Jubilee Building
Encyclopedia
Western Australian Museum
The Western Australian Museum is the state museum for Western Australia.The Western Australian Museum has seven main sites: two in Perth within the Perth Cultural Centre, two in Fremantle , and one each in Albany, Geraldton, and Kalgoorlie-Boulder...
in Perth, Western Australia
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, Australia. It was opened in 1897 and was designed by George Temple-Poole
George Temple-Poole
George Thomas Temple-Poole was a British architect and public servant, primarily known for his work in Western Australia from 1886....
and his 1895 successor John Grainger
John Grainger
John Grainger was an Irish cleric and antiquarian.Grainger was educated at Belfast Academy and Trinity College, Dublin. After gaining a Doctorate of Divinity he became Rector of Broughshane, County Antrim...
in the Victorian Byzantine style.
The building was originally planned as a combined library, museum and art gallery to be sited in St Georges Terrace, Perth to commemorate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee
Golden Jubilee
A Golden Jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 50th anniversary.- In Thailand :King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world's longest-reigning monarch, celebrated his Golden Jubilee on 9 June 1996.- In the Commonwealth Realms :...
in 1887. However, by 1894 enthusiasm for the project had waned and the St Georges Terrace site had been abandoned. After several more years of government procrastination, a site was finally selected near the corner of James Street and Beaufort Street to adjoin several other buildings including the old Perth Gaol
Perth Gaol
The Perth Gaol was a gaol built in Perth, Western Australia between 1854 and 1856 to house convicts and other prisoners. It operated until March 1888 when the last prisoner was transferred to Fremantle Prison...
which was being used for museum displays and storage.
Construction started in 1897 with the museum moving into the basement prior to completion. It was completed in 1899.