Townsville School of Arts is a heritage-listed former school of arts and now community cultural centre at Stanley Street, Townsville CBD, City of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Eyre & Munro and built in 1891 by James Smith. It is also known as Dancenorth Theatre and Townsville Arts Centre. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992. The School of Arts building was designed by Townsville architects Eyre and Munro. It was constructed by local builder James Smith and opened in May 1891. The first Mechanic's Institutes or Schools of Arts were established in Britain in the early 1800s and were intended to assist self improvement and to promote moral, social and intellectual growth, by providing lectures, discussions and lending libraries to a rising middle class. At the time there were no free public libraries and books were expensive, so that access to books by borrowing as subscribers provided an important service. The first School of Arts committee in Queensland was established in Brisbane in 1849 with the aim of "the advancement of the community in literary, philosophic and scientific subjects". As towns and districts became established, local committees were formed to set up schools of arts, which became one of the principal sources of adult education. The government recognised this by making land available, subsidising books and assisting with building costs. Most Schools of Arts also had a hall with a stage which could be hired, thus encouraging the arts as well as providing a source of revenue. More information...
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