Hannan's Club

Statement of Significance

: Assessment of Significance: Hannans Club, constructed in the Federation Arts and Craft style, has considerable aesthetic appeal, which is enhanced by the size of the building, the stone construction, the multigabled roof and its open street corner setting. (Criterion 1.1)

Hannans Club demonstrates significant creative and design excellence in the 1896 partition wall in the members’ room and the 1899 billiard room design and detail. (Criterion 1.2)

Hannans Club is significant in the Maritana Street streetscapes as it complements the broad street with the expansive lawned area framing the vistas. On the Brookman Street frontage, the formal entry and plantings contribute to the streetscape of the otherwise commercial area. The place makes a significant contribution to the townscape and character of the city of Kalgoorlie. (Criterion 1.3)

The construction of Hannans Club was a result of the successful exploitation of the Eastern Goldfields and the continuing development of Kalgoorlie as the major administrative and commercial centre of the goldfields. (Criterion 2.1)

Hannans Club was the first of three clubs established in Kalgoorlie in the 1890s. (Criterion 2.2)

Hannans Club was one of the earliest substantial constructions in stone or brick in Kalgoorlie, at a time when most other buildings were still being constructed in timber and iron. (Criterion 2.2)

Hannans Club was constructed as gentlemen's club. The changes that have taken place in society, and in the needs of members, have been reflected in the structural changes made to the place. (Criterion 2.2)

Hannans Club was built at a time when women took a subordinate role in public life, and when middle class women were not employed outside the home. The changes that have taken place in society have been reflected in the membership of Hannans Club with the acceptance of the first female member in 1982. (Criterion 2.2)

Hannans Club is associated with William Brookman and Charles de Rose who were involved in the development of the gold mining industry on the Golden Mile, and in development in the town of Kalgoorlie, and who offered to build the place. The members of Hannans Club were some of the most influential men in goldfields industrial and political life. (Criterion 2.3)

The place is a fine example of the work of Kalgoorlie architects H L Brookman and Harvey Draper. (Criterion 2.3)

Hannans Club is valued by the local community for its ongoing social associations, its connection with Kalgoorlie's gold boom past, and for its considerable aesthetic appeal. The place is highly valued by its members. (Criterion 4.1)

Hannans Club contributes to the local and wider community's sense of place as a substantial reminder of the 1880s and 1890s gold rushes in Western Australia, as a distinctive element of the streetscape, and as a reminder of past attitudes and way of life. (Criterion 4.2)

Hannans Club is a rare extant example of a fine gentlemen's club which has continued to operate since its establishment during the gold rushes in Kalgoorlie in 1896. (Criterion 6.1)

Hannans Club is a fine representative example of the Federation Arts and Craft style of architecture. (Criterion 6.1)

Hannans Club is a representation of the growing goldfields population and the need to establish community groups. It represents the principal characteristics of the distinctive function of a gentlemen's club, and informs of the changes that have taken place over time to accommodate the changing needs of that function. (Criterion 6.2)

Statement of Significance: Hannans Club, a single-storey stone (1896) and brick (1899, 1904-05, 1971) building with an iron roof, and adjacent double storey squash courts (1939, 1979), in the Federation Arts and Craft style and located on the west corner of the intersection of Maritana and Brookman Streets, Kalgoorlie, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons:

- the place was the first gentlemen's club established in Kalgoorlie and its members were some of the most influential men in goldfields industrial and political life. The place is illustrative of the cultural history of a gentlemens’ club and the response to social changes over the years;

- the place is significant as a fine example of Federation Arts and Crafts style architecture. Its aesthetic appeal is enhanced by the size of the building, the stone construction, the multi-gabled roof and its open street corner setting;

- the place was one of the earliest substantial constructions in stone or brick in Kalgoorlie, at a time when most other buildings were still being constructed in timber and iron, and is an example of the use of local stone;

- the construction of the place is representative of the successful exploitation of the Coolgardie Goldfields and the continuing development of Kalgoorlie as the major administrative and commercial centre of the Eastern goldfields;

- the place contributes to the local and wider community's sense of place as a substantial reminder of the 1880s and 1890s goldrushes, a period of growth and development, in Western Australia; and,

- the place is a fine example of the work of Kalgoorlie architects H L Brookman and Harvey Draper.

