City’s transported relics

TWO years ago this columnist wrote about the 1905 opening of a shelter for the drivers of horse-drawn cabs in the middle of Malop St, just east of Moorabool St.

The cabbies’ shelter eventually made its way to the Geelong Botanic Gardens where it was restored in 1998.

It now offers a great option for visitors to the gardens seeking shelter.

Since then we have discovered that another similar cabbies’ shelter was erected in the middle of Ryrie St, also just to the east of Moorabool St.

This second shelter would have been situated outside what is now former Geelong mayor Hayden Spurling’s The Squire Shoppe.

While it is not known when the cabbies’ shelters were moved, we can be certain the Ryrie St shelter had disap- peared by 1923, by which time the electric tram network had been extended along that sec- tion of Ryrie St to East Geelong.

The original tram system had only extended as far as Geelong West and Newtown when it opened in 1912.

The East Geelong line was built along Ryrie St to Garden St, from where it headed south to join Ormond Rd.

From there the track was extended in stages along Ormond Rd, firstly to the corner of Humble St and finally past the Eastern Cemetery to Boundary Rd.

In the meantime the Geelong Tramways had in 1912 introduced a motor bus service along the East Geelong route. A similar service to Belmont was introduced from 1914.

The tram service was extended to Belmont in 1927 with the opening of the new bridge over the Barwon River, allowing trams as far as the corner of High St and Roslyn Rd. Contact: peterjohnbegg@gmail.com

The Ryrie St cabbies’ shelter looking west along the street, with the former Geelong post office in the distance. The presence of Geelong trams dates the picture to shortly after 1912.

The Ryrie St cabbies’ shelter disappeared before the tram line was extended east along Ryrie St, past the Geelong Theatre.