Woorndoo Hall

WOORNDOO
Name: Woorndoo Public Hall (formerly Mechanics' Institute)
Address: Woorndoo, V 3272
Institute Established: by 1916
Date of present building: 1927
Building succession number: 2: by 1873, 1927
Current Use: Community
Municipality: Moyne
History
In 1873 the newly formed branch of the Independent Order of Good Templars purchased a house and by removing the partitions were able to turn it into a hail. When two of its trustees left the district, the Lodge closed down but the hail was still available for use by the public. In the early 1900s the foundations subsided. In 1902 permission was sought from the Health Department to use the hall for Church services and a Sunday school. In September 1915 a farewell was held for Privates W Hennessy and W Jervies on the eve of their departure for the front. In 1916 the Woorndoo Mechanics' Institute was a polling venue in the Corangamite electorate. After WWI, profits from balls and dances in a local woolshed and the annual Gymkhana were used to eventually build a new hall in 1927. Its connection to the electricity grid in 1938 was celebrated with a ball. In 1966 a brick foyer and washrooms were added. The hail has been well maintained over the years including being repainted. In recent years the toilets have been upgraded, two sets of aluminium doors have replaced wooden doors and a new roof has been installed. Current uses include private functions, football club social functions, Aged Care Luncheons at Easter, Mother's Day and Christmas, two Country Music shows as well as Landcare, School and Hall Committee meetings.
References: PROV, VPRS 7882/P/1, Unit 532, File 3645; Green, Mary. (1969). Paninga (Some Time Ago) The History of Woorndoo and District; Mortlake Despatch, 15 September 1915; Warrnambool Standard, 26 October 1916; President Cannel O'Brien. (2014). Correspondence.