynnum Shire became a township, Joe Sands became the Town Clerk. His duties were varied, including overseeing town works, processing rates and fines, and, temporarily, administering the town. In 1917, the Court of Queensland dismissed the current Town Council (following great disagreements and even violence amongst the councillors) and Mr Sands was the town’s highest official until an election four months later.

Landmarks
The Shire Clerk’s Cottage on Tingal Road was built in 1890 as a residence for the clerk of the Kianawah Divisional Board. The State Government donated two and a half acres of land along the creek and tenders were called for the construction of a hall, offices and residence. Mr J.G. Gross tendered 820 pounds, of which 255 were for the cottage. This was accepted and he started building immediately. Sixteen weeks later a ball was held to celebrate the completion of the building work. It later became the Shire Clerk’s cottage and, was for many years the home of Joe Sands, the Shire Clerk. In 1984 the building was extensively renovated and restored.

St Helena Island was used as Queensland’s state prison from 1867-1932. For many years it operated as a prison farm, with its own cane fields and mill, dairy cattle, farmyards, workshops, and tram. After the prison closed, various families leased it, but it is now a National Park and a popular tourist spot.

Wynnum Central State School was opened in 1894 with an enrolment of eighty. By 1901, another room was required and a third was built six years later. Further annexes were built in 1917 and 1919, which for three years catered for a secondary school.

Wynnum Wading pool was a depression era project and opened in 1933. The parkland was reclaimed from the sea, a revetment wall was built and backfilled, with an area left empty to create the tidal pool. The pool is around 200 m by 65 m with automatic valves to maintain the water depth from the tide.

The Waterloo Bay Hotel was built by George Gibb and opened in 1889. He was born in Cornwall and migrated with his wife and child, but they returned to Cornwall after the baby’s death. In 1875, he returned to Australia with his second wife and four children. They settled in Kelvin Grove, but after the Cleveland rail line was opened, he was granted a hotel licence and built the Waterloo Bay Hotel. Due to ill health he sold the hotel and moved to Gibbs Street, where he died in 1906. He was a well-known stone mason in the district.
 

Reference: K. Harbison, BRISbites, 2000