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South Terrace
The first building in South Terrace coming from the north – as Market Street makes a slight deviation with the change of name – is the Newcastle Club Hotel (Newport). The first building on the western side is Gino's.
Newcastle Club Hotel, 1897, 2 South Terrace, at the junction of Market Street and South Terrace. Architects: Cavanagh and Cavanagh (additions 1906). The Newcastle Club Hotel was opened in 1898. Cavanagh and Cavanagh designed works in 1906 which included brick and stone additions and the construction of a two-storey veranda. Alterations were made in 1946, 1967 and the 1970s, including covering the courtyard. There were further renovations in 1986, with the approach of the America’s Cup Defence, when it was renamed the Newport Hotel.
Various shops along the northern side were Lango's Foods, the Marina Coffee Lounge, J&A Marchesani, butchers, and Tagliaferris' Interfoods.
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Gino's is opposite the Newport.
../buildings/img/litinst1401.jpg Literary Institute. Architects: Wilkinson, Smith and Wilson. Builder: L Burness. No. 13, on the corner of Collie Street. In the nineteenth century, mechanics institutes were formed in many towns and cities to establish premises where working-class people could study and attend lectures. They commonly included lending libraries. In 1868 the Fremantle Mechanics Institute and the Working Men’s Association formed the Literary Institute, which, in 1896, had this building erected. At that time there were two shops, a hall and an anteroom on the ground floor; the library was originally on the second floor. The building then had a simple awning supported by cast-iron columns. The two- storey verandas are shown in a 1913 photograph. The building was acquired in 1949 by the City of Fremantle and developed as a Municipal Library. It was renamed after the chairman of the committee which had investigated the establishment of a library, Evan Davies. He was a city councillor who gave distinguished service in other areas of council work as well. The building was restored, and the verandas - which were removed in the 1960s - were replaced in the 1980s. In 2019, the ground floor was occupied by the Dome Coffee House and but Kulcha, which used to lease the upper floor, has ceased to exist.
Former Papa Luigis. Now the Merchant Coffee House, on the SW corner of Collie Street, this was formerly Papa Luigi's Coffee House. Here, in 1977, the then proprietor, Nunzio Gumina, introduced al fresco dining on the pavement. The city council decided to approve this use of the pavements; this triggered the conversion of this section of South Terrace into the ‘Cappuccino Strip’, a term I believed coined by Jeff Brockway.
Manning Buildings, between the Newcastle Club Hotel and the King's Theatre, were designed by Thomas Anthoness.
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James Gallop's King's Theatre (Metropolis nightclub) is next to the Freemasons Hotel. Architect: F W Burwell. Builder: James Brownlie. No. 52.
In 1847 James Gallop established a farm, ‘Dalkeith’, on the foreshore of the Swan River in the area which later became the suburb that is named after it. He provided produce to Fremantle and Perth. His son, James, continued to operate the farm after his father's death in 1880. In c. 1897 he built Dalkeith House in High Street, on the Western boundary of Queens Square, to accommodate his family closer to facilities such as schooling.
In c. 1902 he bought the property on which now stand the theatre and the Sail and Anchor Freemasons Hotel. On the site of the theatre there was an ‘Old English Village Fair’ where travelling entertainers performed. The Pavilion Theatre was built on the site in the late 1880s by J.C. More. When Gallop bought the property, he had the theatre demolished and commissioned the construction of the existing theatre and five adjoining shops. He originally intended to call the theatre the Dalkeith Opera House. Possibly because he foresaw competition from His Majesty’s Theatre, then under construction in Perth, the name was changed to the King’s Theatre. When it opened in 1904 His Majesty's had not been completed. The theatre could accommodate 1200 people and included seventeen emergency exits, apparently in response to a report of a disastrous fire in a Chicago theatre, in which 125 people lost their lives. There was also an asbestos fire curtain for the stage, measuring 9.75 by 6.71 metres, on which Phil Goatcher, a noted artist, painted representations of classical legends, symbols of the drama and a view of Fremantle and its harbour. The stage was large, 18.3 x 12.2 metres, with a proscenium arch 15.2 metres high. It boasted the largest ‘fly’ in the Southern Hemisphere at that time. Patrons could enjoy a view of the ocean and cooler air in summer on the balcony at interval. A sliding roof allowed sea breezes to cool the interior.
During World War I it was the venue for variety shows by the Black Butterflies, and in 1924 it was adapted for showing moving pictures. It closed in c. 1940. The building was used for some years for gatherings of the Fremantle Police and Citizens Boys’ Club. At that time it was purchased by Victor Gubgub and used For his car dealership. Part of it was converted to a repair and service department. The dress circle became Victor’s boardroom and kitchen. It was renovated in the 1960s to become a nightclub - under various names - and was a skating rink from c. 1978. It was renovated again in 1984 to revert to a nightclub. Further refurbishment, in 2002, returned the building to its original splendour, including the restoration of the balcony. In 2005 the building was still owned by the Gubgub family and housed the Metropolis Night Club.
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The former Hungry Jacks is on the corner of Essex Street, opposite the Tech.
