Smith Street, Melbourne

Smith Street is a street in inner northern Melbourne, running north–south from Victoria Parade at its southernmost end to Queens Parade. Between Victoria Parade and Alexandra Parade, Smith Street forms the boundary between Fitzroy and Collingwood. Smith Street is located a block east of Brunswick Street. From Gertrude Street to Queens Parade, Smith Street forms part of the 86 tram route. The road acquired the name “Smith Street” on 23 May 1851, in honour of John Thomas Smith, a prominent local figure who served as Mayor of Melbourne seven times.  In 2021, Time Out magazine ranked Smith Street “the coolest street in the world”, topping a list of 30 culturally hip streets worldwide.^[1] This ranking cited its mix of fantastic eateries, bars, live music venues, and community spirit.

Smith Street looking north from Westgarth Street, Fitzroy

Pre-colonial history and Indigenous significance

Smith Street looking north from Gertrude Street, Collingwood

Smith Street runs through the traditional lands of the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung people of the Kulin Nation. Long before colonisation, the area (known traditionally as Ngár-go) was part of an important camping and meeting ground for local clans. European settlement from 1835 onwards had a devastating impact on the Wurundjeri as bushland was cleared for roads and buildings causing the local people to be displaced.^[2] Smith street (Fitzroy & Collingwood) became a focal point for Aboriginal communities in Victoria, especially after many families moved into the area during its development. Pivotal Aboriginal organisations were also founded nearby and this modern Aboriginal presence underscores the enduring Indigenous significance of the Smith Street area.

Early development (1830s – 1860s)

Smith Street is one of Melbourne’s oldest thoroughfares, its route tracing back to the late 1830s.^[3]  In 1838–1839, the colonial government began selling off land outside of Melbourne CBD.  Land surveyors straightened and formalised the road’s course as part of the first suburban subdivision. Smith Street was set aside as a boundary road, with Collingwood’s blocks to its east and Fitzroy (then known as Newtown) to its west.^[4] Crown land sales in February 1839 sold large 25-acre blocks on either side of this future street, but the street was not sold, ensuring it remained a public thoroughfare.^[5] By the early 1850s, Melbourne’s gold rush fuelled a population boom, and the once rural area was rapidly urbanising.  On the higher western side of Smith Street (Fitzroy side), wealthier colonists built substantial brick villas with gardens, while on the lower Collingwood side (eastern slope) tightly packed wooden cottages and shanties sprang up without building regulation.^[6]  This stark contrast reflected an early class divide across Smith Street. Fitzroy became Melbourne’s first official suburb in 1858, with Smith Street as the municipal boundary line between the new Borough of Fitzroy and East Collingwood.^[7] The first shops and businesses appeared, as the street evolved into a local high street. In 1868 the Collingwood Post Office (Smith St near Johnson St) was established, signalling the street’s growing importance.  By the 1860s it was already described as a busy shopping street serving the dense working-class neighbourhoods of Collingwood and Fitzroy.

Smith Street with the old post office in the foreground

Architectural and commercial growth (1870s – 1970s)

From the 1870s through to the early 20th century, Smith Street blossomed into a bustling commercial strip, lined with shops, hotels, and grand retail spaces.^[8] During the late Victorian era, Smith Street was regarded as one of the busiest and most important retail centres in all Australasia.^[9][6] In Melbourne, it was rivalled only by Chapel Street in Prahran for suburban retail primacy.  In 1887 a new cable tram line opened from the Melbourne CBD to Smith Street, delivering crowds right to the doorstep of Smith Street’s shops.^[6]  Several landmark establishments also date to this boom period. Foy & Gibson’s department store was the most highly regarded.^[10] It began as a small drapery shop in 1883 grew into an enormous retail empire sprawled across Smith Street. Founder William Gibson (with partner Mark Foy) expanded aggressively and by 1891, Foy & Gibson had constructed one of Australia’s first purpose-built department stores on Smith Street. The main Foy & Gibson “Ladies’ Store” on the west side (Fitzroy) at 145–163 Smith Street opened in 1911, a grand three-storey edifice designed by architect William Pitt in a lavish classical style.^[11]  It was built adjacent to an earlier 1895 Men’s Store on the Collingwood side at 135–143 Smith, to which it was linked by an underground shoppers’ tunnel under Smith Street. This unique tunnel opened in 1911 and allowed customers (especially unchaperoned women) to cross between Foy’s stores without mingling on the street, a response to the rowdy “larrikins” who sometimes loitered outside.

Another early landmark was the Collingwood Coffee Palace (despite standing on the Fitzroy side of the street) at 232 Smith Street.^[6] Opened in 1879 as a temperance hotel it also offered a genteel, alcohol-free alternative to the area’s many pubs.^[12]  The Collingwood Coffee Palace featured an ornate Franco-Italianate façade crowned by a domed tower.  It provided inexpensive accommodation, meeting rooms and a café in line with the temperance movement’s ideals. It was initially very successful but the venture faltered in the 1890s depression and the building was repurposed as Ackman’s Monster Furnishing Arcade.^[13] [14] Smith Street also became renowned for its large furnishing and drapery emporiums. In addition to Foy’s and Ackman’s there was also Stanford’s.  Many pubs were also built along Smith Street in the Victorian era, reflecting both the social life and prosperity of the area. Notably, the Grace Darling Hotel at 114 Smith Street opened in 1854 and still operates today, making it one of Melbourne’s oldest continuously licensed pubs.^[15][16] This bluestone pub (designed by George Wharton) hosted social events and even the inaugural committee meeting of the Collingwood Football Club in 1892.^[6] The Collingwood Post Office at 174 Smith (built 1868, with a clocktower added in 1892) made a significant civic statement and further reinforced Smith Street’s importance in Melbourne’s development.^[6]

