Melbourne Town Hall

Located at the junction of the Swanston and Collins Street, the Melbourne Town Hall is the seat of the local Government of the city of Melbourne. It was built between 1867 and 1870. Work had begun earlier in 1851 but was halted due to a shortage of labor brought about by the Victorian Gold Rush.

On 29th November 1967, after the demolition of the first structure, Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh laid the foundation stone of the new Town Hall in Melbourne. It was completed and officially opened in 1870 by His Excellency the Governor of Victoria, Lord Viscount Canterbury.

Joseph Reed, the famous local architect, designed the Melbourne Town Hall in the second empire style. This structure has the Prince Alfred's Tower on top of the building that houses a 2.44-meter diameter clock. Built by Smith and Sons of London, its longest hand is 1.19 meter long weighing 8.85kg. The Swanston Street frontage portico was added in 1887 and Lord Mayor Sir Henry Weedon laid the foundation of the administrative annex building in 1900.

In 1925 a devastating fire damaged a large section of the Melbourne Town Hall. Serious destruction was caused to the main auditorium and the pipe organ. In the process of rebuilding and expanding the destroyed section of the Melbourne Town Hall, Australia lost some of the original embellishments of Reed's original design.

Melbourne Town Hall: Today

Today Melbourne Town Hall plays host to various ceremonies. Corporate launches to school concerts, conferences to cocktail parties to weddings, the Town Hall in Melbourne is the place to head to for all the events. Records have it that more than 3,500 events take place every year within the premises of the building. As part of its community function, the Melbourne Town Hall arranges affordable facilities for luncheons, dinner dances, meetings and staff training.

The Melbourne Town Hall has immense architectural, social and political importance. Its grand features include the wood-paneled Council Chamber, the famous Portico from where the Beatles waved to their fans and the Grand Organ with over 10,000 pipes making it one of the largest in the Southern Hemisphere. The Town Hall, Melbourne has a history and grandeur of its own that has earned it a place among the important Melbourne tourist attractions and should definitely form a part of your schedule when you are sightseeing in Melbourne.

Melbourne Town Hall tours are conducted at 11:00am and 1:00pm from Monday to Friday.