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US Red Cross 'Dr Carver Service Club'
Laidlaw’s Building/Jazz Club for black US troops
Due to its popular Jazz Club, the best-known American Red Cross ('Amcross') facility with Brisbane residents was the 'Dr. Carver Service Club' in the 'Laidlaw’s Building' on Grey Street, South Brisbane opposite the Melbourne Street railway station. Due to a colour bar ban placed by the local US military authorities, Black American service personnel (nicknamed GIs as in General Infantry) were not permitted to cross the Brisbane River and access the varied entertainment venues in the City centre. This ban, while not a formal Army regulation, was still stringently enforced by the all-white US military police. One of three American Red Cross facilities built for Black GIs in Queensland, the 'Dr. Carver Service Club' was both the largest and offered the best facilities from 1943-45.
Place information
Location
Place type
Recreation/community
History
The Club was named after the famous US botanist Dr. George Washington Carver who had died (age 79) on 7 January 1943. It was run co-jointly by the American Red Cross and the Protestant Alliance Friendly Society. The Director was an Australian, Harry L. Hawkins, an US-ordained Methodist minister who had served in the Middle East campaigns with the Australian Comforts Fund (ACF) and the Young Men Christian Association (YMCA). American George Newton and US boxing champion Alston James ('Big Al') Hoosman were Hawkins’ assistants. Initially the Blue Moon Skating Rink was the suggested site for the Club but the...
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