Physical Description

Hannans Club is located on the west corner of the intersection of Maritana and Brookman Streets, one street north of Hannan Street, in Kalgoorlie. The building presents a long elevation to Maritana Street, framed by an expanse of bowling green. The building addresses the corner with a truncated gable, and the main entry is on Brookman Street. A white gothic picket fence delineates the two street boundaries except at the formal entry, which is marked by a concave curved decorative wrought iron fence either side of a central gate flanked by square timber posts. The gateway is directly aligned with the pathway that leads to the main entry of Hannans Club. The Brookman Street frontage is a level grassed area with palms planted symmetrically each side of the vehicular entry gate, and more informally along the left side of the property. The rear of the property is levelled gravel providing for informal parking and services.

Hannans Club displays characteristics of the Federation Arts and Craft style (Apperly et al, 1989: 140-143). The 'in-the-round' original building was typically sited in a picturesque setting with a formal entry ('in-the-round' is a term used in Apperly et al (1989: 143) to describe buildings which are not merely facades, but whose style is applied to the whole external structure). The conspicuous roof has prominent gables, and roughcast infills. The place is typified by the art nouveau interior detailing. Regional variations of the style include corrugated iron roof and the use of local Bulla Bulling weathered granite for the construction.

The 1896 section of the building forms all of the Maritana Street frontage and part of the Brookman Street frontage. This part of the structure is distinguished by the corrugated iron hipped roof with a series of four gable features including the truncated corner facing the street corner. Each gable has a roughcast infill with detailed timber barge boards and finials above the recessed stone wall of the building structure. The right gable roof on the Maritana Street frontage features a tall corbelled brick chimney (painted) central within the roof ridge. The right gable has a circular galvanised steel vent.

The verandah along the two street frontages has a concrete floor and 100mm square timber posts on exposed concrete pads supporting the bullnose verandah roof. The truncated corner has a parapet sign stating 'Hannans Club Ltd'. The Maritana Street verandah is wider than the Brookman Street verandah.

The original 1896 stone walls have been painted. Along the Maritana Street frontage, the gables align with the protruding bays below. Central within each of the two bays is the fireplace flanked each side by a single double hung sash window. In the recessed sections of the walls, there are two sets of French doors with fanlights. The truncated corner has a set of two double hung windows, and the front window of the Long Room, facing Brookman Street, features a bay window with a set of three windows. The other 1896 windows on that frontage, left of the front door are single double hung sashes, while later windows across the face are two sets of two double hung sashes.

The left front of the Brookman Street facade is painted brick, laid in English bond, with some evidence of tuck-pointing. Around the corner new semi-glazed panelled foldadoors have been installed, and a brick extension has been added to the back bar facility. The brickwork in the extension has been laid in English bond to a height of 2.00 metres with a hardiflex infill above to align with the bullnose roof.

The remainder of the external fabric of the building remains unpainted. The only original stone fabric revealed on the exterior is the rear wall of the library. There is evidence of a former opening in the wall that has been infilled with bricks, quoined into the stone wall. A corbelled chimney above suggests that a fireplace has since been installed. The 1904-05 extension is constructed in Flemish bond brickwork. There is evidence of fabric having been removed along the rear wall.

The Billiard Room has a hipped roof with vented gablets on the truncated corners. The chimneys are corbelled in a similar manner to the painted 1896 chimneys on the original section of the building. The external walls of the Billiard Room are entirely face brick laid in a Flemish bond with a double corbelled course at window head height around part of the perimeter, and a section of parapet wall adjacent to the open corridor parallel with the kitchen. The windows have rendered reveals and sills.

