Mary Tolhurst M&DHS - March 29th Dunvegan Willows Park Melton 1992 Ladies Oral History Day Graham Minns President Ray Radford MC Sound recording transfer to CD 2011 by Tom Wood Edited typescript by Wendy Barrie 2013 I was born in Rockbank, and when I was five years old moved to Toolern Vale and started and finished school there. Toolern Vale only consisted of the Store, Post Office and shop, where you could buy your fodder, and pollard supplies, the Hall, the little Church and the bluestone School. The School changed shape three times from the 1800s[1869] til the time I went there. There was four generations of my family that went there and it was destroyed by fire in 1965. Marjorie nee Myers Butler. Yes, I remember along with it your lovely Ronisch piano. Mary, quite true! Marj what you say about the Ronisch piano. When I came the age to learn music my mum and dad couldn’t really afford it, but still what parents do for their children. They had Marj go along with them and pick this lovely Ronisch piano. It was known round the district. Everyone commented about the loss that lovely piano. After leaving school it was war time, 1939, then it was work, When I was 7 year old I was put out into the cow yard. In 1940 when the soldiers were going away our milk was confiscated it had to go to Bacchus Marsh. It used to go the Sunbury to be brine cooled and then go to Melbourne. Then they took it then to the Lifeguard Milk Factory at Bacchus Marsh. It had to go as condensed milk to the soldiers. This year is 50 years of the Land Army. I was an unofficial Land Army but they still kept check on me. I went onto married life and I followed the cows right through [howls of laughter] and we went on until the 1965 fire. That’s when we got out of the cows. Marjorie asks, was Granny Watts your grandmother or great grandmother? Mary: She was my great grandmother, the midwife of Melton. The 1965 fire started ¾ of a mile above our place, Frank Ryan’s sheds were burnt and his house was saved, then it wiped the School out, the Hall, the Church the Post Office and Store and little house that was Charlie Charlton’s in the early days. Mrs Wilson’s place was saved by the Fire Brigade by pulling boards off the side, and from there it went over the hill and it was stopped at the Rockbank Railway Station. If it had of got over the railway they said it would have gone into Werribee. A lot was burnt out in that strip. Mary nee Nixon Collins: 18 houses burnt that day. Audience question, did Melton get burnt that day? Ray: No. It came down through the Toolern Vale road and cut across about a mile and a half from the cross roads at Toolern Vale from north westerly to the south east and cut through over the Keilor road. Mary: It came in across the creek at Funstons in Toolern, then through Jim Minns. Dorothy was it your place then [nee Knox Beaty] to Ken Beatty’s and from there it went through to Doug McIntosh’s and to Cockbills and the wind changed and it came across to the railway line, and that is where they stopped it. [the cause of the fire was controversial, they had been burning off the night before and there was some talk of someone starting it. It was very hot and very strong wind, it was a terrible day] Ray: When the fire went through McIntosh’s they had a haystack on the north side of their house and the haystack got caught and the fire burnt a hole through the side of the house and the boys pyjamas on the bed. The house was saved. It came through like and express train roaring at you, I was at McIntosh’s when it went roaring past. You couldn’t see, dust and ash and tremendous heat. The fire started about 12 o’clock Jack [husband] said to me, fire, I said where, where? Just up the road, what have I got to do? and he went out and he had gone to the fire and left me. I tried to get the animals and I put out buckets of water, putting the buckets of water out saved my life. Chas Jones and another friend of his came in and they picked up the buckets of water, I thought I had better get out because the fire was on the haystack up the paddock and when I went to go out through the north side of the house and couldn’t get out, I’ll go through the front gate so I went around the other side of the house. I got caught there and Chassy Jones and his friend came round carrying the bucket of water and I panicked. He threw the bucket of water over me. Well that is what saved my life because I was damp, whenever we tried to leave the ball of fire came over me and over my shoulder and my hair was scorched. Chassy Jones lost his truck and Keith Watt his big truck because he had the water tank on it and they couldn’t get out of the yard. Granny Watt’s house, the first private hospital had condemned and Jack and I pulled it down and had it moved up to Toolern and had it in the yard a fortnight and it was all burnt and we didn’t get the shed we wanted. Every 13 years right up until Ash Wednesday fires, there has always been fire close at hand. The 1952 fire went down the back of the house, the 1965 fire took the house, and the house that I live in now, it is the third house that has been on that spot. When the Hunters owned it, Mrs Hunter was nearly burnt in her bed. They had a 13 roomed house. In 1924 the house burnt down, and there was another house was built there and that was the one that burnt down. Edna: So Mary built a brick veneer house. Marjorie: like the three little pigs [laughter] Mary Tolhurst member of the Melton & District Historical Society in the Melton and Moorabool Leader local identities, local special interest groups

