The year is 1963 somewhere in Victoria, Australia

Now with a 'roof'

In Melbourne we are in a lock-down again. Certainly not an ideal situation but since you can only leave home two hours a day, I have more time to work on Wombat Creek. The last couple of days the focus has been on the roof of the hotel.



Nowadays the original hotel has a flat roof with a rooftop bar. It could be interesting to copy, but I have decided to go further back in time. An old aerial photo (probably from 1927/28) shows the hotel with a pitched roof and chimneys. For the time being the proprietor enjoys the view of the intersection.

The roof is finished

Like Jeff/SRman I try to get the most out of our current lock-down in Melbourne . Well, not as much as him since I am not retired!

As I wrote in a previous post I have decided to do a pitched roof on the hotel. It is now finished except for a wash of diluted black paint to take the shine off.



The proprietor has taken advantage of one of three access points on the roof. He seems to be in a very precarious situation with quite a free fall in front of him. Don't worry – I will install a secure walkway along the roof.

Too many details?
 
 Can you do too many details? I don't think so. As long as you have the time and have fun, you can add as many details to your layout as you want.


 
 Because of the rather large windows parts of the interior of the hotel is quite visible. So I have started to model the ground floor bar. The photo shows the counter with its beer pumps, bartender and a thirsty couple. A waiter is serving coffee for a couple of seated ladies. Everything and everybody will be transferred to the hotel itself. I am just waiting for around 200 guests to arrive from overseas. With the current COVID-19 restrictions and closed borders it will take a while. Meantime I will install hotel's doors and signs.

I always think some sort if interior is a great idea, even if you are the only one who ends up knowing it is there!  And your bar looks great.  I'll have a Martini please, shaken not stirred, obviously.
Michael

[user=1512]Headmaster[/user] wrote:

I always think some sort if interior is a great idea, even if you are the only one who ends up knowing it is there!  And your bar looks great.  I'll have a Martini please, shaken not stirred, obviously.
Michael

Hi Michael,

You shall be welcome anytime! And of course, shaken not stirred.

Duncan & Fraser Hotel is open for business

After a few days of frantic work the ground floor of the Duncan & Fraser hotel is open for business. The men from 'Ray Knott's Joinery' have fitted all the doors and a staircase between the ground floor and the first floor.






The sign writer finally got all the signs right. Only two brass signs near a doorway went missing.






Chloé has already got an admirer, but I am not sure his girlfriend shares his excitement.






The original hotel
The Princes Bridge Hotel opened on 1 July 1861 by John P. Toohey and his brother who later went on to found the Tooheys Beer brand. The Hotel was renamed to Young and Jackson after the Irish diggers who took it over in 1875, cousins Henry Figsby Young and Thomas Joshua Jackson.
The hotel is an amalgamation of five separate buildings of two and three storeys, with the original 1853 bluestone building designed as a three-storey residence, with a butcher's shop on the ground floor. It was later extended in both directions, with all buildings rendered and painted to match each other by the 1920s. The red glaze tile dado and ornamental frieze was added to combat the grime at ground level. Since the 1920s the exterior hotel has been dominated by large advertising signs, even to this day.
The hotel is well known for the nude painting Chloé, painted by French artist Jules Joseph Lefebvre in 1875. After being hung in the National Gallery of Victoria for three weeks in 1883, it was withdrawn from exhibition because of the uproar created especially by the Presbyterian Assembly. It was bought for the Young and Jackson Hotel in 1908 for 800 pounds.
(Extract from Wikipedia.org)
 The ‘Wombat Creek’ version
The hotel has been renamed ‘Duncan and Fraser’ after the well-known coach-builders from Adelaide. Over the years their workshop constructed 120 trams for the Adelaide tramways, 39 tram for provincial Victoria and approx. 120 trams for Melbourne. Instead of ‘Princes Bridge Hotel’ the hotel in Wombat Creek sports the name ‘Golden Mile Hotel’ taken from the nearby street name.
The large advertising signs on the building will be inspired from signs seen on the hotel in the 1960s. They will a selection based on what suits Wombat Creek and me. As a dedicated non-smoker I will leave out the big advertisement for cigarettes!
The interior of the hotel will only be partly modelled and will not reflect the original hotel. One reason for this is the lack of room. One of the facades has been ‘bent’ around the corner facing Victoria Street instead of Main Street. Chloé, however, will appear inside the hotel!

Lovely model!

I enjoy reading up the real history as well. And I've just realised that I walked right past the Hotel, but all I had eyes for was Flinders Street Station steps!


IIRC there was a model shop in Swanston St from where I brought a Lima B Class V/Line home.

[user=2220]Alan W[/user] wrote:

Lovely model!

I enjoy reading up the real history as well. And I've just realised that I walked right past the Hotel, but all I had eyes for was Flinders Street Station steps!


