Independent Order of Rechabites (Preston)

251-53 High Street, Preston

The Fidelity Tent No. 75 of the Independent Order of Rechabites first met in the South Preston Wesleyan Chapel in 1868. The hall at 251-53 High Street Preston was constructed c.1890 and remained the home of the Rechabites until the 1970s. The hall is a Victorian building with Classical detailing to the facade.

The Independent Order of Rechabites were a Temperance Movement that began in Salford, England in 1835. It was named after Rechab, a leader in the Old Testament of the Bible, who instructed his tribe to refrain from drinking alcohol. They were a society that looked after their members at times of hardship or sickness.

The Preston Rechabite Hall was used by the Preston community. It housed the initial Baby Health Centre until a permanent site could be found. Preston West Primary School used the site following outbreaks of diphtheria (1916) and Spanish influenza (1919).

The site for many years was a migrant resource centre. It is now a gym.

 

Tout-Smith, Deborah, Independent Order of Rechabites, Melbourne, Victoria, Retrieved 4/10/2024, https://collections.museumsvictoria.com.au/articles/2071#:~:text=Independent%20Order%20of%20Rechabites%20(IOR,to%20refrain%20from%20drinking%20alcohol.

Victorian Heritage Database, FIDELITY TENT NO.75 OF THE INDEPENDENT ORDER OF RECHABITES (FORMER), Retrieved 4/10/2024 from, https://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/27334