In response to the Elder Bequest, the Government commissioned a specially designed building (now the Elder Wing)[6] and pushed ahead with all due speed,[7] to provide employment for skilled tradesmen in a time of economic recession. The building was designed by C. E. Owen Smyth in Classical Revival style, built by Trudgen Brothers,[lower-alpha 1] and opened by the Governor, Lord Tennyson on 7 April 1900.