Construction Of The Sydney Garden Palace

THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE SYDNEY GARDEN PALACE

JANUARY 13th 1878 - SEPTEMBER 23rd 1878

The Building was Finally Finished Less than 3 weeks Before the Grand Opening Of The International Exhibition Which Would Showcase Colonies To The World.

The Previous International Exhibition Had Been Held In Paris and The Eiffel Tower Had Been
Built As The Modern Wonder Of It’s Time. Sydney Had To Outdo The Eiffel Tower And So It Had Been Decided That The Grandest Palace Should Be Built At The Botanical Gardens.

Every Suburb In SYDNEY Could See The Palace No
matter What Suburb You Were in. It Was The Tallest Building
Ever Built In Sydney And It Is Definitely The Grandest Building
Ever Built In Australia:

There Is No Other Building That Has Been Built In This
Country Or Attempted To Be Built.

It Was Truly The Envy Of  The Modern World


Over 1.6 Million People Sailed To SYDNEY From September 1878 Till December 1878

 

The First Sod Was Turned on The 13th January 1878 For The Construction Of The SYDNEY GARDEN PALACE.


6,000 Tradesmen Worked 24 Hours A Day 7 Days A Week For 8 Months. It Was The First Time Electricity Had Been Used In Australia to Light up the Botanical Gardens To get The Work Done.

- 4 And A Half Million Feet Of Timber - 25 Million Bricks - 400 Tonnes Of Glass - 54km Of Roof Guttering- The Palace Was The very First Building To Have Electricity In Australia. - It Was The First Building In Australia To Have A Hydraulic Lift. - The Central Dome Was The 6th Biggest In The World- 2,300 Cast Iron Girders- 358 Wrought Iron Trusses- 325km Of Sash Bars- 563 Metres Long And 124 Metres Wide 

On the morning of September 22, 1882, Sydney awoke to a grand and terrible spectacle. Its most flamboyant building, the garden palace was burning to the ground

The heat was so intense at 6:05 am, Windows at Macquarie Street cracked & firefighters could do little more than watch the building turn into cinders.

The fire was a magnificent as a pallet its self-thunderous crashes rivers of lead and when the walls fell away a terrible vision of flames and golf in the towering bronze statue of Queen Victoria

By 9 am it was all over and the building had that had dominated the city skyline for three years was gone.

Despite being One of the most captivating buildings Sydney has ever seen, the garden palace is largely absent from popular history of my Sydneysiders have never heard of it.

Because building is stretching from the State library to the Conservatorium of music in the botanic Gardens, it’s towers and 65 meter high dome would have dwarfed the buildings around it.

The site is difficult for most people to conceive and the fact that it was the length of two football fields and in the botanic Gardens of all places  within the city of this size was such a luxury.

Modelled on London’s Crystal Palace, it was purpose-built for the 1879 Sydney international exhibition & was designed by colonial architect James Barnett.

It was responsible for bringing the world to Sydney at a time when the colony was prosperous & growing &  at full potential. It encouraged authorities to improve the city services and facilities

International exhibition was groundbreaking in so far as it was the first of its kind to be held in the southern hemisphere.

The Victorian equivalent of the world expo, exhibitions in Welfare‘s were at the height of fashion at the time

The feeling  in the city would’ve been similar to that of the Olympics in 2000. It was very positive thing for Sydney and New South Wales, & an event to be celebrated. The city would’ve been buzzing in a hive of activity

For seven months, more than 1 million people pulled into the sprawling complex to marvel at the buildings of city prosperity

But 20 ha of the botanic Gardens became a Fairground filled with band stands, stalls, entertainment, eateries &  small exhibition buildings.

The garden palace was a centrepiece & inside, all manners of inventions, technology, art & ideologies were displayed by local and international exhibitors.

Sydney had pulled out all stops to build a palace & had raced against time to beat Melbourne, which was also staging an exhibition.

Over 2000 men worked on on the site night &  day, using electric light for the first time, to complete the building in just eight months.

The city was plagued with insecurities in the lead up to the event, with concerns about whether it’s public transport, accommodation & water supply would be adequate for all visitors travelling to the infant city.

It was forced to install a line for steam a tram, a first for Sydney and an unpopular idea at the time after previous tram efforts resulted in the death of prominent position in 1864 

The steam power Tramway was installed to public transport exhibition goes around the city. After the exhibition, the Tramway network was expanded and by 1905 - 1906 the trams were converted to electric traction

Despite several accidents, it was a great success & the system expanded rapidly through the city and in the suburbs. It became one of the main attractions of the exhibition.

