Union Club Hotel's verandah only remaining after 'ugly' Wagga streetscapes cleaned up for the Queen

Before Queen Elizabeth II's arrival in the city on a hot summer day in February 1954, almost every shopfront in the main streets boasted post-supported verandahs.

But not everyone liked them - they were considered eyesores and dangerous.

People living above the stores below were known to hang their washing overlooking the streets and the support posts were thought to be a safety issue.

Wagga Historical Society president Geoff Burch said it was back in 1929 when the then Wagga council decided to discontinue such types of verandahs in the city.

"You had cars by this time and they would drive into the verandah posts," Mr Burch said.

"They also thought they looked ugly."

In an article Mr Burch wrote about the loss of Wagga's verandahs, he said it was Wagga Municipal Council Alderman E.F McLean who wanted to get rid of the awnings to avoid car accidents and "bring Wagga up to date with other towns".

IN OTHER NEWS:

But according to Mr Burch, all attempts to remove them from the main streets were put on hold during World War I and II. In July 1946, an article published in The Daily Advertiser called the verandahs and balconies "a relic of 19th Century continentalism".

"The general appearance of most of the verandahs and balconies in Wagga's main streets is an eyesore," the reporter wrote.

By the time the Queen's visit was announced, Mr Burch said the council pushed for all of the verandahs to be dismantled.

Mr Burch said Wagga's mayor W.D Dunne asked all shop owners on the main streets to replace the wooden verandahs with more modern awnings in 1953 "so the city look[ed] it's very best for the occasion". "Council could request the removal of verandahs already," he said.

"But there was a huge push when they knew the Queen was coming."

So, why does the Union Club Hotel still boast their wraparound balcony?

Mr Burch said it was because pubs were exempt from the council's orders that all verandahs be removed.

A The Daily Advertiser article from February 5, 1954 - just 10 days before the Queen arrived - wrote the Local Government act could not be used on premises licensed under the Liquor Act.

By the end of 1954, Mr Burch said most publicans decided to upgrade their pub facades to fit the more modern Wagga streets.

The Union Club Hotel is today the only building on Baylis Street with the iconic verandah. The structure did not feature the dangerous wooden post supports at the time and the pub's reputation as a premium venue perhaps also contributed why the iconic verandah stayed.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: