Rediscovering Little Lon

Previously, I introduced Little Lon, a notorious slum and red-light district, which existed in Melbourne from around 1840 to 1948.  Despite its reputation as a “den of iniquity,” the area was also home to a vibrant community and network of buzzing laneways. Today Little Lon no longer exists; its laneways and cottages have been subsumed by modern redevelopments and its community has long moved on. Despite this, there are a number of ways we can rediscover Little Lon so that our connection with this unique part of Melbourne's history is not lost forever.

17 Casselden Place

Stumbling upon 17 Casselden Place is like being jolted back in time. One moment you are in 2010, surrounded by modern office buildings and city workers carrying iPads and take-away coffees. The next moment, you are faced with an unexpected glimpse into Melbourne's past - a tiny, redbrick cottage dating back to 1877. The cottage, known as 17 Casselden Place, is the last of a terrace of six identical homes built by John Casselden, a shoemaker and small-time developer. Whereas the other cottages have been demolished, 17 Casselden Place provides a rare and treasured glimpse into what life would have been like in the days of Little Lon. 

Stepping back in time: Casselden Place, 2010 (my own pic)

17 Casselden Place, 2010 (my own pic)

Row of cottages at Casselden Place (all but one
are now demolished),  1950 (pic: SLV) 

Covering only 53 square metres, the cottage comprises two tiny rooms and an outside toilet, revealing just how cramped life must have been, especially with the large families that were typical of the era! It is not possible to view the inside of the cottage today as it now an architect's office. However, for a virtual tour of the interior (prior to its conversion into an office), click here. 

The Urban Workshop

The Urban Workshop, 2010 (my own pic)

Located at 50 Lonsdale Street, the Urban Workshop is a 34-storey office tower built on the site of Little Lon in 2005. The  ground floor of the Urban Workshop aims to remember, reinterpret and give new life to Little Lon: the laneways lost to title consolidation in the mid-20th century have been returned to the city as pedestrian thoroughfares passing through the foyer; and the project connects Lonsdale and Little Lonsdale Streets with the reinstatement of Little Leichardt Street. While it would be ideal to have the original laneways and buildings of Little Lon still in existence, the Urban Workshop offers an innovative and stylish tribute to Melbourne's past. (It may be worthwhile noting that the construction of the tower took place 50 years after Little Lon had already vanished, and was not the instigator of its demolition!)

There have been two major-scale archaeological excavations of the Little Lon site prior to redevelopments. While most of the artefacts are held by Museum Victoria, the foyer of the Urban Workshop displays a fascinating selection of items from the 2002 dig. This is one of the most simply and beautifully executed exhibitions that I have seen anywhere in the world! 

Artefacts exhibition in foyer of the Urban Workshop, 2010 (my own pics here and below) 

The former Black Eagle Hotel is another important feature showcased beautifully by the Urban Workshop. Built back in 1850, it is one of Melbourne's oldest surviving buildings. Today it is used as a giftware shop, but since its construction it has also been a boarding house, Chinese furniture factory and a printing business. I love how the Urban Workshop seamlessly incorporates the building into its foyer. The use of glass mitigates the extent to which the modern tower may detract from the old-world beauty of the Black Eagle building. 

Former Black Eagle Hotel at the Lonsdale Street entrance of the Urban Workshop, 2010 (my own pic) 

Back of the former Black Eagle Hotel, incorporated into the foyer, 2010 (my own pic)

Finally, Madame Brussels is remembered with the inclusion of a laneway named in her honour. It seems entirely appropriate that a tribute to Little Lon should include Madame Brussels as she owned eight of the precinct's brothels and she is undoubtedly one of the most notorious inhabitants of the area! Unfortunately, the spelling is wrong: it should be Madame Brussels, not Brussells, as appears on the signposts and Urban Workshop website. I wonder why this was never checked! 

Madame "Brussells" Lane 

Books

A number of interesting books also illustrate what life would have been like in Little Lon. John Leckey's Low Degraded Broots? Industry and Entrepreneurialism in Melbourne's Little Lon, 1860-1940 (2004) and Annie Hider's Growing Up in Little Lon both provide an interesting historical account of life in Little Lon. Furthermore, Chrissie Michaels' new novel, In Lonnie's Shadow (2010), is set in Casselden and Cumberland Place in 1891. For more information about the novel and its author, click here.

So, despite Little Lon having vanished a long time ago, there are still a number of ways to get a sense of this unique and fascinating part of Melbourne's history. The next time you are around the top of Lonsdale Street, I would really recommend having a quick look at 17 Casselden Place and the foyer of the Urban Workshop. If you have already visited the precinct, I would love to hear your thoughts! If you have a suggestion for a future post, please feel free to comment or email me. 

