The Herald was a broadsheet newspaper published in Melbourne, Australia from 1840 to 1990. The Herald ceased publication on 5 October 1990, but on 8 October 1990, The Herald's name was merged with sister morning newspaper The Sun News-Pictorial to form the Herald Sun, which contained columns and features from both The Herald and The Sun News-Pictorial.This newspaper gives an insight into everyday life in the late 1950's and is a useful reference tool.A 40 pp complete broadsheet newspaper, The Herald - Melbourne. It is dated Saturday, August 16, 1958. It cost 3d.newspaper-the herald media communication-print

Reprint of the front page of the Melbourne "Herald" Headline news Peace in the PacificThe Herald

Herald Newspaper section shows various ads including one for a VIP refrigerator; main story features article about a murderess.non-fictionnewspapers, cape paterson, time capsule

Jack KINGSBURY/ Born Northern W.A. 16 March 1916 Died 14 August 1983 Age 14 worked in gold mines at Kalgoorlie for som years then came to Bendigo/mines. He met and married Jessie PITTS in 1936. He enlisted in the airforce in 1941 and was studying to be a pilot when he retired. Cat No 5821,5822,5823 Leigh Joseph JONES/ Born Richmond 2 June 1922 to 18 March 1983. Married Dorothy Jean PITTS 18 March 1944. Applied to join the army but was too young. Returned to join as his fathers name Lewis John same initials and old enough. He served and was discharged as this name. He was aboard ship when it was discovered too late. He served in New Guinea. Post war he applied to have his service name corrected, he was a champion sports man, cycling, football, bowling. Awarded an imperial award for his work with Papua New Guinea “Newspaper- reprint of the The Herald original newspaper from MELBOURNE WEDNESDAY EVEING AUGUST 15, 1945 Black and white print and photographs on paper newspaper, military history, ww2

The Herald newspaper was first published in 1840. This is a souvenir commemorative supplement.4 p. col. & black and white photographsthe herald

Special edition of the Herald Sun to commemorate the Black Saturday fires of 2009.Pictorial coverage of the Black Saturday fires in Victoria.Newspaper wrap-around, 20 pages, illus. (some col.)"Black Saturday February 7, 2009" on cover.herald sun, black saturday fires

Demonstrates how advertising was done within W class tramcars - boxes of the driver's door and yields information about the Herald Newspaper.Poster advertising the Herald (Melbourne evening newspaper) newspaper. Thought to date from the late 1960's possibly when the trams were withdrawn. .1 - "Take The Herald on holiday. Keep in touch while you're out of touch." - featuring a lady reading the newspaper with the heading "Gas Rig Looks like its dying" while on the beach while a child plays nearby. Two copies held. .2 - "On The Herald has Jack Elliot" with a line sketch of Jack and horse races along the bottom. Were located in the end advertising panels over the doors of W3 661 and used a base for historical photographs of 661 in Melbourne (See Reg Item 4692 and 4693) until replaced during 2009, when collected.trams, tramways, advertisements, posters, w class trams

First edition of the Herald Sun for this century. Photos of New Year's celebrations and look forward into the 21st Century.A snapshot of Melbourne in 2000.Complete newspaper, 120pages, illus. (some col.)"New Millennium Edition" on cover.herald sun

Last edition of the Herald Sun for the 20th century. Includes articles on changes over the past 100 years.A review of the 20th century.Complete newspaper, 88 pages plus 8 page wrap-around, illus. (some col.)"End of Century Edition" on cover.herald sun

A souvenir edition of The [Melbourne] Herald to celebrate the end of World War II. Front page headline reads " PEACE - WORLD HAILS JAP SURRENDER".Newspaper, 8 pages. Text and black and white images.

Queen Elizabeth II reigned for over 70 years (1952-2022). Following her death in September 2022, the Herald Sun produced this series, outlining her life in pictures and articles.3 editions of a special lift out series, 16 pages each, text and colour and black and white images.queen elizabeth ii, royal family

Queen Elizabeth II reigned for over 70 years (1952-2022). Following her funeral in September 2022, the Herald Sun produced this lift out reporting on Her Majesty's funeral in pictures.12 pages of reports and colour and black and white images.queen elizabeth ii, royal family

Queen Elizabeth II reigned for over 70 years (1952-2022). Following her death in September 2022, the Herald Sun produced this lift out "Tribute Magazine", reflecting on Her Majesty's life in pictures and articles.A 'Tribute" magazine, 24 pages of reports and colour and black and white images.queen elizabeth ii, royal family

