The former Bank of New South Wales building located in upper Mary Street, Gympie was designed by Richard Gailey and built in 1890-91.
This two storey neo-classical building was purpose-built as the Gympie branch of the Bank of New South Wales, which had been operating at the Gympie goldfield since March 1868.
It comprised ground floor banking facilities, upper floor manager's residence and a basement.

Gympie (initially known as Nashville) was established after the discovery of gold in the Mary River district in October 1867.
The new goldfield turned Queensland into a significant gold producer, contributing much needed finances to the young colony.
Thousands of people arrived at the Gympie goldfield in the months after the discovery and a fledgling settlement emerged.
In a year the alluvial gold had been exhausted and shallow reef mining commenced.

As Gympie evolved from a hastily established mining settlement, the early makeshift structures of the 1860s gradually gave way to more permanent and substantial public and private buildings from the mid 1870s.
With the change to deep reef mining from 1875, came the need for extensive capital investment through the formation of companies using foreign as well as local capital.
During 1881, mines began yielding large amounts of gold, marking a new era of wealth and prosperity for Gympie as an intensive phase of underground reef mining began, facilitated by the injection of capital into mining companies for machinery and employees.
The influx of money and the resultant yield of gold was reflected in the redevelopment of upper Mary Street during the 1880s and 1890s with substantial commercial buildings such as banks, company secretaries' and brokers' offices.
One of these was the Bank of New South Bank building, which opened in 1891.

The Bank of New South Wales (BNSW) was the first bank established in Australia (February 1817) but it was restricted to trading in Sydney until 1850.
After restructure in that year it opened its first branch outside Sydney, in Brisbane, on 14 November 1850.
It expanded rapidly thereafter with the rush of gold discoveries in New South Wales and Victoria.
The bank set up agencies and gold-buying agents at every new diggings in order to spread its network and consolidate its position.
Bank officers were urged on by their superiors to be the first to a new location to set up a gold-buying agency.
By 1861 the BNSW had grown from a single Sydney office in 1850 to a network of 37 branches in Australia and New Zealand.

Subsequently, with the discovery of gold at Gympie the Bank opened an agency on the goldfield on 21 March 1868, less than six months after the goldfield's establishment.
In the same year the bank transferred to a building owned by Merry and Davis.
An 1868 photograph of lower Mary Street, Gympie shows the Bank of New South Wales operating from a weatherboard-clad building with a shingle roof.

Over the ensuing years as it became increasingly clear that the Gympie goldfield was a long-term proposition, a series of steps towards permanency were taken by the bank reflecting this longevity.
Firstly, in 1872 the BNSW agency converted to a branch with the increased banking services that entailed.

Secondly, in 1879 the bank purchased the 22 perches (560 m²) allotment on which the current building stands and occupied the timber and tin building on the site until selling it prior to the building of the current structure.
Thirdly, the decision at the end of the 1880s to build a masonry building followed the growth of deep reef mining on the goldfield and the rise in Gympie's gold output throughout the decade.

The 1880s were a decade of rapid growth and development and rising land prices in Queensland.
Mainly due to Queensland's three major gold mining centres - Gympie, Charters Towers and Mount Morgan - the value of gold output rose from £698,000 in 1883 to £2.75 million in 1889, exceeding the value of exported wool.
Gold production contributed between 21.61 and 35.53 percent of Queensland's export income during the 1880s and 1890s.
These enormous amounts o
The former Bank of New South Wales building located in upper Mary Street, Gympie was designed by Richard Gailey and built in 1890-91. This two storey neo-classical building was purpose-built as the Gympie branch of the Bank of New South Wales, which had been operating at the Gympie goldfield since March 1868. It comprised ground floor banking facilities, upper floor manager's residence and a basement.
Gympie (initially known as Nashville) was established after the discovery of gold in the Mary River district in October 1867. The new goldfield turned Queensland into a significant gold producer, contributing much needed finances to the young colony. Thousands of people arrived at the Gympie goldfield in the months after the discovery and a fledgling settlement emerged. In a year the alluvial gold had been exhausted and shallow reef mining commenced.
As Gympie evolved from a hastily established mining settlement, the early makeshift structures of the 1860s gradually gave way to more permanent and substantial public and private buildings from the mid 1870s. With the change to deep reef mining from 1875, came the need for extensive capital investment through the formation of companies using foreign as well as local capital. During 1881, mines began yielding large amounts of gold, marking a new era of wealth and prosperity for Gympie as an intensive phase of underground reef mining began, facilitated by the injection of capital into mining companies for machinery and employees. The influx of money and the resultant yield of gold was reflected in the redevelopment of upper Mary Street during the 1880s and 1890s with substantial commercial buildings such as banks, company secretaries' and brokers' offices. One of these was the Bank of New South Bank building, which opened in 1891.
The Bank of New South Wales (BNSW) was the first bank established in Australia (February 1817) but it was restricted to trading in Sydney until 1850. After restructure in that year it opened its first branch outside Sydney, in Brisbane, on 14 November 1850. It expanded rapidly thereafter with the rush of gold discoveries in New South Wales and Victoria. The bank set up agencies and gold-buying agents at every new diggings in order to spread its network and consolidate its position. Bank officers were urged on by their superiors to be the first to a new location to set up a gold-buying agency. By 1861 the BNSW had grown from a single Sydney office in 1850 to a network of 37 branches in Australia and New Zealand.
Subsequently, with the discovery of gold at Gympie the Bank opened an agency on the goldfield on 21 March 1868, less than six months after the goldfield's establishment. In the same year the bank transferred to a building owned by Merry and Davis. An 1868 photograph of lower Mary Street, Gympie shows the Bank of New South Wales operating from a weatherboard-clad building with a shingle roof.
Over the ensuing years as it became increasingly clear that the Gympie goldfield was a long-term proposition, a series of steps towards permanency were taken by the bank reflecting this longevity. Firstly, in 1872 the BNSW agency converted to a branch with the increased banking services that entailed.
Secondly, in 1879 the bank purchased the 22 perches (560 m²) allotment on which the current building stands and occupied the timber and tin building on the site until selling it prior to the building of the current structure. Thirdly, the decision at the end of the 1880s to build a masonry building followed the growth of deep reef mining on the goldfield and the rise in Gympie's gold output throughout the decade.
The 1880s were a decade of rapid growth and development and rising land prices in Queensland. Mainly due to Queensland's three major gold mining centres - Gympie, Charters Towers and Mount Morgan - the value of gold output rose from £698,000 in 1883 to £2.75 million in 1889, exceeding the value of exported wool. Gold production contributed between 21.61 and 35.53 percent of Queensland's export income during the 1880s and 1890s. These enormous amounts o
Bank of New South Wales building, Gympie