The Kangaroo Hoppet is Australia’s premier long distance cross country ski race, and a member of the Worldloppet series of international cross country ski events. The first race at Falls Creek was held in 1979 under the name of “Australian Birkebeiner”. It was a 21km race with about 80 participants organised by the Birkebeiner Nordic Ski Club of Mount Beauty. The course started and finished at Falls Creek Alpine Resort and took participants out into the Bogong High Plains. After running the event for 10 years, it was decided they should become part of the Worldloppet series of marathon ski races. Representatives from the Birkebeiner Nordic Ski Club and the Australian Ski Federation attended the Worldloppet Annual Meeting in Finland in June 1990 to put the case for the acceptance of an Australian event into the Worldloppet series. Before being admitted, they had to demonstrate that the Birkebeiner Club could run a world class event, so three months later in August 1990 a 42km event named the Australian International Ski Marathon was held at Falls Creek together with a 21km Birkebeiner race and a 7km event called the Birkebeiner Lite. The event was approved by delegates from USA, Norway and Austria, in 1991 Australia became the 12th member of Worldloppet, with the condition that there had to be a name change. After some late night discussion allegedly involving red wine from North East Victoria the main event became the 42km Kangaroo Hoppet, with the minor events being the 21km Australian Birkebeiner, and 7km Joey Hoppet. In the winter of 1991, the first Kangaroo Hoppet was held. It was a great success and has been a regular fixture on the international ski calendar ever since. It features the main 42km event as well as a 21km event and a 7km event. The Hoppet brings the Australian snowfields to an international audience. In 2017 the Men's Winner was Miles Havlick from USA in a time of 1:37:24.2. The winner of the Women's event was Barbara Jezersek of Australia in a time of 1:46:59.8. This poster is significant because it documents an event which brings international attention to Falls Creek and the surrounding region.A poster featuring two Australian skiers on a downhill slope with a group of spectators in the background. Logos of Worldloppet, AGL, Falls Creek, Alpine Shire Council, Victorian State Government, the Birkebeiner Nordic Ski Club and FIS are across the bottom of the poster. To the left of image: KANGAROO HOPPET 26 August 2017 42 km 21 km 7 km FALLS CREEK AUSTRALIA Beside the logos: www.hoppet.com.au Photo: Mike - www.fallscreekphotos.com.aukangaroo hoppet, worldloppet events, falls creek, mt. beauty

Australian Magazine (A.M.) published a special three page article about Falls Creek and the Bogong High Plains on 24th August 1954. The article was titled "Australia's playground of the future". Written by Muir Maclaren, it referred to the Bogong High Plains as a comparatively new and unexploited winter playground which could be one of the best snow resorts in the world. There were 13 huts which were at Falls Creek which were there due to "hard work, the grace of God, and the permission of the Victorian State Electricity Commission". A brief history of the Albury Ski Club Lodge was included. In 1954 the Lodge was run byLes Meikle and had the Club had a membership of 200 people. Lodges with accommodation established at this time, with the ability to house a total of 280 people, included Albury, Skyline, Bogong, Myrtleford, Hymans, Dawn, Galleon, Kiewa Valley, Snowden, Nelse, Moroma, Trowalla, St, Trinian's, Bowna and Nissen. Fred Griffith, as a member of the Albury Ski Club and owner of Bowna Lodge escorted the reporter and explained the potential of Falls Creek and the surrounding area to become a year-round playground, a paradise for tourists and a great income-earner for the State.This article and accompanying images are significant because they capture early information about the Bogong High Plains, Falls Creek and its pioneers.A centre spread from a monthly publication featuring text and colour imagesBelow photo The ski tow at the foot of Bogong High Plains, an area of 280 square miles of unequalled ski-ing country.fred griffith, falls creek pioneers

David McKenzie obituary, Romsey Examiner 1928 Another of Australia’s very old pioneers in the person of Mr McKenzie, passed away last weekend at his daughters residence At regent at the ripe old age of 92 years ( he would be 93 in November) Born at Berwick of Tweed Scotland, the late Mr McKenzie arrived in Australia with two of his uncles in 1855 by the ship “Red Jacket”. A stone- mason by trade he worked about Melbourne and at Geelong until attack by “gold fever” but met with no success at this venture so he returned to his trade, arriving at Melton about 1860. There he married and settles for about 20 years. In 1880 the Cherokee Heights with its subdivision was famous and Mr McKenzie moved there with his daughter. He continues in his trade, his work extending to Gisborne, Bacchus Marsh, Romsey, and Springfield and other places, where to this day, may be seen monuments of his skill and through tradesmanship as a mason. During his residence in the Mount, he took a keen interest in all the affairs of Kerrie and Cherokee, and he was a familiar figure at all the public gatherings at which he nearly always filled the position of Chairman, because of outstanding qualifications. He was a man of those sterling qualities possessed by those men who laid the foundation of this country so well and truly. Loyal, broad of vision, just in thought and deed, honourable to the extreme in all dealings, fearless in the cause of right, a lover of home and family, and ready to lend a hand to all progressive movements. To the memory of those grand men the youth of today should lift their hats in reverence. Mr McKenzie was a prolific reader of educational works, and the wonderful knowledge he retained upon a variety of subjects was a source joy to those who associated with him. His wife predeceased him by 43 years ago soon after arrival in Cherokee. A Pioneer of Melton There are probably some residents left at Melton and Bacchus Marsh who will remember the late Mr McKenzie, one of them has written as follows:- I knew the late Mr. McKenzie since I was a little boy – over 50 years ago- and no better man ever lived than he, he was a good man from every point of view. The late Mr McKenzie was born on the November 25th, 1835 at Montrose, Scotland. He came to Australia in 1853 and resided for a time with his uncle the late Mr. Gibson on the Kororoit Creek near Melton. A few years later he settled in Melton. In 1861 he was married to Miss Mary Buchanan, the eldest daughter of the late Mr. George Buchanan, one of the early settlers of Melton. Deceased resided on the main road to Bacchus Marsh one mile from Melton. He was a stone- mason by trade, and some fine buildings in Melton and surrounding districts to this day, stand to his credit. He built the Presbyterian Church Melton. The old school, the Shire Hall, many private dwellings and numerous bridges. He was highly respected, as he was well known for the good work he put into all he had to do with. He also took numerous contracts in the Melton Shire, and was also employed by the Shire as Clerk of Works. He was a most conscious man. In his day he took a prominent part in all public affairs, and was a leading spirit in the old school Board. He was one of the pioneers of the Melton Rechabite Tent. He was one of the earliest workers and supporters of the Melton Presbyterian Church, of which he was an elder, and for a great number of years, its Sunday School Superintendent and Teacher. He also lead the singing for many years before the days of the organ, as he had a splendid voice, and could sing his old Scotch songs and hymns up to within six months of his death. For the past five years he has resided with one of his daughters at north Preston, where he died. He had good health up to within six months of his death and could well remember all the early happenings at Melton and surrounding districts. There are five daughters and one living son:- Margaret Mrs. Walter Wyatt Twose of Burnley Elizabeth Mrs George Shebler of Brunswick Georgina Mrs Jack Sinclair Isabel Mrs H Knight of North Preston Jane Mrs William Gibson of Warragul John W. of Fremantle - Western Australia Letter from Margaret to the Melton Presbyterian Churchchurches, local architecture