After the exhibition, the palace continued to play a central role in Sydney social life. Balls, lectures, exhibitions and entertainment were hosted in its auditorium; an art gallery and the first technological museum, the forerunner to the powerhouse Museum were on the list. 

Government departments also set up office and important records were stored in the basement, the wisdom of which would later be questioned.  That’s because unlike Barnett’s other sturdy designs such as the GPO, the colonial secretaries office and the lands department building which still stand today, the palace was primarily made of timber, which insured its complete destruction when it was engolfed by fire.

While arson was generally suspected, the cause of the fire was never determined and remains a mystery to this day.

The blaze, which began before 6 am, became almost immediately uncontrollable and thousands lined the streets to witness the calamity.

Very quiet and orderly the thousands looked on - wrote one reporter in the evening news

Many will lamenting &regretting the inevitable destruction of what’s given them so much pleasure, and have carried the name and doings of the people of this country into the empires and other countries.

The wind carried ash, cinders and fragments of the building far into the suburbs and a house in Potts point caught fire.

Almost everything inside went up in flames. The fire destroyed the 1881 census, the land occupation records, railway surveys, aboriginal artefacts, artworks & the foundation collection of the technological & mining Museum.

A new map of the colony which took years of work was also lost.

Conspiracy theories from dynamite plots, masked man and trains of gunpowder were banded around afterwards. Wealthy folk with lame for trying to restore harbour views, destroy convict Ancestry or simply get their gardens back.

Whatever the cause thousands came to view the ruins & the police were on site to keep order.

To leave such a beautiful building that was such a positivity to the city and one that was so new as well would’ve been quite shocking

Some items and artefacts are irreplaceable, however we do know that insure trade Australian spirit almost before the Coles cool Joseph maiden, first curator of the technological museum, said about forming another collection of artefacts by approaching people who had donated items in the original museum collection.

Today, all that is left of the palace other than sandstone gates and the wrought iron gates on the Maxquarie Street entrance to the gardens

In 1940s or something garden in Fountain featuring statue of Cupid Marks the former location of the palace is Dome

Mark Foys - Liverpool And Elizabeth Streets

Some Of The Original Wall Paper Used For The Mark Foys Building 

Mark Foy's Department Store was a historic and iconic retail establishment located in Sydney, Australia. It was known for its grandeur, innovations, and contributions to the retail industry. Here's an overview of the history of Mark Foy's Department Store:

Founding and Early Years:

• Mark Foy's was founded by Francis Foy in 1885. It began as a drapery and small goods store in Sydney's Surry Hills.
• Francis Foy's innovative approach included offering fixed prices, a revolutionary concept at the time when bargaining was common.

Expansion and Innovations:

• Mark Foy's gained a reputation for quality goods and exceptional customer service, leading to its expansion into a larger department store on Liverpool Street, Sydney, in 1887.
• The store's innovative features included electric lighting, air conditioning, and even Australia's first escalator.

The "Palace Emporium":

• The Liverpool Street store became known as the "Palace Emporium" due to its opulent interiors, impressive architecture, and luxurious displays.
• The store's design incorporated elements from various architectural styles, including neo-gothic and art nouveau, creating a unique and distinctive atmosphere.

Fashion and Beyond:

• Mark Foy's became renowned for its fashion offerings and was a destination for elegant clothing, accessories, and other luxury goods.
• The store hosted fashion parades and events that showcased the latest trends and styles.

Artistic and Cultural Influence:

• Mark Foy's was not only a retail establishment but also a cultural hub. It hosted art exhibitions, musical performances, and other cultural events.
• The store's artistic collaborations and support of the arts made it a significant contributor to Sydney's cultural scene.

Decline and Closure:

• Over time, changing consumer preferences and retail trends led to challenges for Mark Foy's.
• The store faced financial difficulties and competition from larger retail chains.

Legacy and Enduring Impact:

• Despite its closure in 1980, Mark Foy's remains a significant part of Sydney's retail history.
• The innovations, architectural grandeur, and cultural contributions of Mark Foy's have left an enduring impact on the city and the retail industry.

Historical Significance:

• The Liverpool Street store's exterior façade is listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register, recognizing its architectural and historical importance.

Mark Foy's Department Store played a pivotal role in shaping the retail landscape of Sydney. Its commitment to innovation, luxury, and cultural engagement established it as a beloved institution in the city's history. The legacy of Mark Foy's continues to be remembered as a symbol of elegance, sophistication, and entrepreneurial spirit.

