| Historical notes: | The territory of the Dharug (or Sydney language grouping of) Aborginal people is thought to have stretched from the narrow neck of land between Sydney Harbour and Botany Bay, spreading in a widening arc towards and through the Blue Mountains. Within the Dharug language area were two distinct sub-groups who differed both in language and culture. One comprised those who lived by the coast and harbour, whose main food supply was fish and other types of seafood - called the "katungal" group (also known as the Eora). The other Dharug sub-group included all those who lived inland - the "paiendra", who used stone tomahawks to hunt possums in the trees (Flynn, 1995b, 10).
The Aboriginal people of Parramatta ("the place where the eels sit down") were the Burramattagal. Their land marked the border between the two Dharug cultures of the harbour and the inland (Flynn, 1995a, 7). It is uncertain as to which which Dharug grouping they belonged, but the evidence suggests that they were the westernmost Katungal clan. The early colonial commentator Watkin Tench states that the Aboriginal people of Parramatta spoke the coastal dialect. Yet, although the Burramattagal fished in the Parramatta River at the narrow western extremity of the harbour, like the Katungal, it seems likely that they derived most of their food from land and freshwater sources, like the paiendra. "Theirs was undoubtedly a borderline culture" (Flynn, 1995b, 10).
Thomas Fowlie's unpublished "History of Granville", 1918, incorporated his own observations from living in the district since 1886 as well as oral history testament from elderly residents of the area, whose memories stretched back to the first half of the nineteenth century. Fowlie described middens along Clay Cliff Creek, Duck River and the Parramatta River, suggesting that for thousands of years the Buttamattagal economy incorproated fish and shellfish. He also mentioned two significant Aboriginal camping and ceremonial sites in the area: one on the corner of Union Street and Woodville Road, Granville, just a few blocks from the current loation of the Granville Town Hall; the other within the Elizabeth Farm Estate. He noted that:
"The whole of the district and surrounding country was covered with a dense large timbered forest. Granville was especially noted for its fine trees, which were a source of wealth for years afterwards to the timber getters. . . The district being well watered and heavily timbered was naturally a great resort of native fauna. . . I have been assured by old Colonists of the vast numbers of wild ducks and other water frequenting fowls that disported in the river and creeks in the early days" (Flynn, 1995a, 162-3).
Fowlie also noted that "in those early days" of the colony, Aboriginal people camped in their preferred two sites when they visited the district to receive their allocation of blankets:
"During those visits they indulged in great revelry and held corrobborees nightly. They were patronised and visited by many of the youth of Parramatta till they became a public nuisance and had to be moved on. Those yearly visits of aborigines gradually became less in numbers . . . Till by the close of the seventies they had ceased to come" (Flynn, 1995a, 164).
When Europeans first explored the Parramatta and Duck rivers in 1788, the area now known as Granville was covered in a dense forest of stringybark, blackbutt, box and ironbark trees. The junction of the two rivers (site of the suburbs of Camellia and Rosehill) was a significant meeting place for the Cadigal from the east and western Dharug peoples, such as the Wategora, Burramattagal and Bidjigal. An Aboriginal forest track also connected the coast and the headwaters of the main river feeding the harbour, and it appears that colonial authorities adopted it to build the road connecting the settlements at Sydney Cove and Rose Hill (Parramatta). This road - the colony's major artery - ran through what is now Granville (Dictionary of Sydney staff writer, 2008).
The 10th Governor of NSW, Charles FitzRoy, set up a hunt club in Granville in the late 1840s to pursue the wild dogs that infested the area. The main road in the area was called Dog Trap Road until 1879 when it was renamed Woodville Road (Parramatta Sun, 16/9/2010). Another pest of the highway (Parramatta Road/Great Western Highway) was the bushranger, preying upon settlers. The first industry in Granville was timber-getting, with the surrounding country heavily covered with gum, box and ironbark trees. The timber, cut by pit-sawyers, was used in many Parramatta district buildings and quantities were also transported to Sydney via the Duck and Parramatta Rivers. Charcoal burners were also active in the early years, providing fuel for householders and blacksmiths' forges (Pollen & Healy, 1988, 114).
