Bank of New South Wales building, Townsville facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bank of New South Wales Building, Townsville
Australian Meat Industry Employees Union (Queensland Branch), formerly Bank of New South Wales, Townsville
Location	101-111 Flinders Street, Townsville CBD, City of Townsville, Queensland, Australia
Design period	1870s - 1890s (late 19th century)
Built	1887
Queensland Heritage Register
Official name: Australian Meat Industry Employees Union (Queensland Branch), Bank of New South Wales
Type	state heritage (built)
Designated	21 October 1992
Reference no.	600890
Significant period	1887 (fabric) 1941-1945, 1948-1970s (historical)
Significant components	fence/wall - perimeter, garage, out building/s, strong room, banking chamber
Builders	Denis Kelleher
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The Bank of New South Wales Building is a historic building in Townsville, Australia. It was first built in 1887 to be a bank. Today, it is also known as the Australian Meat Industry Employees Union (Queensland Branch) building. This important building was added to the Queensland Heritage Register in 1992 because of its history and design.

A Bank's Journey in Townsville

The Bank of New South Wales building was completed in 1887. It was the third building the bank used in Townsville. Local builder Denis Kelleher constructed it for about £7,500. The design was likely by Sydney architect John Smedley. Local architect WM Eyre and Brisbane architect FDG Stanley helped supervise the building work.

Early Days of Banking

The Bank of New South Wales was one of the first banks in Townsville. It opened on March 20, 1866, shortly after the Australian Joint Stock Bank.

Robert Towns, a businessman from Sydney, helped the Bank of New South Wales open a branch in Townsville. He had invested a lot in the new settlement at Cleveland Bay. He wanted to help the bank grow in North Queensland.

Moving Locations

The first bank branch was in Flinders Street East. But the bank staff found it too hot and full of mosquitoes from Ross Creek. Also, the building was made of wood, which was not safe for the bank's records.

So, in 1869, a second bank building and a manager's home were built. This new location was on the corner of Wickham Street and The Strand. It was cooler because of the sea breezes. However, it was too far from the town centre and hard to reach.

By 1875, the bank bought a new site closer to town, but it took 12 more years to build the current building.

The New Building's Design

Newspaper reports from 1887 mention that FDG Stanley, an architect, inspected the Bank of New South Wales building under construction. Later that year, the Townsville Herald praised Mr. Smedley of Sydney for designing the new bank. This suggests Smedley was the main designer, and WM Eyre was the local architect who supervised the building.

The new building had a main banking area, offices for the manager and accountant, and strong rooms. The manager's home upstairs had nine rooms, a kitchen, and a bathroom. There were also stables, a coach house, and a messenger's room.

In 1925, Townsville architect Walter Hunt oversaw changes to the building. This included adding a beautiful pressed metal ceiling in the banking hall.

Changes and New Owners

In 1931, the Bank of Commerce joined with the Bank of New South Wales. The combined bank moved to a new location in 1935. The old building then became the East Flinders Street Branch.

The bank sold the building in 1941 to the Queensland branch of the Australian Meat Industry Employees Union (AMIEU).

World War II and Beyond

During World War II, Townsville became a very important supply base for Allied forces. Many buildings were taken over by the military, including the former Bank of New South Wales building.

A Secret Communications Hub

• From 1941, the building housed a group of soldiers called Area Signals personnel.
• They set up a telegraph, switchboard, and dispatch rider service.
• After the Attack on Pearl Harbor, the commander of the Townsville area, Col North, even set up his headquarters here.
• The communication centre connected to military units across the region.
• Telegraph lines linked the building to Charters Towers and Brisbane.
• Part of the upstairs area was used as living quarters for officers.

A concrete bunker was built behind the building. It was used by a secret group who worked to decode Japanese messages. Pigeon lofts were also built in the yard to provide carrier pigeons for ships and aircraft.

Later in the war, the switchboard became a security monitor for all phone calls in North Queensland. About 20 women from the Australian Women's Army (AWAs) worked the switchboard. This monitoring continued until the war ended.

A Centre for Workers' Rights

The Australian Meat Industry Employees Union (AMIEU) moved into the building around 1948. For the next 30 years, it became a very important place for workers in Townsville and North Queensland.

• Workers would come here to get permits for jobs at the Ross River Meatworks.
• The building was also near other important places like the Queensland Building (for social security) and the Tattersalls Hotel (a popular meeting spot).

From the late 1940s to the early 1970s, the building was very busy. Besides the AMIEU, other unions like the Trades and Labour Council and the Seamen's Union had offices upstairs.

These unions were involved in important discussions about workers' rights and fair wages. For example, they played a role in the Mount Isa Strike of 1964/65, which was about bonus payments for miners.

