Friday Facts and Fotos – 10 30 September 2022
The Central Block complex was constructed between 1886 – 1888 as offices for the Chief Engineer, Storekeeper, Accountant and their respective staff.
The Central Block offices, three-storey Italianate-style clock tower, and the extensive gardens at the front were the visual and operational focal point of the Newport Railway Workshops. The gardens were a recreational oasis that led from the clock tower to the canteen/dining room.
The northern facades of the 1888 group of buildings were the workshop’s frontage to Melbourne. The central three-storey clock tower was the key architectural pivot in the design, flanked by East and West Block wings of gabled bays.
The clock tower being located near the centre of the site, is characteristic of 19th-century factories and workshops, where working hours were strict and when few employees wore watches. The mechanical, wind-up mechanism of the clock is still in place and is believed to be original. Photo one and two show clock tower in the early 1900s
Today the clock tower and offices are fully intact, and thanks to underpinning work undertaken in the 1990s the buildings are structurally sound. Photo three – looking to East Block – Photo four – looking to West Block.
Recently, the Hobsons Bay Men’s Shed Restoration and Garden Group, with the support of VicTrack and Steamrail, have commenced the conservation and restoration of the interior of clock tower buildings and gardens. Next week we will be bringing you more details and photos of this restoration work.
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