| Address: | 47 Hesse Street |
|---|---|
| Suburb: | Queenscliff |
1887
Due to the expansion of Fort Queenscliff in the 1880s, the Post Office was relocated from its position at Shortland’s Bluff to its current site. Designed by architect G. B. H. Austin of the Public Works Department and constructed by Geelong builder F. Holyoak, the total cost of works is said to have cost 3200 pounds.
Additions dating from 1915 have subsequently disrupted the symmetry of the original façade, largely thought the construction of a public lobby on the Hesse Street front and a later annex structure (since removed) on Hobson Street to accommodate a number of public telephones.
In terms of urban context, it is worthy to note the Post Office’s formalisation of civic precinct: co-located with the Public library and the more recent Queenslciffe Historical Museum, itself having been built on a former recreational reserve. When built, the Queenscliff Post Office would have also served as a form of “gateway” architecture upon approach being that it was of comparable massing to its neighbour, the then Grand Hotel, and each being sited upon prominent, opposing corner allotments.
(Lovell Chen Architects. ‘Individual Property Citation’, Queenscliffe Heritage Study, 2009).
Queenscliff Post Office and Public Library, 1908. (Image courtesy of the Queenscliffe Historical Museum).
Queenscliff Post Office prior to restoration works, 1987. (Image courtesy of the Queenscliffe Historical Museum).
