Sydney Town Hall
483 George and Druitt Streets, Sydney 1868 John Henry
Wilson (original design facing George Street)
1873-77 Albert Bond (mansard roof and vestibule interiors)
1875-77 Thomas and Edward Bradridge (clock tower)
1883-89 Thomas Sapsford (Centennial Hall)
1886-88 George McRae with John Hennessy
1934 Entrance portico replaced
The Sydney Town Hall is possibly the only non-religious city building to retain its original function and interiors since it was built 120 years ago. Accommodation in the 19th century building includes the Council Chamber, reception rooms, the Centennial Hall and offices for the Lord Mayor and elected councillors.
The building's history is a turbulent one. After decades of unsuccessful negotiations, the city fathers finally secured a land grant from the Crown in the commercial centre of the city - as far away from colonial Government House in Macquarie Street as possible.
The site was the old cemetery next to St. Andrew's Cathedral, which required careful exhumation and transferral of bodies to other cemeteries. Perhaps envious of Melbourne's lavish Town Hall, built during the prosperity of the gold rush, a competition for its design was held and was won by JH Willson, an unknown architect from Tasmania. After Willson's sudden death, a parade of architects appear to have suffered through their involvement with the project.
When complete, the building had a large porte-cochere over the present (rebuilt) steps, and its own ring road inside a stone and iron palisade. Unfortunately, this area was destabilised in 1934 during tunnelling for the underground railway and the formal entry had to be demolished. As a landmark, the tower by the Bradridge brothers was second in scale to Barnet's tower on the General Post Office (203) in Martin Place, while no building to the south or west was taller.
Albert Bond, when City Architect, designed the chamber now known as the vestibule (open to the public) which served as the meeting hall until the larger Centennial Hall was built. The vestibule has elaborately decorated surfaces in plasterwork with stained-glass lanterns and cast metal plaques commemorating royal visits to the city.
The "Great Hall" by Charles Sapsford - which was officially named the Centennial Hall, but referred to in its day as the Place of Democracy - was an engineering triumph, involving a highly structured roof system to meet the span. The ceilings are lined with an early use of the Wunderlich metal panel system, chosen to overcome the fear of plaster panels falling on patrons from vibration caused by the immense organ which still functions.
In later periods, the Town Hall was referred to as a wedding cake or lollipop building, but was nevertheless representative of its time, sharing similar Victorian/Beaux-Arts (Second Empire) design concepts with the much grander City Hall in Philadelphia (1871-1901).
Information appearing in this section is reproduced from Sydney Architecture, with the kind permission of the author, Graham Jahn, a well-known Sydney architect and former City of Sydney Councillor. Sydney Architecture, rrp $35.00, is available from all good book stores or from the publisher, Watermark Press, Telephone: 02 9818 5677.
Last Updated: Wednesday 12 December, 2007