Grand United Fellowship of Goodfellows – 1921

This post documents a 1921 memorial associated with the Grand United Fellowship of Goodfellows and its presentation to the City of Sydney. The monument preserves a piece of early twentieth-century civic and commemorative history.

The Sydney Common - Moore Parklands

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The Sydney Common 

The largest urban park in the southern hemisphere, developed as a parkland since the early days of European settlement. It also gives its name to the small residential suburb on its western fringe, whose most famous resident was Nobel Prize winning novelist Patrick White.

Common land proclaimed by Governor Macquarie in 1811 for Sydney's inhabitants to graze animals. The original 1000 acres was reduced in 1866 as land was sold to fund levelling and tree planting.

Go Ahead Over 200 Years And It Is Becoming A Mayer Of The People V's the State

Since The Time Governor Macquarie Put Aside The Land To Make a Common There Have Been Many Threats To The Land And Open Space by Various Subdivisions At The Beginning Of Centennial Parks Existence To Pay For The Park Itself, To Successive Governments Wanting Turn It Into Something Else. 

The Kippax Lake Area Of Moore Park Has Been Proposed To Be A Sports Precinct, And Now There Is the stubby Cotter Bridge Which Blew Out All Government Budgets, For What A Footbridge Should Be Worth. 

THEN THERE IS THE MATTER OF THE CENTENNIAL PARK TRUST MEMBERS BREAKING THE TRUST DEED AND SELLING THE LAND FROM LACHLAN SWAMP AND THE ORIGINAL REMAINS OF THE WATERLOO AND LORD PAPER MILL FROM 1803. 

Charles Moore, the Head Of The Sydney Royal Botanical Gardens 

It's Really Enough To Break Your Heart When You Happen To Come Across Plans Like The DEVELOPMENT OF THE MOORE PARK PRECINCT. 

Just Who The Hell Do These People

Think They Are

This Land Was Given To The People Of New South Wales By Governor Macquarie In 1811. Thank God He Had A Vision. 

In 1983 By Act Of Parliament The New South Wales Centennial And Moore Park Trust And Board Waa Created To Manage Centennial Park, Moore Park And Queens Park. 

All Things Measured The Trust Has Been Very Successful In That Time. 

Where The Board And Trustees Have Really Fallen Over Was The Sale of A Tract Of Land On Alison Road Across From The Randwick Racecourse. 

In Late 2015...... In The Dead Of Night.... The Trust Voted To Sell This Land For $7 Million Dollars To The Light Rail Corporation. 

This act Was And Still Is Illegal. It Is Set Out Clearly In The Deed. under

Section 5 - Sub section 19 - Part 2

Clause 3 

ABSOLUTELY NONE OF THE ORIGINAL SYDNEY COMMON LAND GRANTED TO THE PEOPLE OF NEW SOUTH WALES IN SEPTEMBER 1811 SHALL EVER BE RESUMED OR APPROPRIATED BY EITHER PRIVATE ENTERPRISE OR BY THE NEW

SOUTH WALES GOVERNMENT UNLESS BY ACT OF PARLIAMENT

Sydney’s First Cemetery – Beyond Sydney Cove, at the Head of a Small Bay

Sydney's First Cemetery -   Beyond Sydney Cove Terminal At The Head Of A Small Bay

Hereabouts Was Situated Sydney's First Burial Ground 1788 -1792. Some Headstones Were Still In Position I 1874

Captain Collins Records - "Every Person Belonging To The Settlement Being Landed, The Numbers Amounted To 1030 Persons. The Scurvy Now Broke Out, Which Aide  By Dysentry, Began ToFill  The Hospital And Several Died. 

Sergeant James Scott Of The Marines Recorded The First Death, Writing In His Journal

"Sunday 24th February, Thos Harmsworth, Son To. This Harmsworth A stone Died Of A Feaver:" A Few Weekks Later On 30th April, The Same Journal Noted. "This Harmsworth, Marine Died."

In June 1788 Surgeon general John White  Stated That 28. Convict Men And. Women Had Died, Also Three Marines & Ten Children.  No Doubt They Were Interred In This Burial Ground, The First Cemetery In Sydney. 