A souvenir edition of The [Melbourne] Herald to celebrate the end of World War II. Front page headline reads " PEACE - WORLD HAILS JAP SURRENDER". This is a facsimile copy of the paper, each page printed on A3 paper in two halves.Facsimile copy of Newspaper, 8 pages, printed on A3 paper. Text and black and white images.world war 2

Advertising Poster for use in Tramcars printed on heavy cardboard advertising The Herald, Melbourne, newspaper and its world news coverage and on the rear, "Do a good turn today" with a happy face on a yellow back. Image file is a small version of the large pdf file, on file as hte5562i.pdf. Image i1 shows the rear of the poster with the words - "Do a good turn today"trams, tramways, posters, the herald, advertisements, behaviour

Advertising Poster for use in Tramcars printed on heavy cardboard advertising The Herald, Melbourne, newspaper about taking it on holidays and on the rear, "Tell her you still love her" with a happy face on a yellow back. Image file is a small version of the large pdf file, on file as hte5563i.pdf. Image i1 shows the rear of the poster with the words - "Tell her you still love her"trams, tramways, posters, the herald, advertisements, behaviour

Various news articles pertaining to the January 1965 Victorian bushfires specifically with a focus on fires at Eltham North. Specific Eltham Shire districts mentioned include Eltham North and veteran Herald staff photographer Bert Rodda on page 1 • 3 Die as Bushfires Sweep the Hill: 10 homes burn at Nth. Eltham, p1 (Illust.) • 100 dogs die, p1 • Taken on the run, p1 (Illust.) • Fire runs wild at Eltham, p3 (Illust.) • 10-mile front out of control; Gippsland area ablaze, p3 • Trapped, but saved by wind, p3 tom fielding collection, victorian bushfires - 1965, victorian bushfires – 1965, eltham north, bert rodda, glen park road, short road, research (vic.), wattle glen, diamond creek, warrandyte, eltham, gippsland, mrs g. maher, bill dancy, eltham north store, bushfire damage - buildings

This article was referring to a historical event from Vietnam War of a picture depicting the use of napalm and it's effects on people especially the young naked girl running from the Napalm. Alongside the picture of the young girl as a woman 20 years later. Herald Sun Paper supplement five double pagesHerald Sun Weekend, April 22nd, 1995, Vietnam 20 Years After The Fall of Saigon, The pain and despair of loss written on the front page with 2 photos one of young naked girl running from Napalm and her now as a grown woman. herald sun, weekend, vietnam, newspaper, 1995

The family Herald Supplements were advertised as "the favourite ladies' magazine, a pioneer of penny novels with one complete novel in each issue" It was issued every Monday and cost one penny. These are Volumes LX1; XX11; LX; L11 and L11. The Family Herald was a weekly domestic magazine from 1843 - 1949. Launched by George Biggs in 1842, it was re-established in May 1843 with James Elishama Smith and mechanised printing.Women’s magazines increased in popularity throughout the 1800s as printing technology advanced and consumerism grew. In the latter half of the 1880s and 1890s, magazine publication and circulation became less expensive and more accessible.These volumes are typical of the popular magazines designed especially for women. A set of five volumes of "The Family Herald Supplements". All have olive green covers with black print ornate borders.magazine journal family-herald-supplement

Herald Sun, Newspaper Supplement, covering a 12 page guide of the 2000 Olympic torch relay in Victoria. The newspaper date is Friday, July 14, 2000.Newspaper supplement, Herald Sun "The Torch Relay in Victoria" Your Official 12-Page Guide. Friday July 14, 2000.Return of the flame July 19-31. August 7-14. August 19. Sydney 2000 Olympicsstawell

The photograph has the information written on the back. It states it is the Senior Athletic Team Champions Herald Shield 1919 Same image was reproduced in the SMB Students' Magazine 1921 with the caption "SMB Athletic Team 'Runners-up in Victorian Inter-Technical Schools' competition for the Herald Shield, 1920"A formal group photograph of 10 adolescent males in sporting attire. Footwear with spikes. A studio photograph Mounted on cream coloured ornate boardHandwritten in ink on back. "Senior Athletic Team Champions Herald Shield 1919. List of names and position of studentsathletic team, herald shield, champions, runners-up, harold maddison, a mccallum, harold wakeling, frank larkin, noel hoy, reginald wilson, 'buck' rankin

