Photo courtesy of Blackheath and Thornburgh College Archives.

By far the greatest asset we have is our magnificent building, Thornburgh House. Built by Edmund Harris Plant in 1890, Thornburgh House is now 132 years old and through those 132 years has been a focal point in the history of North Queensland, initially as a stately family home, then a boarding and teaching facility, and now as an administrative centre for the school. The school’s archives are stored and displayed in this beautiful building.

The Charters Towers newspaper, The Northern Miner, published a description of Thornburgh House, its rooms and their functions, on Friday February 21^st 1890.

Thornburgh House was purchased by the Presbyterian and Methodist Schools Association in 1918. The establishment of the boarding college as Thornburgh College was due to the persistent efforts of Reverend R. E. Bacon, who enlisted financial help from local benefactors. The first eleven boys began school on June 16^th 1919, under the big fig tree in front of the house, because an epidemic of Spanish flu was sweeping across Australia, and the world, and Queensland Health Department forbade indoor classes.

It has remained a school, though “ownership” has changed from a church body to an association of parents, and now a company with vested interests in its incredible history and accomplishments. The first floor was restored to original condition in 1994. In 2006, Thornburgh House was recognised as a place of cultural heritage significance under the Queensland Heritage Act, 1992. The roof and all the rooms upstairs and down were fully restored in time for Blackheath and Thornburgh College to celebrate its own centenary in 2019. The College Archives are now housed here thanks to the Blackthorn Past Students’ Association (BPSA) major centenary project.

Contributed by Miss Jay Goodwin, Member of the BPSA Management Committee on behalf of the College Archivist, Mrs Kinsey Toomey.