Later, Collins Wrote Of The Proposed Barracks - "Their Situation Being Directly In The Neighbourhood Of The Ground Appropriated To The Burial Of The Dead, It Became Necessary To Choose Another Spot.... The Gorvernor, In The Company With Rev Mr Johnson, Set Apart The Ground Foremerly Cultivated By The Late Captain Shea Of The Marines. "

A Letter From A Female Convict Written On 14th November 1788 (Historical Records Of New South Wales Volume 2) Describes The West Side Of Sydney Cove, The Area Known As The Rocks, And Goes On to Say:  - 

At The Extremity Of The Lines, Where Since Our Arrival The Dead Are Buried, There Is A Place Called The Church Yard, but We Hear, As Soon As A Sufficient Quantity Of Bricks That Can Be Made, A Chiurch Is To Be Built, And Named St Phillip, After The Governor."

'

The Sydney Gazette Of The 5th February 1804 Said - 

"The Plan Of Inclosing The Burial Ground In Order To Prevent Swine And Other Stock From Grazing Upon It And Rooting Up The Earth, Has Been Proposed By The Sexton, And Approved Of. Several Gentlemen Have Already Con'tributed Liberally To Reward The Labour The Must Necessarily Attend The Execution of The Design."

Randwick Asylum For Destitute Children - Now Prince Of Wales Hospital

Before it was Prince of Wales Hospital, this High Cross / Avoca–High Street corner of Randwick was the Randwick Asylum for Destitute Children — a large government grant occupied from 1858 by the Society for the Relief of Destitute Children (incorporated 1857). The Society had first opened at Ormond House, Paddington, in 1852; gold-rush Sydney’s rising numbers of orphaned and abandoned children pushed them to build a purpose-designed sandstone “barracks” asylum on about sixty acres at Randwick, occupied from 28 March 1858, with capacity later doubled by an 1863 wing to around eight hundred children.

Most inmates were young — commonly about three to ten. A whooping-cough epidemic in 1867 killed dozens; funds associated with singer Catherine Hayes helped build a hospital on the site named after her. From the 1880s “boarding out” (early fostering) cut institutional numbers; government funding for the Asylum ceased in 1888, though it continued privately with fewer children.

In 1915 the remaining children were moved to cottage homes or boarded out, and the Commonwealth took the site as a military / repatriation hospital for wounded First World War servicemen. From 1953 the campus became the Prince of Wales Hospital. Archaeological work in the mid-1990s recovered remains of children buried in the grounds; a memorial garden and interpretive signage stand near the Barker Street entrance.

Atherfield – Landmark Gothic Mansion – Darling Point

Darling Point still has a few houses that look like they wandered out of a Victorian picture book. Atherfield is one of them — a Gothic Revival mansion built in 1870 on Eastbourne Road, looking north-east over Sydney Harbour. Originally an eight-room Victorian residence, it belongs to the generation of picturesque harbourside houses that gave the peninsula its nineteenth-century character: steep gables, decorative bargeboards and stone detailing in domestic Gothic Revival taste.

The house has been altered and conserved repeatedly. Late-twentieth-century heritage architects (notably Design 5’s late-1990s–2001 campaign) reversed poor accretions, reinstated a more coherent room plan and added a verandah in keeping with the Gothic character while opening a clearer axis to the harbour view. Later private works have further enlarged the estate (including amalgamation with an adjoining holding), but the historic core remains the 1870 Gothic Revival house. Early occupancy is associated with the Willis family; subsequent ownership changes are secondary to the architectural story.

Photographs here document Atherfield as a landmark Gothic Revival residence on Darling Point.

Ann Bushby's Dove And Olive Branch Public House

Most people know Church Hill for the churches. Mid-1840s drinkers knew it for Ann Bushby. After publican Jabez Bushby died in 1842, his widow held the licence at the Dove and Olive Branch — a public house at 203 Kent Street on the older western side of town. We still “meet” her through George Roberts’s watercolour (scene dated 1845; published context around 1850): Ann in the doorway under the signboard, looking every bit the licensee who ran the house.

She sold fermented and spirituous liquors, but she did not brew on site. Her advertising offered imported Taylor’s London Porter and local beer from Wright’s Australian Brewery in George Street — a useful reminder that plenty of colonial “brew pubs” were retailers of other people’s beer. The State Library of NSW has featured the Roberts picture in Openbook pieces on colonial drinking and women publicans.

Keep the post anchored to Ann Bushby, the Kent Street / Church Hill location, and the Roberts image — social history of women licensees and colonial beer retail, not romantic invention.

Ann Bushby's Dove And Olive Branch Public House 

Mrs Bushby's As It Shows, Did Not Brew Her own, As Her Advertising Shows; She Had On Sale Taylor's London Porter, And Local Australian Beer from Wrights Brewery In George Street