Lindsay Harley attended the Ballarat Teachers' College in 1947, the year that the certificate was presented. The great Australian swimmer Frank Beaurepaire was the Campaign President.Brown paper cerificate certifying that Lindsay Harley was taught to swim at least 25 yards in The Herald Campaign at Ballarat City baths. Signed W.F. Bryanballarat, ballarat teachers' college, harely, lindsay hareley, bryan, beaurepaire, herald, herald learn to swim, balllarat city baths, swimming

Newspaper cutting about flooding in South Melbourne disabling a tram and a "trammie" conductor or driver, directing traffic. Tram W7 1019, route 10.Yields information about the type of delays that can occur on a big tram system.Newspaper cutting from the Herald Sun 13-1-1980 about flooding in South Melbourne and delaying tram W7 1019"Sun Herald 13.1.80"trams, tramways, tramcars, flooding, floods, south melbourne, w7 1019, route 10, crews

In 1919 the Ballarat School of Mines Inter-technical Football Team won the Herald Shield for the second time. Screened image of the Ballarat School of Mines Athletics Team and officials with the Herald Shield. Back Row left to right: ? , ? , Fred Messenger, Dick Dale, Noel Hoy, Dick Richards (with moustache), Frank Larkin, Reg Wilson, Peter Cutter, Carl Schache. Front row left to right: A. McCallum, Bill, O'Halloran, Bill Shaddock.a, ballarat school of mines, dick richards, athletics, herald shield, fred messenger, dick dale, noel hoy, frank larkin, reg wilson, peter cutter, carl schache, r w richards front, row, left, to, right, mccallum, bill, o halloran, shaddock

The article and photo report on the poor condition of the Victorian Railways tram tracks and the possible closure of the Sandringham to Black Rock tram line. Notes the passengers wish to keep the line and while the track is poor, the service runs on time. The tram line was closed on 5/11/1956.Yields information about the Sandringham to Black Rock line prior to the tramway closure.Newspaper clipping titled - "Rough, but they like it" - Melbourne Herald 5/11/1955"Melb "Herald" Sat 5 Nov 1955"trams, tramways, vr trams, track maintenance, tram tracks, sandringham to black rock

