In 1936 his descendants subdivided his land and gave a large town allotment to the Catholic Church for the purpose of building a community hall.

[2][1] Construction of the hall was organised by Rev Dr Gummer and funded by money raised by the local community.

From 1937 to 1977, the hall was also the venue for numerous local balls, dances, civic receptions and amateur theatricals, thus playing a central role in the social and cultural life of the town.

The local people were extremely isolated by poor roads and poverty until the 1950s and the social life of the town revolved around this building".

In 1987 the facade was restored, attracting a "Heritage and Conservation Award" on 7 April 1987, "Presented to Betta Wool Handlers by R. J. Clough, local member for Bathurst" (according to the framed certificate hanging in the office).

The Oberon Council's Community Based Heritage Study named the Malachi Gilmore Hall as one of the two best-known buildings in the district.

Many, ignorant of the antiquity of the design (the Pharos tower was supposed to have been erected 283BC, and was favourably commented on by Pliny and Strabo, ancient historians), regard it as ultra modern in conception.

Its asymmetrical façade is a striking Inter-war Art Deco addition to the streetscape of Oberon Street and the town generally.

[1] The façade is rendered concrete with a complex massing of curving and rectangular shapes presenting a stepped skyline to the street.

According to Scott Robinson of the NSW Art Deco Society, "The Malchi Gilmore Hall is a most unusual combination of a diminiative (sic) Modern "picture palace" front (with its vertical fin and roof) and Modern Movement rectiliniarity of the stepped massing of the building behind the front" (quoted in the Heritage Inventory nomination form submitted by the Friends of the Malachi Gilmore Hall, 2001).

Ross Thorne's 1983 "Theatres/Cinemas in NSW" states that the exterior of the hall is "unique in a kind of west-coast USA 1930s design style with a vague Frank Lloyd Wright influence produced by the feeling of horizontality (in parts).

[6] As at 12 February 2009, the Malachi Gilmore Memorial Hall was of state significance as an outstanding example of Interwar Art Deco architecture in regional New South Wales.

Designed by the Sydney office of Agabiti & Millane and completed in 1937, the facade features curved walls and rooflines, geometric windows, glass bricks, an asymmetrical, stepped skyline and other 1930s "picture palace" details.

Situated in a prominent location in the main street of Oberon, the Malachi Gilmore Memorial Hall is a well-known local landmark and makes an important contribution to the streetscape.

[1] Malachi Gilmore Memorial Hall was listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 5 December 2003 having satisfied the following criteria.

The Malachi Gilmore Memorial Hall is of state significance as an outstanding example of Interwar Art Deco architecture in regional New South Wales.

As a venue for numerous local balls, dances, civic receptions and amateur theatricals for 40 years, it played a central role in the social and cultural life of Oberon.

[1] HERB DAVID: local cinema operator and long-term lessee and later owner of the Malachi Gilmore Memorial Hall.

[1] The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales.

The Malachi Gilmore Memorial Hall is of state significance as an outstanding example of Interwar Art Deco architecture in regional New South Wales.

Designed by Bolton Millane and completed in 1937, the hall features curved walls and rooflines, geometric windows, glass bricks, an asymmetrical, stepped façade and other 1930s "picture palace" details.

Situated in a prominent location in the main street of Oberon, the hall is a well-known local landmark and makes an important contribution to the streetscape.

The Malachi Gilmore Memorial Hall is of state significance as a rare and highly unusual example of the Interwar Art Deco style.

Though representative as a building type, the Malachi Gilmore Memorial Hall is a highly unusual example because of the exuberance of the architectural detailing of its facade.