CBD Streets - Martin Place

Standing at the "top" of Martin Place close to Macquarie Street, looking into the setting sun. The topography is obvious. The building in the centre background is on George Street. It used to be a bank, but is now a Burberry.

Martin Place runs east-west between George Street and Macquarie Street, and is located about half-way between Sydney Town Hall and Circular Quay. It was created, in 1892, from a narrow lane that only ran between George and Castlereagh Streets. In 1935, Martin Place was pushed through to Macquarie Street, involving the demolition of some remarkable (but shabby-chic) terraces. Martin Place has now been a (staged) pedestrian precinct since 1971. I say staged as it is sliced (north-south) by Pitt Street, Castlereagh Street, and Elizabeth Streets. The third incarnation of the GPO (General Post Office) was opened (facing the original laneway) in 1891. There is a hefty climb from George Street up to Macquarie Street, illustrating the fact that Sydney straddles ridges (Macquarie being one of them) and gullies (George being one of those). The GPO clock tower was removed in 1942 to avoid being targeted in an air-raid. It was not replaced until 1964. The clock booms the hour.

Martin Place used to be bordered by the most imposing stand of sandstone colonial buildings one could ever hope to see. However, they are disappearing at a rate of knots. The developers say they are being remodelled. Even the GPO is not the GPO, but a hotel that none of us can afford to stay in.

Brickfield Hill (2) - the brick fields

Hordern's Palace Emporium, fully constructed in 1924. The first store, built 1879, was burned down. There had been a Horderns of some ilk on this stretch since c. 1830.

As I mentioned in my previous post, brick-making commenced in Sydney town in about the March of 1788, when Governor Philip set James Bloodworth loose on the then outskirts of town. The centre of their universe was Sydney Cove (what we now celebrate as Circular Quay), ahd some brave and hardy souls made it through the bush and rocky ridges up the slopes to what appeared the "top", which is now the Town Hall precinct. This is where the burial-ground came to be located, "boot-hill" if you will. I open with the iconic image of Anthony Hordens Department Store, the Palace Emporium, sited on George Street, between Liverpool and Goulburn Streets, backing onto Pitt Street. This massive city block was the guts of the brick making "industry" in the first 50 years of the penal colony. The block next to it (Pitt Strret to Castlereagh Strret between Liverpool and Campbell Streets) was also over-run by tag-a-long industries like pottery works See the references below. Pottery making had more requirements for water, hence the proximity to Cockle Creek. So, the brick fields ran up the slope, from Cockle Creek (now Belmore Park and Hay Street) to the top of the ridge which has Bathurst Street running along its spine.

1807/1878 map of the burgeoning colony.

I have used this 1807 map before, but it serves as a useful image to get the locale AND the topography firm in one's mind. Of course, this belt of industry could not last in this area. Not once the colony stood on its own two feet, and threw off the apron-strings of Mother-England. Bathurst Street was nowt but the first east-west ridge (there were numerous north-south ridges, channelling the rains and seeps down to the drowned river valley which was Sydney Cove). The two images below serve a useful counter-point. The colour one I took standing on George Strret looking north from Rawson Place (in line with Central Station). You can see the rise on the right, Where those large office blocks are is where the brick fields were. Where I am standing, is where the swampy beds of Cockle Creek occasionally flowed. Remember, I noted in yesterday's post that the top of the brick field hill was chopped off and spread hereabouts in 1838. The B&W image is of the same set of streets, but pointing south. The water-wagon is heading straight for the stone building on Hay Street which is/was a branch of the city library. The spire of Christ Church St Laurence at Railway Square is prominent in the back ground. All this traffic, horses and wagons, uncle tom cobbley and all, are traversing reclaimed land. Reclaimed by the blood, sweat, tears, and aching backs of road gangs, and brick carters.

First image looking north up George St from Rawson Place (2015). Brick fields had been on the right, Second image, looking south down George St towards Hay Street (1900)

Below is the slope of Pitt Street as it rises to the south. The pub on the corner of Pitt and Cambell, The Chamberlain, was built in 1902, on the spot where the most extensive of the pottery works was established, that of Skinner, Moreton, and Leak, and especially Thomas Ball. Brick-making stopped in this vicinity in 1841. But, why? Had the reserves of a specific quality of clay petered out? Or were there other agenda afoot?

