Beechworth Historic Buildings - Guide to the famous and historic Beechworth Buildings

Historic Beechworth Buildings

The Stone Lock-Up Beechworth

The Stone Lock Up Beechworth The Stone Lock-Up in Beechworth is located in the area known as the Police Paddocks, or Police Reserve. This area is behind the main Ford Street Historic Precinct buildings and can be accesses by Ford Street, High Street or Williams Street. Beechworth's Stone Lock-Up was originally used as the Police remand lock-up for Beechworth Prisoners awaiting trial at the nearby Beechworth Courthouse. Male prisoners where held in the left cell and females in the right cell.

Beechworth Courthouse

The Beechworth Courthouse is an impressive stone building that is prominent amidst the Beechworth Historic Precinct in Ford Street. The Courthouse was constructed in 1858 by Smith, Bank & Chambers at a cost of 3730 pounds. Originally it was only a small courtroom with offices either side and a rear wing which housed the Sheriff and his Deputy. Extensions were completed by John Steven sin 1865 at a cost of 1499 pounds.

Beechworth Tannery

The following article is reproduced with kind permission of Pat Doyle.

“Zwar Bros Beechworth Tannery (1888 to 1961)”

Dodd and Hallahan

Beechworth Tannery Chimmney In 1858 the Ovens Tannery was established by Irishmen Matthew Dodd, then aged 22, and Dennis Hallahan. It was built adjacent to Gimlet Creek, about 3 kilometers from town, down what we now know as Malakoff Road. I suspect family life prompted this partnership to be dissolved after 8 years. Dennis married a Mary Cullen in 1865 and their first of seven children was born in 1866. A new partnership was formed in 1866 between Matthew Dodd and his brother, Thomas. Another brother John had commenced working for the Tannery in 1865. Dennis Hallahan died in 1900 and is buried in Corowa.

The Mansion - Red Hill

The Mansion - Red Hill Located off Franklin Road on Red Hill in Beechworth 'The Mansion' as it is locally known was built between 1903 and 1909. Today it is not much more than ruins and even they are hard to see at times but during its hey day this was an impressive timber building than spanned around 5625 square feet (522 square metres). It boasted a ten foot wide verandah on each of its 55 ft (16.7m) sides. It also featured vertical, lapped sawn weather-boards and floor-to-ceiling shuttered French windows, four in the front and three on each of the east and west sides.

The Beechworth Wardens Office

The Beechworth Wardens Office is located at the far end of the Historic Precinct on Ford Street and during the height of the gold rush was responsible for collecting payment for miners rights and business licences and enforcing the rules of the gold fields.

The building was completed in 1860 by contractor F.Reagan of Melbourne at a cost of 365 pounds. It was a standard design as commissioned by the Public Works Department along with the Chinese Protectors Office next door. Additional work was completed on the building in the same year by Beechworth architect and Builder Donald Fiddes.

Chevaliers Mill

The mill was built by Louis CHEVALIER at the head of the Newtown Falls on Spring Creek in 1855 and initially acted as a sawmill until it added flour milling equipment at a later stage. The Chevalier flour mill included French burr millstones. 'Newtown Flour Mills' was purchased by Graham and Wilson c1868 at which stage steam power was being introduced to the mill and then by John Burrows in 1875.

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