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The White Hat Guide to the Old Treasury Building

The Building

The Old Treasury Buildings in one of Melbourne's best examples of nineteenth century architecture. It was designed by John James Clark in 1857 (in which year he was 19 years old) and completed in 1862. The impressive bluestone vaults were built to house the gold being brought down from the Victorian goldfields. As the quantities of gold dwindled, the vaults gave service for storing important government documents. On the first floor of the Treasury Building are the offices of the Governor of Victoria. The Governor regularly meets with the Executive Council in the beautifully preserved Executive Council Chamber to sign off legislation.

Part of the building now operates as a wedding registry office.

Admission to the public display area (see below) provides access to much, but not all, of the building. In recent years there has been an annual free open day where the public can examine the whole of this magnificent building. This open day is usually announced in the the free White Hat Newsletter. You can also hear some musings about the surrounds of the Old Treasury Building in 'The Missing Statue' on our podcast of September 2007.

The Display

The Old Treasury Building hosts the original gold vaults where gold bullion was stored during the gold rush era, as well as rare and historic documents from Public Record Office Victoria highlighting key moments from Victoria’s history.

Topics included in the exhibition space include:

• Indigenous Victorians – Examine the early interaction between Government and Indigenous people in Victoria
• Early Melbourne – Discover how the Port Phillip was illegally settled by Batman and Fawkner and why the 1860 Burke and Wills expedition was both a triumph and a tragedy.
• Ned Kelly – See unique Kelly documents including the only existing letter written by Ned Kelly himself.
• Criminals – Examine two sensational cases in Victorian legal history – the notorious 1920s gangster ‘Squizzy’ Taylor and the Colin Ross case.
• Victorian Democracy – Learn how gold miners of the 1850s helped to shape Victoria’s democratic future.
• Victorian Buildings – A showcase of the range of architectural plans for public buildings throughout Victoria.
• Victorians on Holiday – Tourism posters of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s convey with striking graphics and imagery the allure and appeal of travelling in Victoria.
• Victorians at Work – These photographs provide insights into industry, innovation, community life, and changes in the nature of work since colonial times.
• Find Your Family at PROV – Public Record Office Victoria holds many different kinds of records that can provide helpful information if you are researching your family's history.
• Built on Gold – The historic vaults •Growing up in Old Treasury – Experience the lives of John Maynard (the Old Treasury’s caretaker), his wife and their eight children who lived in the Old Treasury Building from 1916-1928
• JJ Clark – The Treasury Building was the first of many major government buildings designed by John James Clark.
• The Governor – Australia is a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy. The Queen is formally Australia’s head of state and is represented by the Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia and by a Governor in each Australian state.

Our rating: Five Hats

Where is the Old Treasury Building?

Click on the the Old Treasury Building link to the right of the map. Use the controls to zoom in or out on the map or change to satellite view.