List of heritage buildings and sites in Williamstown, Victoria facts for kids

Williamstown, Victoria, is a historic town in Australia with many old and important buildings. These buildings are called heritage buildings and sites because they tell us stories about the past. They show us how people lived, worked, and built things many years ago. Exploring them is like taking a trip back in time!

Historic Places in Williamstown

Syme Street's Early History

• Williamstown Landing Place (Syme Street): This spot was used as early as 1836 for ships to unload animals and goods. It was one of the first places people landed in Williamstown.

HMAS Castlemaine at Gem Pier

Jetty at Williamstown in Summer

• Gem Pier & Commonwealth Reserve (Syme Street and Nelson Place): A stone jetty, about 30 metres long, was built here in 1838. Convicts, who were prisoners, helped build it. Today, the HMAS Castlemaine is always docked at Gem Pier. This ship was a minesweeper during World War II and was built right here in Williamstown in 1942. Now, it's a museum where you can learn about sea history. You can also find nautical items and exhibits inside. Another historic ship, the Enterprize, sails from Gem Pier every month. You can even take boat trips from here to Southbank!

Nelson Place's Notable Buildings

• Tide Gauge House (Nelson Place): Built in 1857 by convicts, this bluestone building held special equipment called tide gauges. These gauges measured the sea level. This house is important because it's linked to how Australia measures its land height.
• Former Bank of Australasia (189 Nelson Place): This grand building was constructed in 1876–77. It was one of the first banks built outside the main city area.
• Former Bay View Hotel (175 Nelson Place): This building was once a busy hotel.
• The Wilkinson Memorial Drinking Fountain (Corner Syme Street and Nelson Place): A special fountain built to remember someone important.
• Former English, Scottish and Australian Bank (139 Nelson Place): This building used to be a bank, but now it's a restaurant called Breizoz Crêpes. It was the first big bank branch built just for Williamstown.
• Williamstown Customs House (Corner Syme Street and Nelson Place): Built in 1873, this building was used to collect taxes on goods coming into the port. It's a beautiful example of old-style architecture. It also had offices and a home for the customs officer.
• Jacks & McIntosh Boat Repair Facilities (120 Nelson Place and 36 Syme Street): This was one of Williamstown's first private boat-building and repair businesses, starting in 1841. Today, the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria is on this site.
• Williamstown Immigration Office and Depot (120 and 123 Nelson Place): During the gold rush in the 1850s, many new people arrived in Australia. These offices helped process and welcome them.
• Craigantina (125–129 Nelson Place): This building, constructed in 1886, has three shops and homes, all two stories high.
• Former Royal Hotel (85 Nelson Place): This hotel is very large because new rules in 1877 said hotels needed at least 30 rooms to get a license. It was finished by 1893.
• The Old Morgue (Ann Street): This old building is one of Williamstown's earliest structures. It was built in 1859 near Gem Pier using bluestone and convict labor. It was the first morgue in Victoria. A morgue is a place where bodies are kept before burial. This building has been moved three times! You can visit it by appointment or on historical tours.
• Williamstown Dockyards, including Alfred Graving Dock (Ann Street and Nelson Place): This area was a major shipbuilding and repair hub.
• Former Oriental Hotel (55 Nelson Place): This is one of the oldest buildings in Williamstown, built before 1852. It's special because it was built before Victoria became a separate colony from New South Wales in 1851.

Restaurant themed after the RMS Titanic, 1 Nelson Place

• Former Prince of Wales Hotel (1 Nelson Place): Built around 1857, this was one of Williamstown's oldest hotels. Today, it's home to the Titanic Theatre Restaurant, which is themed like the famous ship.

Battery Road's Coastal Defences

• Gellibrand Pier and Breakwater Pier (off Battery Road): These piers are important parts of the port.
• Williamstown Lighthouse or Timeball Tower at Point Gellibrand (Battery Road): Built in 1855 by convicts, this bluestone tower was a lighthouse. It still works as a timeball, which drops at a specific time each day to help ships set their clocks. It's part of a coastal park.
• Fort Gellibrand (Battery Road): This fort is a 2.8-hectare site near Point Gellibrand. It's historically important because it helped defend Melbourne and its port in the 1800s. It shows how Victoria protected itself back then. Today, part of the Australian Army uses the fort.

