Poole Street in Albury begins at a roundabout with Kiewa Street.
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At the centre of the Kiewa Street roundabout is one of Albury’s original gaslights.
It was first installed in Dean Street, removed when Albury was electrified and later located at the Poole-Kiewa streets roundabout.
The house in the photograph is on the site of the present Mercy Hospital. It was probably the home of John and Mary (popularly known as “Granny”) Poole.
The street is named after Granny Poole.
When she died on May 23, 1919, she was said to have been aged nearly 106 years and was reputed to have been the oldest woman in Australia.
Mary Poole was born in Bath, England and was said to have lived in Albury for about 50 years.
Following her death, Harry Turnbull wrote to the Albury Banner stating that he had met Mrs Poole in about 1870 when delivering newspapers.
He wrote that she “was a lady by birth and education and often chatted to me of her early life. She had been, she told me, a governess in the family of the Duchess of Bedford, and Mr Poole had occupied a good position on a neighbouring estate.”
Turnbull went on to say that: “There was a fairly large paddock, and about three acres of vineyard.
“Mr Poole made his own wine, and his grapes were in demand by other vignerons on account of the large amount of saccharine contained in them.
“His Riesling was particularly good, and Mr JT Fallon used to secure it.”
Turnbull stated that he believed that Mr Poole had returned to England.
For the last 15 months of Granny Poole’s life, she resided with a Miss Parker in Thurgoona Street, where her upkeep was maintained through the generosity of Mrs James Mitchell of Tabletop.
In 1917, Poole Street was suggested as a stock route to the Albury saleyards but the council engineer could not “recommend the deviation through Paine's paddock and Poole Street.
“The ground is not very suitable for road purposes and Poole Street has never been dedicated and remains a private street.”
In 1944, the site on Poole’s Hill at the top end of Kiewa Street was chosen as the site for the Mercy Hospital.
Building did not get under way for some time.
The new Mercy Hospital was eventually opened by Cardinal Gilroy on December 1, 1957.