The Liverpool Scout Hall in Moore Street is the oldest remaining weatherboard building within the town’s historic Hoddle Grid.
Last year it celebrated its 90th anniversary – this year it’s for sale and destined for demolition.
Glen op den Brouw, the president of the Liverpool Historical Society, hopes that somehow this piece of local history can be saved.
“I’ve written to Liverpool Council to place an interim Heritage Order on it,’’ he says.
“Will they? We will see.’’
Brouw says the scout hall, which was bought and built with funds raised by the Liverpool community, has been unused for years.
“It has been a meeting place for thousands of young boys from around the Liverpool district to gather and learn life skills,’’ he says.
“The scout association was then, and still is, the largest youth development organisation in Australia encouraging physical, intellectual, emotional, social and spiritual development of young people to enable them to reach their full potential in life.’’
The historical society president, pictured above, says it’s worth recalling that the official opening of the Liverpool scout hall on Saturday, November 22, 1930 was performed by none other than NSW Governor Phillip Game, who was also Chief Scout.
“The hall was surrounded by scouts from around the district. From Liverpool, Campbelltown, Fairfield, Camden, Glenfield and Ingleburn, they had marched from Liverpool Railway Station closely followed by the Fairfield Girl Guides,’’ says Brouw.
“The Governor, who was garbed in his Chief Scout uniform, was met by the police on entering Liverpool and escorted to the hall where he was introduced to Liverpool Scout Master Tepper and the Mayor of Liverpool, Thomas Bratchell and Mr H. Nichols, President of the Liverpool Scout Committee.
“The Merrylands Band roared into action and played the national anthem.
“It’s hard to imagine such a scene now on the forlornly unloved setting that has been a place of such social significance over such a long period of time.’’
Always a difficult decision regarding old buildings an their historical value to the community (or, in some cases, to the nation at large).
I’m not a local, but, to me, the telling point was;
“Brouw says the scout hall, which was bought and built with funds raised by the Liverpool community, has been unused for years.”
I think, if the local community saw some value in retaining the building, it would have been put to some use, rather than left unused for a long time.