Originally inhabited by the Meanjin peoples of the Turrbal and Jagera/Yuggera Indigenous groups. Later on, Scottish immigrants from the ship arrived in Brisbane in 1849 in hopes to take the land, enticed by Rev Dr
John Dunmore Lang on the promise of free land grants. Denied land, the immigrants set up camp in
York's Hollow waterholes in the vicinity of today's
Victoria Park,
Herston. A number of the immigrants moved on and settled the suburb, naming it after the ship on which they arrived. The school closed in December 2013 due to low student numbers, despite a prolonged campaign by parents and students to keep it open. The
Queensland Government argued that there was another school only away that could accommodate the students. However, it was reopened in January 2020 as
Fortitude Valley State Secondary College in response to a growing population in the area. It was Brisbane's first new inner city school in more than 50 years, built vertically to fit in with the increased population density of the suburb. A
Primitive Methodist church opened in October 1861 in Windmill Street (now McLachlan Street).
All Hallows' School opened on 1 November 1861 by the
Sisters of Mercy in the Dean's Cottage beside the Catholic Cathedral (now
Old St Stephen's Church) in Adelaide Street in the Brisbane town centre. It was the first secondary school for girls in Queensland. Needing more space to accommodate a growing school they moved on 1 November 1863 to the house
Adderton on Duncan's Hill in Fortitude Valley. In 1862 the
Jireh Baptist Church opened in Fortitude Valley. A Primitive Methodist church opened at 483 Brunswick Street on Sunday 15 October 1876. A post office was established in 1887. In 1882, the congregation moved to a new (and still current)
St Patrick's Church in Morgan Street. On 5 December 1887,
Cardinal Moran laid the foundation stone for a new school building in Ivory Street opening onto Hope Street at the rear. The new school opened in January 1889. In 1952
Brisbane City Council announced that it would be undertaking work in Ivory Street as part of a solution to eliminate traffic bottlenecks and St Patrick's School was one of the affected properties. In 1955 the school buildings were relocated to the church grounds in Morgan Street. The school closed on 19 November 1982. and
Thomas Beirne opened a business on
Brunswick Street. His business thrived and, after extension, he travelled to England in 1896, leaving his manager of two years,
James McWhirter, in charge. Soon after his return, McWhirter established a competing drapery business opposite Beirne's in 1898. Beirne and McWhirter became keen rivals and are credited with establishing the Valley as a hub of commerce from the late 1890s. In the late 19th century, commercial activities in Brisbane were divided along religious lines, with Protestant shopkeepers setting up along Queen and
Adelaide streets in the central business district, and shops operated by Roman Catholics in
Stanley Street,
South Brisbane. However, in the
1893 Brisbane flood (and again in 1897), major floods wiped out many shops in South Brisbane, and owners in that area decided to move and set up operations north of the river in an area free of flooding. The area they chose was Fortitude Valley. By that time Brisbane's horse-drawn
tram system already centred on Fortitude Valley, making it the logical choice to establish a shopping precinct. Fortitude Valley was also strongly advocated as the location of a
new town hall in what became known as "the battle of the sites".
Brisbane Town Council already purchased a piece of land in Fortitude Valley and supporters of the Fortitude Valley site pointed out that it would allow stronger foundations compared to the swampy site proposed at
Adelaide Street in the existing commercial district. However, a petition was raised in support of the Adelaide Street site and with the support of
Charles Moffatt Jenkinson, the
mayor of Brisbane in 1914, it was chosen over the Fortitude Valley site. Marketplace From the early 1900s through to the 1960s, the thriving shopping precinct was dominated by
McWhirters,
Beirne's and, later, Overells' department stores. The Overells Building was completed in 1907. They were ultimately bought out by the
Myer,
David Jones and
Waltons chains respectively with Overells being bought by Walton in 1956. In 2014 the college relocated to its own premises at 38 Berwick Street. In 2017, the Angelorum College opened at 377 St Pauls Terrace as an independent Catholic school, established by families who had previously been home schooling their children. In 2020, the
Fortitude Valley State Secondary College opened on the site of the former Fortitude Valley State School. It had an initial intake of 137 students in Year 7. By 2025, it will be providing a full secondary school program from Years 7 to 12. It is expected to grow to 1,500 students. == Demographics ==