My Recollections of Eltham Past by Margaret Joy Harding (nee Joy Chapman.) My family of Elizabeth and Alec Chapman moved to Eltham in 1946 into a cottage on the opposite side of the Diamond Creek from where the little train now operates in the Lower Park. At that time Eltham truly was a country town and the Pub was the main meeting place for most inhabitants on a Saturday afternoon in the beer garden. I attended Eltham Primary School where I started as a 4-year-old (my birthday being slightly after the mid-year intake) that happened then. My mother spent a lot of days taking me back to school when I had dismissed myself and walked the one kilomtre home alone. Bremner's Common (now Wingrove Park) was a big attraction with its dam and tad poling which I found much more entertaining than school. (Mrs Bremner ran a Service Station on the site of the current one). Another attraction at this site was the circus that came a couple of times a year. Watching them put up the circus tent was very interesting and even more of an attraction was the feeding of the Lions in cages and the monkeys and elephants among the other animals that are not found in a circus these days. At school then we were provided with hot chocolate at morning recess where the mothers would prepare it in the shelter shed. The only form of classroom heating was an open fire. Worse was the warm milk given in the summer months. By the time I was near finishing at Primary school we used to be able to walk along the Main Road at lunchtime to Mrs. Mitchell's shop to a delicious hot pie. As I recall there was no supervision for this departure from the school grounds. It is interesting that some of the other children I started school with I still have contact with, in fact one is a very good friend although now living in Perth. That is the other thing about Eltham; many who grew up here continue to live in the area. Following primary school, the natural progression was to Eltham High School. There was only the main building at that time and I can remember our first assembly at the front entrance. During the time I was at High School several new class rooms were added and the school hall. I remember the musical plays such as HMS Pinafore and other classical musicals being performed. I also remember countless hours doing marching practice. The main street shops when I was young consisted of the Blue Gum milk bar at the far end, a Grocery store and a shoe maker where Coles currently stands. Opposite there was Lyon's Garage. They also provided a bus service and when we got off the train this little bus would tour the back streets taking each individual to their home, sometimes this could take quite considerable time. There was also a Black Smith next to the Chiropractic Practice opposite Alistair Knox Park, another Milk Bar/General Store on the comer of Bridge Street/Main Road where a shop currently still operates. There was also a Butcher's shop down from the pub opposite Franklin Street. The only doctor was next to the courthouse on the other side of Brougham Street. On Saturday afternoon I was occasionally allowed to go the movies in the Town Hall which also stood on the site of the Coles centre. Often the Fire Alarm would sound and everyone would run outside to watch the fire truck leave with the volunteers clutching on the back. The other attraction during summer of course was the swimming pool which was a small concrete pool filled with water pumped from the Diamond Creek, sometimes it was like a mud puddle so for me the nearer to home Yarra/Diamond Creek junction was a much better option. We swam in the water hole which was quite deep and with fallen trees and sometimes carcasses of cows and kangaroos floating past. As recreation, the churches were another attraction for the Sunday school picnics to Mordialloc in the back of the moving van with benches tied into the back for us to "sit" on. Too bad when we went around a corner! In the early days we had an Ice Man deliver the ice once a week for "refrigeration". The green grocer came around in a horse and cart as did the milkman and the bread was delivered but I constantly got into trouble for eating the middle out on the way from the box it was delivered to in Mt Pleasant road across the paddock. The milkman finally would not come down our street after his horse bolted one morning and took off across the paddock. We also had the "Pan Man" come weekly and whose visit I would avoid. Our nearest shop was where the flower stall is located opposite the Lower Park. It consisted of a Tea Room and Milk Bar. There was a Public Telephone there which was the only contact to anyone else. We were a one car family so my mother’s movements were very limited as the Eltham Station was a couple of kilometres away and a trip to the city was an event. Being an only child growing up was a little lonely however rambling along the creek with my Mum, picking mushrooms and picking cherry plums for jam and the dogs catching rabbits which we ate if we could get them away from the dogs. We also liked to go into the Lower Park during school holidays when the Greek people came to camp and they would sing and dance around the camp fire and it all seemed so different to us as this was early days of immigration. Childhood was relatively simple and carefree and I wish the kids of today had the freedom of my youth and the healthy outdoor lifestyle of the "olden days".   SHOW GIRL COMPETITION In 1965 Eltham was more like a country town than the suburb it has become today. People knew each other, if not personally then certainly of the family name. The big event for the year was a Gymkhana or show at Lower Eltham Park. I can remember marching as a teenager from the town centre to the park in the marching girls with the decorated floats. In 1965, just on a whim on the day, I decided to enter the Miss Eltham Show Girl which was a part of the festivities at the park. I seem to remember that the show mainly consisted of horse events, cattle judging and dog show. As I had not given any serious thought to entering the competition, I wore a suit that I had for work which was brown wool, with a coffee coloured shirt under, black shoes, bag, and gloves but no hat. I duly paraded for the judges and much to my surprise I was announced the winner. I eventually went on to compete at the Miss Victoria Show Girl competition which was held at the Royal Melbourne Show. There I met many country girls who were representing their rural Victoria home. I made it into a final round of judging but I think justice prevailed when someone from a country background was crowned. It was fun to go into the show as I had not really been before and to see the displays of handcraft, cooking and wood chopping events was great as well as the judging of farm animals interesting. It is hard to remember the Eltham I grew up in. The Lyons Garage company bus that actually drove you home (or close to it) when we got off the train at night. The Eltham Hotel on a Saturday afternoon a usual social meeting place where people just sat and chatted. The pictures held in the Town Hall and when the fire alarm sounded all the men just jumped up and ran to help. Suburbia has now swallowed most of that life but thankfully we at least do have the trestle bridge and parkland. Digital file only - Black and white photo print on loan for scanning by EDHSalec chapman, annie bremner, blacksmith, bremner's flat, brougham steet, bus services, circus, diamond creek, dianne bell, doctor bradbury, easter gymkhana, elizabeth chapman, eltham high school, eltham hotel, eltham lower park, eltham public hall, eltham state school, eltham trestle bridge, general store, grace mitchell, ice man, joy chapman, lyons garage, margaret harding, milk bar, miss eltham 1965, miss victoria show girl, mount pleasant road, pan man, rodda parade, shops, show girl competition, swimming pool, water hole, yarra river

