The Lost Post Offices of Australia - Sandhurst (Bendigo, 3550 )

It was a chance discovery of a payable quantity of a precious metal that is ductile, malleable & found in quartz, commonly known as GOLD in 1851, that built the modern rural city of Bendigo. A city that is still growing to this very day.

Of course if you are going to have a vibrant growing city, you are going to need a growing vibrant Post Office!

Now prior to 1851, Bendigo was known as Bendigo Creek (named for an employee on a local property who was nicknamed 'Bendigo' after the famous Pommy prizefighter William Bendigo

Thompson), however, when the town was declared the name Sandhurst was chosen (named after a town in England) as much more proper & fitting moniker. The story of how this city changed its name back to Bendigo to reflect its original heritage is, in itself, a story of change that is woven into the rich tapestry of this thriving regional city. The timeline of the Sandhurst/Bendigo Post Office is probably unique, in so much as how it reflects the events & the fortunes that have shaped the destiny of this city from a quiet Victorian sheep grazing property to one of Australia's premier historical districts.

Along with the continually changing cityscape came the changing of the Post Office to reflect not only the needs of the community, but also to reflect the prosperity of the city & the pride felt by the community as it continued to thrive.

With those changes, there have been four major Post Office buildings, each one more grandiose than the previous & reflected the communities confidence. That was up until 1995 however, when Australia Posts property portfolio was reduced by one historically significant building & they then leased one nondescript property that looks as though it was a former cinema.

The first Post Office began operations 1853 & operated basically only for the receipt & distribution

of letters around the goldfields. With the arrival of the telegraph in 1858, a more specific building was required to suit the new age of communication & so a more substantial structure was built. These new premises were once described " .... something like a bad style of bush public house, but not nearly so convenient". This building lasted until 1869, when increasing patronage again required another major improvement. The third Post Office was then constructed in View St & is a two storeyed rendered brick building designed by William Wilkinson Wardell. This wonderful old building is still in use today & is now occupied by Sandhurst Trustees, who bought the building in 1891.

The prosperity & population growth of the Bendigo goldfields once again played a part in the construction of the forth Post Office, at the time, the most extravagant building constructed outside Melbourne. Designed by Government Archetect Major George Watson & costing around £50,000 it was opened on the 30th September 1887.

This was no ordinary Post Office, constructed using the architectural style known as the French Second Empire & had scalloped slate roof tiles, intricate iron work, cast iron lion heads, classic Corinthian columns, beautiful interior timber carvings which gave the Post Office a real feel of the regions wealth. It was also a centre for other government services, such as the Government Surveyor, Water Board & various other instrumentalities. It also had quite palatial accommodation for the Postmaster & his family on the upper floors. The most striking feature of this building is of course the 43 metre clock tower & its 5 bell carillon, making this building a true architectural masterpiece.

When Australia Post vacated the building in 1995, luckily, the building was not lost to the citizens of Bendigo & it was reborn as the the Bendigo Tourist Information Centre. Not only is this the grandest Tourist Information Centre in the country, but it also

houses one the best Postal/Telegraph museums in Australia & is well worth a visit.

So while the current Post Office stands on the cnr Williamson & Hargreaves St, like some hussy trolling for clients, the former Post Office building stands stately in Pall Mall, remaining as dignified as she has done for the last 122 years & will continue to stand for many years to come.

Authors note: Although every effort was used to verify the information, I found historical dates varied from source to source & if further verifiable information becomes available I'll update the blog.

Bendigo - "La Ville-Lumière"

Who would have thought that when Margaret Kennedy and Julia Farrell found gold in Bendigo Creek in late spring 1851, that it would help found one of Victoria's & quite possibly the country's, finest rural cities.

After the burst of the initial gold rush & the exploitation of the alluvial deposits fell away, Bendigo's

city forebears quickly embarked on the creation of a city that would not look out of place in any

European country. When the first town plan was drawn up, the name of the city was originally known as Sandhurst, but then in 1891 the citizens, after a plebecite, decided to rename the city Bendigo, after the creek where the city's fortune was originally found. The creek was named Bendigo Creek after a English prize fighter William Abednego Thompson, or 'Bendigo' Thompson,as he was better known.

In keeping with the English/European feel, places of significance were given names such as Pall Mall, Charing Cross, Sandhurst, Ascot & also the most of the city's prominent ornate buildings were built in a late Victorian colonial style, contributing to a picturesque "French" cityscape. Many buildings are on the Victorian Heritage Register & registered by the National Trust of Australia.Prominent buildings include the Bendigo Town Hall (1859), 1883-85), Post Office, Law Courts (1892-96), Shamrock Hotel (1897), Institute of Technology & the Memorial Military Museum (1921).

Not only do the buildings add that European feel, but also because Bendigo still has it's trams that

continue to trundle along the city streets, that creates this wonderful feeling that you have stepped into one the the great cities of Europe. However, these trams are not part of the cities public transport system, but they now only run as a unique tourist venture that takes the sightseer on a 20 minute 'talking tour' between the Central Deborah Gold Mine & the Chinese Joss House (the oldest one in Australia built in the 1860's), with plenty of opportunities to disembark & explore the other unique sites at your leisure.

One of the great things about Bendigo is how they cater for the tourist, you can buy a a 'Bendigo Experience Pass' for $45.00 & that one ticket allows you to take The 'Talking' Tram Tour, go on the Central Deborah Gold Mine Tour, entry into the Golden Dragon Museum & entry to the Bendigo Pottery Interpretive Museum. Plus you don't have to cram it all into one day, the ticket is valid for up to 3months!

The highlight of my trip to Bendigo, besides visiting all the wonderful museums & cultural centres, was just walking around the city at night, every building of significance is lit up, giving the city a golden glow, since given that the city was founded on gold, perhaps it is deliberate!

So if you are visiting Bendigo make sure you have more than a couple of days to explore this wonderful region, but more importantly, make sure you take your camera & embrace those photographic opportunities that abound in Bendigo - The City of Light