In 1919 J.B. North, a violinist with the then Melbourne Symphonic Orchestra, and Monsieur Leon Lambert, a French architect, who later designed the Glaciarium Ice Skating Rink, purchased three available farms, Looker's, Wright's and Taylor's, approximately 60 acres, the area running along the creek and being bordered by the present day Ryans Road, Karingal Drive and Sherbourne Road. The farms were used for orchards and market gardens. Leon Lambert designed and built two homes on the farm site, one for the North family, ‘Tralford’, and the other, ‘Glen Ellen’, for himself and his wife. The homes were considered as "brother and sister" and they each included in their design an identical bay window in the main living area. "Glen Ellen" originally comprised kitchen, lounge room, inglenook, dining room, bath room and sleepout. Although the home has been extended over the years, much of the original architecture has been retained including timber panelling and three fireplaces. The land was subdivided in approximately 1966 with "Glen Ellen" retaining approximately one half acre of land fronting Meruka Drive. The property then passed from the Charleston family to Gerald and Margaret Sutton in 1976 and again was sold in 1980 and lastly sold again in 1994. The Norths named their house 'Tralford'. According to Marjorie North, the name Meruka was suggested by Alan Gardner and so was apparently not used by the North family. The name appears to be of Indian origin and its connection with the land is not known. ‘Tralford’ stayed in the North family for many years. Eltham Council acquired the house to create Meruka Park. The house was used for some years by the Council as a community arts facility and as emergency accommodation. It fell into disrepair and was demolished about 1990. The Meruka Child Care Centre has been built on the site and incorporates some of the architectural features of the old house. The Co-op was opened in April 1994. The original drive flanked by large old cypress trees remains. These trees are considered to be of local heritage significance and for this reason Meruka Park is covered by a Heritage Overlay under the Nillumbik Planning Scheme. Part of the park has been preserved as habitat for rare local flora. LL's house, named ‘Glen Ellen’, remains in a well-preserved state and fronts Meruka Drive.shire of eltham archives, child care centres, health & community services, meruka child care co-operative, peter staples mhr jaga jaga, cr pamela sladden

In 1919 J.B. North, a violinist with the then Melbourne Symphonic Orchestra, and Monsieur Leon Lambert, a French architect, who later designed the Glaciarium Ice Skating Rink, purchased three available farms, Looker's, Wright's and Taylor's, approximately 60 acres, the area running along the creek and being bordered by the present day Ryans Road, Karingal Drive and Sherbourne Road. The farms were used for orchards and market gardens. Leon Lambert designed and built two homes on the farm site, one for the North family, ‘Tralford’, and the other, ‘Glen Ellen’, for himself and his wife. The homes were considered as "brother and sister" and they each included in their design an identical bay window in the main living area. "Glen Ellen" originally comprised kitchen, lounge room, inglenook, dining room, bath room and sleepout. Although the home has been extended over the years, much of the original architecture has been retained including timber panelling and three fireplaces. The land was subdivided in approximately 1966 with "Glen Ellen" retaining approximately one half acre of land fronting Meruka Drive. The property then passed from the Charleston family to Gerald and Margaret Sutton in 1976 and again was sold in 1980 and lastly sold again in 1994. The Norths named their house 'Tralford'. According to Marjorie North, the name Meruka was suggested by Alan Gardner and so was apparently not used by the North family. The name appears to be of Indian origin and its connection with the land is not known. ‘Tralford’ stayed in the North family for many years. Eltham Council acquired the house to create Meruka Park. The house was used for some years by the Council as a community arts facility and as emergency accommodation. It fell into disrepair and was demolished about 1990. The Meruka Child Care Centre has been built on the site and incorporates some of the architectural features of the old house. The Co-op was opened in April 1994. The original drive flanked by large old cypress trees remains. These trees are considered to be of local heritage significance and for this reason Meruka Park is covered by a Heritage Overlay under the Nillumbik Planning Scheme. Part of the park has been preserved as habitat for rare local flora. LL's house, named ‘Glen Ellen’, remains in a well-preserved state and fronts Meruka Drive.shire of eltham archives, child care centres, health & community services, meruka child care co-operative, peter staples mhr jaga jaga, cr pamela sladden

In 1919 J.B. North, a violinist with the then Melbourne Symphonic Orchestra, and Monsieur Leon Lambert, a French architect, who later designed the Glaciarium Ice Skating Rink, purchased three available farms, Looker's, Wright's and Taylor's, approximately 60 acres, the area running along the creek and being bordered by the present day Ryans Road, Karingal Drive and Sherbourne Road. The farms were used for orchards and market gardens. Leon Lambert designed and built two homes on the farm site, one for the North family, ‘Tralford’, and the other, ‘Glen Ellen’, for himself and his wife. The homes were considered as "brother and sister" and they each included in their design an identical bay window in the main living area. "Glen Ellen" originally comprised kitchen, lounge room, inglenook, dining room, bath room and sleepout. Although the home has been extended over the years, much of the original architecture has been retained including timber panelling and three fireplaces. The land was subdivided in approximately 1966 with "Glen Ellen" retaining approximately one half acre of land fronting Meruka Drive. The property then passed from the Charleston family to Gerald and Margaret Sutton in 1976 and again was sold in 1980 and lastly sold again in 1994. The Norths named their house 'Tralford'. According to Marjorie North, the name Meruka was suggested by Alan Gardner and so was apparently not used by the North family. The name appears to be of Indian origin and its connection with the land is not known. ‘Tralford’ stayed in the North family for many years. Eltham Council acquired the house to create Meruka Park. The house was used for some years by the Council as a community arts facility and as emergency accommodation. It fell into disrepair and was demolished about 1990. The Meruka Child Care Centre has been built on the site and incorporates some of the architectural features of the old house. The Co-op was opened in April 1994. The original drive flanked by large old cypress trees remains. These trees are considered to be of local heritage significance and for this reason Meruka Park is covered by a Heritage Overlay under the Nillumbik Planning Scheme. Part of the park has been preserved as habitat for rare local flora. LL's house, named ‘Glen Ellen’, remains in a well-preserved state and fronts Meruka Drive.shire of eltham archives, child care centres, health & community services, meruka child care co-operative

