In this way, not only is the building preserved but also its historic role as the centre point of community life and cohesion. The local Shire of Metcalfe took over the responsibilities of ownership in , but the Trustees continued to manage the building until when the Shire accepted that responsibility also.
Custodianship by local government ended in when ownership was transferred to the CDS. They are contained in some 25 albums which are organised thematically. The exhibit is open from 1. The simple building was constructed as a Community Hall and served as the meeting room for the Chewton Borough Council from to It was once used as a courthouse and retains some structural features relating to that function. Recent developments are recorded by the Chewton Domain Society: "After , when the historic Borough of Chewton was absorbed by the Shire of Metcalfe, the building continued to be used for community purposes, a tradition which is still unbroken.
It is used regularly for community activities: book launch, jazz festival venue, pop-up shop, fashion parade, exhibitions etc. Threatened with demolition at least once in modern times, its preservation is due to local volunteer effort and government assistance over many years.
A major renovation program started in saw the hall closed until with extensive internal and external works on the structure happening in that time. Portable Police Lock-Up cs Located next to the town hall is the unusual portable police lock-up. An historic relic of the gold days this gaol is made of 5-cm thick oregon slabs which were bolted together.
The sign explains: "It consists of a frame of iron rods passing through the heavy wooden planks of the walls, floor and ceiling. If a prisoner managed to break through the wood, he would find he was still imprisoned in an iron cage. These lock-ups could be dismantled and the four wall units, the floor, ceiling and roof loaded onto a police dray to be transported and quickly re-assembled where needed.
The lockup was saved, restored and reconstructed in by members of the local community. Trewartha Terrace Located on Main Street next to the Primitive Methodist Church, Trewartha Terrace, dating from , is an unusual building noted for its zinc coated iron roof tiles which were imported from England.
They predate corrugated iron. Similar tiles were used on the roof of the Theatre Royal in Castlemaine. The sign outside notes: "Captain James Trewartha was on the Mount Alexander goldfields at least as early as In he built a hay and grain store on the present site. However in January of the next year he had decided to sell his Forest Creek property to enter into a large mining venture. By Trewartha had mortgaged this property and it may be at this time that the hay and grain store was replaced with the present terrace of two houses.
The Victorian Heritage Database notes that it was "designed by Crouch and Wilson and an unusually early use of the Gothic style by the Primitive Methodists. The most distinctive element of the design is the pair of flying buttresses projecting at angles from the facade. Despite its name it was a general cemetery. The cemetery is metres along this road.
The reservoir was built in specifically to supply water for the mines. In recent times it has become a popular for swimming, fishing and picnicking. It is a pleasant location in a gully that was once heavily mined. There is a 1. A short distance along the track is a grave surrounded by a wrought-iron fence.
This is the grave of Mrs Elizabeth Escott who emigrated from England, with her eight children, when her husband died. Her eldest daughter, Fanny, is buried beside her. Site of First Gold Discovery Located 7 km north of Chewton on the Midland Highway is a turnoff onto Specimen Gully Road and, along the road, about 2 km from the Midland Highway, on the left-hand side, are the remnants of an old stone cottage which was occupied by a shepherd working on the original sheep station which was owned by Dr Barker.
A plaque indicates that the shepherd in question discovered gold nearby, which resulted in the local goldrush. There is a plaque on the cairn which reads: "The first gold from the Mount Alexander Goldfield was discovered in this gully by Christopher John Peters on 20th July Fryerstown Located 8 km south of Chewton, Fryerstown is a small village. A heritage study in identified over 45 sites, ranging from ones worthy of note to ones qualified for inclusion on historic buildings registers.
They included railway structures, churches, old shops, civic buildings and cottages. The Victorian Heritage Register lists the former town hall , the former post office and the Garfield water-wheel base , built for a bucket, a 22 metre diameter timber wheel for a gold mine.
Many of the historic sites straggle along the winding linear main road, interspersed with gravelly and up-turned mining land. Red Hill, near the middle of the town, was a rich gold field. Chewton has several shops, a hotel , sport and recreational facilities, a swimming pool reopened by the community in , two churches, a school with 39 pupils , and the Wattle Gully gold mine about 1 km south of the town.
The Chewton community has an active historic and heritage group which documents and agitates for preservation of buildings and mining relics. There is a weekly community market at Wesley Hill, 2 km west of Chewton. About 3 km to the north is the Expedition Pass reservoir. The pass is marked by a monument, and is near Golden Point, a rich gold-mining locality of the s. Gold mining changed the landscape and reduced the surface soil and the need for timber for both mining and boilers of emerging industries decimated native vegetation.
The scarred legacy of this is still evident today. Despite this legacy, the countryside produces beautiful wildflowers. Chewton, Central Victoria, can be accessed by leaving the Calder Freeway at the Castlemaine turn off.
Train access is via Castlemaine Station.
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