On the morning of the Piney Creek Picnic Race Club's annual meeting Squire Pilkington of Piney Creek Homestead, President of the Club, draws the Calcutta Sweep. Graeme Oliver nominates his horse for the Ladies' Bracelet in the name of Elaine Montieth and O'Day, as Manager for MacLough gives his nomination to her friend Penny Sefton whom Reg Apperton is sparking. With Keiran O'Hara for his rider, Squire Pilkington nominates in the name of his pretty niece, Susan Bundy. Harry MacLean as Squire Pilkington. Bill Tenteye as the Hon. Secretary Jim McGrath as the Hon. Treasurer.The album and images are significant because they document literature written by a prominent member of the Wodonga community. The presentation of this precis was supported by several significant district families and individuals.Ringer's River Album Coloured photo Plate 17des martin, many a mile, ringer's river, northeast victoria stories

A short time later Elaine and Graeme Oliver, a young station owner, prepare to ride from Barmagula homestead down to the horse yards to assist in bringing in the "grasseaters". These are racehorses that have all been paddocked together for some weeks prior to the forthcoming Piney Creek Amateur Picnic Race Club's annual meeting. Paddocking ensures that every horse has the same training period before the private meeting at which members only may race or ride a horse, and attendance is by invitation. Tony Conway as Oliver.The album and images are significant because they document literature written by a prominent member of the Wodonga community. The presentation of this precis was supported by several significant district families and individuals.Ringer's River Album Coloured photo Plate 10des martin, many a mile, ringer's river, northeast victoria stories

This folder contains the official Inspector's reports for House Creek School Number 2266. Inspections were carried out every six months for all Victorian Government Schools. On 8th October 1879 Mathew Parnaby and others applied for the establishment of a school, between Huon and House Creeks, about four miles southwest of Wodonga. The District Inspector approved and Albert Schlink offered two acres of freehold land as a site, four chains from the southeast corner of Allotment Eight, Section 10, of the Parish of Wodonga in the County of Bogong. A portable classroom, 22ft x14ft, with quarters was erected at a total cost of £192, and SS2266 opened on 1st of June 1880 with Edwin Davis as Head Teacher. In 1883 the average attendance ranged between 12 and 20. Both school and quarters fell into a very bad state of repair. Temporarily closed in 1894, the school reopened as a result of a petition by Ferdinand Godde and others. By 1902 the school had a nett enrolment of 37, the grounds had been fenced, and a shelter shed erected by local effort. By 1907 the nett enrolment had risen to 45 with an average attendance of 37. Ferdinand V. Godde served as Correspondent of the Committee in 1911. House Creek was unstaffed in February 1917 and closed on 8th of November 1917. It reopened on 4th August 1921, but with a nett enrolment of 6, closed on the 24th July 1926. The building was sold for removal. Many of the reports in this Register were written and signed by Henry Finch Rix. He was a pioneer of the Victorian School Inspection System and from 1884 to 1887 worked as a Chief Inspector in the Beechworth Education District. He had previously played with the Carlton Football Club for one season. Henry Rix was a highly regarded educator and a staunch advocate of the establishment of school libraries to teach children of "the rich stores of profitable pleasure to be found in books."This item is significant because it documents progress and recommendations for students at an early government primary school in the Wodonga district.A large bound folder of printed forms. The majority have been completed in handwritten reports including names, notes and statistics. On cover: INSPECTOR'S REGISTER BOOK STATE SCHOOLShenry finch rix, house creek school, victorian school inspectors, school 2266