John Lawrence Coleman (1934-1965) born January 10, was the son of Raymond John Coleman and Hanna May (Gillet) Coleman. He married Margaret Frances Dare in 1955 and was the father of two children. He died whilst attempting to rescue an older man trapped in the bushfire at North Eltham on March 3, 1965 He died at Eltham (Herald, 4 March 1965, p3) [Picture of John Lawrence Coleman] Builder Mr John Lawrence Coleman, 31, of Main Rd., Eltham, one of three men burnt to death yesterday in the fire at North Eltham. The other two were XXXXX, 33 who lives opposite the Colemans and Mr William Elwers, 64 of Batman Rd., Eltham. * * * Frank Martin was a volunteer with the Eltham rural fire brigade at the time of the 1965 bushfires which burnt Eltham North and Research. Frank was asked to assist with the removal of three bodies from the back gully (now Orchard Avenue). They were badly burnt and one was found stuck under a fence as though trying to escape. Volunteers John Coleman Jnr, William Elwers and George Crowe were killed trying to protect Eltham from bushfire – they were local heroes. At the time, John Coleman Jnr was survived by his wife Margaret and two young children – John 11 and Vicky 2. Margaret Coleman lived in the family home until 1992 when she sold it and moved to Tasmania to be close to her son. She died in 1997 aged 65 years. 75 yr old Ken Gaston grew up on Edendale farm, which was originally a poultry farm but is now owned and run by the Shire of Nillumbik as an educational farm for schools and visitors. He was Captain of the Eltham rural fire brigade in 1965 when John Coleman Jnr was burnt to death in the Eltham North bushfires serving as an unofficial volunteer. He was able to draw where the original Wattletree Road was and at the time was verified with the location of some remaining bitumen and a post from the original bridge over the Diamond Creek located near the junction of the Diamond Creek and another small creek which is further down from Research or Christmas Creek as locals refer to it. The original Main Road ran behind Colemans before the railway line was built beyond Eltham in 1912. (Information recorded by Harry Gilham, President EDHS c.2011) * * * Bushfires rage in Victoria, Snowy: Three dead (1965, March 4). The Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995), p. 1. Retrieved May 19, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article131758981 Includes two photos of the fire in North Eltham “Firemen make for safety as fire rages in Upper Glen Park Road, North Eltham, Victoria. The smoke hides a house.” and “A house explodes into flames at North Eltham, Victoria. Firemen said bottled gas went up.” Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995), Thursday 4 March 1965, page 1 ________________________________________ Firemen make for safety as fire rages in Upper Glen Park Road. North Eltham. Victoria. The smoke hides a house. A house explodes into flames at North Eltham. Victoria. Firemen said bottled gas went up. Bushfires rage in Victoria, Snowy: Three dead MELBOURNE, Wednesday.—Three people died today in a bush» fire which raged through North Eltham, about 15 miles from Melbourne. The victims were three men. A fourth man is feared to be dead. Another bushfire. sparked off by the heatwave sizzling over south-eastern Australia, is burning out of control in the Kosciusko State Park, in the Snowy Mountains. Firefighters fear that if it reaches pine forests up the Yarrangobilly River, they will be powerless to stop it. The three victims of the North Eltbam fire were trapped by flames in a valley. Their bodies were found only a few yards apart. They were named by police tonight as Mr. George Crowe, 78, of North Eltham, William John Ewers, 64, and John Laurence Coleman, 31, both of Eltham. The other two have not been identified. They are believed to be a man aged about 40 and an 18-year-old youth. At least 12 homes were destroyed by the fire, the worst in Victoria since 1962, when eight lives were lost and hundreds of homes burnt down at Warrandyte. At one time the township of Eltham was threatened, but a cool change swept in from the south and held back the wall of flames. More than 100 dogs, worth about £4,000, died when the fire raced through two kennels in Short Street, Eltham. and Upper Glen Park Road, North Eltham. A trickle of water Residents ran into the streets as the blaze raced towards their houses. Others frantically dug firebreaks around their homes. Mrs. Sue Recourt wept when firemen arrived while she was vainly trying to stop the flames with a trickle of water from the garden hose. A stack of firewood was blazing, but the firemen managed to save the house and rescue four goats. Many homes in Eltham were saved after flames had crept to within feet of their fences. Students at North Eltham State School had to be evacuated when the blaze threatened the building. Fire fighters were severely hampered by lack of water and narrow roads. The blaze, which began in above century heat, turned toward Wattle Glen, where two houses were gutted. Then the flames raced towards Hurstbridge to the north. Firemen battling desperately, controlled the fire late this afternoon. Five forest fires were still burning in Victoria tonight.   