At the rear of the site, the squash courts are double-storey height. The Maritana Street facade and the wall facing the rear of the club is painted brick, and the remainder of the building is face brick. The building has a corrugated iron clad gable roof. The gable infills are hardiflex sheeting and the Maritana Street gable has retained the original 1939 vented infill. The 'front' facade shows evidence of the infill of windows and walls. The exterior brickwork of the 1939 building has external engaged piers along the side walls. Similarly the 1979 addition, constructed in long format bricks, has external engaged piers.

At the formal entry into Hannans Club, on Brookman Street, a set of panelled doors with sidelights and fanlight, open into the entry lobby. The lobby has a pressed metal dado wall and a ripple iron ceiling. On the left, a fixed glazed infill panel has replaced the original door opening into the office.

The original timber and glass double front doors lead into the original 1896 hallway. The walls have the original art nouveau design pressed metal dado with studded timber trim. The original ceiling has been removed and replaced with acoustic plaster panels.

On the right is the Long Room. It has the same dado detail as the hallway. The ceiling is panelled in a geometric square and rectangular design with a series of square roses along the centre of the room, and a decorative cornice. The cornice detail corresponds to the centre wall indicating that the ceiling has been redone since the Long Room was extended. There are recent suspended light fittings and c.1950s ceiling mounted fluorescent tubes in place. The 0.100 metre floorboards are probable replacements. The original fireplace and black marble mantelpiece (possibly original) are in place, although the grate is face brick with a concrete hearth. The wall between the Long Room and the library is richly detailed.

A central door opening (closed off) with timber detailed pediment is flanked by timber panelling above the pressed metal dado. The entire wall is detailed within a flat arch with timber pilasters either side. The top of the arch is infilled with art nouveau design stained glass panels. The library was inaccessible during the inspection for this report, but from a view through the semi glazed panel door, appeared to have the same ceiling, wall and floor details as the Long Room, and the original fireplace was operational.

The door on the left of the hallway has a four paned fanlight above. The door is the original semi-glazed door with the top panels infilled with frosted glass with the Hannan's Club insignia, comprising the two initial letters, etched on each pane. The door opens into the lounge bar area. There is minimal evidence of any original fabric in the lounge bar area as a result of refurbishment in recent years. The ceiling shows the changes. Central within the space are two timber boxed structural supports. Double hung sash windows are in place across the front of the room, and recent doors with fixed fanlights have been installed in the end wall. On the left is the entry into the office. An original fireplace in the lounge bar is the only evidence of the 1896 secretary's room. On the right is an entry door into the men's toilets.

Further down the hallway, is a moulded arch with a decorative fretwork timber and glass infill. Beyond the arch, is a door on the left that leads into the lounge bar. Next to that door is another door into the ladies toilet. Both doors are four panelled doors with no fanlights above.

On the right is another door into the Long Room that originally opened into the original billiard room (now the Library) before the panel wall was relocated.

Another moulded arch in the hallway, with a flat arch and no infill, marks the end of the original 1896 fabric. Immediately on the right is a door into the library. On the left is a corridor, which leads to a door at the end. On the right of the corridor is one of the 1904-05 card rooms. The card room is intact. It has pressed metal dado walls with a plain jarrah trim. The pressed metal design is an intricate geometric design centred around a star. The ceiling is pressed metal, and the original cornices with corner details are intact. A c.1930s ceiling fan is suspended from the centre ceiling, and modern light fittings are attached to suspended light fittings. A circular air vent is in place on the wall. The original fireplace and circular marble mantelpiece is intact insitu (unable to photograph due to the amount of material stored in the room).

The next room on the right, originally another card room, has been refitted as a kitchen. It has glazed ceramic tiled walls, cement floor and a stainless steel fitout. A door accesses the rear of the building and freestanding cool rooms in that vicinity.

On the left of the corridor is evidence of an 1896 window that has been closed over. A door on the left accesses the men's toilets.