Jack Hargreaves drove Adaptor to win the 1969 Bendigo Cup. Jack Hargreaves, who died on December 6 at the Bendigo Hospital aged 77, trained and drove countless winners during a 34-year harness racing career in which he became one of the true icons of the sport. Born John Henry Hargreaves in Wedderburn on December 3, 1926, harness racing was always in his blood. His father, Hughie, was a successful driver and trainer who raced horses all over Victoria. Jack drove his first winner at the age of 16 at Woodend. He lived on the family farm at Kuracca, near Wedderburn, until the age of 22, when he then married Elvie Stephenson from Fentons Creek. He and Elvie went on to have four children - Helen (now 53), Judi (51), Roslyn (49) and John (45). They are grandparents of 15 and great-grandparents of two. After spending two years at Tallarook where he worked on a sheep property, Jack and Elvie then moved to Korong Vale, where Jack set up his own training stable. He kept about 20 horses at a time at his Korong Vale stable, training and racing all of them for 26 years at his property. His greatest moment was the 1969 Miracle Mile, when he drove Adaptor to victory. Adaptor would later be sold to America for the then highest figure paid for an export horse - about $250,000. He also notched up many wins in country pacing cups, including Bendigo, Geelong, Maryborough, Kilmore and St Arnaud. During his career, Jack built a reputation of being a fine judge of pace and he consistently brought out the best in some difficult horses. His natural ability led to him being crowned Bendigo's leading driver for the season on two occasions. But an accident at Mildura on November 26, 1976 - just days before his 50th birthday - led to his driving career being cut short prematurely. Jack sustained head injuries after he was trampled by another horse after being tipped out of his sulky while driving Go Ned. He was regaining his senses and sitting up in the middle of the track when the horse went straight over him. The hoof of the horse came down between his left ear and skullcap, shattering that part of his skull. In the weeks following the accident, Jack underwent lengthy operations in Melbourne, to firstly clear splinters of bone from his brain. He then had a piece of bone removed from one of his ribs to cover a hole in his skull. He was left with injuries that were described as being similar to those of a person who had suffered a stroke. Months of physiotherapy and speech therapy followed in Melbourne and later Bendigo, before he was finally allowed to go hone in August, 1977 - almost one year after the accident. After losing part of his speech in the accident, Jack learned to communicate using his hands. "It became second-nature to us that we could read his hand signals and most of the people in the harness racing world could, too," Jack's daughter, Judi Bond, said."He learned his own way to communicate with people."While Jack was no longer able to continue his passion of driving competitively, he would still take the reins at the training track when given a chance to by his fellow drivers.He also continued to breed horses. "He was a skilled horseman, a good farrier and horses were the love of his life," Judi said. Two years after the accident, Jack and Elvie built a house in Wedderburn, directly above the trotting track. "That was so in the early days after his accident he could still see what was going on at the track," Judi said. "Everyday, he would watch the trainers . . . he'd watch what they were up to on the track."Jack was able to sit in his loungeroom and look out through large glass doors with a "grandstand" view of Leg 5 races, trials and training at the trotting track. Jack's love of harness racing filtered through to his children, with both Judi and John having careers as drivers. Judi drove for 10 years, finishing in 1978, but she continues to breed horses. Judi won the first women's race where bets were allowed to be made when she drove Youdini to victory at the Melbourne Showgrounds track in 1974.Blue with yellow vertical panelbendigo cup, adaptor, horse, jack hargreaves, bhrc, bendigo harness racing club, lords raceway, j hargreaves

Part of a yearly marketing and information program to promote Falls Creek region for the summer season. . General activities explained in he brochure are:- Enjoying A Bushwalk In The Alpine National Park, Water Sports, Horse Riding, Mountain Bike Riding, Two & Four Wheel Driving, High Country Wining & Dining, Discovering The Wildlife. Daybreaks & Golden Sunsets And Pure Relaxation. The specific activities in the Summer Program of Events include:- Alpine Nature Rambles. Angling Expeditions, Christmas Carols, National Distance Camp, Food, Wine & Wildflower Weekend, High-O Orienteering Event, Mile High Tennis Tournament, High Country Mountain Bike Ride, Classical Music Weekend, Cadbury Red Tulip Giant Easter Egg Hunt And Festivities. The “Breakaways” brochure is a publication of the Falls Creek Chamber of Commerce, an organisation dedicated to establishing Falls Creek as the premier alpine resort In Australia. This item is important as it documents seasonal activities at Falls Creek Alpine ResortA brochure for summer program at Falls Creek for 1996/7. The front cover features an image of yellow wildflowers, mountain rocks and the sky with the title"Falls Creek Alpine Resort Summer Breakawaysfalls creek marketing, falls creek summer programs., falls creek alpine resort, falls creek events and activities

Part of a yearly marketing program promoting Falls Creek region for the summer season. The table of events runs from December 2001 until April 2002 and includes Falls Creek Multi-Sport Camps, Christmas Day Luncheon, Summer Paste Workshop, New Year's Eve Celebrations' National Distance Training Camp, Jazz & Blues, Food, WIne & Wildflower Weekend, HIgh Country Photography & Art Exhibition, Falls Creek Off-Road Triathlon, Mile High Tennis Tournament, Stanton & Killeen WInemaker Dinner, Classical Music and Easter at Falls Creek.This item is important as it documents seasonal activities at Falls Creek Alpine Resort outside the most recognised snow skiing programs.A small leaflet advertising summer program at Falls Creek for 2001-2002. Front cover features four images, the title in tan and white print and the Falls Creek logo at the bottom. The slogan printed at the foot of the front page is "Catch the buzz". falls creek summer, events at falls creek, falls creek summer programs., falls creek marketing

