The Engine Room

 

The small red-brick building in the foreground is known as The Engine Room and sits on the banks of the river at Teneriffe. In 1908/9, the Brisbane Stovedoring and Wool Dumping Company constructed wharves and storage areas here for the export of, among other things, refrigerated meat to Britain. This building housed two ammonia compressors that were driven by steam engines to provide the refrigeration needed in the cold storage areas. It's now heritage listed.

I was really surprised they had refrigeration up and running this early - pretty state of the art I would have thought...especially in what was a relatively small outpost at the time.  Although, if you have a look at the buildings that remain in Brisbane from around that time, it is evident the British intended Brisbane to be a sophisticated, cultured and prosperous place and it looks like a lot of money flowed though here at the time.