The Freemasons Hotel (Sail and Anchor since the Americas Cup defence) is on one corner of Henderson Street. Architect: F W Burwell. Builder: Mr Reynolds. On the corner of Henderson Street. Formerly known as the Freemasons Hotel. It was built in 1903 for James Gallop to replace an earlier (1854-56) hotel on the site. Being next to the Fremantle Markets, it became a favourite ‘watering place’ on market days for producers who resorted to it after the auctioning their wares, which lasted from very early until late morning. The hotel was owned by the Swan Brewery from 1923 until 1977. It was renamed the Sail and Anchor Hotel in 1986 and was extensively restored under the guidance of Michael Patroni. The verandas, removed in 1955, were reinstated. The restoration work received a Royal Australian Institute of Architects award.
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Fremantle Markets is on the other corner of Henderson St. Architects: Oldham and Eales. Builder: Mr Kinnaird. On the corner of Henderson Street. This building, in Federation Romanesque style, was opened in 1898. Trading had declined by the 1960s and the markets were closed, but the building was restored and reopened as an art and craft market in 1975; the verandas were restored six years later. The produce market at the rear re-opened later. However, the building still lacks its original corner turret and finials on the gables. The original wrought iron gates on the three frontages are still in place. The markets are built on north-west corner of the former Imperial Convict Establishment.
Technical College, opened 1913, is now part of Challenger TAFE. Architect: Hillson Beasley, Chief Architect, Public Works Department. On the corner of South Terrace and Essex Street. This brick building, completed in 1925, was one of the earliest in the state to have reinforced concrete floors. The low brick arches above openings are therefore not required for structural purposes; they are merely decorative. The concrete lintels above the windows have curved indentations that look like frowning eyebrows.
The 1877 Infant and Girls School is now part of the Marine Studies TAFE. Next to the Technical College, this limestone building was built in 1878. After the opening of South Street (now Fremantle) Primary School and Princess May Girls School, girls were moved to the new schools. The stepped pattern carved in the limestone beneath the eaves of the gables is distinctive. The blue awnings are recent.
The Scots Church is on the corner of what is now Parry Street (Norfolk Street when it was built). Architect: J.J. Talbot Hobbs. Builder: Petrie and Doig. The Presbyterian Church had its beginnings in Fremantle with the arrival of the Reverend Robert Hanlin in 1886. He had been commissioned by the Free Church of Scotland to work in Western Australia, and by 1898 he reported a strong feeling in the church community for a place of Worship. Hitherto, Presbyterian Church services were held in Oddfellows Hall in William Street. Funds were raised and this church was completed in 1898. It is constructed in Gothic style of local stone in irregular coursed work, with mouldings of red brick for doors and windows.
The synagogue is on the opposite corner of Parry St. Opposite Scots Church in Parry Street. This was the first synagogue erected in Western Australia. The Fremantle Jewish community declined and the synagogue was taken over by the Perth Hebrew Congregation in 1908. It was sold to a local businessman, William Beer, in the 1920s. The date on the shopfront, added later, is given as 1924, however this shopfront may, in fact, date from 1932. The City of Fremantle bought the synagogue in 1962 and it was leased to various commercial businesses. The city sold the building in 2004 and future development of the site is still under consideration in 2019, but will be a hotel/tavern of some configuration.
Parry Street used to end at William Street. In the 1980s it was extended to South Terrace to link with Norfolk Street. The buildings along the south side of Parry Street are within the former Imperial Convict Establishment. The Fremantle Oval and Fremantle Hospital are also included within that site. Remnants of the original limestone boundary wall remain alongside the synagogue and the hospital. On the hospital site there was a summer residence for governors, and the former Fremantle Intermediate School (1904), which was renamed South Terrace (Fremantle) in 1927. The original building is now incorporated in 'A' Block of the Hospital. Together with Fremantle Infants’ on the site, the name South Terrace Primary School was used from 1952. In 1961 new buildings were erected on the present site, on the other side of Alma Street, further east. In 2000 it was renamed Fremantle Primary School and celebrated its centenary in 2004. The new school was on the site of the original Fremantle Cemetery. The school recently created a Memorial Garden on its south side to commemorate the cemetery.
The Oddfellows Hotel is on the south-west corner of the intersection of Norfolk St, and now has that name. It was renovated at the time of the Americas Cup defence - the 'renovation' in this case meaning that the front half of the building was completely removed. It was built in 1887 for George Alfred Davies. The front lounge and public bars were demolished in 1985-86 to reveal the 1887 fabric. At the same time the front yard and a new facade and veranda were constructed.
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]]On the south side of the synagogue, on the site of the former Stan Reilly Lodge, demolished in 2017 and now a carpark, there was a group of two-storey timber buildings, originally Pensioner Guard Barracks (c. 1852), which were later used as an immigration centre. During World War I, they became the Base Hospital to house wounded servicemen on their return to the state. They were demolished in the 1950s.
What I am calling the Snook Building (which dates possibly from 1880) is opposite the carpark that was the Stan Reilly Centre (where the police station is planned to be). It stands out by its remoteness at the moment from other buildings. Current tenants are the Record Cellar (literally in a cellar) and a tax accountant.
Fremantle Hospital, corner of Alma St. Various South Terrace
school buildings once stood here.
References and Links
David Hutchison , Fremantle Walks.
This page incorporates material from Garry Gillard's Freotopia website, that he started in 2014 and the contents of which he donated to Wikimedia Australia in 2024. The content was originally created on 18 July, 2016 and hosted at freotopia.org/streets/southtce.html (it was last updated on 19 November, 2023), and has been edited since it was imported here (see page history). The donated data is also preserved in the Internet Archive's collection.