Great Hall at Montsalvat built 1938-52, designed by Justus Jorgensen Covered under National Estate, National Trust of Australia (Victoria) State Significance, Victorian Heritage and Heritage Overlay, Nillumbik Planning Scheme. Published: Nillumbik Now and Then /​ Marguerite Marshall 2008; photographs Alan King with Marguerite Marshall.; p129 At first glance, Montsalvat, the artists’ community at Hillcrest Avenue, Eltham, could belong to another time and place. The French provincial Gothic-style buildings blend picturesquely with the introduced and native trees and farm animals on the five hectare property. But Montsalvat belongs very much to today’s Eltham, having inspired much of its creative activity and style. The use of mud-brick and recycled building materials, for which Eltham is so well-known, was largely popularised by Montsalvat. Montsalvat – unique in Victoria and probably in Australia – is registered by the National Trust and National Estate.1 Montsalvat, named after the castle of the Knights of the Holy Grail, has attracted artists and intellectuals since it was founded in 1934. For years at weekends, artists, lawyers, philosophers, politicians and others, who shared a love for what Montsalvat stood for, gathered for a meal and stimulating discussion. The focus for this gathering of talent was Justus Jörgensen, an eccentric man with vision and charisma. It was Jörgensen’s foresight that saw the creation of Montsalvat, which in 1975 was formed into a trust to benefit the Victorian people. The property was then valued at about three million dollars. It is now visited by thousands of people annually. Born in 1894 and brought up a Catholic, Jörgensen had trained as an architect. He later studied painting at the National Gallery School under artist, Frederick McCubbin, then joined the studio of artist Max Meldrum. In 1924, Jörgensen married medical student Lillian Smith, and with artist friends they travelled to Europe to study the great masters. In London Jörgensen exhibited in several major galleries. One of his still life paintings was included in the book The Art of Still Life by Herbert Furst, which featured 100 of the greatest ever still life paintings.2 In 1929, Jörgensen returned to Melbourne where Lil, now qualified, worked as an anaesthetist at St Vincent’s Hospital. They bought a small house in Brighton and Jörgensen rented a large building in Queen Street for his studio until the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria bought it in 1955. While designing and overseeing the building of a studio for his friend the famous cartoonist Percy Leason, in Lavender Park Road, Jörgensen decided to buy land for a country retreat in Eltham. So the building of Montsalvat began. Jörgensen gathered around a dozen of his friends and students from his Queen Street studio. They set to work, first at weekends then some decided to live permanently on the site. Jörgensen had seen mud-brick buildings in Spain and recognised that Eltham’s clay soil was ideal for mud-bricks and although labour intensive, it was a very cheap way of building. Jörgensen’s students and friends worked under his direction with the help of local tradesmen, including carpenter, Len Jarrold and later stone mason, Horrie Judd. In return Jörgensen would give the students a painting lesson or two. It was the Great Depression when many were out of work. Jörgensen also inspired people to give generously of money and materials. With their help Jörgensen found second-hand materials for building. Friends donated slate for roofing, discarded firebricks were used for flooring and windows and doors and a cast-iron circular staircase came from a wrecker. The students’ day started at 7am with building and domestic chores, shared equally between the sexes. The first building was used by his friends at weekends and then became a home for his wife Lil. It consisted of three rooms and an attic under a high-pitched roof. Jörgensen then built a similar structure with the same high-pitched roof as a more permanent home for his students. The two buildings were joined together with a tower and a studio for Jörgensen. While excavating for the studio a reef of yellow mud-stone was found and then used in construction. The next building was the Great Hall, to be used for dining, exhibitions and meetings and completed in 1958, after a halt during the war. Whelan the Wrecker donated the stone-framed windows from the building that housed the Victorian Insurance Co. in Collins Street, which had been demolished in the 1930s. The swimming pool was donated and cubicles were built for the students with their initials marked in tiles on each doorstep.1 One of Jörgensen’s great abilities was to recognise how to use material which harmonised. He would comb through wreckers’ yards for what he needed. Regarding his buildings as sculptural pieces, his first consideration was for the aesthetic quality of a building and only then for its functionality.2 At Montsalvat, Jörgensen found he was able to put his ideas into practice without compromise and those who worked with him had to conform to his ideas. With the Jörgensens, the colony’s original nucleus consisted of the Skipper family – Mervyn and wife Lena, daughters Helen and Sonia and son Matcham,who was to become an eminent jeweller and sculptor represented in National Gallery collections throughout Australia and in European museums.3 Other members were Arthur Munday, Lesley Sinclair, Helen Lempriere, Ian Robertson, John Smith, George Chalmers, John Busst and Sue Van der Kellan; also Jörgensen’s three sons – Max, Sebastian and Sigmund – and Saskia, Sonia Skipper and Arthur Munday’s daughter. Montsalvat went through some hard times when local gossips spread rumours of sexual shenanigans at Montsalvat. However Montsalvat also had many local supporters – especially amongst the local tradespeople. The colony was certainly unconventional – with Jörgensen’s wife Lil (and son Max) and life-time partner Helen Skipper, (mother of Sebastian and Sigmund) living at Montsalvat. Sonia Skipper says in her biography that the group were ‘very conscious of their responsibilities to each other and a desire to make their relationships work’.4 By World War Two many buildings around the Great Hall were completed. Jörgensen was a pacifist, as were most of his students. Some of the Montsalvat community enlisted while others engaged in essential services like dairy farming and market gardening for the war effort. It was then that Jörgensen constructed farm buildings. After the war many well-known personalities such as Clifton Pugh, landscape gardener Gordon Ford, and builder Alistair Knox, were drawn to Montsalvat. They learnt that building was not a ‘sacred cow’ only for professionals, but that anyone who was willing to get their hands dirty could do it. The post-war shortage of materials also encouraged builders to follow Montsalvat’s lead in reusing materials. When Jörgensen died in 1975, his influence did not – thanks largely to the vigilance of his son, Sigmund, who became its administrator. The weekend dinners have gone, but in 2008 about 14 artists still work at Montsalvat – some living there – including a couple who have been there since its early days. Under Sigmund’s direction Montsalvat further expanded its activities which included festivals, art exhibitions, concerts and weddings. Sigmund completed the Chapel, then the Long Gallery next to the pool, After the barn burnt down, he replaced it in 1999 (the builder was Hamish Knox, Alistair’s son) with a new gallery and entrance and added a restaurant. Sigmund has been careful that any new building blends in with the character of Montsalvat. In 2006 Montsalvat was restructured for its continued financial viability and with the help of Arts Victoria a new executive officer was appointed. A representative board from the wider community was established, which includes members from the former Montsalvat Trust including Sigmund Jörgensen – who is now the heritage and arts adviser to the new company Montsalvat Ltd.5 Today, visiting Montsalvat one still sees artists, students and visitors enjoying the unique and beautiful surroundings.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, great hall, montsalvat

