The site at the corner of
St Georges Terrace and
Barrack Street was occupied by
hostelries from the
colony's earliest days, and later housed the
Weld Club. During the Western Australian
gold rush in 1897, the
Moir Building was constructed on the site. Designed by Talbot Hobbs, the building was one of the most well-known buildings in Perth at the time. It later became the headquarters for the
T & G Mutual Life Assurance Society and was renamed to the
T & G Chambers. The southern end of the site was also home to the McNeil Chambers.
New T & G Building Growth in T & G's business, coupled with a desire for a modern tower, led to the decision to demolish the iconic chambers. The original
T & G Chambers were demolished in early 1960, and excavation for the new tower's foundation began in June 1960. The high water table of the site necessitated the use of a
raft-type foundation. The foundation was formed by the pour of of concrete in one continuous pour, which occurred on 25 September 1960. After this, a concrete retaining wall was poured around the basement levels and the steel frame of the building was erected. The floors of the building were formed by attaching permanent
galvanised iron
formwork to the steel frame, adding steel
reinforcement mesh and pouring of concrete on top. The building was the tallest in Perth upon its completion.
Design The T & G Building was designed by architects Forbes & Fitzhardinge. The service tower on the building's west side housed the tower's services, including its four high-speed
lifts, a lift lobby, electricity, plumbing, toilets, tea room and two escape stairwells. The containment of the services within the service tower enabled the of office space on each floor to be contiguous. The service tower rose above the roof of the main building. The building is of a steel frame construction, clad with aluminium, glass and precast aggregate concrete panels. The building is supported by 32 steel columns. The ground floor was clad with black polished granite, and the lobby featured
Travertine marble. The office floors had external sun shades thick protruding from the side of the building to reduce the heat load of the building during summer. The "fully automatic" lifts which were installed in the building were the most advanced in Australia. A steel flag pole (incorporating a lightning conductor) was placed on the northern end of the service tower. == Refurbishment ==