Queensland Cement and Lime Company (QCL) was a company that manufactured

cement A cement is a binder, a chemical substance used for construction that sets, hardens, and adheres to other materials to bind them together. Cement is seldom used on its own, but rather to bind sand and gravel ( aggregate) together. Cement mi ...

and

lime Lime most commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Bo ...

for use in

construction Construction are processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the a ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, Australia. It supplied many major projects in Queensland. It was also known as Queensland Cement Limited.

History

The company was established in 1914, operating a cement factory at Station Road (now Station Avenue), Darra in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

(). From 1916, it obtained limestone from

Gore Gore may refer to: Places Australia * Gore, Queensland * Gore Creek (New South Wales) * Gore Island (Queensland) Canada * Gore, Nova Scotia, a rural community * Gore, Quebec, a township municipality * Gore Bay, Ontario, a township on Manito ...

on the

Darling Downs The Darling Downs is a farming region on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range in southern Queensland, Australia. The Downs are to the west of South East Queensland and are one of the major regions of Queensland. The name was generally ...

. In the early 1930s, it built Oxley Wharf on the

Brisbane River The Brisbane River (Turrbal language, Turrbal: ) is the longest river in South East Queensland, Australia. It flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay on the Coral Sea. John Oxley, the first European to explore the ...

at Seventeen Mile Rocks (). The company had a

dredge Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible reasons for dredging include improving existing water features; reshaping land and water features to alter drainage, navigability, and commercial use; constructing ...

Mud Island Mud Island is a small peninsula in Memphis, Tennessee. It is bordered by the Mississippi River to the west and the Wolf River and Harbor Town to the east. Mud Island River Park is within the Memphis city limits, from the coast of downtown ...

Moreton Bay Moreton Bay is a bay located on the eastern coast of Australia from central Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of Queensland's most important coastal resources. The waters of Moreton Bay are a popular destination for recreational anglers and are ...

from where they obtained

coral Corals are colonial marine invertebrates within the subphylum Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact Colony (biology), colonies of many identical individual polyp (zoology), polyps. Coral species include the important Coral ...

, which was then transported up the river to the wharf from where it was conveyed via the company's private road to the Darra factory. By 1936, the company ceased using limestone from Gore in favour of the coral from Moreton Bay. Army ship Crusader

In the decade following

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

the company acquired the Australian Army ship ''Crusader'' and the former HMAS ''LST 3022'' after they were decommissioned from military service. These vessels were renamed ''Cementco'' and ''Coral'' respectively, and were extensively modified for their new roles. ''Coral'' was used to dredge coral from Morton Bay, and ''Cementco'' transported the material up the Brisbane River to the company's cement factory at Darra. In 1969, the road transport was replaced by a 3.5 km overhead

conveyor A conveyor system is a common piece of mechanical handling equipment that moves materials from one location to another. Conveyors are especially useful in applications involving the transport of heavy or bulky materials. Conveyor systems allow ...

. In 1988 the company was renamed Queensland Cement Limited following some company mergers. In 1995, the company was unable to renew its dredging licences for Moreton Bay, leading to the closure of the Darra factory in 1998 after its stockpile was completely exhausted. In 2003, the company merged with Australian Cement Holdings to create Cement Australia, which (as at 2020) still has some facilities at Station Avenue within a large industrial estate.

Legacy

The company's wharf site at Seventeen Mile Rocks was taken over by

Brisbane City Council Brisbane City Council (BCC, also known as Council) is the local government of the City of Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. The largest local government in Australia by population, BCC's jurisdiction includes 2 ...

in 1990. The council developed the site into the Rocks Riverside Park which opened in December 2003. The park incorporates elements of its industrial heritage. The locality of Cement Mills in the

Goondiwindi Region The Goondiwindi Region is a local government area located in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia along the state's border with New South Wales. Established in 2008, it was preceded by three previous local government areas which dat ...

is located at the site of the company's works near Gore.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Queensland Cement and Lime Company
Cement Australia heritage
Australian companies established in 1914 Manufacturing companies established in 1914 Cement companies of Australia Companies based in Queensland Defunct manufacturing companies of Australia

History

Legacy

References

Further reading

External links