“The Old Tin Shed”: hated by many, missed by few
Taken in the early 1960s, this image displays a humble wood and galvanised iron shed on the corner of Little Bourke and Elizabeth streets.
Dwarfing it on the left of frame is its comparatively elegant neighbour, the General Post Office. Ignoring the frontage, with its helpful reminder that the motor tool store that had occupied the site for more than 40 years has moved up the road, civilians passively walk by.
One has to wonder if they care that a relic of the past is about to be another victim to the rapid modernisation of the city.
Or are they eagerly counting down the days before the city’s most reviled eyesore, “The Old Tin Shed”, is wiped from existence?
After the General Post Office (albeit in an incomplete form) was first opened in 1867, a wooden structure was built along its northern Elizabeth St façade. Opening on July 15,1872, the building would serve as the Central Telegraph Office, featuring a shipping lobby, a receiving room and sleeping quarters, as many workers would send messages through the night.
As works were beginning on Post Office extensions in 1906, an iron and timber shed was built as a temporary residence for the telegraph office staff. To their chagrin however, they ended up getting more than they bargained for.
During their time, there was criticism that the structure was “not large enough for half the number” of the 40 staff. The Age, (March 16, 1909), and The Argus (February 5, 1913), both reported that on a hot summer day, the shed became a “Turkish bath” as office temperatures rose to a sweltering 150 degrees Fahrenheit or 60 degrees Celsius. To add insult to injury, any plans to move the staff into the main post office were either delayed or changed.
By the late 1910s the staff would be free of their iron prison thanks to the opening of new accommodation on Spencer St. However, any plans to replace the shed were thrown out the window with an offer to convert the shed into a motor showroom in 1920.
The shed was occupied by Allan W. Taylor’s motor tools business for the next four decades. Regardless of the shed’s reputation, the store was a marvel with its wide variety of products, whether they be tools for fixing the vehicle, a Westinghouse Automatic Iron for the washing, or a Fisher Porto-saw for a DIY project.
However, the shed was subject to further controversy, especially the surrounding rumours about just who owned the land on which it rested. While it was sitting on Crown land, The Argus (December 4, 1926) reports that the lack of action by the Government led to speculation that the Commonwealth had an “imperfect title” to the land.
A common legend was that a sailor had bought the site for a bottle of rum, and the Titles Office would be bombarded with claims from far and wide from people whose relatives had once owned or lived on the land, including one claimant who was living in New Zealand.
Civil engineer and RHSV member AS Kenyon (or W.S. Kenyon as The Age spelt it) tried to settle the matter with his research, stating that the land had been reserved for the public from the start, “at the instance of Mr. Robert Hoddle” (The Age, July 10, 1937) and there had been no offer for its sale.
But if there was one aspect many agreed upon was the shed’s reputation as an unsightly eyesore. Early in the shed’s existence, when progress for completing the Post Office extensions was sluggish, former Lord Mayor Sir Henry Weedon reportedly described the shed “as one of the most disreputable buildings in Melbourne. It was insanitary, dreary looking, uncomfortable and a disgrace to the city.” (The Age, May 19, 1912).
As the building continued to thrive as a store, the matter was taken as far as Federal Parliament, with Mr. Halloway of the House of Representatives pleading for its removal (The Age, May 13, 1936).
However, despite their complaints the structure continued to sit untouched and, undoubtedly, the costs needed to destroy and replace the shed were a major factor in its survival.
However, its days were numbered when, in September 1962, it was announced that plans to demolish it would finally go ahead.
Taylor’s business moved out and, after a year of calling for tenders, it was up to the “ol’ menace” of Melbourne heritage, Whelan the Wrecker, to play the role of executioner, or, depending on your tastes, hero. Jim Whelan II, the son of the company founder who was also named Jim, hated the building so much, he was more than happy to do it for free! The building was demolished over five days in February 1964, and in its place a glass postal centre with a concrete plaza and seating was built.
Today the corner of Little Bourke and Elizabeth has ironically become an extension of the Post Office, especially after the GPO site was converted into a shopping mall and now the fashion retailer H&M.
While its modern glass façade is not to everyone’s taste, we can all agree that the present structure is a far cry from the humble shed of days past.