The 1899 Billiard Room is accessed from behind the bar in the lounge bar area, or from an external corridor alongside the kitchen, which has a door access into the area behind the bar. The entry is across a truncated corner of the L- shaped room with truncated corners. Immediately left of the entry, central within the wall, is a black marble mantelpiece around the fireplace. The floor steps down to the main level, the change signalled by an expansive flat moulded arch. The ceiling is plain plaster with a decorative cornice detail. The timber floors are covered with carpet.

Along the right wall, the raised floor level area has a row of purpose built timber benches against the hard plaster wall with timber dado rail detail. Further along the right wall, is the truncated corner of the room, also with a raised floor level and signalled by a circular moulded arch. The corner has a central black marble fireplace flanked by a double hung sash window in each truncation. On the front wall of the truncated corner, the arch is flanked by a vertical format double hung sash window with ten pane sash in the top section. The glass has been painted. Left of the corner is another length of raised flooring with seating along its length. The end wall has two of the same vertical format windows. The truncated wall on the elbow of the L has an arched window detail, some of which has been boarded over.

The main floor of the room has two original full size billiard tables in situ, at right angles to each other, one situated in each length of the L-shaped layout. Central above each table is a decorative recessed ceiling vent, from which billiard lighting is suspended. One table has the original square pyramidal lighting over the tables, and the other table has an unusual four light steel lighting fixture.

At the rear of the Billiard Room, accessed from the left of the building, is the 1899 secretary's room, above the cellar. The original ceiling, walls and four panelled door are still in place although the room is in poor condition. The cellar, accessed from the opposite side behind the room, shows evidence of stone construction. From inside the cellar, it is possible to see the termite damage to the joists and floorboards of the secretary's room above.

At the rear of Hannans Club is the double storey squash courts. The central entry at ground level is part of the 1979 fabric. It has a concrete floor, and enters into the 1979 squash court on the left, and up two steps to the 1939 court on the right. The upstairs entry is accessed by a 1979 steel staircase. The upstairs viewing area has a timber floor and what are probably the 1939 purpose built viewing seats. The courts both have timber floors, hard plaster walls to the court area, and painted face brick work above the court lines. The entire roof is a 1979 timber truss with exposed anticon sheeting.

At the rear of the main building, behind the library, and adjacent to the 1939 squash court, is the 1939 shower cubicle and change rooms. The building has hard plaster walls, concrete floor curved at the wall edges, gyprock ceilings and a possible 1979 toilet and shower fitout.

The original 1896 building remains largely intact. Evidence of the early extensions (1899) can be seen in the two rooms at the rear, and the Billiard Room. Further evidence of that period has been obliterated by more recent developments that have had minimal impact on the authenticity of the original fabric. The remaining fabric of the original 1896 building, the 1904-1905 extensions and the squash courts and change room (1939, 1979) have retained a high degree of authenticity.

History

Hannans Club is a single-storey stone, brick and iron building purpose built for use as a gentlemen's club in 1896 (the name does not have an apostrophe. See name on parapet of 1986 building, and King, 1996). Constructed to a design by Kalgoorlie architects H. L. Brookman and Harvey Draper, the place displays characteristics of Federation Arts and Craft style (Apperly, 1989: 140-143). The original construction was of stone, while major extensions carried out in 1899 were in brick. Numerous other changes have been made to the place over the years. Later additions included a bowling green (1905) and two squash courts (1939 & 1979).

In June 1893, Paddy Hannan and his partners discovered alluvial gold thirty miles (48 kms) north-east of Coolgardie. A camp, known as Hannan's Find, quickly developed at the site, with bough huts and hessian and canvas structures erected along the edge of the track from Coolgardie. Many of these structures housed businesses to serve the prospectors who flocked to the area. Later that year, William Brookman and Sid Pearce located gold reefs three miles south of Hannan's Find, at what was to become Boulder. On 4 September 1894, Hannan's Find was declared the townsite of Kalgoorlie (Webb, 1993: 91; King, 1995: 15; Laurie, 1995: 2-4).