My Recollections of Eltham Past by Margaret Joy Harding (nee Joy Chapman.) My family of Elizabeth and Alec Chapman moved to Eltham in 1946 into a cottage on the opposite side of the Diamond Creek from where the little train now operates in the Lower Park. At that time Eltham truly was a country town and the Pub was the main meeting place for most inhabitants on a Saturday afternoon in the beer garden. I attended Eltham Primary School where I started as a 4-year-old (my birthday being slightly after the mid-year intake) that happened then. My mother spent a lot of days taking me back to school when I had dismissed myself and walked the one kilomtre home alone. Bremner's Common (now Wingrove Park) was a big attraction with its dam and tad poling which I found much more entertaining than school. (Mrs Bremner ran a Service Station on the site of the current one). Another attraction at this site was the circus that came a couple of times a year. Watching them put up the circus tent was very interesting and even more of an attraction was the feeding of the Lions in cages and the monkeys and elephants among the other animals that are not found in a circus these days. At school then we were provided with hot chocolate at morning recess where the mothers would prepare it in the shelter shed. The only form of classroom heating was an open fire. Worse was the warm milk given in the summer months. By the time I was near finishing at Primary school we used to be able to walk along the Main Road at lunchtime to Mrs. Mitchell's shop to a delicious hot pie. As I recall there was no supervision for this departure from the school grounds. It is interesting that some of the other children I started school with I still have contact with, in fact one is a very good friend although now living in Perth. That is the other thing about Eltham; many who grew up here continue to live in the area. Following primary school, the natural progression was to Eltham High School. There was only the main building at that time and I can remember our first assembly at the front entrance. During the time I was at High School several new class rooms were added and the school hall. I remember the musical plays such as HMS Pinafore and other classical musicals being performed. I also remember countless hours doing marching practice. The main street shops when I was young consisted of the Blue Gum milk bar at the far end, a Grocery store and a shoe maker where Coles currently stands. Opposite there was Lyon's Garage. They also provided a bus service and when we got off the train this little bus would tour the back streets taking each individual to their home, sometimes this could take quite considerable time. There was also a Black Smith next to the Chiropractic Practice opposite Alistair Knox Park, another Milk Bar/General Store on the comer of Bridge Street/Main Road where a shop currently still operates. There was also a Butcher's shop down from the pub opposite Franklin Street. The only doctor was next to the courthouse on the other side of Brougham Street. On Saturday afternoon I was occasionally allowed to go the movies in the Town Hall which also stood on the site of the Coles centre. Often the Fire Alarm would sound and everyone would run outside to watch the fire truck leave with the volunteers clutching on the back. The other attraction during summer of course was the swimming pool which was a small concrete pool filled with water pumped from the Diamond Creek, sometimes it was like a mud puddle so for me the nearer to home Yarra/Diamond Creek junction was a much better option. We swam in the water hole which was quite deep and with fallen trees and sometimes carcasses of cows and kangaroos floating past. As recreation, the churches were another attraction for the Sunday school picnics to Mordialloc in the back of the moving van with benches tied into the back for us to "sit" on. Too bad when we went around a corner! In the early days we had an Ice Man deliver the ice once a week for "refrigeration". The green grocer came around in a horse and cart as did the milkman and the bread was delivered but I constantly got into trouble for eating the middle out on the way from the box it was delivered to in Mt Pleasant road across the paddock. The milkman finally would not come down our street after his horse bolted one morning and took off across the paddock. We also had the "Pan Man" come weekly and whose visit I would avoid. Our nearest shop was where the flower stall is located opposite the Lower Park. It consisted of a Tea Room and Milk Bar. There was a Public Telephone there which was the only contact to anyone else. We were a one car family so my mother’s movements were very limited as the Eltham Station was a couple of kilometres away and a trip to the city was an event. Being an only child growing up was a little lonely however rambling along the creek with my Mum, picking mushrooms and picking cherry plums for jam and the dogs catching rabbits which we ate if we could get them away from the dogs. We also liked to go into the Lower Park during school holidays when the Greek people came to camp and they would sing and dance around the camp fire and it all seemed so different to us as this was early days of immigration. Childhood was relatively simple and carefree and I wish the kids of today had the freedom of my youth and the healthy outdoor lifestyle of the "olden days".   SHOW GIRL COMPETITION In 1965 Eltham was more like a country town than the suburb it has become today. People knew each other, if not personally then certainly of the family name. The big event for the year was a Gymkhana or show at Lower Eltham Park. I can remember marching as a teenager from the town centre to the park in the marching girls with the decorated floats. In 1965, just on a whim on the day, I decided to enter the Miss Eltham Show Girl which was a part of the festivities at the park. I seem to remember that the show mainly consisted of horse events, cattle judging and dog show. As I had not given any serious thought to entering the competition, I wore a suit that I had for work which was brown wool, with a coffee coloured shirt under, black shoes, bag, and gloves but no hat. I duly paraded for the judges and much to my surprise I was announced the winner. I eventually went on to compete at the Miss Victoria Show Girl competition which was held at the Royal Melbourne Show. There I met many country girls who were representing their rural Victoria home. I made it into a final round of judging but I think justice prevailed when someone from a country background was crowned. It was fun to go into the show as I had not really been before and to see the displays of handcraft, cooking and wood chopping events was great as well as the judging of farm animals interesting. It is hard to remember the Eltham I grew up in. The Lyons Garage company bus that actually drove you home (or close to it) when we got off the train at night. The Eltham Hotel on a Saturday afternoon a usual social meeting place where people just sat and chatted. The pictures held in the Town Hall and when the fire alarm sounded all the men just jumped up and ran to help. Suburbia has now swallowed most of that life but thankfully we at least do have the trestle bridge and parkland. Born digitalalec chapman, annie bremner, blacksmith, bremner's flat, brougham steet, bus services, circus, diamond creek, dianne bell, doctor bradbury, easter gymkhana, elizabeth chapman, eltham high school, eltham hotel, eltham lower park, eltham public hall, eltham state school, eltham trestle bridge, general store, grace mitchell, ice man, joy chapman, lyons garage, margaret harding, milk bar, miss eltham 1965, miss victoria show girl, mount pleasant road, pan man, rodda parade, shops, show girl competition, swimming pool, water hole, yarra river

My Recollections of Eltham Past by Margaret Joy Harding (nee Joy Chapman.) My family of Elizabeth and Alec Chapman moved to Eltham in 1946 into a cottage on the opposite side of the Diamond Creek from where the little train now operates in the Lower Park. At that time Eltham truly was a country town and the Pub was the main meeting place for most inhabitants on a Saturday afternoon in the beer garden. I attended Eltham Primary School where I started as a 4-year-old (my birthday being slightly after the mid-year intake) that happened then. My mother spent a lot of days taking me back to school when I had dismissed myself and walked the one kilomtre home alone. Bremner's Common (now Wingrove Park) was a big attraction with its dam and tad poling which I found much more entertaining than school. (Mrs Bremner ran a Service Station on the site of the current one). Another attraction at this site was the circus that came a couple of times a year. Watching them put up the circus tent was very interesting and even more of an attraction was the feeding of the Lions in cages and the monkeys and elephants among the other animals that are not found in a circus these days. At school then we were provided with hot chocolate at morning recess where the mothers would prepare it in the shelter shed. The only form of classroom heating was an open fire. Worse was the warm milk given in the summer months. By the time I was near finishing at Primary school we used to be able to walk along the Main Road at lunchtime to Mrs. Mitchell's shop to a delicious hot pie. As I recall there was no supervision for this departure from the school grounds. It is interesting that some of the other children I started school with I still have contact with, in fact one is a very good friend although now living in Perth. That is the other thing about Eltham; many who grew up here continue to live in the area. Following primary school, the natural progression was to Eltham High School. There was only the main building at that time and I can remember our first assembly at the front entrance. During the time I was at High School several new class rooms were added and the school hall. I remember the musical plays such as HMS Pinafore and other classical musicals being performed. I also remember countless hours doing marching practice. The main street shops when I was young consisted of the Blue Gum milk bar at the far end, a Grocery store and a shoe maker where Coles currently stands. Opposite there was Lyon's Garage. They also provided a bus service and when we got off the train this little bus would tour the back streets taking each individual to their home, sometimes this could take quite considerable time. There was also a Black Smith next to the Chiropractic Practice opposite Alistair Knox Park, another Milk Bar/General Store on the comer of Bridge Street/Main Road where a shop currently still operates. There was also a Butcher's shop down from the pub opposite Franklin Street. The only doctor was next to the courthouse on the other side of Brougham Street. On Saturday afternoon I was occasionally allowed to go the movies in the Town Hall which also stood on the site of the Coles centre. Often the Fire Alarm would sound and everyone would run outside to watch the fire truck leave with the volunteers clutching on the back. The other attraction during summer of course was the swimming pool which was a small concrete pool filled with water pumped from the Diamond Creek, sometimes it was like a mud puddle so for me the nearer to home Yarra/Diamond Creek junction was a much better option. We swam in the water hole which was quite deep and with fallen trees and sometimes carcasses of cows and kangaroos floating past. As recreation, the churches were another attraction for the Sunday school picnics to Mordialloc in the back of the moving van with benches tied into the back for us to "sit" on. Too bad when we went around a corner! In the early days we had an Ice Man deliver the ice once a week for "refrigeration". The green grocer came around in a horse and cart as did the milkman and the bread was delivered but I constantly got into trouble for eating the middle out on the way from the box it was delivered to in Mt Pleasant road across the paddock. The milkman finally would not come down our street after his horse bolted one morning and took off across the paddock. We also had the "Pan Man" come weekly and whose visit I would avoid. Our nearest shop was where the flower stall is located opposite the Lower Park. It consisted of a Tea Room and Milk Bar. There was a Public Telephone there which was the only contact to anyone else. We were a one car family so my mother’s movements were very limited as the Eltham Station was a couple of kilometres away and a trip to the city was an event. Being an only child growing up was a little lonely however rambling along the creek with my Mum, picking mushrooms and picking cherry plums for jam and the dogs catching rabbits which we ate if we could get them away from the dogs. We also liked to go into the Lower Park during school holidays when the Greek people came to camp and they would sing and dance around the camp fire and it all seemed so different to us as this was early days of immigration. Childhood was relatively simple and carefree and I wish the kids of today had the freedom of my youth and the healthy outdoor lifestyle of the "olden days".   SHOW GIRL COMPETITION In 1965 Eltham was more like a country town than the suburb it has become today. People knew each other, if not personally then certainly of the family name. The big event for the year was a Gymkhana or show at Lower Eltham Park. I can remember marching as a teenager from the town centre to the park in the marching girls with the decorated floats. In 1965, just on a whim on the day, I decided to enter the Miss Eltham Show Girl which was a part of the festivities at the park. I seem to remember that the show mainly consisted of horse events, cattle judging and dog show. As I had not given any serious thought to entering the competition, I wore a suit that I had for work which was brown wool, with a coffee coloured shirt under, black shoes, bag, and gloves but no hat. I duly paraded for the judges and much to my surprise I was announced the winner. I eventually went on to compete at the Miss Victoria Show Girl competition which was held at the Royal Melbourne Show. There I met many country girls who were representing their rural Victoria home. I made it into a final round of judging but I think justice prevailed when someone from a country background was crowned. It was fun to go into the show as I had not really been before and to see the displays of handcraft, cooking and wood chopping events was great as well as the judging of farm animals interesting. It is hard to remember the Eltham I grew up in. The Lyons Garage company bus that actually drove you home (or close to it) when we got off the train at night. The Eltham Hotel on a Saturday afternoon a usual social meeting place where people just sat and chatted. The pictures held in the Town Hall and when the fire alarm sounded all the men just jumped up and ran to help. Suburbia has now swallowed most of that life but thankfully we at least do have the trestle bridge and parkland. Digital file only - Black and white photo print on loan for scanning by EDHSalec chapman, annie bremner, blacksmith, bremner's flat, brougham steet, bus services, circus, diamond creek, dianne bell, doctor bradbury, easter gymkhana, elizabeth chapman, eltham high school, eltham hotel, eltham lower park, eltham public hall, eltham state school, eltham trestle bridge, general store, grace mitchell, ice man, joy chapman, lyons garage, margaret harding, milk bar, miss eltham 1965, miss victoria show girl, mount pleasant road, pan man, rodda parade, shops, show girl competition, swimming pool, water hole, yarra river

