Johnson's Corner

George Street, the main street of Sydney, was widened in 1911. The Kerry glass-plate negative is undated, but typically, they were taken during the 1880s. It shows George Stree looking north (toward the Quay). The verandah on the left is the building that THEN stood on the corner of George and Grosvenor Streets. At that time it would have been owned by the family of Anthony Hordern. Originally, it was the site of the colony's first military parade ground before The Barracks were constructed on the site now known as Wynyard Station. In 1909-1910, there was a Royal Commission into the planning of the centre of the city which resulted in the widening of Broadway, Oxford Street, William Street, and George Street. Three commercial buildings were erected along the George Street frontage. The corner building was officially named The Chamber of Commerce building, but everyone called it the Johnson's building because Johson had a draper's shop in the ground floor. The middle building - which I spotlight today - was The Commercial Building. The third building was the second incarnation of The Brooklyn Hotel. You can see the original hotel on the left in the Kerry image. In the 1980s all but the facades were demolished and the three structures were amalgamated to form single floor tenancies across all three sites. The third Brooklyn Hotel is the ground floor.