Kalgoorlie grew rapidly, and most of the social life of the predominantly male population centred around the hotels, which in the early years were canvas and iron structures with primitive facilities. On 18 August 1895, Warden Maynard Jephson invited thirty-three 'leading men of the town' to a meeting 'for the purpose of forming a club', similar to those gentlemen's clubs already established in Perth. Jephson, an Oxford graduate, had been instrumental in the formation of the Coolgardie Club (1894-1916) when he was Mining Registrar at Coolgardie for a short time (King, 1996: 2-6).

At the meeting, held on 19 August, it was decided that 'a club shall be formed to be called The Hannans Club', controlled by a limited liability company, The Hannans Club Pty. Ltd (King, 1996: 4). Charles de Rose and William Brookman offered to build suitable premises and lease them to the Club at an annual rental of ten percent of the capital cost. Brookman had acquired Lots 99 and 100, on the corner of Brookman and Maritana streets, from the Union Bank, which had purchased the lots at the first Kalgoorlie land sale, but had then built bank premises in Hannan Street. Title to both lots was transferred to de Rose in 1896, and later to the joint ownership of both men (C/T Vol. 68, Fol. 195 & 196, 26 July 1895, 7 August 1895, 27 August 1896 & 3 January 1898).

Architects H. L. Brookman and Harvey G. Draper were commissioned to draw up plans for Hannans Club. Draper is recorded as practising at Kalgoorlie between 1897 and 1906, but Brookman is not listed in the Post Office Directory for Kalgoorlie. He is listed at the Weld Chambers, Perth in 1895, and at Ord Street, West Perth in 1898. His association with Draper may have been confined to Hannans Club (Morison, 1895-1910). Harvey Draper also designed the Classroom Block (1906) of Christian Brothers College, Kalgoorlie.

The contractor engaged on Hannans Club, J. Pringle, began construction early in October 1896. The building was priced at £3,500, and was sited on Lot 100 (King, 1996: 9-10). Hannans Club was officially opened on 28 May 1896 with 27 members.

"The opening of the Hannan's Club in Brookman Street, Kalgoorlie was celebrated on Thursday afternoon 28 May 1896. A large number of members assembled to take part in the proceedings… The President [Mr H. M. Jephson] occupied the chair...

Both the visitors and the members were delighted with the club premises, which are the finest in the Colony, with the exception of the Weld Club. The building, which forms quite an architectural feature, is situated on a corner of Maritana & Brookman Streets and is built of stone and covered with an iron roof with spacious verandahs on three sides. The bays are very effectively treated mounted with gables and filled in with rough casting.

The main entrance is from the front and opens into a 7ft hall, to the right is placed the Members Room 30ft x 20ft, enhanced by a very ornamental tile grate and marble mantelpiece. Adjoining is the billiard room 42ft x 20ft, providing for two tables, well lighted by two skylights and French casement doors. If required these rooms can be thrown into one by removing the parallel portions dividing them.

On the other wing is conveniently arranged a stranger's room, secretary's room, card rooms, bar and bathroom. Below the bar there is a large cellar 20ft x 12ft. The building was erected from designs by Messrs Brookman and Draper, architects of Exchange Buildings, Kalgoorlie. The work was carried out by Mr. J. Pringle, contractor.

Now that the adjoining block of land has been secured it is intended at once to erect stone quarters for the servants, lay down a tennis court and enclose the ground on three sides with an iron fence and the front with ornamental pickets" (Kalgoorlie Miner, 30 May 1898: 2).

A fence of six to eight feet (size varies) was constructed, effectively shutting out prying eyes for the next ninety years. The servants quarters, however, were built in timber (not extant) (King, 1996: 15). When Hannans Club opened, staff comprised a secretary, chief steward, two waiters and a billiard marker. The first secretary was sixty-two year old Captain Arthur Mecham, son of landed Irish gentry. He had served in the British army at Crimea and was later aide-de-camp to Sir William Robinson when he was Governor of South Australia and Western Australia (King, 1996: 19-20).