IN VICTORIA THIS WEEK Tragic lack of central fire authority (1965, March 9). The Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995), p. 2. Retrieved May 19, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article131759928 Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995), Tuesday 9 March 1965, page 2 ________________________________________ IN VICTORIA THIS WEEK Tragic lack of central fire authority From Rohan Rivett It was the worst week for Victorian fire fighters since Black Friday 27 years ago. On that day one pilot up in a spotter plane said afterwards: "It seemed at times that half the State was on fire." This time, for three days on end, Gippsland men, women and children had moments of conviction that their towns would have blackened into anonymity before the weekend was out. The week began with horror at Eltham on the North-eastern edge of Melbourne. Eltham today is something of an artists' colony. Oil painters, water colourists, potters and sculptors proliferate. A number of University folk have emulated the example of Professor MacMahon Ball who pioneered the way by moving to Eltham and carving a home out of the bush in the thirties. Innermost Eltham is barely 14 miles from the G.P.O. Farthest Eltham stretches miles beyond. It served to illustrate the tragi-ludicrous truncation of Victoria's fire control. Part of Eltham is under the protection of the Melbourne Fire Brigade. But this responsibility ceases at some invisible and incomprehensible line — apparently determined by the meanderings of the water mains. At this point everybody's property throughout the rest of Eltham is dependent on the Country Fire Authority. Half an hour before midday on Wednesday, a fire suddenly started on the West side of Upper Glen road on the edge of Eltham. Before the fire brigade could arrive, it was burning on a widening front through timber and high grass north of Eltham. Two wind changes in rapid succession saw the fire leaping Diamond Creek. With a freshening wind it struck home after home in three streets. More than one of them exploded suddenly as if hit by an incendiary bomb. There is no piped gas in the Eltham area, hence many housewives use bottle gas. The flames outside caused the bottles to explode. Altogether twelve homes were completely incinerated and four more were badly damaged. Thirty prize dogs perished. About three hours after the fire started it raced suddenly down a gully hillside trapping an elderly man. Two other men apparently raced to the rescue. Flames caught the three men within yards of each other, not 200 yards off the Upper Glen Park Road where safety lay. They were burned to death. Next evening an angry and convincing secretary of the Fire Brigade Union, Mr. W. M. Webber, came on television and appealed to the people of Victoria to end the ridiculous and dangerous dualism in fire-fighting control. The Eltham fire, he said, had precisely illustrated the situation. The Metropolitan Fire Brigade area touched Eltham, but where the fire had gutted and killed, was just outside its area. Mr. Webber said his union had constantly urged one authority for the State with a complete reorganisation of fire protection. On Wednesday the union had repeated its call for an inquiry into fire protection in Victoria to the Chief Secretary, Mr Rylah. "No matter how close the liaison between the two organisations, there are always divided sections of thinking," Mr. Webber told viewers. "I don't know how much tragedy the com-munity can take before it demands that it is properly protected." Rumours that differences in gauge between taps and hose nozzles (as between the two authorities) accentuated the damage were denied by fire chiefs who said that all appliances were now carrying adaptors so that hoses could be linked to mains everywhere. But there is grave concern in the Metropolitan Fire Brigade's higher councils at the action of several Federal authorities with projects in and around Melbourne. They are installing non-standard equipment without reference to the State authorities or any dovetailing of appliances and equipment. Public alarm was not diminished by the publication on Friday and Saturday of a heart tearing letter from the young widow of John Lawrence Coleman, 31 year old father of two, who had died in the flames apparently trying to rescue the old man trapped in the gully. By that time, a Vast area of Gippsland was in flames and the troops had been sent in to back up the overworked and often helpless fire-fighters. By Saturday, the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Stoneham, who has previously demanded a Royal Commission into fire-fighting arrangements, repeated his demand. To add to the Chief Secretary's worries he was publicly rebuked for allegedly implying on television that lives had been lost at Eltham because people went to the wrong place at the wrong time. In a letter to the Press, Professor MacMahon Ball pointed out that two of the men involved were experienced bushmen who had gone "to help an old man in great danger fully aware of the danger to themselves". As Victoria faced its sixth day of total State-wide fire ban, it looked likely that even official resistance was not going to silence the demand for one central authority to control the fire fiend. At the moment, the 400 square miles where two million Victorians live in Greater Melbourne are divorced from the rest of the State in planning, communications, equipment and control of personnel. No one doubts the whole-hearted co-operation and willingness to back each other up of the M.F.B. and the C.F.A., both at top-level and among the firemen themselves. However, when a city straggles so deeply into the country side, the absence of a single authority, to oversee and analyse the fire threat as a whole, suggests suicidal policy of divide and fuel. Emphasis of the tragic loss of a member of a pioneering family who died whilst helping others in his communitybushfire, cfa, country fire authority, fire brigrade, glen park road, heroes, john lawrence coleman, north eltham, victorian bushfires - 1965, volunteers, william john elwers, fire fighter, frank martin, george john crowe, ken gaston, orchard avenue