My Recollections of Eltham Past by Margaret Joy Harding (nee Joy Chapman.) My family of Elizabeth and Alec Chapman moved to Eltham in 1946 into a cottage on the opposite side of the Diamond Creek from where the little train now operates in the Lower Park. At that time Eltham truly was a country town and the Pub was the main meeting place for most inhabitants on a Saturday afternoon in the beer garden. I attended Eltham Primary School where I started as a 4-year-old (my birthday being slightly after the mid-year intake) that happened then. My mother spent a lot of days taking me back to school when I had dismissed myself and walked the one kilomtre home alone. Bremner's Common (now Wingrove Park) was a big attraction with its dam and tad poling which I found much more entertaining than school. (Mrs Bremner ran a Service Station on the site of the current one). Another attraction at this site was the circus that came a couple of times a year. Watching them put up the circus tent was very interesting and even more of an attraction was the feeding of the Lions in cages and the monkeys and elephants among the other animals that are not found in a circus these days. At school then we were provided with hot chocolate at morning recess where the mothers would prepare it in the shelter shed. The only form of classroom heating was an open fire. Worse was the warm milk given in the summer months. By the time I was near finishing at Primary school we used to be able to walk along the Main Road at lunchtime to Mrs. Mitchell's shop to a delicious hot pie. As I recall there was no supervision for this departure from the school grounds. It is interesting that some of the other children I started school with I still have contact with, in fact one is a very good friend although now living in Perth. That is the other thing about Eltham; many who grew up here continue to live in the area. Following primary school, the natural progression was to Eltham High School. There was only the main building at that time and I can remember our first assembly at the front entrance. During the time I was at High School several new class rooms were added and the school hall. I remember the musical plays such as HMS Pinafore and other classical musicals being performed. I also remember countless hours doing marching practice. The main street shops when I was young consisted of the Blue Gum milk bar at the far end, a Grocery store and a shoe maker where Coles currently stands. Opposite there was Lyon's Garage. They also provided a bus service and when we got off the train this little bus would tour the back streets taking each individual to their home, sometimes this could take quite considerable time. There was also a Black Smith next to the Chiropractic Practice opposite Alistair Knox Park, another Milk Bar/General Store on the comer of Bridge Street/Main Road where a shop currently still operates. There was also a Butcher's shop down from the pub opposite Franklin Street. The only doctor was next to the courthouse on the other side of Brougham Street. On Saturday afternoon I was occasionally allowed to go the movies in the Town Hall which also stood on the site of the Coles centre. Often the Fire Alarm would sound and everyone would run outside to watch the fire truck leave with the volunteers clutching on the back. The other attraction during summer of course was the swimming pool which was a small concrete pool filled with water pumped from the Diamond Creek, sometimes it was like a mud puddle so for me the nearer to home Yarra/Diamond Creek junction was a much better option. We swam in the water hole which was quite deep and with fallen trees and sometimes carcasses of cows and kangaroos floating past. As recreation, the churches were another attraction for the Sunday school picnics to Mordialloc in the back of the moving van with benches tied into the back for us to "sit" on. Too bad when we went around a corner! In the early days we had an Ice Man deliver the ice once a week for "refrigeration". The green grocer came around in a horse and cart as did the milkman and the bread was delivered but I constantly got into trouble for eating the middle out on the way from the box it was delivered to in Mt Pleasant road across the paddock. The milkman finally would not come down our street after his horse bolted one morning and took off across the paddock. We also had the "Pan Man" come weekly and whose visit I would avoid. Our nearest shop was where the flower stall is located opposite the Lower Park. It consisted of a Tea Room and Milk Bar. There was a Public Telephone there which was the only contact to anyone else. We were a one car family so my mother’s movements were very limited as the Eltham Station was a couple of kilometres away and a trip to the city was an event. Being an only child growing up was a little lonely however rambling along the creek with my Mum, picking mushrooms and picking cherry plums for jam and the dogs catching rabbits which we ate if we could get them away from the dogs. We also liked to go into the Lower Park during school holidays when the Greek people came to camp and they would sing and dance around the camp fire and it all seemed so different to us as this was early days of immigration. Childhood was relatively simple and carefree and I wish the kids of today had the freedom of my youth and the healthy outdoor lifestyle of the "olden days".   SHOW GIRL COMPETITION In 1965 Eltham was more like a country town than the suburb it has become today. People knew each other, if not personally then certainly of the family name. The big event for the year was a Gymkhana or show at Lower Eltham Park. I can remember marching as a teenager from the town centre to the park in the marching girls with the decorated floats. In 1965, just on a whim on the day, I decided to enter the Miss Eltham Show Girl which was a part of the festivities at the park. I seem to remember that the show mainly consisted of horse events, cattle judging and dog show. As I had not given any serious thought to entering the competition, I wore a suit that I had for work which was brown wool, with a coffee coloured shirt under, black shoes, bag, and gloves but no hat. I duly paraded for the judges and much to my surprise I was announced the winner. I eventually went on to compete at the Miss Victoria Show Girl competition which was held at the Royal Melbourne Show. There I met many country girls who were representing their rural Victoria home. I made it into a final round of judging but I think justice prevailed when someone from a country background was crowned. It was fun to go into the show as I had not really been before and to see the displays of handcraft, cooking and wood chopping events was great as well as the judging of farm animals interesting. It is hard to remember the Eltham I grew up in. The Lyons Garage company bus that actually drove you home (or close to it) when we got off the train at night. The Eltham Hotel on a Saturday afternoon a usual social meeting place where people just sat and chatted. The pictures held in the Town Hall and when the fire alarm sounded all the men just jumped up and ran to help. Suburbia has now swallowed most of that life but thankfully we at least do have the trestle bridge and parkland. Digital file only - Black and white photo print on loan for scanning by EDHSalec chapman, annie bremner, blacksmith, bremner's flat, brougham steet, bus services, circus, diamond creek, dianne bell, doctor bradbury, easter gymkhana, elizabeth chapman, eltham high school, eltham hotel, eltham lower park, eltham public hall, eltham state school, eltham trestle bridge, general store, grace mitchell, ice man, joy chapman, lyons garage, margaret harding, milk bar, miss eltham 1965, miss victoria show girl, mount pleasant road, pan man, rodda parade, shops, show girl competition, swimming pool, water hole, yarra river

