Post Code: 4007 Distance to CBD: 7 km
Ascot is one of the most prestigious suburbs of Brisbane. The suburb is primarily residential with the large iconic Queenslander houses.
The suburb used to be a forest area settled by the indigenous people. It was explored by Oxley and Cunningham in 1824. In 1855, James Sutherland, a European settler acquired the place. In 1863, horse racing was introduced to Brisbane and the suburb was named after Ascot, a town in Berkshire, England which is famous for its horse racing. During World War II, the racecourse was commandeered to house the American Troops and for a while it was renamed as Camp Ascot.
The suburb has street shops and cafes that add flavor to the regal atmosphere of the place. The suburb still carries its prestigious tradition and has not lost its charm. Ascot is the home to the annual Racecourse Road Festival.
Ascot’s ‘Top Secret’ Landmark:
- Nyarambla
Nyarambala is a large house in 21 Henry Street which was commandeered by the military during World War II and it served as the headquaters of the Central Bureau when Gen. Douglas MacArthur moved the Allied Headquarters from Melbourne to Brisbane. The Central Bureau is the one of the two Sigint (Signals Intelligence) organizations operating in the South West Pacific Area during World War II. The other unit is FRUMEL (Fleet Radio Unit Melbourne) which is based in Melbourne. The Central Bureau is assigned to research and decrypt intercepted IJA (Imperial Japanese Army) radio messages.
The garage of the house used to house the IBM machines of the Central Bureau which was later moved to a Fire Station at Ascot Park. The garage was then occupied by AWAS (Australian Women’s Army Service) personnel who operated the Typex machines. The greatest contribution of the Central Bureau operating in Nyarambala is the decryption of a Japanese radio message that was intercepted by 51 Wireless Section operating in Darwin. The intercepted radio message detailed the iterinary flight to Rabaul of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto. Admiral Yamamoto is the Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Japanese Fleet and the architect of the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The message was later processed and verified by several intelligence units. It was Admiral Chester Nimitz of the US Navy who authorized the shootdown of Yamamoto’s plane.
Nyarambla displays a plaque that bears the words:
“Central Bureau, an organization comprising service personnel of Australia, USA, Britain, Canada and New Zealand, both men and women, functioned in this house from 1942 till 1945. From intercepted enemy radio messages, the organization provided intelligence which made a decisive contribution to the allied victory in the Pacific War”