Half way up the Spanish Steps at Geelong’s Eastern Beach stands a rater whimsical Art Deco fountain surrounded by statues of cranes and tortoise dragons. These are replicas of the originals which were donated by the family of a friend of mine. The originals are now kept safe in the Botanic Gardens.
Eastern Beach is a popular swimming area to he east of central Geelong on the shores of Corio Bay. Built during the 1930s in classic Art Deco style, it is reminiscent of a British seaside resort. It includes a shark proof sea bath with a circular boardwalk, as well as a children’s swimming pool, a kiosk building, a dressing room pavilion and a fanciful fountain. A number of Art Deco buildings in the area are heritage listed.
It was not always the popular beach that it is today. In the early years that area of Geelong was considered an eyesore, with steep cliffs running from the northern town boundary to the shores of Corio Bay.
Redevelopment plans were first proposed in 1914 and it was to include a one mile sea wall, land reclamation and a beach chalet. However plans were halted by the Great War and work didn’t commence until the next decade.
Work began in September 1927 when contracts were let for construction of the concrete stairway, terraces and dressing sheds. J.C. Taylor and Sons were the successful contractor. That stage of the works was opened on December 20, 1929 by the Mayor of Geelong Councillor Sol Jacobs. The shark-proof swimming enclosure and children’s pool were opened by Councillor Jacobs on March 28, 1939. The enclosure could accommodate 10,000 bathers. The precinct development cost £40,000.00, but was seen by the council of the time as being an investment in the city.
After declining in popularity from the 1960s, in 1993 the City of Greater Geelong announced plans for the restoration of the area. Today it is a beautiful piece of Geelong’s History and is much loved and visited by tourists and locals alike.
I spent a delightful, if rainy, Saturday with the Famous Flickr Five+ Group along the Geelong Waterfront where we walked from central Geelong Esplanade to the Art Deco Eastern Beach.
Geelong is a city southwest of Melbourne, Australia. Lining its bay, The Waterfront Esplanade has a Nineteenth Century American carousel, a curved art deco boardwalk and sea bath at Eastern Beach, and scattered along the waterfront are more than one hundred bollards painted as colourful sculptures chronicling city history by artist Jan Mitchell. The Geelong Botanic Gardens lie at the eastern end of the bay. The central National Wool Museum hosts changing exhibitions, concerts and entertainments.