On 9 April 1914, George J. Coles opened his very first variety store on Smith Street, heralding a new era in Australian retail.^[17]  The Coles enterprise quickly expanded: in 1919 a larger Coles store was built at 170–172 Smith Street.  Alongside Coles, another household name in grocery retail was Moran & Cato, a Melbourne grocers’ chain. Moran & Cato opened a big store at 279–281 Smith Street (Fitzroy) in 1905, expanding an earlier Collingwood business.^[6] By the 1930s Moran & Cato had become Australia’s largest grocer with around 170 stores. In entertainment, Smith Street also featured local picture theatres and halls. In the early 1900s the Eclipse Theatre operated at 20 Smith Street, Collingwood, showing silent films to local audiences.^[18][19]  Additionally, Foresters’ Hall at 64 Smith Street was a social hall built in 1888 (by T.W. Stanford) that later became the site of a famous comedy club.  These venues underscore that Smith Street wasn’t just about shopping – it was also a place for leisure and community gatherings from early on.

Pubs in particular were central to the working-class life of the area and occasionally to its politics. Collingwood gained a reputation in the 19th century for radical and grassroots political activity, much of it organised in local hotels and on street corners. One notable locale on Smith Street was Mac’s Hotel (168–172 Smith St, Collingwood), established by 1860.^[20]  Mac’s Hotel became famous as the headquarters for impromptu political stump speeches and gatherings of workers’ groups.^[21]  It’s said that the agitation for the Eight Hour Day was fostered in part in the pubs of Collingwood and Fitzroy, possibly including Mac’s or the Grace Darling Hotel. Throughout all these changes, Smith Street remained the everyday high street for working people, whether they were British born factory hands, Greek and Italian immigrant families in the 1950s, or Koorie families in the 1970s. The street’s mixture of pubs, bargain stores, and pawn shops alongside big department stores reflected the needs and aspirations of its clientele.

Decline and renewal

By the mid-20th century, Smith Street faced significant economic and social changes. After World War II, Melbourne’s growth and suburbanisation began drawing residents and retailers away from inner-city areas like Collingwood. Foy & Gibson’s retail store struggled post-World War II and in 1955 the entire Foy & Gibson retail business was eventually sold off.^[22]  Similarly, the flagship Coles variety store ceased trading by the late 1960s.  Compounding the retail exodus were broader inner-city economic shifts. Collingwood’s industries declined in the mid-20th century as manufacturing evolved and many factories either closed or relocated outward. The local employment base shrank, reducing the daytime foot traffic on Smith Street. Meanwhile, the residential population of Fitzroy and Collingwood fell sharply from the 1940s, as people moved to newer suburbs.  By the late 1960s, parts of Collingwood and Fitzroy were considered “slums” by authorities and were targeted for urban renewal.^[23] Many shopfronts in Smith street were shuttered or underused. The street became known for secondhand dealers, discount outlets and a seedy undertone. In the 1980s and 1990s, heroin use became a serious issue in inner Melbourne, and Smith Street, with its cheap rents and relative anonymity, saw visible drug activity. However, the late 20th century also sowed seeds of revitalisation.

The same affordable rents and old buildings that attracted pawn shops and needle exchanges also began to attract artists, students, and bohemians in the 1980s. On Smith Street, one significant turning point was the opening of the Last Laugh Comedy Theatre & Cabaret in 1977.^[24] This renowned venue helped kick-start Melbourne’s comedy scene and made Smith Street a nightlife destination again.  By the late 1990s and early 2000s, the street’s fortunes were visibly turning with trendy cafes, art spaces, and bars were opening alongside the discount shoe stores and migrant grocers.

Today

Smith Street today is a microcosm of Melbourne’s history and contemporary life. From its beginnings as a winding track through Wurundjeri country, to a Victorian shopping mecca with cable trams, to its mid-century struggles and eventual rebirth, the street encapsulates the cycles of boom, bust, and renewal. It stands as a culturally layered street where an 1890s facade might house a modern art gallery, and where the legacy of its working-class, immigrant and Aboriginal communities provides depth behind the hip new storefronts. The street has a notable LGBTQ+ presence, with several gay-friendly bars and clubs that harken back to Fitzroy’s queer community hangouts of the 1970s and 1990s. As Melbourne continues to evolve, Smith Street’s heritage overlays and community custodianship should ensure that the street’s rich history remains visible and celebrated for future generations. The many plaques, preserved buildings, and yes, even the trendy accolades, all reinforce Smith Street’s unique place in Melbourne’s rich story.

Left-wing community radio station 3CR has its offices in Smith Street, south of Gertrude Street. Music-oriented community radio station 3PBS is also located nearby, in Easey Street, Collingwood. The street has been honoured of late by the rise of the local band The Smith Street Band, which has received international acclaim. This is despite the lead singer recently claiming that "none of us live [on Smith Street] and now everyone time I go there I get quite frustrated that it seems to be becoming more and more gentrified."

See also

Australian Roads portal