Musgrave Park, Brisbane
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South Brisbane, Queensland
South Brisbane is an inner city suburb of Brisbane, Australia located on the southern bank of the Brisbane River, directly connected to the central business district by the Kurilpa, Victoria and Goodwill bridges....
, a suburb in the city of Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, the capital city of the Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n state of Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
. Musgrave Park is nestled between Edmonstone, Russell and Cordelia Streets and is approximately 3000m2. The park sits adjacent to Brisbane State High School
Brisbane State High School
Brisbane State High School is a partially selective, co-educational, state secondary school, located in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is a member of the Great Public Schools' Association of Queensland, and the Queensland Girls' Secondary Schools Sports Association...
, and Musgrave Park Pool.
History
The South Brisbane Recreation Reserve (as it was originally known) was created in 1856.In 1867, it was proposed to build a public grammar school (Brisbane State High School
Brisbane State High School
Brisbane State High School is a partially selective, co-educational, state secondary school, located in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is a member of the Great Public Schools' Association of Queensland, and the Queensland Girls' Secondary Schools Sports Association...
) adjacent to the reserve.
Current use
It is home to the Jagera Arts Centre, and is one of the few remaining green spaces left in Brisbane's inner city. On August 24, 1998, after 20 years of legal struggles with the Queensland State Government, the Musgrave Park Aboriginal Corporation (MPAC) secured a lease to build a cultural centre on portions of the park.. The park holds special significance to the local Indigenous population due to a past restriction barring Aboriginies from crossing the park and entering the city of Brisbane. Notably, it has historically been a sacred site to the native Murri people, beingthe site of a buried bora ring. However, this has recently been disputed by the State Government.
The park plays host each year to the Greek festival – Paniyiri, the National Aboriginal and Islander Day of Celebration (NAIDOC) Park Day, the Medieval Fayre, and the Lesbian and Gay Brisbane Pride Festival Fair Day.
In 2009, the park was closed to Indigenous persons for a time whilst the Brisbane City Council performed a degree of tests regarding the land surveying of the immediate area. During these tests, a number of Council staff were assaulted by heavily intoxicated persons. There have been continued confrontations between police, council workers and park residents.
In response to ongoing violence and serious assault in Musgrave park, a local resident put up a series of satirical safety signs in February 2010. The signs have since been removed.