My Recollections of Eltham Past by Margaret Joy Harding (nee Joy Chapman.) My family of Elizabeth and Alec Chapman moved to Eltham in 1946 into a cottage on the opposite side of the Diamond Creek from where the little train now operates in the Lower Park. At that time Eltham truly was a country town and the Pub was the main meeting place for most inhabitants on a Saturday afternoon in the beer garden. I attended Eltham Primary School where I started as a 4-year-old (my birthday being slightly after the mid-year intake) that happened then. My mother spent a lot of days taking me back to school when I had dismissed myself and walked the one kilomtre home alone. Bremner's Common (now Wingrove Park) was a big attraction with its dam and tad poling which I found much more entertaining than school. (Mrs Bremner ran a Service Station on the site of the current one). Another attraction at this site was the circus that came a couple of times a year. Watching them put up the circus tent was very interesting and even more of an attraction was the feeding of the Lions in cages and the monkeys and elephants among the other animals that are not found in a circus these days. At school then we were provided with hot chocolate at morning recess where the mothers would prepare it in the shelter shed. The only form of classroom heating was an open fire. Worse was the warm milk given in the summer months. By the time I was near finishing at Primary school we used to be able to walk along the Main Road at lunchtime to Mrs. Mitchell's shop to a delicious hot pie. As I recall there was no supervision for this departure from the school grounds. It is interesting that some of the other children I started school with I still have contact with, in fact one is a very good friend although now living in Perth. That is the other thing about Eltham; many who grew up here continue to live in the area. Following primary school, the natural progression was to Eltham High School. There was only the main building at that time and I can remember our first assembly at the front entrance. During the time I was at High School several new class rooms were added and the school hall. I remember the musical plays such as HMS Pinafore and other classical musicals being performed. I also remember countless hours doing marching practice. The main street shops when I was young consisted of the Blue Gum milk bar at the far end, a Grocery store and a shoe maker where Coles currently stands. Opposite there was Lyon's Garage. They also provided a bus service and when we got off the train this little bus would tour the back streets taking each individual to their home, sometimes this could take quite considerable time. There was also a Black Smith next to the Chiropractic Practice opposite Alistair Knox Park, another Milk Bar/General Store on the comer of Bridge Street/Main Road where a shop currently still operates. There was also a Butcher's shop down from the pub opposite Franklin Street. The only doctor was next to the courthouse on the other side of Brougham Street. On Saturday afternoon I was occasionally allowed to go the movies in the Town Hall which also stood on the site of the Coles centre. Often the Fire Alarm would sound and everyone would run outside to watch the fire truck leave with the volunteers clutching on the back. The other attraction during summer of course was the swimming pool which was a small concrete pool filled with water pumped from the Diamond Creek, sometimes it was like a mud puddle so for me the nearer to home Yarra/Diamond Creek junction was a much better option. We swam in the water hole which was quite deep and with fallen trees and sometimes carcasses of cows and kangaroos floating past. As recreation, the churches were another attraction for the Sunday school picnics to Mordialloc in the back of the moving van with benches tied into the back for us to "sit" on. Too bad when we went around a corner! In the early days we had an Ice Man deliver the ice once a week for "refrigeration". The green grocer came around in a horse and cart as did the milkman and the bread was delivered but I constantly got into trouble for eating the middle out on the way from the box it was delivered to in Mt Pleasant road across the paddock. The milkman finally would not come down our street after his horse bolted one morning and took off across the paddock. We also had the "Pan Man" come weekly and whose visit I would avoid. Our nearest shop was where the flower stall is located opposite the Lower Park. It consisted of a Tea Room and Milk Bar. There was a Public Telephone there which was the only contact to anyone else. We were a one car family so my mother’s movements were very limited as the Eltham Station was a couple of kilometres away and a trip to the city was an event. Being an only child growing up was a little lonely however rambling along the creek with my Mum, picking mushrooms and picking cherry plums for jam and the dogs catching rabbits which we ate if we could get them away from the dogs. We also liked to go into the Lower Park during school holidays when the Greek people came to camp and they would sing and dance around the camp fire and it all seemed so different to us as this was early days of immigration. Childhood was relatively simple and carefree and I wish the kids of today had the freedom of my youth and the healthy outdoor lifestyle of the "olden days".   SHOW GIRL COMPETITION In 1965 Eltham was more like a country town than the suburb it has become today. People knew each other, if not personally then certainly of the family name. The big event for the year was a Gymkhana or show at Lower Eltham Park. I can remember marching as a teenager from the town centre to the park in the marching girls with the decorated floats. In 1965, just on a whim on the day, I decided to enter the Miss Eltham Show Girl which was a part of the festivities at the park. I seem to remember that the show mainly consisted of horse events, cattle judging and dog show. As I had not given any serious thought to entering the competition, I wore a suit that I had for work which was brown wool, with a coffee coloured shirt under, black shoes, bag, and gloves but no hat. I duly paraded for the judges and much to my surprise I was announced the winner. I eventually went on to compete at the Miss Victoria Show Girl competition which was held at the Royal Melbourne Show. There I met many country girls who were representing their rural Victoria home. I made it into a final round of judging but I think justice prevailed when someone from a country background was crowned. It was fun to go into the show as I had not really been before and to see the displays of handcraft, cooking and wood chopping events was great as well as the judging of farm animals interesting. It is hard to remember the Eltham I grew up in. The Lyons Garage company bus that actually drove you home (or close to it) when we got off the train at night. The Eltham Hotel on a Saturday afternoon a usual social meeting place where people just sat and chatted. The pictures held in the Town Hall and when the fire alarm sounded all the men just jumped up and ran to help. Suburbia has now swallowed most of that life but thankfully we at least do have the trestle bridge and parkland. Digital file only - Black and white photo print on loan for scanning by EDHSalec chapman, annie bremner, blacksmith, bremner's flat, brougham steet, bus services, circus, diamond creek, dianne bell, doctor bradbury, easter gymkhana, elizabeth chapman, eltham high school, eltham hotel, eltham lower park, eltham public hall, eltham state school, eltham trestle bridge, general store, grace mitchell, ice man, joy chapman, lyons garage, margaret harding, milk bar, miss eltham 1965, miss victoria show girl, mount pleasant road, pan man, rodda parade, shops, show girl competition, swimming pool, water hole, yarra river