Looking north up Pitt St from Campbell St. The brick fields had been on the left and the pottery kilns on the right.

REFERENCES Casey & Lowe, "Archealogical Investigation, 710-722 George Street", June 2011 Casey, Mary "Local Pottery and Dairying at the DMR site, Brickfields, Sydney, New South Wales", Australasian Historical Archaeology, 17, 1999 Thorpe, Wendy, "Albion Place: Historical Review", Cultural Resources Management, 1998 Maclehose, James "Picture of Sydney and Strangers Guide in NSW, 1839. Facsimile Edition. John Ferguson Pty Ltd, 1977 Marcom, Edward West (Ed.) Memoirs of Obed West: A Portrait of Early Sydney, Barcom Press, 1988 Turnbull, Lucy Sydney - Biography of a city, 1999, Random House

CNY '15 - The Year of the Sheep

Following up leads for my current city research, today I stumbed into Chinatown, not only on Valentine's Day, but also during the opening salvos of Chinese New Year. Incessant drumming from thr troupes, and ever-widening gyrations from the dragons, gave way to explosions of a multide of fire-crackers. Much to the consternation of us "anglos", and the sheer delight of them "Asians". These photos I made during a wander through the World Square building (the old Anthony Hordern Department Store) which is a crucial site for my Brickfield Hill posts.

l'histoire de faux

Fake ageing - like fake French - confounds me. I can understand why the perpetrators descend to this. The are scrabbling around for an ambience on which to hang their narrative. This is Albion Place in the CBD, which runs from George Street through to Kent Street, between Bathurst and Liverpool Streets. It has been an access-way since 1834. Melburnians call them "laneways", and create wonders, which are abuzz with bustling citizens. Real folk: meeting, chiacking, guffawing, spending. Here in Sydney we create a dead-zone, of use to some of the people, some of the time. So, what is faux here? Specifically, the three wall signs which are all for Black Country businesses back in the United Kingdom. The Walsall FC team are known as "The Saddlers" because of the proliferation of that sort of venture, in that area, in the second half of the 19th century. Whether applied new, or touched-up, the signs are shockers. Fairbanks, Lavender and Sons are listed in the 1900 edition of Kelly's Directory of Staffordshire as harness manufacturers. Handford-Greatrex and Co. Ltd. have an extensive listing in the same directory: "Coach, saddle, bridle and harness leather; goods specially prepared and packed for export". Bedstead and fender makers, S.F. Turner, had their works in Dock Lane, Dudley. The business was established in 1840 and is remembered today for the safes they made, with many examples surviving. What does history - real history - tell us about Albion Place? I'll tell you Thursday: need to get the story straight in my head; and need more photos to show you.

To close, here are two images of George Street close to Albion Place. On the left is an 1873 image, in which you can see the spire of Christ Church St Laurence in the distance. On the right,a similar angle but totally different view, as you would expect. But,you can still see the spire. What do I hear you say? Can't be! George Street has a different incline. Indeed, they chopped off the top, and filled in the bottom. Cross my heart ...

Johnson's Corner

George Street, the main street of Sydney, was widened in 1911. The Kerry glass-plate negative is undated, but typically, they were taken during the 1880s. It shows George Stree looking north (toward the Quay). The verandah on the left is the building that THEN stood on the corner of George and Grosvenor Streets. At that time it would have been owned by the family of Anthony Hordern. Originally, it was the site of the colony's first military parade ground before The Barracks were constructed on the site now known as Wynyard Station. In 1909-1910, there was a Royal Commission into the planning of the centre of the city which resulted in the widening of Broadway, Oxford Street, William Street, and George Street. Three commercial buildings were erected along the George Street frontage. The corner building was officially named The Chamber of Commerce building, but everyone called it the Johnson's building because Johson had a draper's shop in the ground floor. The middle building - which I spotlight today - was The Commercial Building. The third building was the second incarnation of The Brooklyn Hotel. You can see the original hotel on the left in the Kerry image. In the 1980s all but the facades were demolished and the three structures were amalgamated to form single floor tenancies across all three sites. The third Brooklyn Hotel is the ground floor.

The answer lies in the soil ...

