Despite being in close proximity to the city centre, the West End still exists in a distinct world of its own, with a bunch of events and activities on offer. There are so many things to do in this unique suburb, from enjoying the exciting array of European and Asian cafes and restaurants, to escaping reality by exploring the various bookshops, and splashing some cash at the adorable boutiques dotting its streets. Green spaces with playgrounds like Musgrave Park add to the community feel.

CityCat services leave from the West End ferry wharf in Orleigh Street. The ferry terminal was destroyed in the 2011 floods, but it was replaced and operating on 24th July 2011.



Davies Park on the riverside hosts one of the largest farmer's markets in Greater Brisbane every Saturday called the Green Flea Markets. On a stroll through the markets you will see aspiring designers peddle their wares among organic grocers, cosy bars and coffee houses. If you like to keep track of your food's carbon footprint, West End is the place to feed your hunger for organic produce, drinks and cocktails.

The music scene is pumping - West End's bars and clubs have been pulsating since the early days of the Saints, the Go-Betweens and the Bee Gees. Brewpubs and live music venues keep the area happening after dark. Boundary Street is the night time hub of the suburb, with its high concentration of bars, pubs and cafes.



West End is home to what looks like a quaint lighthouse that has no light, which is in fact a vintage gas stripping tower involved in the removal of ammonia and tar from coal gas at a nearby gas works. In 1911, the South Brisbane Gas & Light Company, which provided gas to the south side of the river, decided that it needed to upgrade its facilities. They sent their engineer to England to look at the most current technology, and his recommendation was to install this tower. It was built in Yorkshire in 1912 by Robert Hempster and Sons, and sent to Brisbane in sections to be erected at the South Brisbane Gas & Light Company's gas works on Montague Road, West End. The tower has been moved from its original position - it was originally situated on Montague Rd - but in 1979 its new owners, the National Trust, relocated it to its current site at the rear of Davies Park on Riverside Drive.

South Bank Parklands

Close by is the South Bank Parklands, one of Brisbane's best centres for dining, shopping, leisure and relaxation. This urban playground, for adults and children alike, features barbeque facilities, water parks and green spaces such as the hidden Little Stanley Lawns and Liana Lounge which doubles as an art installation. South Bank Parkland's main attractions include the Wheel of Brisbane, a 60m tall Ferris wheel which gives stunning views of the Brisbane CBD and Streets Beach, a glimmering man-made lagoon complete with real sand, palms and creeks. A number of restaurants, cafes and shops also line the promenade.

The precinct is set among parklands, tranquil setting for numerous attractions, including Streets Beach, a calm, blue salt-water man-made beach; garden and rainforest walks, including the Energex Arbour Boulevard; picnic and barbecue areas; more than 20 restaurants and cafes. Rydges Hotel South Bank, Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University, Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre and the Queensland Maritime Museum are located around the perimeter of South Bank. A sightseeing ferris wheel is located at South Bank near the Nepal Peace Pagoda. Free admission.

South Bank Parklands is within close proximity to Busway stations (Cultural Centre and South Bank), railway stations (South Brisbane and South Bank) and several CityCat Terminals along Brisbane River. South Bank Parklands can be accessed on foot and by bike with many bicycle racks located throughout the parklands.

History of West End

West End was named by early English settlers who found the area reminiscent of the West End of London. Before the arrival of Europeans in West End, there was an aboriginal camp in the area around upper part of Musgrave Park where Brisbane State High School now stands. Boundary Streets in both West End and Spring Hill were named due to the racist policy of separating European arrivals from the Jagera and Turrbal peoples.

The entire riverbank in the West End area was covered with impenetrable rain forest. This was described as a 'tangled mass of trees, vines, flowering creepers, staghorns, elkhorns, towering scrub palms, giant ferns, and hundreds of other varieties of the fern family, beautiful and rare orchids, and the wild passion flower'. Along the river bank itself were sandy beaches, water lilies in thousands and dangling convolvulus. Bush rats or fawn-footed melomys existed in large numbers in the rain forest and were hunted by driving them into nets. They were roasted and eaten by women only. They featured in various dreaming tales and tribal lore. The local place name of Kurilpa derives from the name Kureel-pa or 'place of mice'. The name is still used for various local buildings and institutions in West End and South Brisbane.

European settlers took advantage of the fertile soil to establish farms and orchards. There were strawberry farms where for an entry fee, visitors could eat all they wanted. A creek ran down from the Dornoch Terrace area into a reservoir at the corner of Melbourne and Manning streets from where water was sold. After heavy rain, this creek caused local flooding in West End. There was a spring near the site of the Boundary Hotel which was used by residents from the south side of Brisbane to collect water with long queues forming in dry periods.

When the suburb was first developed from farmland in the 1880s it was to pave the way for industry. A gas works, concrete pipe works, a boot factory, an iron/ steel works, a soft drink factory, sawmills, a steam joinery, and even an ice cream plant were all thriving during the 1800s along Montague Road. West End was one of the first suburbs of Brisbane to be serviced by a tram line, being opened in 1885. Initially the tram was horse-drawn and terminated in Boundary Street, but in 1897 the line was electrified and extended to the corner of Hardgrave Road and Hoogley Street, via Vulture Street. It was subsequently extended down Hoogley Street to the ferry terminus at the end of Hoogley Street in 1925. The tram line closed on 13 April 1969.

The Dornoch Terrace Bridge was completed in 1941, replacing an older bridge across Boundary Street built in 1888. The 1941 bridge was a precursor to a new bridge across the Brisbane River to the University of Queensland, which was never built. The former Tristram's Drink Factory, 79 Boundary St, West End, built in 1928 and one of Australia's best examples of the Mission Revival Style architecture was converted into a market in the 1990s and remains a heritage landmark of West End.

During the 1950's the relatively cheap residential prices were attractive to new Greek immigrants, so much so that by the 1980 s the area was know as Little Athens . Over 75% of the population was Greek at this time. The end of the Vietnam War also saw the arrival of many Vietnamese immigrants.

West End still has an industrial backbone, in particular, along Montague Road down to Riverside Drive, though that is changing. Given the value of riverside property now that flooding is better managed, factories are now being sold to make way for upscale waterfront apartments. This is part of a plan to increase population densities in near-city suburbs. It will significantly affect the ability of working-class people to remain in the area[citation needed] and change the economic make-up of the area. As such, West End is currently undergoing urban renewal, with a large change in real estate prices, and new development changing the area's demographics.



Factory Lane, West Village, is a redevelopment of a former Peters ice cream factory site. The much-loved chocolate filled Drumstick ice-cream cones were invented at the factory which still stands. The cones were made across the laneway to the factory, which was was built in 1928 for what was then called Peters Arctic Delicacy Co. Ltd. The factory, which finally closed in 1995 when Nestles bought Peters, had about 70 staff, mostly migrant workers from countries such as Germany, Poland, Spain, Greece and Russia.