Part of a yearly marketing and information material promoting Falls Creek Resort for the summer season. It includes a table of events from November 1999 until April 2000. Events listed include:- Falls Creek Multi-Sports Camps, Christmas Day Luncheon and New Year's Eve celebrations, National Distance Training Camp, Cajun Blues Weekend, Food, Wine and Wildflower Weekend, Mile High Tennis Tournament, High Country Photo Exhibition, Falls Creek Off-Road Triathlon, Stanton & Killeen WInemaker Dinner, Classical Music Weekend, Adventures with Style and an Easter Egg Hunt.This item is important as it documents seasonal activities at Falls Creek Alpine ResortA brochure for summer program at Falls Creek Alpine resort for 1999 - 2000. Text is in orange and white print.falls creek marketing, falls creek events, falls creek summer, falls creek camps

This plan was for the sale of parcels of land from the Lerderderg Park Estate property in 1911. Advertising for the sale appeared in the Bacchus Marsh Express newspaper through July of 1911. The property was situated only a few kilometers from the township of Bacchus Marsh. The agents for the sale were L. A. Fairbairn & Co.Lerderderg Park Estate was a significant and early colonial property in the Bacchus Marsh area. This plan provides details about the first time the property was subdivided for sale. It is therefore documents an important moment in the history of this property and the broader trend of the subdivision of older and larger properties in the district.A single page paper plan showing allotments of land for sale from the Lerderderg Park property owned by John Wills. The parcels of land for sale are coloured in red.The Lerderderg River and Pyke's Creek Irigation Channel shown on the plan are in blue ink. The rest of the plan is a dark cream or beige colur with the text in black ink. The plan has been extensively annotated with hand-written notes indicating the names of people who purchased the various parcels of lands and the prices paid for those lands. Part of the top of the plan containing some text appears to be missing. The plan is pasted into a bound volume containing 76 maps or plans in total. Top: Have received instructions to Sell, account Mr John Wills, his renowned LERDERDERG PARK LANDS, so well and favourably known throughout the Commonwealth. In areas from 3 acres to 1276 acres. Every lot is either rich lucerne land (or portion now under lucerne) with some higher land adjoining Railway Station, and 2 Milk factories within 2 miles, absolutely the finest land in Victoria. Bottom: THIS IS THE FIRST SUBDIVISIONAL SALE of Rich Flats in Bacchus Marsh since the Pyke's Creek Scheme, and every lot is commanded by it. Only 32 miles from Melbourne.bacchus marsh victoria maps, land sales, lerderderg park estate, land subdivision

Blind Creek was located between the Abbotsford Convent and what is now the Collins Bridge in Studley Park. In an 1858 map of East Collingwood by Clement Hodgkinson, in the State Library of Victoria, one can see how the creek was originally a significant landmark in Collingwood; remaining vacant land until a barrel drain enclosed it. The area was later filled in, surveyed and developed. The position where Blind Creek entered the Yarra was in the immediate vicinity of Hodgson’s Punt, which had linked Kew to the other side of the Yarra from 1839. The Punt was purchased by the Colonial Government in 1852 and was in use until the opening of the Studley Park Road (Johnston Street) Bridge in 1858 made its continued use redundantThe point of view selected by the artist for the watercolour is from the banks of Blind Creek in East Collingwood, looking across the Yarra to the Kew side of the river.Inscribed verso 'Creek and Old Watering stage, on the Yarra East Collingwood 1854 / Trees, stage, &c have long since disappeared / [Artist Signature] / FT 110 / Creek itself now being filled in 1903.gb richardson, blind creek - abbotsford, yarra river - abbotsford (vic) - kew (vic), colonial artists, australian art - 19th century, george bouchier richardson

"Hercynia" was the largest vineyyard in the Bendigo District. It was started by Carl Wilhelm Greiffenhagen (William) and his cousins, twins, Carl and August Heine. The first vine cuttings were planted in 1860. The partners owned 300 acres at Axe Creek and in 1862 had 24 acres under vines and an orchard of 4 acres. By 1884 they had expanded to 30 acres of vines. They produced many award winning wines. August Heine ( 1832 - 1898) was born in Germany and came to Australia in 1854 with his twin brother Carl and their cousin William Greiffenhagen. Initially the three took up mining successfully but then the partnership bought 300 acres at Axe Creek and planted a vineyard. They also grew fruit and crops to feed the working horses. In 1870 August sold his interest in the vineyard and set up his own smaller vineyard at Sheepwash Gully. He had several business interests before he took up the caretaker position at the newly dug Weeroona lake, a position he held until his death. Carl Heine sold his interest in the vineyard in 1873 and returned to Germany. WIlliam Grieffenhagen (1834-1916) continued his very successful vineyard until the region was hit with a highly infectious vine disease in 1893. Although his own vines escaped infection, he was within the 2 mile quarantine area and was forced to dig out all his vines. He never replanted but depended on his orchard instead. He was a founding member of the Bendigo Agricultural Society and a local Shire councillor for several years. In 1870 he married Margaret Boyd.Binder containing information relating to Greiffenhagen's cellar (Hercynia Vineyard) 1860 - 1991 including black and white photographs & maps, compiled by John Houlahan as a third year thesis whichnis pat of the assessment for a Bachelor of Arts (Social Science) degree. Donated to the German Society 15/2/96 by the Grandfather of author Jack Houlahan.John Houlahanbook, bendigo, wineries, bendigo-history-axe creek- wineries- german

