Record series
Public Building Plans
VPRS 8044
by 1962 - 1988
Not set, Open
North Melbourne
Agencies
This record series was created by:
Department of Health I ( VA695 ): 1962 - 1978
Health Commission of Victoria ( VA652 ): 1978 - 1985
Agencies responsible for this record series: Department of Planning and Housing ( VA 3013 ): 1991 - 1992
Date Range
Series date range: 1962 - 1988
Series in custody:
1900 - 1988
Contents in custody:
1900 - 1988
Function / Content
This series comprises plans which originally formed a part of Public Building Files (VPRS 7882/P1) and were apparently maintained separately as unattached plan folios on account of their size. Some documents which were small enough remained attached to the Public Building Files. Public Building Files document the regulation of certain health and safety standards in public buildings used for the purpose of education, entertainment, amusement and recreation.Public buildings include:
hospitals or benevolent or other asylums (including ones not wholly supported by the State);
theatres, opera houses, concert rooms, cinema halls, skating rinks, tents or amusement structures, churches;
schools;
any class of building or any particular building declared by a proclamation to be a "Public Building";
hotels, clubs.
Under the provisions of the various Health Acts, the plans and specifications of public buildings including those for subsequent extensions and modifications were to be examined with a view to establishing minimum safety and health standards. Approval for such plans was required before construction could begin. The completed building was also subject to inspection before approval could be granted for opening.
The plans are a unique record of the physical aspect of the building including electrical installations, mechanical services, structural details, furnishings and fittings, lifts and fire services.
The name of the building, its location and site, name of the suburb and the city, Plan Number and PB file number are recorded on the plan.
The agencies historically responsible for granting approval were:
1867-1890 Central Board of Health (operating as part of the Chief Secretary's Department VA 475)
1890-1944 Department of Public Health VA 2904
1944-1978 Department of Health (I) VA 695
1978-1985 Health Commission of Victoria VA 652
1985-1988 Health Department of Victoria VA 2695
How to use the records
**Researchers please note. In a volunteer project lasting from March to October 2011:Plans in VPRS 8044/P1 were individually listed
Plans in VPRS 8044/P2 were individually listed and reprocessed into map bags (plans previously in P2 now form VPRS 8044/P3).
Researchers can search for a plan of interest by the name of the building, its location, its "PB" number (public building number - see below for details), or its Plan Number (see VPRS 8045).
Instructions below are for searching for plans in VPRS 8044 without using this data.**
Rolled Plans
The P1 consignment consists of Rolled Plans which are largely plans for hotels, theatre complexes, Victorian Football League Park and the Victorian Arts Centre. In order to retrieve a Rolled Plan the researcher should first obtain the Public Building file number for the relevant building from the online database at:
http://www.prov.vic.gov.au/indexes/index_search.asp?searchid=37
Once you have the Public Building file number you can identify the relevant plan number using the Records Description List for VPRS 8044/P1.
Flat Plans
The P2 consignment consists of Flat Plans. There are two Records Description Lists for this consignment. List (A) is arranged in plan number order and list (B) is arranged in file number order.
Step 1
Consult the Alphabetical Location Index to Plans VPRS 8046/P1, to get the plan number for the relevant building.
Step 2
If you find a plan number for a building from the above index, consult the Records Description List (A) for VPRS 8044/P2 which is arranged in plan number order.
Researchers are advised to adopt the following steps if they don't find the plan number for a building in the above index i.e. VPRS 8046/P1.
Step 1
Get the Public Building file number for the building from VPRS 8042/P1, Alphabetical Location Card Index to Public Building files.
Step 2
Once you have obtained the Public Building file reference number, you can identify the appropriate plan number and the drawer number by using the Records Description List (B) for VPRS 8044/P2 which is arranged in file number order.
Universities, State College of Victoria, Victoria Institute of Colleges Plans
Consult VPRS 8045/P1 Numerical Card Index to Public Building Plans to obtain the plan number(s) of the complex you are interested in.
Plans for Universities, the State College of Victoria and the Victoria Institute of Colleges have been stored in three separate sequences which are listed towards the end of the Records Description List (A) for VPRS 8044/P2.
Hospital plans are not in PROV custody as at October 2011.
Recordkeeping system
The Public Building filing system appears to have commenced in 1924 when the correspondence pertaining to the public building function was top numbered into the Public Building filing system and a separate file was created for each individual building and allocated a numerical file number prefaced by the letters P.B.The system of keeping or retaining original plans appears to have commenced in the 1930's. In a few cases, earlier plans were retained on file, however, a reduced scale sketch plan was usually drawn and attached to the Public Building Files and the originals were usually returned to the proprietor of the public building. The series of fordigraph stencils of sketch plans of some public buildings (VPRS 8056/P1) was also created around 1952 perhaps for quick reference and reproduction purposes and to avoid excess handling of Public Building Files and plans.
The system of arrangement and numbering of the unattached folios was begun by the Department of Health (I) (VA 695) in 1962. Thus although the series dates from 1962, individual plans extend back perhaps to the early twentieth century.
The unattached plan folios were put away either in plan presses or stored as rolled plans. The plans, therefore, have their own numbering sequence which does not correspond to the Public Building (PB) file numbering sequence. Rolled plans are found in VPRS 8044/P1 and flat plans in VPRS 8044/P3.
Indexes
Two series of numerical and alphabetical indexes (VPRS 8045/P1 and 8046/P1) were created simultaneously to control the arrangement, movement and easy retrieval of the plans. In addition, General Indexes to Public Building Files and Plans VPRS 8043/P1 provide access to some of the plans. See descriptive text for VPRS 8043/P1 for further explanation about these general indexes.