My Recollections of Eltham Past by Margaret Joy Harding (nee Joy Chapman.) My family of Elizabeth and Alec Chapman moved to Eltham in 1946 into a cottage on the opposite side of the Diamond Creek from where the little train now operates in the Lower Park. At that time Eltham truly was a country town and the Pub was the main meeting place for most inhabitants on a Saturday afternoon in the beer garden. I attended Eltham Primary School where I started as a 4-year-old (my birthday being slightly after the mid-year intake) that happened then. My mother spent a lot of days taking me back to school when I had dismissed myself and walked the one kilomtre home alone. Bremner's Common (now Wingrove Park) was a big attraction with its dam and tad poling which I found much more entertaining than school. (Mrs Bremner ran a Service Station on the site of the current one). Another attraction at this site was the circus that came a couple of times a year. Watching them put up the circus tent was very interesting and even more of an attraction was the feeding of the Lions in cages and the monkeys and elephants among the other animals that are not found in a circus these days. At school then we were provided with hot chocolate at morning recess where the mothers would prepare it in the shelter shed. The only form of classroom heating was an open fire. Worse was the warm milk given in the summer months. By the time I was near finishing at Primary school we used to be able to walk along the Main Road at lunchtime to Mrs. Mitchell's shop to a delicious hot pie. As I recall there was no supervision for this departure from the school grounds. It is interesting that some of the other children I started school with I still have contact with, in fact one is a very good friend although now living in Perth. That is the other thing about Eltham; many who grew up here continue to live in the area. Following primary school, the natural progression was to Eltham High School. There was only the main building at that time and I can remember our first assembly at the front entrance. During the time I was at High School several new class rooms were added and the school hall. I remember the musical plays such as HMS Pinafore and other classical musicals being performed. I also remember countless hours doing marching practice. The main street shops when I was young consisted of the Blue Gum milk bar at the far end, a Grocery store and a shoe maker where Coles currently stands. Opposite there was Lyon's Garage. They also provided a bus service and when we got off the train this little bus would tour the back streets taking each individual to their home, sometimes this could take quite considerable time. There was also a Black Smith next to the Chiropractic Practice opposite Alistair Knox Park, another Milk Bar/General Store on the comer of Bridge Street/Main Road where a shop currently still operates. There was also a Butcher's shop down from the pub opposite Franklin Street. The only doctor was next to the courthouse on the other side of Brougham Street. On Saturday afternoon I was occasionally allowed to go the movies in the Town Hall which also stood on the site of the Coles centre. Often the Fire Alarm would sound and everyone would run outside to watch the fire truck leave with the volunteers clutching on the back. The other attraction during summer of course was the swimming pool which was a small concrete pool filled with water pumped from the Diamond Creek, sometimes it was like a mud puddle so for me the nearer to home Yarra/Diamond Creek junction was a much better option. We swam in the water hole which was quite deep and with fallen trees and sometimes carcasses of cows and kangaroos floating past. As recreation, the churches were another attraction for the Sunday school picnics to Mordialloc in the back of the moving van with benches tied into the back for us to "sit" on. Too bad when we went around a corner! In the early days we had an Ice Man deliver the ice once a week for "refrigeration". The green grocer came around in a horse and cart as did the milkman and the bread was delivered but I constantly got into trouble for eating the middle out on the way from the box it was delivered to in Mt Pleasant road across the paddock. The milkman finally would not come down our street after his horse bolted one morning and took off across the paddock. We also had the "Pan Man" come weekly and whose visit I would avoid. Our nearest shop was where the flower stall is located opposite the Lower Park. It consisted of a Tea Room and Milk Bar. There was a Public Telephone there which was the only contact to anyone else. We were a one car family so my mother’s movements were very limited as the Eltham Station was a couple of kilometres away and a trip to the city was an event. Being an only child growing up was a little lonely however rambling along the creek with my Mum, picking mushrooms and picking cherry plums for jam and the dogs catching rabbits which we ate if we could get them away from the dogs. We also liked to go into the Lower Park during school holidays when the Greek people came to camp and they would sing and dance around the camp fire and it all seemed so different to us as this was early days of immigration. Childhood was relatively simple and carefree and I wish the kids of today had the freedom of my youth and the healthy outdoor lifestyle of the "olden days".   SHOW GIRL COMPETITION In 1965 Eltham was more like a country town than the suburb it has become today. People knew each other, if not personally then certainly of the family name. The big event for the year was a Gymkhana or show at Lower Eltham Park. I can remember marching as a teenager from the town centre to the park in the marching girls with the decorated floats. In 1965, just on a whim on the day, I decided to enter the Miss Eltham Show Girl which was a part of the festivities at the park. I seem to remember that the show mainly consisted of horse events, cattle judging and dog show. As I had not given any serious thought to entering the competition, I wore a suit that I had for work which was brown wool, with a coffee coloured shirt under, black shoes, bag, and gloves but no hat. I duly paraded for the judges and much to my surprise I was announced the winner. I eventually went on to compete at the Miss Victoria Show Girl competition which was held at the Royal Melbourne Show. There I met many country girls who were representing their rural Victoria home. I made it into a final round of judging but I think justice prevailed when someone from a country background was crowned. It was fun to go into the show as I had not really been before and to see the displays of handcraft, cooking and wood chopping events was great as well as the judging of farm animals interesting. It is hard to remember the Eltham I grew up in. The Lyons Garage company bus that actually drove you home (or close to it) when we got off the train at night. The Eltham Hotel on a Saturday afternoon a usual social meeting place where people just sat and chatted. The pictures held in the Town Hall and when the fire alarm sounded all the men just jumped up and ran to help. Suburbia has now swallowed most of that life but thankfully we at least do have the trestle bridge and parkland. Digital file only - Black and white photo print on loan for scanning by EDHSalec chapman, annie bremner, blacksmith, bremner's flat, brougham steet, bus services, circus, diamond creek, dianne bell, doctor bradbury, easter gymkhana, elizabeth chapman, eltham high school, eltham hotel, eltham lower park, eltham public hall, eltham state school, eltham trestle bridge, general store, grace mitchell, ice man, joy chapman, lyons garage, margaret harding, milk bar, miss eltham 1965, miss victoria show girl, mount pleasant road, pan man, rodda parade, shops, show girl competition, swimming pool, water hole, yarra river

One of several photos at Newport taken the same day in the early 1950s when George Coop was a secondary school student.Digital TIFF file Scan of Kopdak 620 black and white negative transparencygeorge coop collection, newport railway station, newport railway workshops, paint shop

Churchill Street shops just visible on right of image. The grass embankment visible in the distance on the left of the track is from where another view looking down the track beside Churchill Street was taken. Shows the original building on the northern platform of the Mont Albert station. The railway line was extended out to Lilydale with work commencing in 1882. Mont Albert station opened in 1890. It is presumed that this building was demolished when the third line was constructed in 1971. At the same time the nearby Surrey Hills original station buildings were demolished. George noted that he had donated a black and white print copy of this image some years earlier to the Surrey Hills Historical Society - see SHP2018/21/6 https://victoriancollections.net.au/items/5d6a450a21ea670e188d05c9Digital TIFF file Scan of Kopdak 620 black and white negative transparencygeorge coop collection, churchill street, mont albert railway station

Very close to entrance of Victoria Park this view is looking southwest along Crofton Street to intersection with Dickson.. The buildings are all attached and the immediate two in the foreground have since been demolished or significantly altered however the old shop building and attached house on the corner (32 Dickson St) remain recognisable today.Digital TIFF file Scan of 35mm Ilford FP3 black and white negative transparencygeorge coop collection, echuca, crofton street, dickson street, houses, shops

Charles Cockcroft born Bundanoon, NSW, 1885, died 1966 and Annie Cockcroft (nee Green) born Lismore, NSW, 1881, died 1943. They are buried together in Eltham Cemetery. On 28 Nov 1931 C.R. Nicholls offered for auction the General Store and attached house he had built on the corner of York Street and Main Road in late 1925. The property was purchased by Charles and Annie Cockcroft from which they lived and ran their grocery business. Following the death of Annie in 1943, and prior to 1949, Charles sold the business and moved farming at Jeeralang North near Traralgon in Gippsland. References: • 1931, 1943 and 1949 Electoral Rolls (Ancestry.com) • Eltham. (1926, January 15). Advertiser (Hurstbridge, Vic. : 1922 - 1939), p. 2 (AFTERNOON). Retrieved February 23, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article56659270 • Auction Sale at Eltham (1931, November 20). Advertiser (Hurstbridge, Vic. : 1922 - 1939), p. 5. Retrieved February 23, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article56736611Black and white print also negative copy of print (roll of 35mm black and white negative film, 3 strips Ilford FP4)Details inscribed in blue ink on back of photoannie florence cockcroft (nee green), car, charles burgess cockroft, feed store, general store, grocer, grocers, main road, shops, vehicles, york street