Gold was discovered on One Tree Hill in 1854. The site has been worked intermittently until fairly recent times. Published: Nillumbik Now and Then /​ Marguerite Marshall 2008; photographs Alan King with Marguerite Marshall.; p53 Though still a working mine, One Tree Hill Mine at Smiths Gully, now stands in a tranquil reserve surrounded by bush and native animals - in contrast to its heyday. In the mid 19th century, when the mine was part of the Caledonia Goldfields, hundreds of men in search of their fortune worked the alluvial gold in the Yarra River, its tributaries and the reefs that made up the goldfields. Miner Stan Bone, assisted by Wilfred Haywood, is the last of the independent gold miners in the area and still uses the quartz crushing battery as miners did when gold was first discovered in the area in 1851.1 Stan, who is the last of six generations of miners in his family, was aged 17 when he began mining on his father Alex’ mine, The Golden Crown in Yarrambat. These days, after blasting the gold-bearing rock in Mystery Reef, one of the four reefs at One Tree Hill, Stan transports it around five kilometres by tip truck to the Black Cameron Mine for crushing. There he uses water from the waterlogged mine, (which still contains gold), as the Happy Valley Creek at One Tree Hill is usually dry.2 The One Tree Hill Mine has been worked for close to a century since it opened around the late 1850s.3 The Swedish Reef was its most productive reef and one of the largest in the area. Around 1859, extractions included 204 ounces (5.8kg) of gold, won from 57 pounds (26kg) of stone.4 Then during World War Two, Stan’s uncle, Bill Wallace, and Alex Bone, closed the mine. In 1973, Stan, with his Uncle Bill, reopened the Black Cameron Mine and worked there until 1988. Stan resumed mining One Tree Hill in 1998. As late as the 1920s gold was picked up by chance! When crossing a gully on his way to vote at the St Andrews Primary School, Bill Joyce picked up some quartz containing gold. This site was to become the Black Cameron Mine. The Caledonia Diggings, named after Scotland’s ancient name by local Scots, began around Market Square (now Smiths Gully) and included Queenstown (St Andrews), Kingstown (Panton Hill) and Diamond Creek. There were also poorer bearing fields in Kangaroo Ground and Swipers Gully (now Research). * None of these compared in riches to the Ballarat and Bendigo fields5, but the Caledonia Diggings continued intermittently for close to 100 years. Gold was discovered in Victoria following a bid to stem the disappearance of much needed workmen to the New South Wales diggings. Several businessmen offered a reward of £200, for the discovery of gold within 200 miles (322 km) of Melbourne. Late in June 1851, gold was first discovered at Andersons Creek, Warrandyte. Then in 1854, George Boston and two other men discovered gold at Smiths Gully. Gold transformed the quiet districts, with a constant flow of families and vehicles on the dirt tracks en route to the Caledonia Diggings. Three thousand people worked the gullies in Market Square, including about 1000 Chinese miners. The square established its own police, mining warden, gold battery, school, shops and cemetery and grog flowed. Market Square flourished until the middle 1860s. Bullocks transported quartz from the Caledonia Goldfields to the crushing machinery at the Queenstown/St Andrews Battery, near Smiths Gully Cemetery. It was destroyed by bushfire in 1962. By the late 1850s, most early alluvial fields were in decline, but minor rushes continued until around 1900 and some until the early 1940s. Some miners did well, although most earned little from their hard labour in the harsh and primitive conditions.6 But according to historian, Mick Woiwod, the gold fields helped to democratise society, as individuals from all walks of life were forced to share experiences, and the ability to succeed, depended less on inherited wealth or social rank.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, gold mining, one tree hill mine, smiths gully

Opened in 1891, the bridge formed part of the Maroondah Aqueduct carrying water from Watts River near Healesville to the reservoir at Preston where it joined Melbourne's metropolitan water system. Covered under Heritage Overlay, Nillumbik Planning Scheme. Published: Nillumbik Now and Then /​ Marguerite Marshall 2008; photographs Alan King with Marguerite Marshall.; p99 Built to supply thirsty Melbourne in the late 19th century, the siphon bridge spanning the Plenty River off Leischa Court, Greensborough, was part of an engineering masterpiece. Opened in 1891, the bridge formed part of the Maroondah Aqueduct carrying water from the Watts River near Healesville to the reservoir at Preston where it joined the metropolitan distribution system. A major link in Melbourne’s water supply, it also had a huge impact on communities, which mushroomed along its route. Named after the Aboriginal word for the area around the Maroondah Reservoir, the Maroondah Aqueduct was fully operational until the 1970s. Since the 1980s the land along parts of the aqueduct have been used for walking and bicycle riding, shaded in places by Monterey Pine trees planted to stabilise the surrounding ground. From 1857 the Yan Yean Reservoir supplied Melbourne’s water but the growing city needed additional catchments.1 In 1886 work began on a weir on the Watts River to enable the aqueduct to carry most of the river water 41 miles (66km) to Melbourne. The aqueduct, built by the Board of Works, is the oldest remaining aqueduct near Melbourne and was probably the first built with concrete.2 Although the aqueduct is now only used between the Maroondah and Sugarloaf Reservoirs, it can still be traced across the Shire. It extends from the Maroondah Reservoir through Christmas Hills, Kangaroo Ground, Research, Eltham, St Helena and then previously wound west through Greensborough to Reservoir.3 Built by horse and manpower the aqueduct gravity fed 25 million gallons (113.6ML) of water a day to Melbourne along a gradient of one foot to the mile. It included 25 miles (41km) of open concrete and brick channel, six miles (10km) of tunnels, and nine miles (15km) of 14 inverted siphons of riveted wrought-iron across creeks. Bricks for the aqueduct were made from clay found near the sites and remains of several kilns can still be found between Kangaroo Ground and Christmas Hills. Building the aqueduct transformed local communities. An abattoir was established at Christmas Hills. Grog shanties and labourers’ camps sprang up and local courts dealt with cases of ‘petty pilfering and boisterous behaviour’.4 The Kangaroo Ground school population jumped to 91, crammed into a room with one teacher. Miners who built the tunnels camped just north of Churinga in Greensborough – then called Tunnel Hill Camp – and adjacent to the Evelyn Arms Hotel. The miners’ high spirits were sometimes quenched in horse troughs or by a ‘welt under the ear and kick on the behind’ as the local constable calmed them down rather than lock them up.5 But the growing city of Melbourne needed more water, so the O’Shannassy catchment, east of Warburton, was added to the system in 1914. In 1920 work began on the present concrete Maroondah Dam one mile (1.6km) from the weir on the Watts River. The aqueduct capacity was thus doubled to 50 million gallons (227ML) a day.6 Intense land development threatened to pollute the open water supply, so channel sections were replaced with large pipes. In the late 1960s a large water main was built from the tunnel outlet at Research and extended through St Helena and Greensborough, so this section of the aqueduct was taken out of use. Long sections of the unused open channels in Greensborough and Bundoora were destroyed, but the old channel in Research and Eltham North remained largely intact. In the 1970s, the Sugarloaf Reservoir was constructed, inundating 445 hectares of land in Christmas Hills. Sugarloaf was officially opened in 1980 and serves as a water storage and treatment plant supplying Melbourne. In the early 1980s pipes replaced the section from Sugarloaf Reservoir to the tunnel entrance at Kangaroo Ground. The Research-Kangaroo Ground tunnel operates as part of the pipeline system.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, maroondah aqueduct, pipe bridge, siphon bridge