The article and photo report on the poor condition of roads in particular Hayden's Road and the former, short lived Victorian Railways Beaumaris - Black Rock tram line. Has two photos showing the road condition. The second photo shows sleepers from the former tram line and a badly worn road surface that had been placed on top. The item by a staff reporter likens the road to wartime battle fields. The tram line rails were lifted or removed during 1939 - see page 35 of The Brighton Electric Line.Yields information about the road condition in the Beaumaris area in 1955.Newspaper clipping titled - "Seaside tracks are "roads"" - Melbourne Herald 12/11/1955"Melb "Herald" Sat 12 Nov 1955"trams, tramways, vr trams, track maintenance, tram tracks, beaumaris

A late afternoon storm on Christmas Day 2011. A flash flood occurred from significant rain fall and hail, which accumulated along an old waterway with floodwater submerging cars along Valonia Drive then down Grove Street flooding houses, through the Bible Street Reserve where it then submerged Main Road washing away the small railway trestle bridge opposite the reserve then flooding the Judge Book Village before finally entering the Diamond Creek. Widespread damage occured from hail and flash flooding.fay bridge collection, eltham, 2011-12-27, flood damage, floods, floodwater

Full page newspaper clipping featuring the March 1965 Victorian bushfires. Items include: Photograph - TWO-WOMAN BUCKET BRIGADE, Mrs Henry Marsden (left) and Mrs Moureen Ellis, whose fire-fighting efforts yesterday were highly praised today by their Eltham neighbours, carry out mopping-up operations Photograph - DOGS MADE HOMELESS by the fire in North Eltham yesterday are being cared for at First-Constable Doug. Mummery's kennels at Eltham and here is kennel maid Helen Oliver, 17, with some of them today. The two basset hounds are owned by Mr Bill Guy who lost about 100 daschund and basset hound puppies and dogs in the fire. Photograph - He died at Eltham [Picture of John Lawrence Coleman] Builder Mr John Lawrence Coleman, 31, of Main Rd., Eltham, one of three men burnt to death yesterday in the fire at North Eltham. The other two were XXXXX, 33 who lives opposite the Colemans and Mr William Elwers, 64 of Batman Rd., Eltham. John Lawrence Coleman (1934-1965) born January 10, was the son of Raymond John Coleman and Hanna May (Gillet) Coleman. He married Margaret Frances Dare in 1955 and was the father of two children. He died whilst attempting to rescue an older man trapped in the bushfire at North Eltham on March 3, 1965 Other news stories of the day:  Bushfires rage in Victoria, Snowy: Three dead (1965, March 4). The Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995), p. 1. Retrieved May 19, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article131758981 Includes two photos of the fire in North Eltham “Firemen make for safety as fire rages in Upper Glen Park Road, North Eltham, Victoria. The smoke hides a house.” and “A house explodes into flames at North Eltham, Victoria. Firemen said bottled gas went up.” Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995), Thursday 4 March 1965, page 1 ________________________________________ Firemen make for safety as fire rages in Upper Glen Park Road. North Eltham. Victoria. The smoke hides a house. A house explodes into flames at North Eltham. Victoria. Firemen said bottled gas went up. Bushfires rage in Victoria, Snowy: Three dead MELBOURNE, Wednesday.—Three people died today in a bush» fire which raged through North Eltham, about 15 miles from Melbourne. The victims were three men. A fourth man is feared to be dead. Another bushfire. sparked off by the heatwave sizzling over south-eastern Australia, is burning out of control in the Kosciusko State Park, in the Snowy Mountains. Firefighters fear that if it reaches pine forests up the Yarrangobilly River, they will be powerless to stop it. The three victims of the North Eltbam fire were trapped by flames in a valley. Their bodies were found only a few yards apart. They were named by police tonight as Mr. George Crowe, 78, of North Eltham, William John Ewers, 64, and John Laurence Coleman, 31, both of Eltham. The other two have not been identified. They are believed to be a man aged about 40 and an 18-year-old youth. At least 12 homes were destroyed by the fire, the worst in Victoria since 1962, when eight lives were lost and hundreds of homes burnt down at Warrandyte. At one time the township of Eltham was threatened, but a cool change swept in from the south and held back the wall of flames. More than 100 dogs, worth about £4,000, died when the fire raced through two kennels in Short Street, Eltham. and Upper Glen Park Road, North Eltham. A trickle of water Residents ran into the streets as the blaze raced towards their houses. Others frantically dug firebreaks around their homes. Mrs. Sue Recourt wept when firemen arrived while she was vainly trying to stop the flames with a trickle of water from the garden hose. A stack of firewood was blazing, but the firemen managed to save the house and rescue four goats. Many homes in Eltham were saved after flames had crept to within feet of their fences. Students at North Eltham State School had to be evacuated when the blaze threatened the building. Fire fighters were severely hampered by lack of water and narrow roads. The blaze, which began in above century heat, turned toward Wattle Glen, where two houses were gutted. Then the flames raced towards Hurstbridge to the north. Firemen battling desperately, controlled the fire late this afternoon. Five forest fires were still burning in Victoria tonight.   