History
Read also about the history of the Holy Trinity Church building.
The Trinity Story
The new arrivals of Fortitude Valley of the early 1850s, largely occupying small blocks or a part of a village of some 150 cottages, did find it a hard walk to get to the parish church which then was St John's, William Street.
Between the Valley (also previously known as Rosetta Swamp) was the high Duncan's Hill. Ann St now carves its way through this past obstacle.
The priest at St John's hit on the idea of starting a more convenient gathering place, and a small local house was rented and the congregation formed in the mid 1850s.
The cottage was a chapel on Sundays and a school during the week.
But the accommodation was almost immediately hopelessly too small.
How fortunate was the move to formalize this emerging settlement into a part of the municipality. Under this plan was the provision for civil, secular and ecclesial land to be allocated.
By a grant by the Crown, the NSW governor gave the two acre site for a new parish - the site occupied by Trinity to this day.
Originally granted for a peppercorn rent in 1857, the grant was formally concluded after Queensland and its government was formed.
Also acquired by grant was land for a Rectory in Leichhardt St (now St Paul's Terrace) Spring Hill and a stone house built.
A rough stone church built in 1857 on the newly granted site, again used for a school on weekdays.
This building, with the arrival of more immigrants and the beginning of families, and the move of more established people to finer houses at Herston, also soon became inadequate.
There was also a windfall of people into the parish community. The Presbyterian minister, Mr Love, was sidelined by the Rev'd John Dunmore Lang, the Presbyterian minister who oversaw the import of many people on such ships as the "Fortitude".
The Bishop of infant Diocese of Brisbane was incredibly short of clergy and cheered up the despondent Mr Love by ordaining him and placing him in charge of Trinity, the Valley, his familiar stamping ground.
Having been extremely hard working, pastoral and well liked, there was a high proportion of Presbyterians who suddenly found more delight in being Anglican.
It may have become a very protestant parish community, but it was so populous that a new church became the urgent action item.
In 1876, a man hired with his dray, came to clear the site so the church could rise. The bill for this was 13 shillings and sixpence. The account still exists!
An economic plan by architect FDG Stanley (it is also the plan for St Paul's, Maryborough) was chosen and built on stone foundations, and completed as far as the chancel in 1877 when it was opened by the Bishop of Brisbane.
The older and extended temporary stone church continued until about 1890 as the school when it was demolished to make a bigger school building. It was opened by Governor Norman immediately after the Bishop had made a scathing speech about the Queensland state school curriculum.
The present 'new' Rectory of some twelve rooms - a Victorian gentleman's residence - was occupied on completion in June 1891, and still in use as originally intended, although the housework is murder.
Both new buildings were funded out of the sale of the St Paul's Terrace 'old' Rectory after a noted Parliamentary debate, permission being required to sell these granted lands.
For a building Jubilee, the church was completed by 1921 with the addition of a very high and lofty sanctuary.
The rather austere liturgy was decorated by catholicity with the arrival of the Canon James Watkin and his 32 year incumbency, only leaving then because he died.
Fr (later Bp) Wicks followed him, added more catholic decoration and happily found whilst working dogged pastoral rounds, that the population was picking up again after WWII.
That generation and parents have largely moved on (either elsewhere or heaven) and the new growing population are those inhabiting the many units and warehouse developments.
Most of the congregation now come from other suburbs (having moved), but the newer faces represent mainly those who have arrived to live in the inner city, as well as younger parents and their children.
Countless hundreds have been married at Trinity, and how wonderful it is in this day and age to welcome the next generations, and to have a climbing number of baptisms again.
How good it is to see more parents and children making themselves a part of the parish community.
While in common with other parishes, the teenagers and twenty year olds go to mass infrequently, there is an age spread from infancy to those in their nineties.
Like most CBD parishes, much of the effort is weekday activities, and Sunday is the gathering and empowering celebration day.
The front door of the Rectory is well known as is the phone number for those seeking help and assistance.
There is now a welfare coordinator and recently a 24 hour welfare line connected.
Generous contributors and twenty-five volunteers keep up the work of the Trinity Pantry and Anglicare. Each year they help cater for about 3000 people with food and domestic bills.
Space is made for a mental wellbeing group, two AA groups and a Narcotics Anonymous group for women and girls.
There is an aged person respite centre with its own ogranisation, coordinator, helpers and buses, and this centre also hosts the Chinese Cathay community activities for their elderly.
The Trinity buildings are now all classified as heritage and so is the precinct. This is both a blessing and a headache.
The headache comes with the heavy costs of maintenance and restoration, and the expectation of many that we should be kept as some sort of museum to the past.
For the coming 150th anniversary celebrations of the founding of the parish community, the guidance group within the parish meeting with the Parish Priest has firmly proposed that our anniversary should be a springboard to the future.
Trinity stands high on Wickham and Brookes Streets corner and is a Valley icon. Like all icons, it can continue to be a familiar window onto God.
How good it is that many find their way in the door and up the aisle to seek Him further or to discover that, whilst visiting, truth and beauty are in this place.