Daniel Rutter Long was born in England, after training as a pharmacist he, his wife and family emigrated to Port Phillip, Victoria in 1840. By 1843 he had his own chemist shop in Bourke Street, later erecting a well known pharmacy on the corner of Bourke and Exhibition streets. During the gold rush of the 1850s he purchased gold at the shop for shipment to a Quaker syndicate in London. Retiring from the business in 1857 Long took up painting, sometimes returning to his original profession. He painted hundreds of landscapes in other colonies as well as in Victoria. Long participated in local affairs and was one of the earliest members of the municipal council. Later he was elected mayor and instrumental in the in the erection of Prahran Town Hall. He was also a member of the Police Court Bench for many years. Daniel Long died at the age of eighty-three in 1886. (State Library of Victoria)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 '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 image 35mm B&W negativeshire of eltham pioneers photograph collection, bridge, daniel rutter long, diamond creek (creek), eltham, sepp

Negative copy and associated print of detail from original Sales Brochure: Plenty Township Estate and Bryn Teg Hill's Estate, Coghill & Haughton, Melbourne (c.1924)Roll of 35mm Black and White negative film, 3 strips, (1 of 14 frames) Print 10 x 15 cmFilm - Agfa Ortho 25lower plenty, bryn teg hill's estate, coghill & haughton, sales brochure, main road, plenty-township-estate, shops

Original document produced by Ian McDonald (Eltham Shire Council) 1970. During the period 1969-1971 photos were being collected for a proposed publication on the history of the Shire of Eltham as part of its centenary celebrations in 1971 (managed by the Shire of Eltham Historical Society and Alan Marshall). The publication was Pioneers & Painters (1971), edited by Alan Marshall. The document titled "Shows area sold to Woolworths" consisted of a panorama of three B&W photo prints creating a panorama of the frontage along Main Road (SEPP_0744) and a single B&W photo print of the Shire of Eltham offices and Hall on the corner of Arthur Street and Main Road (SEPP_0737) along with typed and hand written notes by Ian McDonald. The panorama (SEPP_0744) was captioned in typewritten text "Old Shire Office and Hall, etc - Frontage of 285 feet along Main Road" and in pencil the date "4-1-68" The single image of the shire offices (SEPP_0737) was captioned in typewritten text "Main Road and Arthur Street Corner" In addition, the following handwritten notes in pencil: " I took these photos from the new fire station - the building in the middle is the old fire station - Moved to Research for the Scouts 1970" and signed "IMcD"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 '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.Paper with four photos adhered in two groups with notes in typewritten text and handwritten in pencilsepp, shire of eltham pioneers photograph collection, eltham, main road, arthur street, dudley street, barber shop, cinema, commercial bank of australia, eltham fire brigade, eltham hall, eltham shire hall, eltham shire office, fire station, hardware shop, municipal offices, photographer shop, pph, produce paint and hardware centre, shire hall, shire offices, woolworths

The property 'Golden Glen', home of photographer, Albert Jones. At the right of the photo is an apple orchard over the other side of Watery Gully creek. The middle building in the photo is still standing, located on Wattle Glen - Kangaroo Ground Road between Pretty Hill Lane and Millers Road (Melway 271 A6) but on the opposite side of the road.Photo printalbert jones, golden glen, shops, wattle glen

The Wattle Glen General Store in this photo was located at the same intersection as the present Wattle Glen General Store (cnr of Reynolds Road and Kangaroo Ground Road) but on the diagonally opposite corner. [Comment from Valda via Victorian Collections June 11, 2018] "The addition to the store on the left, and the building at the back, were not part of the store/post office owned by the Keenan's. They were added by Mr and Mrs Alan (Janet) Frencham's in the ?mid-1950s."Photo printalbert jones, golden glen, shops, wattle glen

Eltham Shire Offices 1941-1965, were located at the Corner of Arthur Street and Main Road, Eltham. The Building also incuded a community hall.Negative black and white film 120 6x6 format [Missing] One of six frames (sectioned: three continuous, two single frames and one frame missing), and Associated black and white photo printeltham, main road, arthur street, council, eltham hall, eltham shire office, shire of eltham, astor radio & tv, eltham shire council, eltham shire hall, municipal offices, shire offices, shops

An F-class 2-4-0 steam locomotive and tender hauls a train of two open wagons, a guards van and a single Tait passenger car over the Eltham Railway Trestle Bridge, heading for Melbourne. This type of steam locomotive was replaced by the F-Class 2-4-2. The house on the right, originally known as 'Derril' was purchased in the early 1920s by Walter Ernest and Alice Miriam Gahan. On the western side of Main Road near the present-day site of Shillinglaw Cottage, they remained till about 1960 when Walter died. The house was demolished in 1968 during the widening of Main Road. In the distance beyond the trestle bridge on what would become Central Park appears to be an orchard of fruit trees. A young man with waist coat, jacket and hat stands beside an older man wearing suspenders without jacket and bare headed, sitting on the post fence. Photographer: J.H. Clark John Henry Clark was the youngest of three boys born to William Henry Clark (1823-1877) and Maria White (1843-1914). He and his brothers, William Charles Clark (1872-1945), Clement Kent Clark (1874-1912) operated a photography business (Clark Bros.) from 25 Thomas Street, Windsor near Prahran during the period c.1894 to 1914. Following death of Clement in September 1912 and their mother in 1914, the Clark Bros business appears to have dissolved, the premises demolished, and a new house was under construction in 1915. John set up business independently in 1914 operating out of 29 Moor Street, Fitzroy where he is registered in the 1914 and 1915 Electoral Rolls. By 1916 John had relocated to Eltham where he continued his practice as a photographer and took many of the early images around the district of Little Eltham. Around 1930 John changed professions and opened a small cobbler's shop in 1931 near the pond opposite Dalton Street adjacent to the Jarrold family cottage. He never married and continued his profession as a bootmaker from this little shop, maintaining a close relationship with Mrs Jarrold for the rest of their lives. His bootmaker shop remains today beside the Whitecloud cottage and is one of only three remaining shops in the area from the early 20th century. There are a couple of images of Eltham taken by Clark Bros. in the Eltham District Historical Society collection, one such example being Hunniford’s Post Office with Miss Anne Hunniford out front (EDHS_00140 - marked on the back of the print, Clark Bros., 25 Thomas St. Windsor), which would date this image between c.1894 and 1914. Other early images of Eltham taken by John Henry Clark are marked on the face “J. H. Clark Photo” and it is assumed these are dated between 1914 and 1930. It is noted that the Grant of Probate for John H Clark of Eltham South dated 5 April !957 (513/387) records his occupation as "X Photographer".derril, eltham railway trestle bridge, f-class 2-4-0 steam locomotive, gahan house, j.h. clark photo, main road, orchards, postcards, steam train, tait train, victorian railways