By November 1897, Hannans Club had 288 ordinary, and 279 honorary, members, made up of mine managers, company directors, bank managers, solicitors, doctors, accountants, sharebrokers and other professionals. Most members of the Kalgoorlie Stock Exchange were members of Hannans Club, and many of Kalgoorlie's streets are named for early members, among them: W. Brookman, H. G. Parsons, R. Hamilton, J. Wilson, R. Varden, A. King, S. E. Hocking, H. M. Butler, G. H. Nethercott, Z. E. Lane and W. R. P. Marmion (King, 1996: 2).

Members of Hannans Club usually stayed at the Weld Club when in Perth, apparently believing that both clubs catered for 'men of some standing in the community', a criterion for membership of Hannans Club for many years (King, 1996: 21). Representatives of certain occupations were not admitted as members of the club. In 1937, a member of three years standing was asked to resign when he obtained a publican's licence, and it was 1950 before a person holding a publican's licence was granted membership (King, 1996: 119).

In the 1890s, the growing number of members soon put a strain on the capacity of the building. Because the property was still leased from Brookman and de Rose, the Club did not want to spend money on extensions (King, 1996: 21, 40-41, 82).

The adjoining Lot 101, which had been bought at the second Kalgoorlie land auction by A. J. Monger for £850 as a possible warehouse site, had been purchased by The Hannans Club Pty Ltd for £950 in July 1897 (C/T Vol. 85, Fol. 97, 11 June 1896 & 7 July 1897). The Club decided to commission architects Porter & Thomas to prepare plans for a separate building on the land. The plans included a new billiard room, secretary's room, storeroom and cellar. A loan for £1,500 was arranged with the Union Bank and the contract for the work was awarded to George Sara, with a price of £1,389-10-0. The new building was constructed in brick, and was designed to take an upper storey. An open passageway was left between the new building and the original building on Lot 100 (King, 1996: 40-42).

As well as the new construction, repairs and alterations to the stone building were carried out, the cost of £493 being shared by the Club and the owners. The alterations included enlarging the members room (later called the smoking room and then the Long Room) by moving the partition down a few feet into the old billiard room. The smaller area became a writing and reading room (later called the Library). All the work was completed by the end of 1899 (King, 1996: 40-42).

In 1900, two slate-topped English billiard tables were installed in the new Billiard Room, and an interesting system of 'ventilators' was designed to protect them. The ventilators consisted of long tunnels of galvanised iron that fed fresh air under the billiard tables to prevent condensation from damaging them (King, 1996: 49).

Around this time, card playing was extremely popular and more space was always being sought by the players. To provide it, the bar room was first replaced with a servery. This was followed by the removal of the servery to a back room to allow the whole bar room to be used by the card players. A final alteration resulted in a partition being erected in the Library. In 1903, a new Secretary's room was constructed on Lot 101, the verandah was extended around the building as far as the commencement of the Billiard Room, and the office was enlarged (King, 1996: 48).

In July 1904, The Hannans Club Pty Ltd purchased Hannans Club and land for £2,800 (C/T Vol. 221, Fols. 24 & 25 & Vol. 309, Fol. 46, 7 September 1904; King, 1996: 60). This led to a small flurry of work on the stone building. The verandah on the east side was widened, new ceilings were erected in the Library and the Long Room to match the earlier moved partition panel, and two new card rooms were built. This latter item no doubt resulted in the removal of the temporary partition in the Library which had been put in to accommodate the card players. The bowling green on Lot 99, the corner lot, was established and officially opened on 8 November 1905 (King, 1996: 71).

While women were not admitted as members to Hannans Club, they did attend social activities at the place. Garden parties, an annual ball, and lawn tennis afternoons on a court set up on the bowling green, were well patronised (King, 1996: 73-93).

The Club's finances were adversely affected by World War One, the depressed situation of the goldfields in the mid 1920s, and the Depression. The situation improved slightly in the late 1930s, and Hannans Club was painted inside and out (exterior of the stone building only). The kitchen, which had been established on a portion of the back verandah, was lined with plasterboard, new curtains and carpets were fitted, and septic sewerage installed. A squash court was constructed at the rear of Hannans Club, with shower cubicles and change rooms at the end of the east verandah. The court was opened in June 1939 (King, 1996: 121-134).