Originally a race course, the park has brought the community together with a variety of activities. Published: Nillumbik Now and Then /​ Marguerite Marshall 2008; photographs Alan King with Marguerite Marshall.; p45 Once used for horse racing, which attracted visitors from Melbourne, the Eltham Lower Park has brought the community together with a wide range of activities. Horse riding is now enjoyed as a recreation in the park as are other sports. The park also includes the Diamond Valley Railway miniature trains and a sanctuary for the rare and vulnerable Eltham Copper Butterfly. Eltham Lower Park, with other parks, forms an almost continuous green band from Eltham’s centre, along the Diamond Creek to the Yarra River.1 Before European settlement the Wurundjeri people met on this land, particularly at the junction of the Diamond Creek with the Yarra River, which they called Birr-arung. This is commemorated by the sculpture, Not just a Pretty Place by Aleks Danko, winner of the 2000 Nillumbik Art in Public Places Award. The first European to settle here was probably Henry Foley, who in 1841 used it as part of his pastoral run. Foley sold his leasehold to Joseph Wilson in 1845, who soon after sold it to Frederick Falkiner.2 During the 1840s the future park was part of a government square mile (2.6 sqkm) reserve, north of the Yarra, within the Parish of Nillumbik, later named Eltham. Soon the land was used for horse racing after nearby residents cleared ten acres (4ha) in the early 1850s. A three-quarter of a mile (1.2km) race secured the winner the £10 Publican’s Prize. In response to popular demand, the newly formed Eltham District Road Board petitioned the Surveyor General of the Colony of Victoria, in 1856, for 36 acres (14.6ha) of crown land for a racecourse and recreation. By 1858 the Eltham races had become an institution. ‘Many skirmishes occurred and the way home was paved with temptation, with sly-grog for sale.3 In the early 1870s, two jockeys were sons of the police officer in charge of the Eltham Police Station, Miles S Lyons.4 Another ten acres (4ha) was added to the area in 1866 and 12 acres (4.8ha) – Hohnes Hill – in 1870. In 1866, two acres (0.8ha) on the creek banks became an animal pound with William Walsh the pound keeper in 1870, but this was later incorporated into the park. By 1877 the area was called a public park but horse racing and training continued into the 1920s. In the mid-1900s trotters were trained on a circuit road. In 1953 the Eltham Pony Club was established and used a cross-country course on Hohnes Hill. From the mid 1950s the club held the Eltham Easter Fair at the park, later to include a procession along Main Road from the town centre to the park. The park also attracted picnic parties and campers from the inner suburbs as did Wingrove Park, and businesses catering for visitors, sprang up on the opposite side of Main Road. Bus-loads of school children visited the park for Gould League bird days in the 1960s. In 1979 the Eltham Shire Council bought Lenister Farm, linking the park with the Yarra River. The Lenister Farm wetland includes a bird hide, viewing platform and interpretive signs.5 Pioneer Henry Stooke, later Road Board chairman, bought the 11 acres (4.5ha) - later to become Lenister Farm - from the Crown in 1862. Stooke never lived on this site and the two houses at Lenister Farm were built in the 20th century. Since its formation in 1871, the Council has controlled this crown land, which it named Eltham Park. But in the 1920s Eltham Council bought land near the town centre for a park, which it named Eltham Central Park. To avoid confusion the Council renamed Eltham Park, Eltham Lower Park. Since 2004 the Yarra footbridge has linked the park with the Yarra Valley Metropolitan Park and the Main Yarra Trail.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 lower park, eltham park

