The penal colony closed in 1839 and Moreton Bay was declared open for free settlement in 1842.
Other government buildings were soon sold or demolished but the Commissariat Store was retained for continued government use as a store.
This did not require all the space available and allowed the upper floor to serve the government in a number of other capacities, being used for land sales in 1848 and intermittently to house immigrants during the 1850s.
During this time a door was cut through to the first floor on the north-western side of the building.
This enabled immigrants to enter the building through what is now Miller Park without the need to access the ground floor store.
Proximity to the immigration barracks of the time (on the site of the Treasury Building), the former military barracks and guard house fitted out to receive immigrants in 1848, made the store a convenient place to accommodate overflow numbers.
This use continued even after a purpose-built immigration barracks was constructed on land immediately to the south-east of the store in 1865-66 (95 William Street) and is likely to have only stopped when the new Yungaba Immigration Centre opened at Kangaroo Point in 1887.

In 1860, following the creation of the colony of Queensland, the store was renamed the Colonial Store.
It was repaired and the upper floor was converted for use as police barracks.
Eighteen new hardwood sash windows were added.
Internally, six pine batten doors and a partition were constructed to provide married men's quarters and single men's barracks on the first floor.
At this time a fireplace, new ironbark shingle roof, wall, window and door were added to the kitchen building in the yard (constructed there c. 1857).
On the ground floor of the store, a raised timber floor was installed and the windows enlarged and glazed.

The storekeeper and a staff of twelve handled everything from oil for lighthouses to blankets for distribution to the Aborigines.
A cottage for the storekeeper was constructed in the southern corner of the yard between 1861 and 1872, with a gabled extension to it completed in 1873.
During the "Bread and Blood" riots of 1866 an attempt was made to force entry to the store, possibly because it was seen as a symbol of government and its control of essentials.

Further north-west along William Street, the first purpose-built home of the Queensland Museum was constructed between 1876 and 1879 to a design by Francis Drummond Grenville Stanley in what is now known as the Old State Library.
Over three storeys, it was intended this building comprise later stages.
It created an area of open ground between its south-eastern side and the store that continued to be used as a pathway from the wharf area on the river and centre of town, and to provide access to the store's side door.

The Colonial Store was repaired and added to as the colony grew.
In 1886 a single-storey brick wing was added at right angles to the original building on its southern corner running out to the boundary of the yard to the Queens Wharf Road.
The wing was used as a stationery annexe, and received an extra storey in 1900.
It is unclear what changes to other structures in the yard were occasioned by the erection of this annexe.
It is possible the c. 1857 kitchen building was moved to the adjacent land (now Miller Park) at this time and the storekeepers cottage moved or demolished.

The yard also contained a number of ancillary buildings for storage and other purposes.
The stables (and shed) which were said to have stood in the western corner of the yard were destroyed by fire in 1888 and then rebuilt.
The old saddlery were destroyed in 1895 and replaced with a new building constructed between the store and the William Street retaining wall.

In October 1886, the Colonial Storekeeper had written to the Under Secretary of Works drawing his attention to the bad state of the wooden fence erected in William Street to back up the footpath in front of the store.
A timber embankment was erected in 1887-89 (above and about 1.5 metres away from the earlier retaining wall) an
The penal colony closed in 1839 and Moreton Bay was declared open for free settlement in 1842. Other government buildings were soon sold or demolished but the Commissariat Store was retained for continued government use as a store. This did not require all the space available and allowed the upper floor to serve the government in a number of other capacities, being used for land sales in 1848 and intermittently to house immigrants during the 1850s. During this time a door was cut through to the first floor on the north-western side of the building. This enabled immigrants to enter the building through what is now Miller Park without the need to access the ground floor store. Proximity to the immigration barracks of the time (on the site of the Treasury Building), the former military barracks and guard house fitted out to receive immigrants in 1848, made the store a convenient place to accommodate overflow numbers. This use continued even after a purpose-built immigration barracks was constructed on land immediately to the south-east of the store in 1865-66 (95 William Street) and is likely to have only stopped when the new Yungaba Immigration Centre opened at Kangaroo Point in 1887.
In 1860, following the creation of the colony of Queensland, the store was renamed the Colonial Store. It was repaired and the upper floor was converted for use as police barracks. Eighteen new hardwood sash windows were added. Internally, six pine batten doors and a partition were constructed to provide married men's quarters and single men's barracks on the first floor. At this time a fireplace, new ironbark shingle roof, wall, window and door were added to the kitchen building in the yard (constructed there c. 1857). On the ground floor of the store, a raised timber floor was installed and the windows enlarged and glazed.
The storekeeper and a staff of twelve handled everything from oil for lighthouses to blankets for distribution to the Aborigines. A cottage for the storekeeper was constructed in the southern corner of the yard between 1861 and 1872, with a gabled extension to it completed in 1873. During the "Bread and Blood" riots of 1866 an attempt was made to force entry to the store, possibly because it was seen as a symbol of government and its control of essentials.
Further north-west along William Street, the first purpose-built home of the Queensland Museum was constructed between 1876 and 1879 to a design by Francis Drummond Grenville Stanley in what is now known as the Old State Library. Over three storeys, it was intended this building comprise later stages. It created an area of open ground between its south-eastern side and the store that continued to be used as a pathway from the wharf area on the river and centre of town, and to provide access to the store's side door.
The Colonial Store was repaired and added to as the colony grew. In 1886 a single-storey brick wing was added at right angles to the original building on its southern corner running out to the boundary of the yard to the Queens Wharf Road. The wing was used as a stationery annexe, and received an extra storey in 1900. It is unclear what changes to other structures in the yard were occasioned by the erection of this annexe. It is possible the c. 1857 kitchen building was moved to the adjacent land (now Miller Park) at this time and the storekeepers cottage moved or demolished.
The yard also contained a number of ancillary buildings for storage and other purposes. The stables (and shed) which were said to have stood in the western corner of the yard were destroyed by fire in 1888 and then rebuilt. The old saddlery were destroyed in 1895 and replaced with a new building constructed between the store and the William Street retaining wall.
In October 1886, the Colonial Storekeeper had written to the Under Secretary of Works drawing his attention to the bad state of the wooden fence erected in William Street to back up the footpath in front of the store. A timber embankment was erected in 1887-89 (above and about 1.5 metres away from the earlier retaining wall) an
Commissariat Store, Brisbane