I am not sure what the expression "The answer lies in the soil" means, exactly. I kinda think it means that to solve anything, one needs to go back to basics. I am a gardener, and I adore getting down, and getting dirty. But, the expression has a wider and more general application. Gardening is becoming more onerous, as my balance and vision become more neurologically impacted. What more sedentary activity to replace it with. I adore reading - bought myself Colm Toibin's "Norah Webster" on Saturday - but reading can only be done for about 30 minutes at a time. So, I went into Lincraft on York Street and bought some wool and needles. Will graduate to crochet early in the new year. Lincraft is a chaotic store that stocks sooo much. And the prices are reasonable, although the quality is not crash-hot.

Sydney from on high (3)

Looking down upon the 1898 Queen Victoria Building (QVB), which many would assert is the centre of this city. It is bounded by George Street (where the big, red bus is), York Street (on the other side), and has Market Street running east-west along the RHS. Market St is eponymous with the QVB which is the site of the original municipoal markets, the site having been reserved for such a purpose in 1810 by Governor Macquarie.

Governor of New South Wales # 2 - Captain John Hunter, RN

Officially, Hunter was the second governor, his term running from 11 September 1795 – 27 September 1800. I say "officially" in that painfully knowing way because the term of the first governor, Phillip, ended on 10 December 1792. So there is a hiatus of well-nigh three years. Lieutenant-Governor Francis Grose stepped in upon Arthur Phillip's departure due to ill-health. Grose was a bit of a slacker, and delegated nearly everything, and then returned to England in the December 1794. People like John MacArthur, and Samuel Marsden, and Richard Johnstone were having a field-day. Upon Grose's departure the colony was administered by Captain Patterson until the arrival of Hunter. But, Hunter is officially our second governor.

One of the aims of this series on governors, was to find a statue of each gentleman. I failed with Hunter. Perhaps there is one in Newcastle which is based on the Hunter River, and is the port which heads the Hunter Valley. However, in Sydney there is a "Hunter Street".In 1810, at the very beginning of his term, Governor Macquarie straightened a bunch of streets up, ordered they be given signs, and changed many names. Hunter Street was one such. It is one of the many streets in the CBD which run east-west, from the Macquarie Street ridge down the gully through which runs the Tank Stream, and up the next ridge along which runs York Street. Hunter Street stops at George Street though because of the military barracks that used to front the main city thoroughfare.

Up towards the Macquarie Street ridge, where Hunter intersects with Bligh Street, stands this little treasure. We are a wierd mob, us Aussies. We take great delight in under-whelming with our nationalism. And long may it reign, says I. This is the memorial to the first christian church service held in the colony, on 3rd February 1788 by Richard Johnson. The first St Phillip's was later erected on this spot. Being a wattle'n'daub shack, in reality, it did not take long for our fine upstanding citizens to burn it down. Need I remind you of the other St Phillip's churches ... nah, thought not. As governors go, Hunter opened up land: the Hawkesbury, the Hunter region (not initially called that). However, some of the settlers, and some of the military, by now, had a taste of doing things THEIR way, and were a smidge "rowdy" shall we say.

The four images in the middle of this post: First row shows the terrain that Hunter Street traverses. On the left, I am looking down the slope from the George Street - western - end. On the right, I am looking down the slope from the Macquarie Strret - eastern - end. Second row shows two landmark buildings from their Hunter Street frontage. On the left is the 1856 Fairfax Building which now houses The Raddison Hotel. Fairfax publishes the "Sydney Moaning Herald". On the right is the 1936 art-deco City Mutual Building.

The energy of geometry

The 'Energy Australia' building opposite the Sydney Town Hall in George Street.

This is my contribution to the Weekend in Black and White community.

Sydney's GPO - once a facade always a facade

Here be the George Street facade of the General Post Office (GPO) whose address is No. 1 Martin Place. However, it is no longer the GPO, although there is a post office still within the building. It has been gutted and turned into a swanky hotel. You know the drill: inside all brushed aluminium, Scandinavian Ashe, and frosted glass, whilst the outside remains sandstone and marble. Good, solid, dependable stuff that indicates 'this lady's not for turning'.

And it has ever been so. What you see here is the second GPO to have graced this central CBD site. The first GPO was given a facade to hide the squalor of what was behind. A facade of a facade.

