Briagolong Mechanics' Institute


Mechanics' Institutes have long been an important part of rural Australian Communities, a place where the community came together to be educated and socialise. Briagolong is one of the few Victorian towns that has its Mechanics' Institute fully intact and still caters with the current needs of the community now, as it did in the 1880's and early to mid 1900's. The Mechanics Institute had many functions, one of which was adult education. The Briagolong Mechanics' Institute now incorporates the Briagolong Community House, a place where the community can learn a vast range of new skills from craft to computing. Although now a substantially larger building, the original institute started with only two rooms. The supper and reading rooms were the first to be built in 1874; the hall provided a venue for entertainment, and the reading room a place where people could read the burgeoning library resources and newspapers. Those who were members of the Institute were entitled to use all facilities after they paid a yearly membership fee. The next addition to the institute was a kitchen and a storage room in 1879. The kitchen, with its old servery, metal benches and stable doorway into the supper room is still in original condition and is a part of the National Estate. In 1887, main hall with stage was built, allowing more room for dances and other functions. Another extension to the main hall occurred in 1890, two years later, a smoking room, an extension to the supper room and an enclosed porch. Men utilised the smoking room as a place to retreat, away from the festivities in the hall as it was a sign of respect to smoke away from others. With the supper room extension adding to these fantastic facilities of the time, the Briagolong Mechanics Institute became an important part of the community. The reading room was later to become the "ladies room" - a room where women prepared themselves for the dances - after the library-billiard room was built in 1907. The library-billiard room became one of the most important rooms in the Institute, with membership fees used for purchasing books for the library, which were always locked away. The Institute offered a library service to local residents since it was first opened in 1874 and this continued until 1962. A cabinet is located in the library, full of reference books solely used for the debating society which functioned from the early 1870's until early 1900's. The library was mostly untouched so it still contains hundreds of books dating back to the early 1800's. An important addition to the library was the fitting of glass doors to the bookshelves in 2001 to preserve the books for generations to come. Funded by The Department of Infrastructure the doors were constructed using timber to match the existing shelves. These doors are visually enhancing as well as protecting the books. The Wellington Library Service contributed to the doors as well as processing onto a database the LEAP (Landcare and Environmental Action Program) cataloguing of books carried out in 1995. The next addition to the hall was a projection box (bio box) in 1930, which then made the building the place-to-go to watch films. Other than the building of toilets in 1977, the Institute remained relatively untouched until a new kitchen was built in 1985. The latest addition is a huge two-storey extension, which now houses Briagolong Community House to the Institute in 1999. This addition brings back the former purpose of the Mechanics' Institute as a place of learning. Briagolong is a town with such a rich natural history, made all the more enchanting with its historic Mechanics' Institute. A tour through this historic building is not only interesting, but a unique opportunity to step back in time and experience a touch of Australian history.
Home · History · Gallery · Contact Us · Links Last Modified: Tuesday, 14 October, 2003 1:25 PM - Best Viewed With At Screen Resolution Of 800x600+