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First Shire Hall

Location 11 Ardlie Street, WESTMEADOWS VIC 3049 - Property No B2873 File Number B2873 Level Local

[1/1] B2873 First Shire Hall 11

Statement of Significance

Early Broadmeadows building with unusually steep pediment.
A plaque on the chimney of the former Shire of Broadmeadows Hall records the date of constructionas 1866. The unusually planned single storey multi-gabled structures built of alternating courses of squared basalt and granite, rockfaced and with fine axed details and encircling timber verandah. The first occupants were the Broadmeadows District Roads Board established in 1850.
Broadmeadows township, now Westmeadows, was a rural village en route to the gold diggings and the north. It was heavily reliant upon passing traffic for toll revenue. The township grew rapidly in the years 1850 - 1870 and then stagnated. The former Shire Hall was erected on a Public Buildings reserve and is of interest as a survivor of this era of township development and for its unusual masonry details.
The Hall was extended by construction of a brick addition of unknown date and converted to a residence. The exterior is essentially intact and parts of the original timber ceiling panelling survives internally.
Classified: 27/01/972