Gympie Town Hall Reserve Complex

The Gympie Town Hall Reserve includes a number of structures: the town hall, the maternal and child welfare clinic and an art deco male toilet block. The design contract for the town hall was awarded by competition in 1884 to architect John James Clarke and his engineer brother George. In 1888, the 5000 pound estimate was a financial hurdle for councillors and only the western wing and the tower were initially built. Constructed by Joseph Jew and supervised by local architect Hugo du Rietz; it was formally opened on 4 March 1891. Early in the 1920s, an art deco men’s toilet block was built on site. In 1926, a baby clinic was built incorporating one female toilet accessible to those using the town hall. This standard design temple style clinic was built in regional centres across the state. During the 1930s, the council incorporated space for a post office into planned extensions to the town hall. Architect Charles Griffin used JJ Clark’s original plan as a basis for the new work. The Gympie East Post Office occupied the ground floor from May 1939 until July 1967. The first stage of the hall was remodelled externally to reflect the new design.