Num Pon Soon was erected in 1860-61 by Lowe Kong Meng, merchant and prominent member of Melbourne's Chinese community. It served as a club house for the Sam-Yup Society, providing accommodation and support for Chinese immigrants from the districts of Nanhai, Punyu and Shute in the Canton Province. Designed by Kerr & Knight, the architects for Melbourne's Parliament House, it combines elegant High Renaissance composition with occasional oriental motifs.