Built c.1868, St Andrew’s Anglican Church is Nillumbik Shire’s oldest timber church and is historically, socially, and spiritually significant to the Shire of Nillumbik. The church is historically significant because it may have given its name 'St Andrews' to the town (another suggestion is that the name came from the local hotel), it is also historically significant as one of only four buildings that remain from the Caledonian goldfields era of Queenstown (now St Andrews) and one of only a handful of buildings that survived the 1960s bushfires. The church is historically, socially, and spiritually significant because it has played an important part in community life for more than 150 years; a proposal to move the church in 1984 met with strenuous opposition. Much of the fires on Black Saturday 2009 were the north of the town. The town itself remained intact - as did this heritage building. Covered under Heritage Overlay, Nillumbik Planning Scheme. National Trust of Australia (Victoria) Local significance Published: Nillumbik Now and Then /​ Marguerite Marshall 2008; photographs Alan King with Marguerite Marshall.; p69 The St Andrews Anglican Church and former St Andrews Primary School, are two reminders of the district’s early days, when it was founded on gold. St Andrews, then called Queenstown, was the earliest goldfield in the Caledonia Diggings.1 It was the Upper Diamond Gold Mining and Administrative Centre, with 3000 miners. Queenstown was also the seat of the Court of Petty Sessions. The church and school then stood close to European and Chinese stores, three hotels, a brewery and a quartz mill.2 In 1861, Queenstown was officially proclaimed a township. From 1865, the name Queenstown was interchangeable with St Andrews, until 1952, when the town was officially named St Andrews. As gold declined from the early 1880s, Queenstown changed dramatically into a settlement of small farms. St Andrew’s Anglican Church, built in 1868, is the Shire’s oldest timber church and possibly gave its name to the township.3 The small timber church was opened on November 1, 1869, by the Dean of Melbourne. Anniversary tea meetings helped raise funds, and in 1889, a three-bedroom parsonage was built alongside. In 1910, the vicar, the Rev Selwyn Chase (and friend of the Scouting Movement’s founder, Baden Powell), established the 1st Queenstown Scout Troop, only two years after Scouting began in Australia. The church was important to the lives of many local residents who were baptised, married and had funeral services there. But by the 1950s the population had decreased and so did the weekly attendances. Around the mid-1960s the church closed, then fell into disrepair. So in the mid 1980s it was sold to the Education Department and was under threat of relocation or demolition. However this caused such opposition from locals,4 that instead, the Anglican church leased it as part of the Panton Hill parish5 and it was reconsecrated in 1987. Queenstown’s first school was held in a tent after transferring from Andersons Creek, Warrandyte.6 From 1858 a church school, Caledonia Diggings, stood west of the main road, a quarter of a mile (0.4km) before Buttermans Track. In 1882 the school was moved from a leased building, owned by headmaster Robert Harris, into a larger building on the corner of the School and the Heidelberg-Kinglake Roads. It had been moved from Smiths Gully and included a teacher’s three-roomed residence.7 In 1887 the school was replaced by the Queenstown State School No 128, although it was also called Caledonia Diggings until 1891. In 1956 it was renamed St Andrews. Still standing, this building is now used as the St Andrews Community Centre and the residence is leased for private use. The original timber-lined room remains alongside the extensions, and is distinctive with its high ceiling and tall small-paned windows. In 1984 a new school was built 500 metres west of the old school. Many residents have contributed much to St Andrews but one family that has done so for several generations is the Harris family. Robert Harris was an active member of the St Andrew’s Anglican Church, and worked hard at improving the town’s amenities until his death in 1887. He was a signatory to the successful 1863 petition to the Chief Commissioner of Police, against the proposed removal of the Court of Petty Sessions and police station at the Caledonia Diggings. The police station stayed in the town until 1917. Harris was Head Teacher of Queenstown State School from 1864 to 1874, then of the Smiths Gully school until it closed in 1882, and he continued teaching at Panton Hill until his death. His son, Robert Charles Harris, was editor and printer of the local newspaper, The Evelyn Observer, from 1873 until 1915. Robert’s son, William Shelley Harris, served in the Boer War and in World War One. In 1928 he became Kinglake National Park’s first park ranger. Robert’s daughter Elizabeth, taught needlework at Queenstown State School, and later ran the post office in Kinglake.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, st andrews, st andrews anglican church

A description in the newspaper near the illustration (page 210) reads as follows: "Eltham is a pretty little township on the Yarra Flats road, about 14 miles east north east of Melbourne, from which place there is communication by way of Heidelberg. It has a population of nearly 400 inhabitants, but in addition it is the centre of a large district extending over about 203 square miles, having a population of 2344. The land in the district is mostly used for grazing purposes, although as a rule the small farms grow a good deal of wheat, oats and other agricultural produce. A large quantity of fruit, especially raspberries and strawberries, is also produced, the rich alluvial flats along the creek upon which the township is situated being very well adapted for that purpose. Gold has also been found in the vicinity of the township, but not in remunerative quantities". This photo forms part of a collection of photographs gathered by the Shire of Eltham for their centenary project book,"Pioneers and Painters: 100 years of the Shire of Eltham" by Alan Marshall (1971). The collection of over 500 images is held in partnership between Eltham District Historical Society and Yarra Plenty Regional Library (Eltham Library) and is now formally known as 'The Shire of Eltham Pioneers Photograph Collection.' It is significant in being the first community sourced collection representing the places and people of the Shire's first one hundred years.Digital imageshire of eltham pioneers photograph collection, eltham, illustrated australian news