Other Tenants

From 1954, Remington Rand Charters Pty Ltd rented most of the ground floor. They had a showroom for typewriters and business machines, a workshop, and accounting offices upstairs. They left the building in the early 1970s.

Around 1962-63, the toilets upstairs were changed to include separate male and female facilities. This was needed because women were starting to work at the meatworks again, and they would visit the union offices.

Recent History

In 1995, a small ceremony was held in the building to celebrate VP50 (the 50th anniversary of victory in the Pacific). A plaque was placed to honour the men and women of the Royal Australian Corps of Signals who served there during WWII.

Since 2001, the building has been home to Flynns Irish Bar.

Building Features

The former Bank of New South Wales building is a two-storey building made of stuccoed masonry. It stands on the corner of Flinders Street East and Wickham Street. It is part of a group of important late-19th century buildings at this intersection.

Outside the Building

• The main sides of the building face Flinders and Wickham Streets. They are joined by a curved section at the corner.
• The walls are divided by tall, flat columns called pilasters. There is also a horizontal moulded line between the two floors.
• The windows have decorative frames around them.
• The roof has a simple squared top called a parapet with decorative moulding. Above the main Flinders Street entrance, the parapet is higher and has "Bank of NSW" written on it.
• The main entrance on Flinders Street is special, with decorative plasterwork and an arched doorway.
• The roof is hipped (sloping on all sides) with decorative chimneys and vents.
• On the north-eastern side, there is a two-storey verandah. The upper part is now enclosed with louvres, but you can still see the original cast iron railing. The lower part has arched openings that are now filled in.

Inside the Building

• When you enter from Flinders Street, you go through a decorative timber entrance area called a vestibule. This leads to the former banking hall.
• The banking hall has beautiful pressed metal ceilings, decorative mouldings, and two central cast iron columns.
• It also has a concrete safe with its original door and shelves. There's a unique window opening to the stairs, which was supposedly for managers to watch their staff from above.
• From Wickham Street, there is another entrance with patterned tiles.
• The timber staircase has strong newel posts (the main posts at the top and bottom of a staircase), twisted balusters (the vertical posts supporting the handrail), and timber boarding underneath.
• The rest of the ground floor has several former offices and small service rooms at the back.
• A single-storey section extends from the building's north-western corner, containing three small rooms.

Upstairs and Other Structures

• The first floor has a central hallway with rooms on both sides.
• The rooms upstairs have decorative timber skirtings (baseboards) and window frames, some panelled doors, and decorative metal ceilings.
• At the north-western corner of the property, there is a rectangular concrete building, mostly covered in plants. This was the concrete bunker built during WWII.
• To the west, there is a garage, which is thought to be the former stables. It is made of brick with a corrugated iron roof.
• There are also masonry fences on the Flinders Street and north-eastern boundaries.

Why is it Heritage Listed?

The former Bank of New South Wales building was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register in 1992 for several reasons:

A Glimpse into Queensland's Past

• The building shows how banks grew in Townsville and how Townsville became a major port in North Queensland.
• It was used by the Bank of New South Wales from 1887 to 1935.

A Typical Bank Building

• It is a good example of bank buildings from the late 1800s and early 1900s. Banks usually had the main banking hall on the ground floor and the manager's home upstairs.
• The inside of the building is still very much like it was after WWII. It has high-quality design and finishes. It's one of the few old commercial buildings on Flinders Street East that still has its original ground floor layout.
• The upstairs still looks like a manager's residence, with a white marble fireplace and timber details.
• The building was likely designed by Sydney architect John Smedley and built by Denis Kelleher.

Beautiful Design

• The outside of the building is still very well preserved.
• Its street-facing sides add a lot to the look of Flinders Street East, which has many other historic commercial buildings.
• The building helps connect this area with the historic government buildings on lower Melton Hill.
• This intersection of Flinders and Wickham Street has a significant historic building on each of its four corners.

Important Connections

• The building is linked to the Royal Australian Corps of Signals, who used it during WWII (1941-1948). The news of the end of WWII first reached North Queensland through this very building!
• It is also important because of its long connection (over 50 years) with the Australian Meat Industry Employees Union (AMIEU). The Union played a big role in the social and economic life of Townsville.
• Other unions, like the Seamen's Union and the Queensland Trades and Labour Council, also had offices here at different times. These groups were involved in important discussions about workers' rights, including the Mount Isa Mines Strike of 1964-65.

Images for kids

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  Bank of New South Wales, Townsville, ca. 1873 (probably on the site of the Townsville Customs House)

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  Bank of New South Wales (right), Townsville, circa 1888