Looking back 116 years ago, towards the Post Office and Town Hall. In the left of the photo is the intersection of Langhorne and Lonsdale streets.
Some things have changed a lot over 116 years, but the Town Hall remains. The clock faces were added to the tower of the hall in the 1930s.
Cheryl Christopher Newton Simmins adds a note of intrigue:
The little hexagonal building to the left (picture added above) is indeed the original township public toilet (for ladies) As the Dandenong township developed the toilet proved grossly inadequate especially for lady shoppers & gentleman travelers .it also required a daily night pan empty service.
This little brick toilet was part of Dandenong early progress association improvements for the town. It was especially needed for lady shoppers who often had little children in town, and many refused to use the unsavory local hotel toilets. The little structure survived till mid 1930's possibly late 1940's where it was eventually replaced (almost in the same location) by the 'modern' sewered underground toilet.
The new toilets were fashionably green tiled, and glass blocked. with brass handrails leading down the steps. From memory, the 'Ladies' had an 'attendant' and you were required to pay 2 pence to use the facility .I can remember as a little kid, using the Ladies toilets, as I was terrified using the Men's, and like many a kid, 'hung -on till I got home'.
The adjoining men's toilets were not so well kept. Modern standards, vandalism, and ongoing maintenance forced their eventual closure. From my memory" the underground toilet was decommissioned demolished mid 1960's. (Taken from a piece I wrote for 'we grew up in Dandenong')...
Christopher Simmins
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