IIRC there was a model shop in Swanston St from where I brought a Lima B Class V/Line home.

You had a chance of a brief encounter ( and a beer!) With Cloe and you missed it  



Loving the unfolding story Claus  :thumbs


Cheers

Matt

Alternative income for Duncan & Fraser

So far visitors from overseas haven't arrived to Wombat Creek and the hotel is not getting much of an income. The proprietor has to come up with an alternative and has his thoughts set on renting out spaces for advertising. Quite a few companies have responded to this option. It is just a matter of time before the neon lights go up.



In real life the Young & Jackson was almost covered in advertising. It all started in the 1920's and continues to present times. Nowadays, though, the advertising is confirmed to the top of the building. I have studied quite a few photos from the 1950's and 1960's. Over the years the advertising has changed. Some signs stayed on for quite a while (e.g. the one advertising for Tasmania. Interestingly the word 'Tasmania' at some time changed to the informal 'Tassie') while others changed over time. My signs may not have been on the building at the same time, but they are a representative selection. A few signs have the wording changed to suit Wombat Creek and surroundings.

Inspired by Colin W and Jeff Lynn/SRman I have purchased a small video camera. I have attached it temporary to one of my trams and done a test run around Wombat Creek. The outcome is not stunning. The camera struggles with focus on close-up objects, but how much can you expect with a price tag of $25?  

Have a look at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/ellef/51277153082/in/album-72157681672199253/

The route around Wombat Creek is:
Tram Barn - Main Street / Bank - St. Ursinus' Church - Golden Mile / Duncan & Fraser - St. Ursinus' Church - Main Street / Bank - War Memorial - Victoria Street - East Street / War Memorial - Main Street / Mug Punter Hotel - Main Street / Bank - Church Street - Victoria Lane - East Street / War Memorial - Main Street / Mug Punter Hotel - Tram Barn

Hi Claus, 
Well Done… I'll have to try that myself.   I have ridden a few loco cabs in my time and just taking an eye view along the front of my layout, coming up to the points in either direction was scary to say the least! Probably more appropriate for an interurban tram ala the Glenelg line in Adelaide!  In any case it would be good to see "from the cab" as I practice with the inertia braking. 

Thanks for the ride and the inspiration!
Cheers

Trevor

I remember those days well in the late 1950's here in South Australia on trams.

Your building skills are exceptional! Great work!

Additional income for Duncan & Fraser
 
 As mentioned in an earlier post the proprietor of Duncan & Fraser has looked into an additional in come for the hotel. As a result parts of the facade has been covered in signs advertising diverse items and offers. A further three signs will appear along the roof.





 The lights are from a set of 100 micro LEDs brought from the local hardware a while ago. Today the price is $9.99 with includes a battery case and three batteries. The LEDs are in parallel, so it is quite easy to cut and re-solder the 'chain'. The lights are very bright so I will run from only two batteries.

Day and night at Duncan & Fraser

The proprietor of Duncan & Fraser is a happy man. Finally he has some income from the advertising on the front of the hotel. Hopefully he does not have to pay the electricity bill!



The first photo shows a birds-eye view of the hotel with all the beams securing the three big billboards along the roof-line.  



The second photo is taken in daylight of sorts.



The third photo is taken at night time. The LEDs came with a battery box for three 1.5 V batteries, which gives a very bright light. To dim the light slightly I have replaced one battery with a metal screw (!).

[user=2172]Claus Ellef[/user] wrote:

Day and night at Duncan & Fraser

The third photo is taken at night time. The LEDs came with a battery box for three 1.5 V batteries, which gives a very bright light. To dim the light slightly I have replaced one battery with a metal screw (!).

Which reminds me of the Darwin Award given to the guy who, when a fuse blew in his Pickup (Southern USA of course) he substituted it with a rifle shell, only to be shot in googlies when it went off (thereby removing himself from the human gene pool!).

Probably an apocryphal tale, but a good one none the less. 

Happy proprietor




 
 The arrival of 200 people in Wombat Creek yesterday made the proprietor of Duncan and Fraser very happy. He sees great business potential after the arrivals have undergone some dress-up (read painting), and fortunately the year in Wombat Creek is 1963 and not 2021. The real life hotel (Young & Jackson) has had a couple of Covid-19 cases and is – like the rest of Victoria – in lock-down again.

Wow. That is a lot of people painting! Good luck. 

[user=2057]TeaselBay[/user] wrote:

Wow. That is a lot of people painting! Good luck. 

Thank you. I'll start with some seated customers for the hotel.

The bar is open – almost




 
 Being in lock-down you need to do some therapeutic activities. I have learnt that one such activity is painting figures. The bar of Duncan & Fraser will soon be full of life. The photo shows the line-up ready to be installed inside the building.
 Just to make it clear. The study waitress didn't step into something 'nasty'. She and the coffee-serving waiter are both temporary standing by the help of a small amount of blue-tack.