The dam at the entrance to the Nerreman Gateway in Eltham was built according to an internationally acclaimed theory developed by the builder's father. In 1920, Victorian engineer B.A. Smith was awarded the American Society of Civil Engineers J. James R. Cross Gold Medal for his Technical Paper titled 'Arched Dams'. It was the first time this medal had been awarded outside the United States. The concrete arched dam across the Eltham West Drain was built in 1940 by B.A. Smith's son and engineer, D. B. (Bernie) Smith to water the 24 acre (9.75 ha) hobby farm owned by himself and new wife, Isa Smith. Upon completion of the dam a pump-house was constructed beside the creek but before the water could be pumped up the hill they had to dig a trench and lay 500m of 100mm water main to an elevated holding tank. The Smiths made the pump-house their home for several years until they constructed their home at the top of the hill overlooking Eltham and views extending to Kinglake. Following Bernie's death in 1983, Nerreman Park was subdivided between 1993 and 1995. Gordon Ford designed the landscaping and the pump-house was demolished. Covered under Heritage Overlay, Nillumbik Planning Scheme. Published: Nillumbik Now and Then /​ Marguerite Marshall 2008; photographs Alan King with Marguerite Marshall.; p137 The dam at the entrance to the Nerreman Gateway in Eltham, was built according to an internationally acclaimed theory developed by the builder’s father. In 1920, Victorian engineer B A Smith was awarded the American Society of Civil Engineers J. James R. Croes Gold Medal, for his Technical Paper titled Arched Dams. It was the first time this medal had been awarded outside America. An international example of the application of Smith’s work can be found in the design of the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, Nevada, USA. Built between 1930 and 1936, it is recognised by the ASCE as one of ‘America’s Seven Modern Civil Engineering Wonders’.1 The concrete arched dam across the Eltham West Drain was built by B A Smith’s son and engineer, D B (Bernie) Smith. Bernie’s dam followed his father’s theory, having a curvature that takes maximum advantage of concrete’s great strength in compression. The water load is carried into the abutments because of this curvature, which permits a wall thickness of only 225 millimetres thick at its crest, despite the dam’s capacity of more than 4.5 megalitres. The Eltham dam was designed to water the 24 acre (9.75 ha) hobby farm belonging to newly married couple Bernie and Isa Smith. Bernie, from Armadale, and Isa, from a farm at Tyntynder near Swan Hill, were attracted to the hilly topography and the creek running through the property. It extended from Ryans Road, Eltham, to Karingal Drive, Montmorency and was adjacent to Meruka Park. The Smiths named it Nerreman Park using the Aboriginal word Nerreman meaning ‘River Bend’ as their creek had a pronounced bend.2 In 1940 the first thing Bernie did was to build a dam, and with Isa’s help, a pump-house, to secure a water supply for their cattle, pigs, chickens, orchard and vegetable gardens. It was also available for the fire-plugs, which they placed all over the property in case of bushfire. The couple built the pump-house beside the creek and installed a Tange three-plunger pump, which had originally supplied the City of Wodonga with water. But before the Smiths could pump water up the hill from the dam they had to dig a trench and lay about 550 yards (500m) of a four-inch (100mm) water main up to an elevated holding tank. The trench was dug with a single furrow plough drawn by an old draught horse. Living in rough conditions did not deter the Smiths, who made the pump-house their home, where they still lived when their first child was born in 1944. They later built their home at the top of their property overlooking Eltham, with magnificent views to Kinglake, the Dandenong Ranges and Melbourne. From 1946 it took them almost 20 years to complete the 36-square house with its 12-foot (3.6m) high ceilings. Material for the concrete roof and walls faced with sandstone, was ripped out of the ground on their property by plough pulled by tandem Clydesdale horses. Isa was a strong woman – two days before their second child was born – she set three huge sandstone boulders in place in the bottom wall of the garage. She also mixed all the cement for the house. A collapsed kitchen wall did not discourage her from rebuilding it in a week, while her husband was away working in the country. She later recalled: ‘We stood back to admire this beautiful wall we’d built and while we were looking at it, it came tumbling down’.3 Following Bernie’s death in 1983, Nerreman Park was subdivided, between 1993 and 1995. Local Gordon Ford designed the landscaping and the pump-house was pulled down. But the dam remains as a reminder of exceptional engineering4 – and of a remarkable couple.This collection of almost 130 photos about places and people within the Shire of Nillumbik, an urban and rural municipality in Melbourne's north, contributes to an understanding of the history of the Shire. Published in 2008 immediately prior to the Black Saturday bushfires of February 7, 2009, it documents sites that were impacted, and in some cases destroyed by the fires. It includes photographs taken especially for the publication, creating a unique time capsule representing the Shire in the early 21st century. It remains the most recent comprehenesive publication devoted to the Shire's history connecting local residents to the past. nillumbik now and then (marshall-king) collection, eltham, karingal drive, smiths dam, bernie smith, gordon ford, isa smith, nerreman gateway, nerreman park estate, dams