Former Union Bank of Australia, 153-155 Main Street, corner Victoria Place, STAWELL

The Bendigo Bank building, 153 Main Street, Stawell, makes a significant contribution to the architectural and visual amenity of the predominantly 19th century building forms of the streetscape. The building has significance as an important legacy of the financial institutions established in the town in the 19th century prior to the world-wide financial collapse of the early 1890s. In particular, this building was constructed in 1887 for the Union Bank of Australia to a design by the Melbourne and Stawell architect, George Inskip. The building is in fair-good condition and is largely intact from the exterior.

The Bendigo Bank building, 153 Main Street, is architecturally significant at a LOCAL level. It demonstrates original design qualities of a restrained Late Victorian Boom Classical style. These qualities include the simple rectangular form having a three-bayed composition. Other intact or appropriate qualities include the symmetrical composition, two storey height, plain banded rusticated (and rendered brick) ground floor facades, arched ground floor windows and doorway with elaborate drip moulds punctuated by keystones, timber framed, panelled and glazed double doors within a recessed porch, timber framed fanlight, timber framed double hung arched ground floor windows, projecting stringcourse with a finely detailed frieze, smoothly finished first floor facades (rendered brick), first floor window openings with segmentally arched drip moulds punctuated by keystones, timber framed double hung first floor windows, incised window panels below minor stringcoursing, projecting moulded cornice and squat plain parapet, hipped roof forms clad in galvanised corrugated iron overpainted red, and three rendered brick chimneys with projecting cornices. The rear form of the rear skillion addition and the rear gabled wing with galvanised corrugated iron roof cladding, rendered brick wall construction, painted brick chimney and window openings also contribute to the significance of the place.

The Bendigo Bank building, 153 Main Street, is historically significant at a LOCAL level. It is associated with the development of the Union Bank of Australia from 1887, and with the 19th century Melbourne and Stawell architect, George Inskip.

The Bendigo Bank building, 153 Main Street, is socially significant at a LOCAL level. It is recognised and valued by the community as an historical bank building in Stawell. 

Overall, the Bendigo Bank is of LOCAL significance.