I am Vietnamese and was born in 1994 but somehow watching this makes me feel so nostalgic LOL. In 1994, my family still lived in a straw-and-dirt house while Brisbane in 1954 already had so many significant buildings. Just wow

As a young adult living in Brisbane now, it's really fascinating to look at how things have changed. I had no idea that City Hall looked like that, or that waiters could be that fancy! I love my city with all my heart, but it's nice to look back at what people have captured of the past. (It shows I haven't been outside in a while when I can't remember if we still have palm trees)

I'm so so glad these films have been made easily available to everyone! Thank you so much to those who have made it possible.

I was born in 1959, just celebrated my 60th year. Watching this amazing video brought back all my memories as a young child going to town with my mum to pay bills and take care of other things. I easily remember the wharves and the old Victoria bridge as well as the streets in front of the City Hall. Also I remember that the city hall tower was the tallest structure in Brisbane then. The trams, the gaslights around city hall, the enormous hanging baskets of ferns hanging from the street lights. I don't have a problem with progress, but way too much of the historical value of Brisbane has been destroyed and it is a shame that while other cities in Australia and around the world are working to preserve their heritage it seems that Brisbane is in a hurry to do away with its. Thank you for the wonderful memories you have stirred in me while taking in the sights of this production. I'm going to Subscribe to your channel so I can see what else you have for me. Cheers.

That City Hall shot just blew my mind knowing what it looks like today all paved over

Australia's true hidden gem. Queenslander homes are also very unique and this is what separates Brisbane from the other capital cities in Australia.

Brisbane back then looks so much better then

These old videos are really beautiful!

Unrecognizable today. This was truly the peak of Australia. Today wandering around Brisbane there's nothing unique about it. Could be a city in SE Asia, could be in the Middle East, who'd know.

It looked so quiet and elegant and peaceful then.

Look how clean the river was

Fantastic! Great memories … great people who built our great city! Thank you!

i always marvel at the old footage of the city hall. It looked so good before. They've really messed it up. Its almost like when someone has an addiction to plastic surgery

61 years later, Brisbane is still beautiful. I've been around the world a few times, and I hold the opinion that Brisbane is one of the best cities there is. Great place to cycle around, too.

Grew up in the 70's in Bris it was a fabulous place. Campbell Newman Rio ed ki g george square. Loved the film brought back great memories particularly the ferries.

Thank you. Glad you enjoyed the film. We will be posting more Brisbane material in the future.

For those interested, this was produced 1959.

I love Brisbane. Haven't been there for a while, but it's always a nice escape from the Melbourne winter.

Thanks for your comments. We appreciate the feedback. More old Brisbane coming up this week.

It's incredible to observe the humble beginnings of what is now a world city.

Brisbane has changed so much since the 1950's when the City Hall was the tallest building. Brisbane has grown and is still is the most beautiful city in the world.

Loved the snippet of the olden days. Brisbane was a quiet gentle city in 1954. Now it's brash and pretending to be a "world city". Sorry, it's not. We who live in and love Brisbane don't care what people from other places call it. I'd rather be in a "big country town" than in a "big dirty city" any day. Uniqueness matters. There were some good old days in Brisbane and they were fun. Thanks for the memories!

Of course nostalgia is a great thing when we tend to remember only the better things. Brisbane was more like a big country town back then rather than a more sophisticated city as it is now but that was no bad thing in many ways. One of the best places on earth to grow up in, serious crime almost unheard of and far less Govt. control though that goes for most places these days. Trams a civilized form of public transport and Queen st. developed with some beautiful buildings, torn down in the 70's and 80's to be replaced mainly by banality. Overall it's better now but it would be so much better if it's heritage had been more appreciated in those bad decades.

I'm glad you can leave comments on this one. I remember visiting The Oasis swimming & garden centre when I was a small child on holidays with my family from N.S.W. I SO loved it; I don't think the film does it justice. I felt like I was in paradise! I don't think it's there anymore.

Looks like paradise.

This is a great flash back and brings back many memories of brisbane in the 50s and 60s.

