Architecture – Flinders Street Station Melbourne
A Melbourne attraction, Flinders Street Station is a wonderful Edwardian baroque building. An architectural competition was held in 1902 for its construction, and a design accepted. The red brick and golden cream stucco building was constructed between 1905 and 1910. Grey granite was used for many details on the Finders street side of the station at ground level, because it was considered an important public work.
The iconic Flinders Street Station in Melbourne City next to the Yarra River
Since 1854 trains have been arriving at Flinders Street Station. The current building is the most impressive of a number that were previously built on this site. The Flinders Street Station extends for two blocks and features grand archways and an expansive ballroom. It was symbolic of its time and indicative of the importance of railways to the growth of the city of Melbourne.
Flinders Street Station Melbourne a cultural icon
It is a cultural icon to Melbourne and has always been a popular meeting place, especially under the famous domed clock or “under the clocks” which refers to the ‘row of clocks’ above the main entrance under the copper Dome.
Melbourne attractions view Flinders Street Station from Skydeck 88
DO look at the ‘row of clocks’ under the dome at the main entrance. This row of clocks indicates the departure time of the next train on each line and date back to the 1860’s. In those days the clocks were manually operated by a railway officer using a long pole. The clocks at the main entrance were changed an average of 900 times, over an 8 hour period. Today the row of clocks are still working, but have now been computerized.
The famous 'row of clocks' at Flinders Street Station Melbourne City.
Flinders Street Station has the fourth longest platform in the world.
The first electric train operated from Flinders Street to Essendon in 1919, and by 1926 Flinders Street Station was considered to be the world’s busiest passenger train station.
More than 110,000 people pass through the station, and its ten platforms on an average weekday.
At Flinders Street Station, Platform No. 1 is 708 metres long. It is the fourth longest railway platform in the world.
Flinders Street Station is on the corner of Flinders and Swanston Streets next to Melbourne’s famous Yarra River in the heart of the city. It stretches from Swanston Street to Queen Street covering two city blocks. There is a great view of Flinders Street railway station from Skydeck 88. It is a great old building.
The Flinders Street Station is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register.
About Lyn
To be honest, I’m a bit jealous of you, Lynn. 🙂 I really love to travel, I have a lot of fun just looking at the different places in the world, just appreciating its beauty because we don’t know how long those wonderful places are going to last. At the rate that we are going, with all the extreme climate changes nowadays it’s hard to tell.
I just would love to see them all, at least once in my lifetime.
Hi Mitch, Yes I’m lucky I know, to have managed to see so much. In hindsight one needs to become a backpacker at seventeen and start traveling the world as they do! Then you have a chance of seeing it all!! Its an amazing world we live in! Thnx Lyn