In the mid-1860s, Brisbane's infrastructure blossomed, with construction of the first cross-river bridge, a new Town Hall, a vastly improved water supply and its first gasworks.

Earlier in the decade, the Colonial Government, supposedly for health reasons, refused permission for the Council to establish a gasworks on a site at Petrie's Bight.

After the financial woes of the later 1860s there followed two decades of steady growth in Brisbane, reflected in an increase of demand for gas, for both lighting and for domestic and industrial fuel.

[1] A remote parcel of land was acquired later that year at Hockings paddock adjacent to the Brisbane River, to be supplemented by a further acquisition in 1891.

[1] The original gasworks was designed by John Davies, the Company's first Engineer and Manager, appointed on 16 June 1885.

A price-cutting war lasted until 1889 when the companies, without any concerns about restrictive trade practices, carved Brisbane up into north and south of the river as their respective marketing territories.

A weighbridge was constructed at the Beesley Street side of the site, presumably to measure incoming supplies of coal and outgoing sales of coke.

Earlier that year, he presented a paper "An elevated inclined tramway" noted as a cheap method of handling coal.

[1] Following a visit by Moore to his home in England, to keep abreast of the latest developments in the gas industry, there was by 1914 a major revamp of the gasworks, of which there appear to be no technical details.

Moore's successor as Engineer and Manager, WH Shedden, designed the next revamp, brought on stream in June 1930.

Work included a new Glover-West vertical retort house, the contractor being West's Gas Improvement Co. Ltd. of George Street, Sydney.

The 1912 cast iron scrubber, known as the Gas Stripping Tower, obsolete by 1948, was taken out of service at around this time, later to be re-located in nearby parkland.

There remains no evidence on the site of any part of the carbonisation process, nor of tar or ammonia production or storage.

The remaining lot 2 was retained and part of the site was redeveloped as an outlet for natural gas for vehicles (NGV).

At that stage, No.1 was linked to the compressors to provide emergency service if required, such as during load shedding or maintenance work on the high-pressure natural gas feed to the site.

In 2003 the Queensland Heritage Council approved demolition of what remained of the gasworks on condition that the place be photographically recorded prior to demolition; an interpretation plan be implemented; the gate, gateposts, fence and the governor be retained off-site; the gate, gateposts and fence be reinstated; and the governor be incorporated into the new development.

[1] All items of gas manufacture, such as retort houses, exhausters, condensers, scrubbers, washers, purifiers have been demolished.

[1] The following items of historic engineering interest remained at the place in September 1999; however were later demolished or removed and retained for use in redevelopment of the allotment:[1] West End Gasworks Distribution Centre was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register on 22 October 1999 having satisfied the following criteria.

The place and the equipment installed on and in the West End Gasworks Distribution Centre demonstrate the growth and development pattern of the reticulation of a vital public utility, the gas supply and its infrastructure, in South Brisbane and southern Brisbane suburbs from the 1880s boom through to the 1990s.

Three of five remaining low-pressure gasholders used to store and deliver town gas in Brisbane have been dismantled within the last year.

Large round structures are unusual and have aesthetic value, particularly in areas of predominantly angular commercial and industrial construction such as West End.

The two largest remaining brick buildings on the site, one housing the compressors (themselves visually interesting), are attractive, aesthetically pleasing, early industrial structures.

As long ago as 1930, Engineer and Manager JH Shedden recommended introduction of high-pressure gas distribution.