UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE, OLD ARTS

The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria. The oldest university in Australia is that of Sydney. The main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb just north of the Melbourne CBD. The university also has several other campuses located across Victoria. It is a member of Australia's "Group of Eight" lobby group, the Universitas 21 and Association of Pacific Rim Universities networks. It is colloquially known as a "sandstone university" and has one of the largest financial endowments of any Australian university, standing at $1.173 billion as of 2010. I'm rather fond of this University as it is my alma mater...


Melbourne University was established by Hugh Childers by an 1853 act of the Victorian Parliament. Classes commenced in 1855 with three professors and sixteen students; of this body of students, only four graduated. The original buildings were officially opened by the Lieutenant Governor of the Colony of Victoria, Sir Charles Hotham, on 3 October 1855. The first chancellor, Redmond Barry (later Sir Redmond), held the position until his death in 1880. In the university's early days, an architectural master-plan was developed, establishing the intended prevailing building style as gothic revival. Early influential architects included Melbourne's own Joseph Reed, who was responsible for the design of many of the early campus buildings. Although the master-plan was followed until the 1930s, the 1950s saw the modernist style established as a new "house style", resulting in the mix of university buildings seen today. The inauguration of the university was made possible by the wealth resulting from Victoria's gold rush.


This post is part of the 'Our World Tuesday' meme.

Clock Tower of Old Arts Building (Built 1854)

The cloisters of the Old Quadrangle

The Old Quadrangle is the oldest building on campus. It was designed by Francis White, with apartments on the east and west wings for the professors. Camellia bushes have been a feature of the courtyard since the 1860s. The southern cloisters were finally realised in 1970.