Australian Town and Country Journal at KellyGang 13/4/1872 (3)
A further walk of three minutes down the street brought us to a huge building, Fallon's leviathan wine cellars. Though Mr J T Fallon has three or four wine cellars those are the principal. The cellars are on a granite foundation, with upper story of brick, and are covered by a galvanized iron roof. The dimension are 170 feet long and 66 feet wide, but they are being still further enlarged. The upper floor is used as a store-room for casks, &c., and at one end is a suite of offices. Descending a flight of stops and we found ourselves in the cellars, where we were introduced to Mr P. E. Fallon, Mr W. Evans Dignam, and Mr J D Lankester, all connected with the establishment.
To give an idea of the cellars one would have to imagine a building the roofs of which were supported by huge pillars and cross pieces of red gum, with all around tiers of casks. Two sides in particular at once strike the eye. There are rows of casks, each capable of holding a man with a wife and six children, These oval casks hold about 1500 gallons of wine each; and the men Mr Fallon employs build about one a week. It is pleasing to know that a great many of the casks are built of colonial timber obtained about eighty or ninety miles away. Being in Fallon's cellar our next duty was to taste tho wines. We performed this duty, 1 think, pretty faithfully. Richness, full flavour, and good body were only a few of the encomiums passed on the Reisling, Verdeilho, Shiraz, Brown Muscatel, and others that came under review.
An undertaking of such magnitude, which stores 200,000 gallons of wine this season, and receives the product of forty vineyards, reflects the highest credit on a good townsman who cannot be too highly spoken of. Leaving the wine cellars we returned along the street and presently came to Fallon's buildings, a fine pile of business premises. The first is a large drapery establishment, then a jeweller's and watchmaker's shop, Mr Husing's, and at the corner the Globe Hotel, with about forty rooms, and well kept under the management of Mr T H Webb. In Dean-street we again find ourselves passing Day's-buildings and Commercial chambers, Hunter's ironmongery warehouse, the 'Banner' office, Madine and Roe's drapery establishment, the 'Border Post' office, the Albury municipal council chambers, lawyer's offices, and other loss pretentious places of business are here. Mr George Day's fine private residence is next passed, and Moore and Waller's auction rooms come under review.
A huge busy puffing flour mill built of granite, three storeys high, filled with wheat in every available part; bullock drays, horse teams, and carts, were before the entrances. Making our way into this building, we were introduced to Messrs Hayes Brothers, whose flour mills in Goulburn, Yass, and other towns in New South Wales, are well-known. In Albury they, for a considerable time, have had the mill at work night and day, and do an immense business principally though with Victoria. The Border Customs have done such a fatal injury to the farmers that the evil will demand a separate notice. Below Hayes's Mills there is a smaller mill at work, carried out by Mr Burrows.
Making a circuit into Townsend-street, and past Kilfoil's, a large hotel, we soon found ourselves back in Kiewa-street again, but lower down. Here there is another fine drapery establishment - Mr H Moffitt's - and the extensive general store of Downie Brothers adjoins. Opposite I regain King's Rose Inn, one of the principal hotels in the town, where I remained during my stay in Albury. This hotel is a spacious brick building well furnished throughout, and carried on in first-class style by a jolly hostess.
The following day we visited the Albury Hospital, which is situated on the borders of the town. It is a large brick building having an eastern aspect commanding a good view of the Murray Valley, &c. The grounds are neatly planted with trees, shrubs, and flowers, many being the gift of Dr Mueller of the Melbourne Botanical Gardens. Mr A Wallworth is the superintendent and dispenser of the hospital. The gaol is a common-looking building; is adjacent to the hospital.
Albury, supports three breweries - G. Leish and Co's, O’Keefe’s and Thomson's. They all do a good trade.
The Municipal Council has done much good in improving the appearance of the town, The present Mayor is W. M. H. Edmondson, Esq , and the Council Clerk - Mr S. Mudge. Aldermen M'Lellan, Day, Kirkpatrick, Jones, Solomon, James Day, Liddle, and Gulson, are the other members of the Council.
There are many nice private residences about Albury which add to the beauty of the town.
Among other institutions not before mentioned, Albury has a Pastoral and Agricultural Society (G. Day, Esq., President), a Building Society, Masonic, Oldfellows, and Foresters Lodges, a Catholic Benefit Society, a Temperance and Rechabite Society, and a racing club capitally conducted under the president ship of Mr Thorold. The Customs Office is under the charge of Mr John Swyny; Mr P Joyce is tide-waiter.
Such is Albury in 1872. I have given a sunny picture of the town, but it must not be supposed that it is perfect paradise, or without its troubles of the Little Peddlington kind. There are of course several 'parties,' Wigs and Tories, aristocrats and democrats if you like, each having a representative newspaper, and each firmly believing that the opposition print is a 'rag,' and 'no that there is truth in it.'
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