References

Bate, Weston, Essential But Unplanned: The Story of Melbourne's Lanes (1994)

Hider, Annie, Growing up in the City (interview with Marie Hayes):

Leckey, John, Low, Degraded Broots? Industry and Entrepreneurialism in Melbourne's Little Lon, 1860-1940 (2004) 

www.museumvictoria.com.au/littlelons/grow.html

www.emelbourne.com.au

www.museumvictoria.com.au 

http://www.50lonsdalestreet.com.au/Core/Splash/50Lonsdale.aspx

http://www.dpcd.vic.gov.au/heritage/projects-and-programs/heritage_stories/Archaeology/casselden-place/about-the-dig

https://www.gbca.org.au/greenstar-projects/project-profile.asp?projectID=547

http://museumvictoria.com.au/littlelons/grow.html

http://sites.google.com/site/chrissiemichaelsorg/

Little Lon: Melbourne's Vanished Community and Laneways

Lonsdale Street, 2010 (my own photo)

Walking past these days, you would be forgiven for thinking that the city block bordered by Lonsdale, Little Lonsdale, Exhibition and Spring Streets is just like any other. Glass skyscrapers and concrete office blocks overlook a handful of nondescript shops and cafes catering to city workers. It all seems pretty ordinary. So ordinary, in fact, that you might never know that this was once Little Lon: a so-called "den of iniquity," a slum filled with brothels, opium dens and, yet, as recent evidence has shown, a vibrant community and network of laneways. 

Lonsdale Street, 2010 (my own photo)

Little Lon first emerged as a working-class, residential precinct in the 1840s and 50s. Initially, it attracted impoverished immigrants, mainly from Ireland, who were unable to afford housing in the more reputable parts of the city. By 1900, it was one of the most culturally diverse areas in Melbourne, with Chinese, Italian, Syrian and Jewish residents all living cheek-by-jowl in rows of small cottages. Little Lon was filled with cottage industries started up by its residents, such as cabinet making, clothing manufacturing and printing. Despite its sordid reputation for crime and debauchery, it seems that Little Lon was also home to a dynamic and resourceful community of diverse people. 

Cumberland Place in Little Lon, 1901 (Museum Victoria)

This is not to say that a seedier side did not exist. Little Lon was a notorious red-light district, with eight of its brothels in the nineteenth century owned by the delightfully spirited Madame Brussels! Poet C.J Dennis wrote about the slums and opium dens of Little Lon in The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke (1915) and the Truth newspaper called it "the street of evil." In 1948, the Commonwealth Government compulsorily acquired most of Little Lon, after facing pressure to clean up the area and abolish the slums. The next few decades saw the levelling and redevelopment of the site, including construction of the Commonwealth Centre ('Green Latrine' - now also demolished), Telstra's national headquarters, government office blocks and upmarket residential enclaves.

Melbourne Opium Den, 1896 (State Library of Victoria)

At the time, better housing for the poor was urgently needed. However, it is now interesting to consider how the demolition of Little Lon led to a major part of Melbourne's history and character vanishing forever. The large office blocks subsumed laneways that were once inextricably connected to the lives  and work of the inhabitants of Little Lon. The following two images show a 'before and after' aerial view of the block, firstly in 1925 and then in 2010.

Section of the Mahlstedt map of Melbourne, 1925, showing George Lane,  Leichardt Street, Little Leichardt Street, Gorman Alley, Casselden Place, Griffin Lane and Surry Place. (State Library of Victoria)

Google aerial view of the same area, 2010, showing the Telstra National Headquarters, Department of Human Services and other office blocks. 

As Melburnians, we delight in the fact that our city is made up of unique laneways - in which some of our best restaurants, bars and boutiques are hidden (click here to watch Streetfilm's video about this topic.) And yet, for those of us too young to remember, we seldom consider the vast network of lanes that have been subsumed by large, modern redevelopments of entire city blocks, including Little Lon, the Rialto Tower, Melbourne Central shopping centre, and the list goes on. Losing these lanes inevitably involves losing a sense of Melbourne's past. When the laneways vanish, our connection with (and understanding of) past communities is at risk of vanishing too. 

Birthday party in Casselden Place, Little Lon, 1914 (Museum Victoria)

In my next post, I will look at some of the interesting ways that we can try to gain an insight into the vanished community and laneways of Little Lon. I will visit the Urban Workshop at 50 Lonsdale Street, the one remaining home in Casselden Place and view the fascinating objects discovered during archaeological digs of the site. If you have an idea or any information about Little Lon, please email me! 

References: 

Bate, Weston, Essential But Unplanned: The Story of Melbourne's Lanes (1994)

Hider, Annie, Growing up in the City (interview with Marie Hayes): http://museumvictoria.com.au/littlelons/grow.html

Leckey, John, Low, Degraded Broots? Industry and Entrepreneurialism in Melbourne's Little Lon, 1860-1940 (2004) 

www.emelbourne.com.au

www.museumvictoria.com.au