Brisbane Street, Ipswich

News of the day

Queensland Times, Monday 18 January 1909, page 4

THE BURNS-JOHNSON FIGHT.

Tonight, in the Town Hall, the public of Ipswich will have an opportunity of witnessing the fight for the championship of the world between the white and black champions, Tommy Burns and Jack Johnson – per medium of the cinematograph. The pictures exhibit the two champions training, the various incidents which occurred prior to the fight, and finally the fight itself from the first round to the stopping of the contest by the police. The introduction of the wives of the two champions into the films has been the means of attracting a large number of the fair sex to view the pictures in the metropolis. Mrs. Burns is seen entertaining a large number of fashionable ladies at Medlow Park, and Mrs. Johnson is depicted performing the same offices at Botany. The pictures have had a most successful run in Brisbane, and have been nightly spoken of by the Press there, some of the papers declaring the films to have been the best ever exhibited in that city. The pictures will only be shown once in Ipswich.

Background

The two prominent buildings are the Ipswich Post Office (built 1900) and Old Town Hall (built 1861). The Town Hall had its clock installed in 1879. From 1901 until 1912, Ipswich had two clocks side by side in these two buildings, although they were generally showing different times! The Post Office clock was illuminated in 1912 and the Town Hall clock was sold to Sandgate Town Council and was installed in Sandgate Town Hall in 1923.

 

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