Eye-catching house’s backstory discovered
SIMON Carter owned his gorgeous Cairns North Queenslander for 20 years before he discovered a special connection to Cairns’ industrial history.
The three-bedroom home at 100 Cairns St was a reliable investment property for the marine engineer and he started renovating the airy character home late last year.
But it wasn’t until he decided to put it on the market and started doing some research with the help of the Cairns Historical Society that he found the property had been the first headquarters for Cairns’ NQEA Engineers and Shipbuilders.
“Just out of curiosity, I wanted to find out how old the building was,” Mr Carter said.
He later contacted Don Fry, who owned the home and later started NQEA.
Mr Fry confirmed the home was built in 1938 by RG (Dick) Fry with assistance from a carpenter who lived at the bottom end of the street and was rented from 1941-45.
During this period, Mr Fry’s parents lived with his maternal grandmother in Charters Towers and the future head of NQEA completed Prep at Charters Towers Boys School.
“NQEA’s first workshop was beneath the house with employees, Gordon Clarke and Keith Clarke, for a four-week period,” Mr Fry recalled.
“The workshop was then relocated to the corner of McLeod and Spence streets until 1953. In 1954, NQEA moved to 36 Buchan St.
“The Cairns St house was sold in about 1953-54 to fund the development of the NQEA workshop in Buchan St. The Fry family lived in the Buchan St sawmill caretaker’s barn until 1955 when a new house was built beside the workshop.”
On a quiet street minutes from the CBD and walking distance to the Esplanade, Red and Yellow Arrow walking tracks, shops, Tobruk swimming pool and public transport, Mr Carter said the home was “designed for the tropics, entertaining and living outdoors”.
“It is built to take advantage of the prevailing winds and the high ceilings, casement windows, french doors and open plan keep the interior cool and fresh,” he said.