Sydney's first PO was established on 25th April 1809 on Hospital Wharf on the west of Sydney Cove, and was run by Isaac Nichols. Upon his death in 1819, George Panton became the Postmaster - as well as being the coroner. When he died in 1829, the role was taken by James Raymond who was known as the Postmaster-General. By then they had moved into part of an old police station on the site of the current GPO. By 1845 the post office had taken over the entire building and a classical portico was attached in 1848 to up the esteem of the service in the eyes of the community. Over time, the stench from the polluted Tank Stream, and from nearby stables had the workforce and the public up in arms, and the original GPO was demolished in 1863. The new GPO was opened in 1874.

The architect was James Barnet. More on him in my Taphophile Tragics post next Tuesday. Suffice it to say that he cowed to few people. He was instrumental in the highly decorative facade. Here is a taste of the George Street frontage. As well as the very French effect I showed yesterday, here is the kangaroo and the emu in shackles leading straight to the lion atop a crown. Remember, this is in 1874, and Australia was not federated as a Commonwealth until 1901. This is eerily like the Australian Coat-of-Arms.

Self-confessed 'luddite'

"Paspaley Pearls' on the corner of Martin Place and George Street

It is not that I am against progress, I just prefer to live in the past. Brushed aluminium, Scandinavian ashe, and etched glass are all well and good, but give me granite and sandstone any old day.

According to Wiki, the Luddites were a social movement of 19th-century English textile artisans who protested against the changes produced by the Industrial Revolution, that replaced them with less skilled, low wage labour, and which they felt were leaving them without work and changing their way of life.

Frequently, mechanised looms were destroyed in a quaint process referred to as "collective bargaining by riot".

In modern usage, a 'Luddite' is one overwhelmed by the new, by the modern, by the ever-changing, who seeks refuge in the tried and true, who reveres the test of time, who dwells in that fascinating land known as the past, or even, the 'passed'.

The short facade of the QVB facing Market Street

Eye of the storm

With the chaos that is George Street during the afternoon peak swirling around her, the young woman in the kiosk is an ocean of calm. Between Martin Place and Wynyard Station.

Apt

A marching band in the St Patrick's Day parade. On George Street, in front of the Sydney Town Hall. The Marching Koalas.

The Irish diaspora

The St Patrick's Day parade and party was held on Sunday 18th because the mercantilists did not want the streets blocked off during Saturday trading. Probably no bad thing, seeing we had one of our regular down-pours (or is it downs-pour) yesterday morning. This, of course, affects bricks'n'mortar retailers, but not online retailers. Nothing dampens the spirit behind a St Pat's day parade.

Weekend Reflections - Jostling for supremacy

On George Street, a block down from the town hall, the old and the new jostle for supremacy. The new is represented by the concrete, glass and aluminium of the Hilton Hotel (c. 1970). The old is represented by the sandstone, glass and copper of the Queen Victoria Building (c. 1898).

You realise, of course, that those dates are meaningless as both buildings have had extensive make-overs through the years, both inside and out. The QVB maintains its original appearance more so than does the Hilton. However, inside the Hilton is the 1893 Marble Bar, which, although maintaining its 'scaffolding' has also had a nip here, and a tuck there.

That is what cities do: they metamorphose to meet the needs of commerce.


This is a Weekend Reflections contributiom.

Decking town hall

Sydney Town Hall stands on the intersection of George Street, with Park and Druitt Streets. From about 1793 until 1820, this was the site of the original burial ground for the colony, eventually moved to Devonshire Street (Central Station) and then, by 1906. out to Rookwood. Designs for the Town Hall started flowing from the mid-1860s, construction being completed by about 1889. Were there any bodies left in the soil below, they would be roiling in their 'resting' place at the sight of these garish, yet festive, projections.

Don't build crap. It can't be that hard.

Standing on the corner of George & Liverpool Streets, in front of the Sir John Young Hotel, I continued shooting as the monorail creaked above my head and out into the distance. It really is a blight upon the landscape, the monorail. Serves minimal purpose in the grand transport design of the city, and stuffs up some otherwise decent photographs of late 19th C building facades. Love the geometry out into the distance that I have captured here.

An obese slinky

A sculpture down the stairwell of the George Street entrance to the Hilton Hotel.

And here are two more shots that I include because I listen to my readers. Yes, Joan, I liked the 'hanging gardens', too. And they made a great combination with the glass restaurant. The dome of the QVB which I showed yesterday. looms behind, and above, this restaurant.