Heritage gold rush town - Maldon

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Maldon has been perfectly preserved since its mining days and is Australia's First Notable Town - classified by the National Trust in 1966.

The settlement was initially known as Tarrangower. A townsite was surveyed in 1854 but the location was rejected and ignored by locals. Consequently the de facto township established by the diggers was surveyed in 1856. It was named Maldon after Maldon in Essex, England.



The Beehive Chimney was completed in 1863 and, today, is the only one still standing in Victoria. It provided a draught for the steam boilers at the mine. The Beehive reef was discovered by Cornish miners who named it after a swarm of bees which were, at the time settled on a nearby post.



It was like walking onto a film set - Emma also showed images of the town from back in the 1800’s.

Information on a few of the buildings we saw.



McArthur's Bakery - located on the corner of Main Street and Dolphin Street there was a building here as early as 1857 which operated as a bakery. The bakery continued until the 1930s although this building was constructed in 1895. There is another bakery, possibly an older building, just a few shops up the road.



Shakespeare House - built in 1907. The original building operated as a hotel between 1864 and 1910. Note: it is marked as an "Art Gallery" above the awning and the posts have intricate ironwork which has remained intact.



Maldon Hotel and Stables - the stables, once a wooden building, stood beside the hotel. There was a hotel in this location from as early as 1861. It was weatherboard. The present building was constructed in 1909 and named Maldon Hotel. It is characterised by delicate veranda lacework and slender cast-iron posts.



Warnock's Beehive Store - located at 51-57 High Street, and now named Robert Cox Motors, this was a four-shop complex which was built in 1858. "The building was remarkable because of the early plate glass, verandahs and cedar framing. It still retains its basic form shop fronts, stall boards and ceiling. The Tarrangower Times described the store of "leviathan proportions", both for size (4 large departments) and importance. Warnock's erected a building at the rear to accommodate 25 employees for their flour mill. They also had a branch at Eaglehawk (Maldon) and Melbourne. Dabb & Co were their greatest rivals.".



Bank of New South Wales - this charming little bullding was constructed in 1858. By 1864 it had been altered and a residence had been built. In 1866 a smelting house was constructed which continued to be used until it was demolished in 1936.



Kangaroo Hotel - located on the corner of High Street and Fountain Street is the single storey Kangaroo Hotel which dates from 1856. It started as a tent on the goldfields and, over time, has been the town morgue, a butcher's shop, a doctor's surgery, a theatre and it was once a staging post for Cobb & Co coaches. It is reputedly the only hotel in Australia named 'Kangaroo".




Beehive ChimneyThe chimney was completed in 1863 and, today, is the only one still standing in Victoria. It provided a draught for the steam boilers at the mine. The Beehive reef was discovered by Cornish miners who named it after a swarm of bees which were, at that moment, settled on a nearby post. The Victoria Heritage Database notes of the chimney and the mine ruins that the " Beehive Reef was opened in 1854 and was mined until 1918. Large-scale mining commenced in 1860, when machinery described as the 'most extensive in the colony' was installed. The 60 horse-power engine powering the machinery was called at the time the 'most powerful employed in mining speculations in Victoria'. The site's towering brick chimney stack, constructed in 1861, has been recognised historically (since 1923) as a monument to Maldon's nineteenthcentury gold mining



https://www.heygo.com/tours/victorias-gold-rush-towns-historic-rural-australia

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