Bangalow was just a quiet little country town, not at all wealthy, and decidedly rural in its nature.
There were four garages in the main street, which amounted to little more than a truck stop and which was, incidentally, also the highway back then.
There were no trendy cafes or restaurants, no galleries, boutiques or antique shops, as there are today.
But there was a motel and a caravan park, and if you were
hungry, well you had to be content with just a fish and chip shop and a bakery.
Hamilton took the time to document Bangalow streetlife with his camera, although that might be a misnomer.
Notice the deserted streets, the unkempt side-walks and the cracked pavements. How the times have changed…
Photos by Hamilton Du Lieu
Deacon Street with Dave Machins house
One of the few buildings in Bangalow that easily recognizable – the Bowling Club has not changed much.
Bus Depot
The almost deserted shopping centre. It is hard to recognise any of these dilapidated buildings as being the same shops we are familiar with today. The first shop on the right was used to store fertiliser and is now known as Bangalow Basics.
The Esso petrol station which stood on the corner of Byron and Station Streets, where the bottle shop now stands. The service station was owned by Ben and Marge Hall, who also owned the Central Garage straight across the street. Looking up the street, you can see what is now The Urban Cafe, without the verandah section. Next door to it was Fishers Cafe, where you could get hot chips. Note the cracks in the sidewalk
Standing in Byron Street, looking towards Granuaille Road. The old wooden bridge over the railway tracks is being replaced by the new concrete bridge we have today.
Auctioneers on the corner of Station St and Byron St, emphasising the rural nature of Bangalow at the time
The local motel in Ballina Road. Toady we know it as the Medical Centre, and the hills behind it are covered with houses
Byron St, across from the schoolyard. Yet another motor repair shop
Looking towards Granuaille Rd. There is a roundabout here now, at the top of Byron St, where the truck is in the photo
Temperance Hall, on the Lismore Road. We now know it as a brightly coloured pottery shop.
Heading into town, just before the Byron Street bridge, with the church on the left
The old Central Garage in Bangalow. It stood on the corner of Byron Street and Station St, where the Summerland Credit Union building now stands
Overlooking the village of Bangalow in the 1970s
A thriving bus service?