STOREY HALL
344-346 SWANSTON STREET MELBOURNE, MELBOURNE CITY
Statement of Significance
What is significant?
Storey Hall was erected by the Hibernian-Australasian Catholic Benefit Society and was one of several such halls erected by Friendly Benefit Societies in Melbourne during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The architects were Tappin, Gilbert and Dennehy and the contractors were O'Dea and Kennedy. Storey Hall is a three storey building with basement, constructed of stuccoed brick and stone. The principal facade is designed in the manner of the High Renaissance, consisting of a massive podium base of Malmsbury bluestone articulated with quoin work, a large main storey divided into three bays by paired Ionic columns with aedicule window openings, and finally, above an elaborate cornice, an attic storey. At the parapet level was a statue of Erin with a harp and Irish wolfhound. This was removed in 1930. The fireproof construction in the basement is an example of the Traegerwellblech system of corrugated iron and concrete. The building was opened in 1887 and occupied by the Hibernian Society until 1903. Following financial difficulties the Hibernians were forced to sell the hall to the Central Zion Tabernacle who occupied it until 1907, at which stage it passed into the hands of Messrs Gibbs and Bright and was known as the Guild Hall. The hall was used for art exhibitions, as a cinema and as a wrestling venue. During the First World War it was briefly occupied by the Women's Political Association, a feminist pacifist organisation. It was a venue for large anti-conscription rallies. During 1917 it was temporarily a commune to support wharf workers during the General Strike. In 1958 it was purchased by the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) and was renamed Storey Hall in 1959 in honour of industrialist,Sir John Storey, for his contribution to technical education in Victoria.
How is it significant?
Storey Hall is of historical and architectural significance to the State of Victoria.
Why is it significant?
Storey Hall is historically significant as a response by Irish Catholics to their perceived marginalisation by the Melbourne Protestant establishment, and the denial of their access to the city's largest public halls for meetings. It is significant for its association with the Hibernian-Australasian Catholic Benefit Society, a large society which was one of the main focus points for Irish Catholics in Melbourne. In the twentieth century the hall continued to be a significant place for protest meetings, and it is particularly important for its associations with pacifist and anti-conscription rallies during the First World War and for its use as a commune during the General Strike of 1917.
Storey Hall is architecturally significant as one of the most architecturally pretentious and largest Friendly Society Halls erected in Melbourne during the nineteenth century. The scale and styling is more akin to a municipal hall. The facade is an unusual example of a full blown interpretation of the High Renaissance style, typified by the overall concentration of ornament and the debasing of the role of the wall.
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