The squash courts were well used by RAF members during World War Two, but rarely used afterwards. A squash club was established in the town and the court rented out to them. Membership fees were increased to twelve guineas for town members and six guineas for country members. Finances were still tight, however, and two stewards were retrenched in 1952. In 1953, Hannans Club hosted the 5th Empire Mining and Metallurgical Congress buffet dinner and dance, and in 1962 hosted the visiting English cricket team. In 1969, Hannans Club had a record 474 honorary members, mostly connected to mining and exploration companies working in the area. The following year there were 50 new members as a result of the nickel boom, but the main revenue supporting the Club was its bar sales (King, 1996: 140-190).

In 1970, with a confidence engendered by the nickel boom, the Club commissioned architects Oldham, Boas, Ednie-Brown to draw up plans for the redevelopment of Hannans Club. The plans included residential units, a swimming pool and garden court, new centrally located kitchen, and a general upgrade of bar and function facilities. The residential units were to be situated on Lot 102, which the Club also owned and on which was situated a house occupied by the Manager of Hannans Club. Bank finance of $25,000 was arranged for the first stage of the work, which consisted of renovations to the bar, and new furnishings and air-conditioning. The work on the bar connected the two buildings (1896 and 1899) for the first time. The cost of the work was over budget by $6,000 and no further redevelopment was carried out. The Club was having trouble at this time financing minor work that was required by the Licensing Court, such as replacing the floor coverings in the kitchen. In 1974, the Club sold Lot 102 to the Mines Department for $16,000 (King, 1996: 204-208).

In order to trade out of trouble, the Club encouraged companies to hold functions at Hannans Club, and emphasis shifted from the place operating as a mining club to a commercial club, with more relaxed membership rules. The Hannans Club and the Kalgoorlie Squash Club amalgamated and the male squash club members became members of Hannans Club. A new squash court was erected on the southern side of the existing court in 1979, at a cost of $28, 983. By the end of that year, however, with gold trading on the open market, the price of gold rose and the goldfields were set for another boom (King, 1996: 210-222).

In 1978, Hannans Club was placed on the Register of the National Estate. An architectural assessment of the place by the Western Australian Heritage Committee was carried out in 1983, with the view to getting a grant for maintenance and repair work. In the final event, a grant was not applied for, but some of the maintenance and repair work recommended in the report was addressed. Major renovations were also carried out to the bar (King, 1996: 237-240; Molyneux and Associates, 1993). In 1988, the place was re-roofed at a cost of $34,000 (King, 1996: 247, 265).

Since 1980, four of the five Club secretaries have been female, and on 16 December 1982, the first female member was admitted to Hannans Club (King, 1996: vii, 236). There had never been anything in the original constitution barring female members, but the general consensus had always been that men did not want their wives at the Club except for the social events. With the changing social situation came a changed approach.

Some time between 1983 and 1987, the high fence protecting Hannans Club from the gaze of passers by was reduced in height by half. Many people discovered the existence of Hannans Club for the first time. Those who knew of it referred to it as the Mafia Club, not because they thought it was run by the Mafia, but because its members were perceived as the powerful decision makers of the town (King, 1996: 247, 265).

In July 1995, membership fees were raised from $185 to $215 for town members and $100 to $120 for country members. There were then 210 town, and 110 country, members. In the 1990s, Hannans Club is in a sound financial situation. The place is the venue for seminars, meetings, private parties, conferences and other functions, including weddings. These functions are usually held in the Long Room. Barbecues are held on the lawn, previously the bowling green. In 1994, plans were put forward to enlarge and upgrade the kitchen facilities to assist in catering for the functions, but in 1999 this has still to be done (King, 1996: 257-274; Kalgoorlie Town Planning Committee meeting, 13 June 1994; physical evidence).

Integrity/Authenticity

Integrity: High
Authenticity: High

Condition

Fair - Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Last Update

Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.