I took a train to Brighton today to check out the Brighton Beach Bathing Boxes. Brighton is about 11km SE of downtown Melbourne. It's a pretty wealthy town -- lots of very nice (and big) houses. For many years in the late 1800s, Brighton was Melbourne's favorite seaside destination. Dendy Street Beach features 82 bathing boxes from the Victoria era -- the boxes share a uniformity of size and build and all retain their original architecture -- such as timber frames, weatherboard sidings, and corrugated iron roofs -- without amenities such as electricity or running water. The boxes can only be bought by residents -- and in 2008 they were selling in the range of A$200,000.
Bathing boxes (aka beach huts or beach cabins) - small wooden boxes above the high tide mark on the beach. They are generally used as a shelter from the sun or wind, changing into & out of bathing suits and for the safe storing of personal belongings. The Brighton Beach bathing boxes are thought to have been constructed and used largely as a response to the Victorian* morality of the age, and are known to have existed not only Australia, but also on the beaches of England, France, and Italy at around the same time.
Some of the boxes on Brighton Beach date back to 1862. In 1906, the completion of a tram line from St. Kilda to Brighton led to an increase in applications for bathing box permits and significant construction between 1908 and 1911 --- final numbers are uncertain, but at one point there were probably 100 - 200 bathing boxes on the beach.
*Note: it's rather confusing at times that Melbourne's state is Victoria. When I hear (or read) the word "Victorian" -- I think that they are talking about the Victorian era -- not modern day Victoria, Australia.
Bathing boxes (aka beach huts or beach cabins) - small wooden boxes above the high tide mark on the beach. They are generally used as a shelter from the sun or wind, changing into & out of bathing suits and for the safe storing of personal belongings. The Brighton Beach bathing boxes are thought to have been constructed and used largely as a response to the Victorian* morality of the age, and are known to have existed not only Australia, but also on the beaches of England, France, and Italy at around the same time.
Some of the boxes on Brighton Beach date back to 1862. In 1906, the completion of a tram line from St. Kilda to Brighton led to an increase in applications for bathing box permits and significant construction between 1908 and 1911 --- final numbers are uncertain, but at one point there were probably 100 - 200 bathing boxes on the beach.
*Note: it's rather confusing at times that Melbourne's state is Victoria. When I hear (or read) the word "Victorian" -- I think that they are talking about the Victorian era -- not modern day Victoria, Australia.
Weather: sunny in the morning, cloudy and chilly in the afternoon, 45 - 63F
Miles Walked: 6.5
Pic Notes (displaying in a lovely random order):
- 1 - 5, 8 - 28: Brighton
- 1: mail being delivered via scooter
- 4: lunch -- pulled pork -- it was delicious
- 8: Melbourne city skyline from Brighton Beach
- 26: St Andrew's Church (Anglican), 1842
- 27: rare, pre-Gold Rush graveyard at St. Andrew's
- Australian Gold Rush: 1851 - 1870; the population of Australia tripled in 10 years
- 5, 28: St. Andrew School House, 1857 (now a restaurant)
- 6: odd site -- old metro rail cars on top of a building (a couple blocks over from my apartment)
- 7: nice touch -- signs explaining who or what the street was named after --- I just noticed these today. My apartment is right off of Smith St.
- 29: an angel lamp post finial -- downtown Melbourne
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