1:53 I can't believe those pineapples didn't fall of that truck!

I loved this! Brisbane still looks - freakishly- the same, nearly 60 years later! Thanks!

Give us kiwis some love too... This is all beautiful.

Better times, fond memories

The old fruit & veggie markets in Roma St seen from 01:45-02:06. Closed 1964.

Filmed the year I was born! Brisbane was better then....

Wow! Amazing! They put colour into the film? Can’t believe that was 70 years ago! And 70 years before that was 1880! Wow!

The popularity of the custard apple waned considerably. Here it gets two mentions and forms the centerpiece of 'fine dining'. "I've got an idea, what if we stretch these lobsters vertically?"

I just love this. What an amazing historical look at our city!

Wow it's amazing seeing the difference decades can make to a city

"Magnificent evening. Wonderful dinner. And a good orchestra. Oh, and a wholesome root afterwards."

Thanks, and yes there are we will get around to posting them eventually. Keep watching.

Regarding your question about the pools at Southbank - they were built after Expo 88 when the whole area was redeveloped. I worked on Expo, and after the show closed everyone realised that Brisbane needed to keep the feeling alive in some way, so the development was aimed at building a permanent public environment for the people to enjoy, in much the same way as they had the Expo. I also remember once going to the Oasis when I was a kid...loads of memories!

We have other Brisbane films already posted too. More to come.

I loved this so much! Im used to seeing old footage of other countries. It's wonderful to see a record of my city finally.

The Oasis was at Sunnybank, got demolished a few years ago.

I saw my old dredge the Echenias 54 secs into video she been built the year before 1953 so she just new i was on it in the late 70s

Wow really great video. thanks for uploading

awesome...a time to remember. reflect and never forget...great work :)

Thanks for sharing

An amazing look back in time :)

Great, thanks so much. Such interesting footage, very enjoyable. You have so many clips for me to look through.

The river was so clean then

Ahh! Finally Brisbane, my home!!

this made me want to cry

Thank you so so much for posting this, how beautiful:)

These are such important historical videos for the city now, even if they were designed with a certain migration policy that in current terms is "problematic" to say the least. Thankfully we have accurate records of the "real" Brisbane population, so the value here, pushing aside current era debates, is seeing these amazing views of this great city. I particular love in this one and the other one that followed: - seeing Cloudland ballroom - views of the river water colour before upstream digging and blasting changed it - industrial era Newstead and New Farm (which the local council erases in favour of bizarre tributes to WWII submarine pens on the riverwalk) - spotting familiar houses that have survived - how remote and unsettled Bulimba and even KP looked (which is wild given Greenslopes and West End were already carved up) I'd love to have footage like this of the areas that the Italians and Greeks, Polish and Welsh moved into. Each little hub of New Farm and West End and Darra and Ebbw Vale could tell some amazing stories!

Brisbane, before the river view got ruined by the concrete canyons on either side at New Farm and East Brisbane.

love the 'prawnapple'!

beautiful

Wow! Fantastic! Thanks!

At least comments haven't been shut off on this one, unlike Life In Australia: Brisbane, something that should never happen on an NFSA video.

Beautifull place,film,time...

Damn those murals at the end are awesome.

If only time travel was real ( which it isn't) I would visit all the large cities in the 50s, including Brisbane & the Gold Coast & Sunshine Coast 🌞

Your welcome :) I really love them and look forward to seeing more ..

Wow! Love it!

would be sweet to live in THAT Brisbane...2020 its just like any other world city....

Nostalgia is a great because we tend to remember only the best. Yep, Brisbane was more like a big country town back in the 50’s and 60’s and in general none the worse for that. It wasn’t all beautiful by any means, a lot of the suburbs were somewhat run down and there was a great lack of trees in too many areas. The river was more interesting however as the P&O/Orient liners along with the smaller cargo/passenger ships used to dock at Hamilton wharves not far from the city centre and they made a great sight. The restaurant scene was pretty dire with not a lot of choice (though the quality of the food was very high) and a ridiculous draconian law that prohibited the majority of having a licence to sell liquor. It was a very safe city for sure so a great place for kids to grow up. Unfortunately the 70’s and 80’s saw the destruction of too many high quality inner city buildings for much inferior replacements, mostly due to corruption. The loss in the late 60’s of the environmentally superior tram system was a backward step but carried out in the name of “progress”

Brisbane,,Beautiful,,back then.. to bad Sir Joh & Katter & the like,,decided to level the place,,,,,,

Thank you so much for sharing this footage! Amazing to see places in the CBD that I've walked, but in black and white :D

That's great information Ce thanks for letting us know.

