First stage of Sydney Town Hall rescue plan to commence

7 January 2008

An archaeological excavation beneath the Sydney Town Hall will commence today, Monday 7 January, as the first stage of a five-year rescue plan for the historic building which will overhaul outdated essential services and restore the sandstone facade.

The excavation, which has been approved by the NSW Heritage Council, will create space for an essential plant and equipment room to house services required for the building to meet modern fire safety standards. The plan also includes upgrading the Lower Town Hall for a wider variety of uses including an exhibition space for the Town Hall curatorial collection and other exhibitions.

It is also hoped that information gathered and artifacts found during the excavation process will contribute to the picture of early Colonial life in Sydney.

Sydney Town Hall was built within one of Sydney's first cemeteries which operated between 1792 and 1820 prior to the opening of a new cemetery on the site of what is now Central Railway Station.

Prior to the commencement of construction of Sydney Town Hall in 1869 some graves were exhumed and re-interred at Rookwood.

The City of Sydney has been working closely with the NSW Heritage Council and has appointed archaeologists Dr Mary Casey and Tony Lowe of Casey & Lowe Pty Ltd who will direct the excavation works.

Dr Casey and Mr Lowe have extensive experience in the excavation of early European sites in Sydney, including: Cross City Tunnel Project, Museum of Contemporary Art, Conservatorium Site, GPO and Tank Stream.

A Public Open Day will be held on Tuesday 22 January so that members of the public can tour the excavation site and learn more about early Sydney history and the history of Sydney Town Hall.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore MP said: "The archaeological excavation is the first part of a five year rescue plan for Sydney Town Hall which involves restoring the crumbling sandstone facade and updating essential services such as fire protection, sewerage, electricity and communications technology which are out of date and in danger of failing."

The City is committed to environmental initiatives, like rainwater capture off the extensive roof of the building and improved energy efficiency.

"The City's work is being guided by the NSW Heritage Council and this investigation will help us discover and protect the City's history. As custodians of this building we have a duty of care to undertake these extensive works, without impacting on the building's heritage significance, so that Sydney Town Hall is guaranteed for future generations," Lord Mayor Clover Moore MP.

"Put simply, Sydney Town Hall is on its last legs internally and needs help to continue to function safely and effectively and host major commercial and public events.

"Alongside other significant late 19th century buildings such as the Queen Victoria Building, the State Library and the Art Gallery of NSW, it must be protected and restored," Ms Moore said.

A preliminary investigation of the excavation site conducted by Casey & Lowe in August 2007 involved a surface "scrape" of the soil and testing of disturbed soil areas.

Dr Mary Casey said during the preliminary investigation 53 potential grave sites were identified but most are expected to be empty graves exhumed prior to the construction of the Sydney Town Hall. The graves are unmarked and no records were kept of where burial sites were located.

"Graves in the area were largely exhumed in the 1880s when the Peace and Centennial Halls were built. The archaeological excavation currently underway will record the remnants of any graves that may have been missed," Dr Casey said.

"Of the 47 graves identified where human remains were possible, testing of the graves revealed small bone fragments in only 12 sites," Dr Casey said. "Where disintegrating bone fragments have been found they have been in poor condition.

"In 39 of the graves there was some evidence of coffins but in the majority of cases the lids had been removed suggesting the graves have already been exhumed. Any bone fragments found in these graves could possibly be the result of an incomplete exhumation process conducted during the 1880s when the halls were built," Dr Casey said.

The graves will be excavated in line with Heritage Council guidelines and the excavation is expected to take six weeks to complete.

Sydney Town Hall is currently used by a range of community and charity groups as well as for high end fashion parades, the Dally M Awards and a range of corporate lunches and annual general meetings.

Sydney Town Hall will close in February 2008 for up to 18 months while the essential services works take place. Staff, Councillors and meetings will be relocated to adjacent Town Hall House. Major events, functions and meetings can be temporarily accommodated in other City buildings such as Customs House, City Recital Hall and Paddington Town Hall.

Sydney Town Hall has stood for more than a century as the major public and civic building in the City of Sydney. It was built in two stages between 1869 and 1889 to an extravagant scale and style during a boom period in Sydney's history.

It was originally budgeted for construction at 25,000 and is now a priceless Sydney heritage item. Its replacement value listed in the City of Sydney's Annual Report is $443 million.

The Town Hall dominated Sydney's commercial heart when it was built, and retains some of that dominance today, despite being surrounded by high rise buildings.

The building is considered to have very high heritage significance being the heart of the commercial district and originally designed to be a symbol of the wealth and status of the city.

The main hall of Sydney Town Hall (Centennial Hall) was seen as symbolic of the aspirations and potential of a young and dynamic nation. It was planned to be the biggest in the world measuring 166 feet in length, 85 feet in breadth and 14,110 feet in area. Sydney was the largest hall with Preston and Glasgow halls second and third and Melbourne Town Hall ninth.

Sydney Town Hall is of exceptional heritage significance to Sydney and Australia in part because of its continued use as a Town Hall, performance venue and civic heart. It is a well known landmark and meeting point and has had numerous visitors ranging from the Royal family to local community and school groups, and internationally acclaimed artists and performers.

Related Resources

 Fact Sheet - History of Sydney Town Hall (304KB)

 Fact Sheet - Sydney Town Hall sandstone facade (458KB)

VIRTUAL TOUR - Sydney Town Hall

 
Sandstone deterioration.jpg (1.1MB)

 
Sandstone deterioration.jpg (1.2MB)

  
Town Hall complete in 1885.jpg (1.5MB)
Image courtesy City of Sydney Archives

Sydney Town Hall historical website