The former blue-stone Bulla Store and Post Office was damaged by fire in September 1992. Unfortunately it was not restored despite its heritage listing and the fire-damaged building was finally demolished. A house now occupies the site.The Bulla Store was one of the first buildings to be erected in the little township.A non-digital coloured photograph of a damaged blue stone building. There is no roof and the windows and doors are covered in with sheets of corrugated iron. bulla store and post office., bulla bulla, general stores

Travis Webber was born in South Australia in 1900. He died in 1968. He studied at the South Australian School of Arts where he went on to teach. Webber established himself as one of the Australia's most prolific landscape artists. His work is held in several large galleries.Bluestone building with a shingle roof. In foreground right is a wooden fence. A carriageway cuts through centre of building, and above this is a window filled in with corrugated iron. The right side of building has large cracks. A tree is growing against the building in image centre, and bushes at image left and right. Framed in wooden frame.Front: Travis Webber (brown paint, lower left) Back: Geelong Picture Framers, 211 Moorabool Street, Gelong. Ph: 97805 (blue ink stamp, lower centre).oil painting, greenmount, landscape, portland landscape

Built in the 1920s on Tom Fowler's farm at Willow Grove. Used as a shed.A large square-shaped shed with walls of split timber. It has a gabled roof of corrugated iron, while the floor is made up of wooden cobbles. The roofs of the side extensions are made of wood. The floor is Red Gum blocksagriculture, old gippstown, west gippsland, gippsland, gippsland heritage park, goldfields, coal mine, victorian era, moe, historical village, baw baw shire, willow grove, latrobe valley, old gippstown heritage park, horse drawn vehicles, butchers cart, baker's cart, tanjil valley, latrobe city council

This building was constructed at Old Gippstown from materials at hand. It was named after the garage operated in Maffra by W.O. (Bill) Fulton, blacksmith, garage proprietor and later state member of parliament. A large rectangular-shaped corrugated iron shed, used as a Garage. It has a gabled roof made of corrugated iron. There is a billboard on the front of building's roof.motor garage, old gippstown, west gippsland, gippsland, gippsland heritage park, goldfields, coal mine, victorian era, moe, historical village, petrol station, w.o. (bill) fulton, old gippstown heritage park, latrobe valley, buick hearse, chevrolet tourer, hudson hearse, stanley steamer, plume texaco, shell, cor, petrol pump

This store in Main Street Bacchus Marsh was first opened by James Young in November 1866. In October 1869 it was purchased by William Anderson and was operated by members of the Anderson family until 1971. The site of the store was on the southern side of Main Street on the eastern side of Eddie Toole Park. On the opposite side of the street was the site of the former Post Office on the northern side of Main Street. The store was first named the Border Mills Store during James Young's ownership and was later known as the Border Store (Anderson & Co.).Small black and white photograph showing Anderson’s store. It shows a large stone building with a corrugated iron verandah which bears a painted sign of the name of the business: GROCERS. ANDERSON & Co. DRAPERS. Behind a brick parapet rises a hip roof with one chimney visible. Four men stand in casual poses ranged along the verandah. A post and rail fence runs along the road frontage. A tree is planted in an ornamental wrought iron plant protector on the inside of the fence.On the back in decorative print: “ New York Photographic Adelaide Travelling Brand Chas. F. Husband Manager.” In handwriting: Border store built by James Young 1866 owned by Anderson 1869-1972. BMDHS stamp and no. HS 411.shops bacchus marsh vic., anderson's store bacchus marsh, stevenson and mcnicoll 1883 photographs of bacchus marsh and district