Good to watch thanks

Back when the Southerners called us a big country town. ‘82 Commonwealth Games and Expo ‘88 put a stop to that

These old Brisbane videos are so depressing and sad. That first house on the still photo may not even be there anymore if you had a look. Everything was changing too quickly before I left, but it was such a heavily and industrial city even years ago. I have such strange memories of living here and it has caused endless problems even years later because you can't even escape Brisbane just by leaving Brisbane, in my experience.

Remember it just like yesterday.

A trip down memory lane indeed. Nostalgia! How our society has altered - to its betterment? The City Hall is built on a swamp that just about engulfed Queen Street. During the 1893 flood my grandfather rowed down that main street in a row boat.

Thank you I'm glad you enjoy them. The archive is extensive so there are plenty more to come.

Beautiful Brissy! Love and miss u. Greetings from Chile.

Yes - they are informative and fun.

3:01 that Jeep!!! where is it today????!!!!! I want it,a rare post war woodie too!❤❤❤🚘❤🚘❤.The oasis isd just a housing area now. All sadly gone as are the commercial gardens.

Oh my god, that was a beautiful country

Also Saturday - a really nice little film directed by Dean Semler based around Lake Cargelligo west of Dubbo

Some more Brisbane history. As a kid, I used to live near the Oasis (described at 6:30).

Love it ! Reminds me of wonderful days past :-) Wish I was still there !

lets bring the 50's back!

chocks away ol' boy !!

It's unfortunate more people don't realise that Redcliffe had the first Qld colony and settlement. Redcliffe would have been brisbane City if not for moving things further down for better ship and fresh water access. They have a first settlement reenactment every year in Redcliffe to mark the historical event. So all in all, Redcliffe itself is the first city of QLD and the oldest one at that.

Those horror 'food' constructions of the 50s! 8.18

good show.

Good times

I was born 400 yards from that river at the mater mothers. The river becomes part of every Brisbanites psyche. You could only cross it in a few spots up until relatively recently.

Great Stuff.

How Classy was That / World Class.

Nothing like this today . Oasis pools are blocks of rich people houses . Brisbane is a huge ghetto now days .

Was that a Vauxhall Velox in front of the FJ Holden at city hall? Later saw a Standard Vanguard parked. What a heap of junk were they. Rust was their friend. They are stumps, not "piles" and besides ventilation the houses were lifted to try and escape the termites. Miramar, Mirabelle & Mirana. The Koopa was long gone since this film was made & the cruise in the Miramar to Bribie Island via Redcliffe required a strong stomach if the bay blew up.

Lawrie, the captions are a service provided by KZfaq using a voice recognition system that is, unfortunately, highly inaccurate. The technology seems to work OK when recognising US accents, but it's not very good with Aussie ones.

Hi Marc most of the films in the collection like this one that present a "postcard" of a town or city were made primarily as a sort of prospectus for intending migrants. A rosy piece of propaganda on what their life might be like should they come to Australia. There was also a domestic audience for these productions but mainly they were aimed at overseas audiences.

He was talking about the horse racing...he actually said "and of course Brisbane goes to the races."

3:20 I was at this spot just 1 week ago after a trip 'into town' Free city circle buses and free tourist ferry rides now ..!!

He does not say that the outside dunny was the only system we had until the late 1960s.

A sense of well being is what we have here.

Brisbane is just a load of interconnected roads now. It looks like there was way more space then, which would make sense. It is a nice place, but the ultra busy roads really are a downer.

so similar, yet so different.