- Location
- Fremantle, Western Australia
- Name
- Andrew
Victoria Hall - Dated Buildings and Cornerstones by Andrew Priest (Aushiker), on Flickr
This photograph continues my social history project documenting both the mundane and the interesting in the City of Fremantle and surrounding areas through the medium of Waymarking - A scavenger hunt for unique and interesting locations in the world.
The Victoria Hall is a very fine example of the Victorian Academic Classical style and the decorative elements of its stuccoed facade are aesthetically valued by the community.
The choice of the Victorian Academic Classical style for an Anglican parish hall is indicative of the prominence of the church at this time and the importance of the social role that the church played in the lives of the Fremantle community. The renaming of the building from St John's Parish Hall to Victoria Hall indicates the importance in Western Australia of the diamond jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1897.
Victoria Hall is associated with Archdeacon Watkins of St John's Church, Fremantle. Watkins was responsible for a number of major building projects for the Perth Diocesan Trustees of the Church of England including the new St John's Church (1882), ten cottages in Cantonment Street and the parish hall (Victoria Hall). Victoria Hall is also associated with prominent Perth architect John Talbot Hobbs who was responsible for the design of many notable buildings in both Perth and Fremantle during the gold rush era. These include Samson House (1888), The Weld Club (1892), Newspaper House (1895), St George’s Hall (1895-6), and Moir’s Chambers (1896).
Reference:
Heritage Council (n.d.). Victoria Hall. Retrieved from http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au/Admin/api/file/7a3c499b-c832-757e-fbec-a764f9ddaf62