The township developed following the construction of the railway in 1855 from Sydney to Granville, which was originally called Parramatta Junction. It was initially a fruit-growing area for the colonists and well-known for its oranges and other citrus fruit (Graham Edds & Associates, 2000).
Subdivision of the area began after the railway came through in 1855, and from 1862 the (Garnham Blaxcell's) Drainwell estate was being subdivided (Pollen & Healy, 1988). By the mid-1870s Granville had become a popular site for the erection of "gentlemen's villas". John Nobbs was a major figure among the early group of gentlemen, tradesmen and workers who settled at Granville (Graham Edds & Associates, 2000).
In 1878 the locality received its own post office, which was then part of the station master's house. In 1880 the population was 372, of which 172 were male. In this era German settlers Joseph Klein and P.W. Merkell tried to establish vineyards in the area, but eventually found the land was not suited for this type of agriculture. More farmers discovered the limitations of the local soil and fruit growers complained about damage from flying foxes (bats). The only practical use for the grasslands, which replaced the original bushland, was for dairy cattle. The township retained the name of Parramatta Junction until 1880 when public meetings voted to change the name to Granville, in honour of the Earl of Granville, a former colonial secretary (Parramatta Sun, 16/9/10)/ in honour of the then British Foreign Minister, Lord Granville (Dictionary of Sydney staff writer, 2008).
A significant boost to the area came with the establishment in 1881 of the Hudson Brothers engineering works nearby at Clyde. A workforce had to be recruited and housed. On 12 February 1884, a petition calling for incorporation of the area was published in the Government Gazette, and in January 1885, Granville was officially gazetted and incorporated as a municipality. John Nobbs was elected the first Mayor, and enjoyed a reputation as the "Father of Granville". Council meetings were initially held in the School of Arts building in Good Street, north of the railway line.
In 1888 Granville Council decided to erect its own Town Hall to celebrate the centenary of European settlement in Sydney. Architect Charles A. Harding of Sydney designed the Town Hall, and Banks and Whitehurst were selected to complete the building. The foundation stone was laid by John Nobbs on 5 September 1888.
In his speech at the ceremony, John Nobbs as Mayor referred to the rapid growth of Granville over the decade. From 12 or 13 houses, it had grown to 900 buildings including 760 houses, 60 shops, two banks, three public halls including a School of Arts, seven churches, two public schools and 13 factories, of which, two were the largest in the colony: Hudson Brothers and Brunton's (Flour) Mills.
The official opening of Granville Council Chambers was held on 16 January 1889. The opening ceremony was held in the Council Chamber which was lit by two chandeliers. According to the press report, the Council Chamber was built on "true Australian lines in the matter of ventilation freely afforded by windows all around the room." It was reported that the site had cost 600 pounds, and the building's contract price was 1090 pounds without fittings. Offices for the Council Clerk, Engineer, Overseer, Inspector of Nuisances, and library were on the ground floor. A spacious staircase led to the first floor where the Council Chamber was located, 11m x 9m and Mayor's Room. A balcony, 3m x 1.5m was erected over the porch.
The auditorium (ie the main hall) was added in 1900, designed by James Whitmore Hill, a Parramatta-based architect. For later development and additions to the Town Hall, see the description under 'Modifications and dates'.
In 1949 Granville was incorporated into Parramatta City Council. The Granville Town Hall, though no longer a seat of local government, has continued to be a municipal facility and is used for local events and ceremonies.
Its interiors were viewed globally as the location for dancing scenes in "Strictly Ballroom", the internationally acclaimed Australian feature film released in 1992 (Parramatta Advertiser, 26/03/03).
(Note: Except where other texts are quoted, this historical summary is taken from the Granville Town Hall Conservation Management Plan, prepared by Graham Edds & Associates, 2000).
Granville Town Hall site has been used and maintained for local government and community use since 1889. Over the last 10 years the Town Hall has undergone considerable conservation works (Form, 2016 (2), 17). |
