Wesley Hall

Wesley Hall is a building located on Potter Street in the parish of Melbourne. It was constructed between 1853 and 1854 by H I Stevens of Derby in the Italianate style, with some minor alterations made later. The structure is made of red brick with stone dressings and a stone plinth, featuring rusticated stone quoins and a wide plain stone band at the first floor, along with a similar sill band at the ground floor and a narrower sill band at the first floor. The roof is hipped and covered with slate, topped with a moulded stone cornice.

The building stands two storeys high and consists of four bays, with a tower attached to the southeast corner. The main elevation features advanced single-storey porches on either side, each with hipped slate roofs, rusticated quoins, and moulded cornices. Each porch has a semi-circular headed doorcase with rusticated jambs, a moulded arch with a console keystone, continuous raised impost bands, and a flush panelled door with a divided overlight. Between the porches, there are four windows with moulded surrounds and console keystones, featuring timber cross windows. Centrally, there is an elaborate late 19th-century ironwork bracket supporting a wooden sign. Above this, four plain sash windows are spaced more widely, set in similar surrounds. Above the cornice, there is a recessed panel inscribed with 'Athenaeum' in raised capital letters.

The west gable wall has similar windows, with 'AD 1853' inscribed in the cornice, while the east gable wall features tripartite sashes in moulded surrounds with 'SAVINGS BANK' inscribed above. The attached tower mirrors the building's style, except for its two upper stages, which have rusticated corner pilaster strips and central panels with blocked circular keystoned openings on the lower stage, and twin semi-circular headed windows above on each side, topped with a moulded cornice.

The interior of Wesley Hall is quite plain, featuring 20th-century fittings. The building was officially opened by Viscount Palmerston, who served as Prime Minister to Queen Victoria during the years 1855-1858 and 1859-1865, and he also laid the foundation stone.