Paddington Town Hall

Situated at the highest point on the Oxford Street ridge, Paddington Town Hall foundation stone was laid in 1890 by Sir Henry Parkes and was opened with great fanfare in 1891 by the Governor, The Earl of Jersey.

The first major alteration to the Town Hall occurred in 1904–1905, when the clock tower was erected in commemoration of the coronation of King Edward VII. The face of the clock is inscribed with "Edwardus VII". The honour to King Edward was that Paddington was, at the time, a large town hall, second only to Sydney.

The Town Hall varied slightly from the majority of town halls in that it was intended from the beginning to generate income from the hiring of the supper and ball room for balls, dances, concerts and public ceremonies. It could seat 1000 people.

Paddington Town Hall was the site of a meeting of Rugby League players in 1908, at which the Eastern Suburbs Rugby League club, now the Sydney Roosters, was officially formed. In 1969, the congress of the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) was held at the town hall, with Bob Hawke being elected as the new president.