Tram Shelters, St Kilda Road, 1915

14 December 2018

Who doesn’t ❤️ the #TramShelters about town ? This one on #StKildaRoad at #CommercialRoad was first built in 1915, designed by #LJFlannagan, for the #PrahranAndMalvernTramswaysTrust, one of the many municipal #ElectricTram systems that added to the Cable Tram system into the suburbs quite rapidly between 1906-1919. A bit surprised to read this is largely a reproduction from 2001 after someone drove a car into it – which was just after it had been restored ! (I remember the crash but thought it had just been repaired). It had survived fine for nearly 90 years, though been through some changes; originally built on the Commercial Road footpath outside the Chevron (where the electric trams met the cable tram lines on St Kilda Road), moved to St Kilda Road at some point, but with the opening on the other side, and a section removed on the tram side. When I was at the @nationaltrustvic in the 90s ‘they’ (i forget who exactly, must’ve been Victrack) decided to restore all 16 Tram Shelters using me for advice. This one was hoisted up and turned around, and the missing panels reinstated. After paint scrapes revealed many different #colourschemes (mainly different greens), I decided they should all be ‘Tramway’ #greenandcream, the colours that the #WClassTrams and that most of the shelters had been from the 1930s to 1980s. I stand by that decision, even though that was not the ‘original’ colour scheme here (might have been brown and cream?). I also chose the industrial style lights, similar to what was there, which may have been 1930s, prob not the original, if they had lights at all. Then this one was scorched by fire in Oct 2013, so they’re all painted up nicely, but all closed off now, no place for the homeless or arsonists or anyone else. First shot 2018, others 2020, and one of when it was burnt.

Looking a bit spooky at night, 14 March 2020.

7 January 2025

A bit of urban delight; the two tram shelters at the intersection of High Street on St Kilda Road. They were built in 1927, and the southern one, pics 1-4, lacks the details on the ridge post and gable ends of the other one, presumably lost over the years. They were were copies of the one at Dorcas Street, 1917, pic 8, designed by the Tramways Board architect Frank Stapley, in turn a simplified version of the one he also designed on MacArthur Street East Melbourne, also 1917, pic 9. I’ve always thought there must have been lots more the same, but the Hawthorn Tram Museum says only ever 9 like this, not sure if they’re counting the earlier ones at Commercial Road and the top of Hawthorn Road, or the four open ones dotted around Camberwell. I’ve never seen any photos of others quite like these, except one in Ballarat. And sadly all are closed off – party because the homeless occurred then and partly to prevent vandalism, since there have been fires – but in any event with platform stops now in place they’re not that useful. But we can enjoy looking at them.

The last two pics are from the Heritage Victoria listings; they havnt listed the 1927 ones, since they like to be selective. Hmm now I look, they’re not mentioned in their listing of St Kilda Road itself either, and while the southern one is listed by City of Port Phillip, the northern one in the @cityofmelbourne has never been listed by them because that havnt listed and street objects

Dorcas Street, 1917