Gwendoline (Gwenda) Grace Watson Davies, only daughter of Mr. William Watson Davies and Mrs. Grace Davies (nee Hayes) of Arthur Street, Eltham was born in Newport, 18 February 1908. Gwenda grew up in Arthur Street and when she left school she was employed as an officer at the State Bank of Victoria, Chief Accountants Department, Head Office, Elizabeth Street, Melbourne. During 1933-1934 in her early to mid-twenties, Gwenda wrote a series of poems which were captured in three books: one a leather bound three-ring binder with personalised gold embossing on the cover and two paper booklets held together by pink ribbon. These poems are a reflection of her childhood days, home, her mother, her environment, pioneering days and other miscellaneous subjects including one example titled “EIGHTEEN YEARS TO-DAY”, an homage to the brave men of Gallipoli. On October 20, 1937 after ten years of service, Gwenda submitted her letter of resignation effective November 26th as she was to be married in the near future to Fred Jones. Frederick Geoffrey Jones, born 7 January 1911, third son of Mr. and Mrs. W. Jones of Napoleon Street, Eltham, married Gwenda at the Eltham Methodist Church on 27 November 1937. They made their home at ‘Llangollen’, Arthur Street, Eltham, a new house Fred had constructed earlier that year opposite the Shire Offices. Their residence was recorded in the Electoral Rolls from 1963-1980 as 6 Arthur Street, Eltham which was situated on the corner of Arthur Street and present-day Commercial Place. In the 1970s their home was sold and demolished to make way for the new shops. They built a new home at the top of the hill in Bible Street. In the Electoral Rolls for 1943-1980, Frederick’s occupation was recorded as a Plumber’s Assistant. Fred was also a long-standing member of the Eltham Cemetery Trust. He was first appointed 26 April 1944 and resigned 17 July 1957 to be appointed to the Warringal and Eltham Joint Trust where he served till February 1980. He then re-joined the Eltham Cemetery Trust and served a further 14 years till his resignation on 24 August 1994. In total, Fred represented the interests of Eltham Cemetery for 50 years (1944-1994). Gwenda and Fred were blessed with a son, Frederick William Jones in March 1942. Sadly, Frederick only lived two days and was buried at Eltham Cemetery on March 11. It is not known whether his grave is marked. A second son, Geoffrey Morris Jones arrived 25 November 1944 but he sadly contracted polio as a child. A fall down the front steps of Fred and Gwenda’s new home in Bible Street culminated in Geoff’s death from a heart attack whilst in transit to the Austin Hospital on February 6, 1979, at age 34. He was also interred in the Eltham Cemetery. Geoff was posthumously awarded the British Empire Medal for his services to fire safety at the CFA. A small man, handicapped from his childhood polio, he had figured prominently in the area as an active Apex member and as group officer for the 13 local brigades in the CFA Lower Yarra Group. His work for the CFA, all voluntary, included writing a fire-fighting manual and the innovation of aerial fire spotting and weekly fire reports. Gwendoline and Fred were presented with Geoff’s B.EM. award at Government House. Four years later on the anniversary of Geoff’s death, Gwenda could not sleep and collapsed in the hallway at home from a heart attack, 6 February 1983 at age 74. She was interred with her son Geoff, at Eltham Cemetery on February 9th. Fred died 31 July 1997 at age 86 and was also interred at Eltham Cemetery. A memorial plaque to Gwenda, Fred and Geoff lies within the lawn cemetery at Eltham Cemetery. In February 2022 Gwenda’s book of Poems along with a copy of her letter of resignation from the State Bank of Victoria and a news clipping about the Autumn Show held in the Public Hall at Eltham (opposite her home with Fred) in which Gwenda is listed as having entered Cream Puffs and a Swiss Roll into the Cooking section, were donated to the St Vincent’s de Paul Society in Bega, N.S.W.. A dedicated volunteer there researched their origins and desirous for these items to return ‘home’, posted them to the Eltham District Historical Society for which we are most appreciative. EIGHTEEN YEARS TO-DAY “Tell me why you’re dreaming, Daddy” Said my little son to me, So, I told him all about it, As he sat upon my knee. I told him of that Sunday morn, ‘Twas eighteen years to-day, When the men of Australasia, Joined the mighty fray. How they landed on that foreign shore, And fought the gallant fight, Of how they nobly won the day, And put the Turks to flight. We saw the cliffs before us, To be scaled ‘mid shot and shell, And our comrades fell around us - - - - I remember it - - - so well. There are some who’ll sleep forever, On a hill that’s called Lone Pine, And the twenty-fifth of April, Is famous for all time. And so to keep their memory green, We march each Anzac Day, To pay tribute to those Heroes, Who gave their lives that day. - Anzac Day 1933 And in reflections to Gwenda’s childhood home in Arthur Street: HOME Where do my thoughts ever wander? Where do my thoughts always roam? To a little old house, on the top of a hill, To the place, that I call “Home Sweet Home.” No matter where-ever I travel, On land, or away on the foam. My thoughts will return, and my heart ever yearn, To the place, that I call “Home Sweet Home”. - 2/7/1933 Sources: Book of Poems, G. Davies Letter of Resignation, 1937, Oct. 20, G.G.W. Davies Births Deaths and Marriages Victoria New House at Eltham (1937, September 10). Advertiser (Hurstbridge, Vic. : 1922 – 1939), p. 6. Retrieved May 12, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article56845735 Family Notices (1937, December 17). Advertiser (Hurstbridge, Vic. : 1922 – 1939), p. 3. Retrieved May 12, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article56846386 Geoff Jones, Proud Memory, unknown newspaper clipping, 1979 1979 Birthday Honours, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979_Birthday_Honours Australian Electoral Rolls, Ancestry.com Family Trees, Ancestry.com Eltham Cemetery, Deceased Search findagrave.com Personal recollections, Joan Castledine The poetry by Gwendoline Davies provides an insight into life growing up in Eltham and the early 1930s. A long time resident, Gwendoline, her husband Fred Jones and son Geoff Jones were fully dedicated to the Eltham community for over 50 years.1. Brown leather bound three-ring binder with personalised gold embossing on the cover 20.5 x 14.5 cm, Walkers Loose Leaf Book, pages typed with some pasted in colour illustrations, alphabeticised dividers (some tabs missing), 21 leafs (some blank) 2. Two paper booklets held together by pink ribbon 15.5 x 12 cm, typed, some with colour illustrations, pages numbered (rh only) 12 pages and 25 pages and paper cover 3. Newspaper clipping 4. Letter sized hand written page in ink folded in three and damaged by foxing and insectsanzac day, arthur street, napoleon street, cfa, eltham cemetery, eltham cemetery trust, frederick geoffrey jones, geoffrey morris jones b.e.m., grace davies (nee hayes), gwendoline grace watson jones (nee davies), llangollen, lower yarra group, poems, william watson davies

Fred, Gwenda and Geoff Jones Contents 1. Proud memory; Geoff Jones, Diamond Valley News, 21 Nov 1979 2. Sudden death of 'much loved man', Diamond Valley News, 13 Feb 1979 3. Honor for a community friend, Diamond Valley News, 8 March 1995 (On reverse, 'Diverse program to entice riders' about St Andrews Saddle Club and fgeatures a photo of Debbie Jones) Gwendoline (Gwenda) Grace Watson Davies, only daughter of Mr. William Watson Davies and Mrs. Grace Davies (nee Hayes) of Arthur Street, Eltham was born in Newport, 18 February 1908. Gwenda grew up in Arthur Street and when she left school she was employed as an officer at the State Bank of Victoria, Chief Accountants Department, Head Office, Elizabeth Street, Melbourne. On October 20, 1937 after ten years of service, Gwenda submitted her letter of resignation effective November 26th as she was to be married in the near future to Fred Jones. Frederick Geoffrey Jones, born 7 January 1911, third son of Mr. and Mrs. W. Jones of Napoleon Street, Eltham, married Gwenda at the Eltham Methodist Church on 27 November 1937. They made their home at ‘Llangollen’, Arthur Street, Eltham, a new house Fred had constructed earlier that year opposite the Shire Offices. Their residence was recorded in the Electoral Rolls from 1963-1980 as 6 Arthur Street, Eltham which was situated on the corner of Arthur Street and present-day Commercial Place. In the 1970s their home was sold and demolished to make way for the new shops. They built a new home at the top of the hill in Bible Street. In the Electoral Rolls for 1943-1980, Frederick’s occupation was recorded as a Plumber’s Assistant. Fred was also a long-standing member of the Eltham Cemetery Trust. He was first appointed 26 April 1944 and resigned 17 July 1957 to be appointed to the Warringal and Eltham Joint Trust where he served till February 1980. He then re-joined the Eltham Cemetery Trust and served a further 14 years till his resignation on 24 August 1994. In total, Fred represented the interests of Eltham Cemetery for 50 years (1944-1994). Gwenda and Fred were blessed with a son, Frederick William Jones in March 1942. Sadly, Frederick only lived two days and was buried at Eltham Cemetery on March 11. It is not known whether his grave is marked. A second son, Geoffrey Morris Jones arrived 25 November 1944 but he sadly contracted polio as a child. A fall down the front steps of Fred and Gwenda’s new home in Bible Street culminated in Geoff’s death from a heart attack whilst in transit to the Austin Hospital on February 6, 1979, at age 34. He was also interred in the Eltham Cemetery. Geoff was posthumously awarded the British Empire Medal for his services to fire safety at the CFA. A small man, handicapped from his childhood polio, he had figured prominently in the area as an active Apex member and as group officer for the 13 local brigades in the CFA Lower Yarra Group. His work for the CFA, all voluntary, included writing a fire-fighting manual and the innovation of aerial fire spotting and weekly fire reports. Gwendoline and Fred were presented with Geoff’s B.EM. award at Government House. Four years later on the anniversary of Geoff’s death, Gwenda could not sleep and collapsed in the hallway at home from a heart attack, 6 February 1983 at age 74. She was interred with her son Geoff, at Eltham Cemetery on February 9th. Fred died 31 July 1997 at age 86 and was also interred at Eltham Cemetery. A memorial plaque to Gwenda, Fred and Geoff lies within the lawn cemetery at Eltham Cemetery.Newsprint clippingscfa, eltham cemetery, eltham cemetery trust, frederick geoffrey jones, geoffrey morris jones b.e.m., gwendoline grace watson jones (nee davies), lower yarra group, debbie jones, st andrews saddle club

