Adams' Cake Shop

Adam's were cake specialists selling cream sponges including rainbow cake, lemon butter cake; block cakes like cherry cake and Genoa cake; iced and cream filled sandwiches; wedding cakes, and birthday cakes. Adams' cake shops maintained a presence in Ipswich from at least 1917 for several decades.

George Edward Adams, was one of the five sons of Herbert Adams. Herbert migrated from Somerset, England in approximately 1912, arriving in Melbourne where he opened his first shop. His five sons followed him to Australia and together this enterprising family had 120 shops in South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland and New Zealand. Each of the sons controlled a certain number of shops each. George Edward Adams launched in Sydney and Newcastle and by 1924 he was managing 26 stores. The five shops in Brisbane, Ipswich and Toowoomba were supplied by the factory in Brisbane.

In Ipswich, Adams appears to have had at least 2 locations: 173 Brisbane Street at the Top of Town in Bostock's building, and upstairs at Nolan's Corner. The Queensland Times building was across the road from the shop in Bostock's and at various times G. Malouf and G. Mansour were next door neighbours. They were part of the local scene until at least the mid 1950s.

Advertisement from Queensland Times, 3 November 1928 (Trove)

In 2020 The Cake Mobb would occupy the old Adams' cake shop site at 173 Brisbane Street.