Carlton Club: 313-315 Drummond Street, CARLTON

Building Profile

Location

Construction Details

Built in the Victorian period in the Neo-Gothic style

Notable features

The construction is brick with cement dressings on a basalt plinth. The main facade is symmetrical and dominated by a ground floor replica cast iron verandah and by the Gothic styling of the upper storey. Four pairs of round arched windows with polychromatic brick arches are divided by piers with a band of pressed cement decorative foliation at their base. The arches are framed by pointed arch drip moulds linked by gargoyle spouts. Beneath each window is a cement panel incorporating a decorative foliation pattern. Three cement roundels, each with a high-relief mask of a kings head, sit in the spandrels between each pair of drip moulds. The cornice is bracketed. The parapet is divided by four piers, each with a grotesque on top. The identical and cleanly modelled grotesques are hybrids of a kangaroo and gryphon, each with three toes, a tail and carrying a shield. The central section of the parapet is slightly raised with plain pilaster decoration. The flanking sections of the parapet have a repeating trefoil motif. Despite being linked internally, the ground floor facade can be read as two shop fronts divided by pilasters. The two large panes of glass to each of the fronts are divided by a recessed doorway. Iron supports around each entrance are evidence of a previous shutter system. Above the main glazing is a frieze of pointed arches with leaded glass.

History

The building at 313-315 Drummond Street, Carlton is historically significant for its associations with the Carlton Club, the first occupiers of the building. The establishment of the Carlton Club is significant as an expression of middle class affluence and business success in the Carlton area in the late 1880s.

• National Trust (B586)


• Victorian Heritage Register (H0043, H0044) - Carlton Club is protected by state law

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