View of Port Phillip Bay from Gloucester Reserve car park, Williamstown

The Esplanade's Community Hubs

• The Williamstown Dressing Pavilion (The Esplanade): Built in 1936 at Williamstown Beach, this building is a cool example of early modern design. It was designed by two architects who later became famous.
• Former Lawn House (92 The Esplanade): This house was built in 1889–90 for John Garnsworthy, a famous builder from Williamstown. He built many big projects around Victoria.
• The Williamstown Hospital (Railway Crescent): The hospital opened on this site in 1894. It has been made bigger many times, so only a small part of the original building is still there.
• Williamstown Croquet Club Pavilion (Victoria Street): Designed in 1930, this building shows how Victoria Street became a popular area for middle-class families in Williamstown between the two World Wars.
• Williamstown Station precinct (Ann and Thompson Streets): The Williamstown railway station building, platform, and bridges are all listed as heritage sites. This is because it's one of the few train stations from the original railway line that is still mostly unchanged.
• Williamstown Mechanics Institute (Electra Street): This is one of the oldest sites in Hobsons Bay. The first stone for the building was laid in 1860. A Mechanics Institute was a place for people to learn and improve themselves. Today, it houses the Williamstown Historic Society, which has lots of items about the local area's history. It's also home to the Williamstown Musical Theatre Company.
• Excelsior Lodge of Industry Masonic Temple (Electra Street): This red brick hall, built in a classical style, shows how important Masonic groups were in Williamstown's community in the 1800s and early 1900s.
• Park House, former Presbyterian Manse (27 Lyons Street): This two-story bluestone building was designed in 1856. It was originally a home for a Presbyterian minister.
• Former George Hotel (Lyons Street): The current building was built in 1872, replacing an older wooden one. It stopped being a hotel in 1927 and became a boarding house.
• Former City of Williamstown Municipal Offices and Town Hall (Ferguson Street): These offices, opened in 1919, were where the local government worked. They are currently being restored.
• Former Williamstown City Council Electricity Supply Department (Bath Place): This building, designed in 1929, is a good example of an industrial building from between the World Wars. It was used by the council to manage electricity.
• Former Punshon's Store (Ferguson Street): This general store, with a cellar and a roof garden, was completed in 1890.
• Former Melbourne Savings Bank (Ferguson Street): This building, now a home and a dive shop, opened as a bank in 1887. It changed names a few times before becoming a branch of the Commonwealth Bank until 1995.

The Strand's Waterfront Gems

• The Williamstown Rowing Club (End of Stanley Street, The Strand): The Rowing Club started in 1869, and its boathouse was added in 1876.
• Ruffle's Pier (The Strand): Pilot Thomas Ruffle built a stone jetty here to reach deep water. He also ran a ferry service from his pier.
• Mandalay (24 The Strand): This two-story bluestone house was built in 1858 for a ship's captain. It shows the kind of large homes that used to line Hobsons Bay, many with their own piers.
• Craigdoon (14 The Strand): Built in 1876–77 for Peter Murray, who owned a grocery and wine shop.
• William Thomas Liley's House (12 The Strand): This stone house was built in 1862 for William Thomas Liley, one of the longest-serving pilots on the harbor.
• Terrace Houses (10–11 The Strand): These two brick houses were built in 1881 for Samuel David Thomas, a successful gold miner. He rented one out to various professionals.
• Cast iron fence and gates of Maritimo (8–9 The Strand): In 1885, a lawyer named William H Croker built his impressive mansion, 'Maritimo,' here. The beautiful cast-iron fence from the front of the house was saved when the mansion was taken down in 1973.
• White House (5 The Strand): This house was built in 1907 for the retired builder John Garnsworthy. He designed it himself, making sure the foundations were very strong to prevent cracks, which were common in other Williamstown buildings.
• Ferguson Street Pier (Intersection of Nelson Place, The Strand and Ferguson Street): This pier was built in stages starting in 1924. The Williamstown City Council built the part closer to shore, and the Melbourne Harbour Trust built the part going out into the water. Today, the Hobsons Bay Yacht Club uses both sides of the pier. It was rebuilt in 2002/03.
• Harts boatbuilding yard (Nelson Place near Ferguson Street): This yard built small boats and yachts. The Hobsons Bay Yacht Club now uses this site.
• Former Port Health Officer's residence (231 Nelson Place): Built in 1852, this distinctive building was once the home and office of the Port Health Officer.
• Blunts Boatyard and Slipway (Nelson Place): This is a rare example of the many small boat-building and repair businesses that have operated in Williamstown since the 1850s. The Blunt family has run this business continuously on this site since the 1880s.
• Wlliamstown Navy Sea Cadets depot (Nelson Place, between Pasco and Parker Streets): The White Brothers operated a slipway here from at least 1877. A slipway is a ramp where boats can be pulled out of the water for repairs.

Steam Packet Hotel

• The Modern Buildings (213–215 Nelson Place): In 1909, two concrete shops with homes above them were built here by John Garnsworthy. Today, a restaurant called Hobson's Choice is on this site.
• Former Advertiser Building (205 Nelson Place): Built between 1885 and 1888, this building was used to print the Williamstown Advertiser newspaper and as a shipping exchange. It has decorations showing William Caxton, a famous printer.
• Former Williamstown Post Office (Cole Street): The Post Office was built in stages, starting in 1859. It was changed a lot in 1895.
• Steam Packet Hotel (corner Aitken and Cole Streets): This two-story hotel, built in 1863, replaced an earlier building. It first opened in the mid-1850s.