Original home of George Carpenter, son of John Carpenter, first contractor for the artificial entrance. On this site home and office of Carpenter's Caravan Park.Colour photograph of Skippers Restaurant, Esplanade. It shows a weatherboard building, centre roof connects eastern hipped roof and western gable which is half timbered in Tudor style. Decorative corbels support eaves. Wrought iron lacework and brackets under veranda roof. Lakes Entrance Victoriaarchitecture, township, restaurant

From Victorian Heritage: The single storey mansion house with enclosed glass verandah, Burswood was built in 1853 on a site overlooking the Portland Bay for English born pioneer colonist Edward Henty. John Barrow of Adelaide was the architect for this exceptional Australian regency style residence which he designed as a central block of fine axed basalt ashlar and slate roof (now replaced) with flanking brick wings forming an enclosed rear courtyard. Burswood is the most important early mansion house in western Victoria, being an exceptional Australian regency design by distinguished colonial architect James Barrow. Edward Henty, a member of one of Australia's most remarkable colonial families and the founder of Portland, established the first permanent settlement in Victoria on 19th November 1834, and Burswood is testimony to his success as an early colonist. Henty lived in his mansion for 17 years in a semi-regal state. Burswood has been little altered since completion in 1853. A glasshouse conservatory to the side of the present enclosed verandah was demolished prior to 1895 and the slate roof replaced with iron. Johnstone, O’Shannessy & Co was a leading photographic studio located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was active from 1865 to 1905. Henry James Johnstone was also an artist and studied at Louis Buvelot's school and with Thomas Clark.Painting of a sandstone coloured building. A grand house with a driveway and well-kept gardens to the front. There is a horse and cart with a man standing to the side of it. There is a female figure exiting the building and another female and a man further along the driveway with a dog. The building has a glass conservatory attached to the side. The sky is blue with several fluffy clouds.Bottom right: Johnstone O'Shannessy & Co Melbourne (in white paint)homestead, henty, historic buildings, colonial, burswood house

The Holy Trinity Anglican Church in this location was first opened in 1877. An earlier nearby prefabricated Church building known as the 'Iron Church' had served as the Anglican place of worship in Bacchus Marsh from around 1855 until 1877. The 1877 sandstone Church with a slate roof was intended as a permanent structure for Anglican worship in Bacchus Marsh and still stands in 2024 and continues to function as an Anglican Church. The building was designed by Frederick Wyatt and is described as early English Gothic in style. It was opened on 5 June 1877 by Bishop Moorhouse of Melbourne. The sandstone was acquired from Grant's quarry at Maddingley.Small sepia unframed photograph on card with gold border framing photograph. Housed in the Jeremeas Family Album, which contains photographs of Bacchus Marsh and District in 1883 by Stevenson and McNicoll. The photograph depicts the recently constructed Anglican Holy Trinity Church in Gisborne Road, Bacchus Marsh. The view of the building is from Gisborne Road looking west. From this angle the rear and southern side of the building can be seen. A picket fence along the entrance to the Church grounds can be seen in the foreground.On the front: Stevenson & McNicoll. Photo. 108 Elizabeth St. Melbourne. COPIES CAN BE OBTAINED AT ANY TIME. On the back: LIGHT & TRUTH inscribed on a banner surmounted by a representation of the rising sun. Copies of this Portrait can be had at any time by sending the Name and Post Office Money Order or Stamps for the amount of order to STEVENSON & McNICOLL LATE BENSON & STEVENSON, Photographers. 108 Elizabeth Street, MELBOURNE churches bacchus marsh, holy trinity anglican church bacchus marsh, holy trinity church of england bacchus marsh, stevenson and mcnicoll 1883 photographs of bacchus marsh and district

Skippers - old Carpenter's home - on reverseBlack and white photograph of the recently completed Skippers Wine Bar, the refurbished Carpenter family home, shows federation style building, entry and reception rooms between gabled roofed west wing and hip roof east wing. Veranda has iron lacework, picket fence across front, part of Carpenter Holiday's sign to right of the image. Lakes Entrance Victoriaresort, restaurant

The building in the photograph was the first Sunbury State School No.1002. Prior to the school being built, lessons were conducted in the Presbyterian Church. After parents organised a petition in 1869 for the school to be housed in a proper building and a committee of management was formed, work on a new school building commenced. The old building had many structural deficiencies and the red brick building was built on the same site in 1911. A non-digital black and white photograph of an austere looking rendered building with a flagpole attached to a small portico at the entrance of the building. The roof is corrugated iron and has two air vents and two chimneys on it. There is a picket fence with a gate across the front and a tree is growing in the front.sunbury state school no. 1002., macedon street, stawell street