Australian Bank of Commerce is a heritage-listed former bank building at 86 Mosman Street, Charters Towers, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Francis Drummond Greville Stanley and built in 1891 by Wyatt & Gates. It is also known as The Australian Joint Stock Bank and is now The World Theatre. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.HistoryThe former Australian Bank of Commerce is a substantial masonry building in classical revival style located in the business centre of Charters Towers. It was built in 1891 as the premises of the Australian Joint Stock Bank to the design of Queensland architect FDG Stanley during the boom years of the gold field.The Charters Towers field was discovered in late 1871 by a prospecting party composed of Hugh Mosman, George Clark, James Fraser and an Aboriginal boy called Jupiter who worked for Mosman. By early 1872 a rush was in progress with an estimated 4,500 people on the field by the end of the year. During this time Charters Towers yielded 91,265 ounces of gold; more than half the total Queensland production.The Australian Joint Stock Bank was established with the discovery of gold in southern states and opened branches on Queensland goldfields as they were discovered. It opened a branch on the Broughton goldfield on 23 April 1872, but soon moved to Charters Towers and then to nearby Millchester, where crushing plants, banks and businesses had begun to cluster. In 1874, following goldfield regulations, a business area was marked out in Charters Towers over an area believed to be non-auriferous. A sub-branch of the bank was opened there on 12 October 1874 and became a full branch in 1876. In 1877, when Charters Towers petitioned for incorporation as a municipality, the business area was defined as covering half a mile in each compass direction from the intersection of Gill and Mosman Streets. This area became the key business and social centre of the town.