IN VICTORIA THIS WEEK Tragic lack of central fire authority (1965, March 9). The Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995), p. 2. Retrieved May 19, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article131759928 Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995), Tuesday 9 March 1965, page 2 ________________________________________ IN VICTORIA THIS WEEK Tragic lack of central fire authority From Rohan Rivett It was the worst week for Victorian fire fighters since Black Friday 27 years ago. On that day one pilot up in a spotter plane said afterwards: "It seemed at times that half the State was on fire." This time, for three days on end, Gippsland men, women and children had moments of conviction that their towns would have blackened into anonymity before the weekend was out. The week began with horror at Eltham on the North-eastern edge of Melbourne. Eltham today is something of an artists' colony. Oil painters, water colourists, potters and sculptors proliferate. A number of University folk have emulated the example of Professor MacMahon Ball who pioneered the way by moving to Eltham and carving a home out of the bush in the thirties. Innermost Eltham is barely 14 miles from the G.P.O. Farthest Eltham stretches miles beyond. It served to illustrate the tragi-ludicrous truncation of Victoria's fire control. Part of Eltham is under the protection of the Melbourne Fire Brigade. But this responsibility ceases at some invisible and incomprehensible line — apparently determined by the meanderings of the water mains. At this point everybody's property throughout the rest of Eltham is dependent on the Country Fire Authority. Half an hour before midday on Wednesday, a fire suddenly started on the West side of Upper Glen road on the edge of Eltham. Before the fire brigade could arrive, it was burning on a widening front through timber and high grass north of Eltham. Two wind changes in rapid succession saw the fire leaping Diamond Creek. With a freshening wind it struck home after home in three streets. More than one of them exploded suddenly as if hit by an incendiary bomb. There is no piped gas in the Eltham area, hence many housewives use bottle gas. The flames outside caused the bottles to explode. Altogether twelve homes were completely incinerated and four more were badly damaged. Thirty prize dogs perished. About three hours after the fire started it raced suddenly down a gully hillside trapping an elderly man. Two other men apparently raced to the rescue. Flames caught the three men within yards of each other, not 200 yards off the Upper Glen Park Road where safety lay. They were burned to death. Next evening an angry and convincing secretary of the Fire Brigade Union, Mr. W. M. Webber, came on television and appealed to the people of Victoria to end the ridiculous and dangerous dualism in fire-fighting control. The Eltham fire, he said, had precisely illustrated the situation. The Metropolitan Fire Brigade area touched Eltham, but where the fire had gutted and killed, was just outside its area. Mr. Webber said his union had constantly urged one authority for the State with a complete reorganisation of fire protection. On Wednesday the union had repeated its call for an inquiry into fire protection in Victoria to the Chief Secretary, Mr Rylah. "No matter how close the liaison between the two organisations, there are always divided sections of thinking," Mr. Webber told viewers. "I don't know how much tragedy the com-munity can take before it demands that it is properly protected." Rumours that differences in gauge between taps and hose nozzles (as between the two authorities) accentuated the damage were denied by fire chiefs who said that all appliances were now carrying adaptors so that hoses could be linked to mains everywhere. But there is grave concern in the Metropolitan Fire Brigade's higher councils at the action of several Federal authorities with projects in and around Melbourne. They are installing non-standard equipment without reference to the State authorities or any dovetailing of appliances and equipment. Public alarm was not diminished by the publication on Friday and Saturday of a heart tearing letter from the young widow of John Lawrence Coleman, 31 year old father of two, who had died in the flames apparently trying to rescue the old man trapped in the gully. By that time, a Vast area of Gippsland was in flames and the troops had been sent in to back up the overworked and often helpless fire-fighters. By Saturday, the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Stoneham, who has previously demanded a Royal Commission into fire-fighting arrangements, repeated his demand. To add to the Chief Secretary's worries he was publicly rebuked for allegedly implying on television that lives had been lost at Eltham because people went to the wrong place at the wrong time. In a letter to the Press, Professor MacMahon Ball pointed out that two of the men involved were experienced bushmen who had gone "to help an old man in great danger fully aware of the danger to themselves". As Victoria faced its sixth day of total State-wide fire ban, it looked likely that even official resistance was not going to silence the demand for one central authority to control the fire fiend. At the moment, the 400 square miles where two million Victorians live in Greater Melbourne are divorced from the rest of the State in planning, communications, equipment and control of personnel. No one doubts the whole-hearted co-operation and willingness to back each other up of the M.F.B. and the C.F.A., both at top-level and among the firemen themselves. However, when a city straggles so deeply into the country side, the absence of a single authority, to oversee and analyse the fire threat as a whole, suggests suicidal policy of divide and fuel. Emphasis of the tragic loss of a member of a pioneering family who died whilst helping others in his communitybushfire, cfa, country fire authority, fire brigrade, glen park road, heroes, john lawrence coleman, north eltham, victorian bushfires - 1965, volunteers, william john elwers, fire fighter, frank martin, george john crowe, ken gaston, orchard avenue, doug mummery, helen oliver, mrs henry marsden, mrs moureen ellis