Shire of Eltham Archives: Series 69, Item 4 This video was produced for the Shire of Eltham by IMP Productions and provides a description of the shire, 277 square km on a north/northeast axis, some 25 km northeast of the centre of Melbourne with a population of around 40,000. Scenes include Yarra River, rural settings and urban settings, housing estates, Shillinglaw Cottage, Pigeon Bank at Kangaroo Ground, the Eltham Railway Trestle Bridge with reference to the fight by locals in the 1970s to save it from replacement, Montsalvat, mudbrick making and its use as a building material, the use of mudbrick in the Eltham Community Centre blending harmoniously with the environment. Emphasises people living in the area due to the qualities of life provided. Also the Living and Learning Centre, St Andrews Markets and other local markets, the Eltham Leisure Centre, cricket and horse riding at Eltham Lower Park, the Infant Welfare Centre (part of the Eltham War Memorial), how residents are mindful of protecting their historical heritage, the CBA bank and Allwood House at Hurstbridge, Tracey Naughton about the Eltham "As we are" Community Banner project and the “River of Life banner”, the Parks and Gardens office in the former Police Residence building (now the Local History Centre), Alistair Knox Park, road planning and types of roads, tree canopy, Peck's Dam, green carparks, road drainage, Gordon Ford's garden and natural landscapes, and Were Street shops in Montmorency. Planning for shopping facilities and carparks with a population of 40,000 growing to 55,000, Arthur Street Mall and carpark, local village feel in the shopping centre. Councillors and Council staff featured include Mary Grant, Bob Manuell, Rodney Roschellor, John Cohen, Alan Baker. Also scenes of Commercial Place, Diamond Valley Railway, Eltham Galley, Riverclay and canoeing on the Yarra intermingled with images of the shire from the Shire of Eltham Pioneers Photograph collection.VHS Video cassette Converted to MP4 file format 00:11:56; 79MBshire of eltham, video recording, shire of eltham archives, alistair knox park, allwood house, arthur street, arthur street mall, bob manuell, canoeing, carparks, cba bank, commercial place, council staff, councillors, cr. mary grant, cricket, diamond valley railway, eltham community banner project, eltham community centre, eltham galley, eltham leisure centre, eltham living and learning centre, eltham lower park, eltham railway trestle bridge, eltham war memorial, gordon ford garden, horse riding, housing estates, hurstbridge, infant welfare centre, john cohen, kangaroo ground, local history centre, montmorency, montsalvat, mudbrick, parks and gardens, peck's dam, pigeon bank, police residence, river of life banner, riverclay, road drainage, road planning, rodney roschellor, shillinglaw cottage, shire of eltham pioneers photograph collection, st andrews market, tracey naughton, tree canopy, were street, yarra river, alan baker

2018 VicRoads Transport for Victoria Promotional support for local Eltham tradersDouble sided brochure 7 x 2 foldsbolton steet shops, bolton street upgrade, bridge street, eltham industrial estate, susan street

Map of Main Road with listings of all properties (shops/homes) from Mount Pleasant Road through to Pryor Street from the 1930s on to about the 1970sandrew store, andrews newsagency, arthur street, babe taylor house, bakery, barbers blue gum store, blue gum, boarding house, bootmakers cottage, bottle shop, bradford butcher shop, bradford house, bradley house, brdbury house, bridge street, brooker, brougham steet, brown blacksmith, browne's grocer, bryant, burgoyne post office, burgoyne's shop, capewell butcher shop, catholic church, catholic school, chandlers lolly shop, cheddar black, chiropractor, cockcroft, commercial bank of australia, copelands chemist, copelands dairy, d. hall house, dave lyon house, david lyon house, dr cordner, dr loosli, dr r. bradbury, dudley street, eltham, eltham bakehouse, eltham courthouse, eltham fire brigade, eltham living and learning centre, eltham pre-school, eltham railway station, eltham shire office, eltham station masters house, eltham war memorial, f. collis store, feed store, fountain hotel, franklin street, gadd's blacksmith, gahan house, garnet burges, george bird grocer, gollings, grant house, harry hawker, headmaster's resience, henry street, hepburn house, hills house, isherwood house and shop, jack ryan, jack shallard, james house, jarrold cottage, jim ryan, john lyon house, kilpatrick, le brocq, leather and harness, len parsons, lock-up, lyon bros garage, main road, map, mathews house, mclean's produce store, mechanics institute, methodist church, methodist hall, milkbar, mills bootmaker, miss george, monteith house, mount pleasant road, mrs bradbury, mrs davis house, mrs jewell, mrs mbremner store, mrs morris shop, napoleon street, obelisk, panther place, peter gahan, pitt street, plumber, police residence, poultry and market garden, pryor street, railway house, rains newsagency, real estate agent, reeves general store, s. bradbury, shillinglaw cottage, staffs general store, stones mixed shop, tennis court, timber yard, w. walker, w.b. andrew corn store, warren's general store, water trough, watsons hotel, websters house, whitecloud cottage, whites general store, williams bootmaker, wingrove cottage, wingrove park, woodyard, york street, franco and co

Former CBA Bank and Opportunity Shop, near 804 Main Road, ElthamTomorrow's history documented todaycba bank, eltham, jim connor collection, main road, opportunity shop

Eltham Gateway, 804 Main Road, ElthamTomorrow's history documented todayeltham, jim connor collection, main road, eltham gateway, cba bank, opportunity shop

Eltham Gateway, Former CBA Bank and Opportunity Shop, near 804 Main Road, ElthamTomorrow's history documented todayeltham, jim connor collection, main road, eltham gateway, cba bank, opportunity shop

Eltham Gateway, View across Main Road to Sweet D Lites at 820 Main Road and unit complex at 72-74 Bridge Street, ElthamTomorrow's history documented todayeltham, jim connor collection, main road, eltham gateway, bridge street, burgoyne's shop, sweeet d lites

Eltham Gateway, View across Main Road to Sweet D Lites at 820 Main Road and unit complex at 72-74 Bridge Street, ElthamTomorrow's history documented todayeltham, jim connor collection, main road, eltham gateway, bridge street, burgoyne's shop, sweeet d lites

Eltham Gateway, Unit complex, 836 Main Road, Eltham at corner of York Street - site of the original old bakehouse and shopTomorrow's history documented todayeltham, jim connor collection, main road, eltham gateway, york street

Eltham Gateway, Unit complex, 836 Main Road, Eltham at corner of York Street - site of the original old bakehouse and shopTomorrow's history documented todayeltham, jim connor collection, main road, eltham gateway, york street

The Former Commonwealth Bank of Australia branch forms part of the Eltham Gateway and the Little Eltham precinct and is located near 804 Main Road, Eltham. It is a significant building and registered on the Victorian Heritage Register. The bank was built in 1878. It is a one-room, bichromatic brick building. Imagine your bank only being open for one morning a week! These were the hours of the Commercial Bank’s Eltham branch early in the 20th century and customers were quite content. The bank stored gold from the Eltham/Research mining areas. It is famous for its bullet holes. These were the result of a hold up in 1949, in which a nervous youth opened an account in the name of John Henderson, then walked to the door and spun around pulling out a pistol he fired into the cedar bench but fled empty handed and was apprehended later, receiving a two year sentence. The Bank was purchased by the Methodist Church in 1954. (The Eltham church is right adjacent). Recent uses have included a meeting room, Sunday School and Opportunity Shop. It is currently used as a storage for the Combined churches opportunity shop which is located in the United church extension beside this location. Tomorrow's history documented todayeltham, jim connor collection, main road, eltham gateway, cba bank, opportunity shop