The Walton Street Fire Brigade building was constructed in 1893 (Rogers, 1973) replacing an earlier building on the site constructed for the Kew Volunteer Fire brigade. The building was demolished in 1941. In the background of the photo is a nouse on the corner of Peel and Walton Street which was also constructed in 1893 and which was to house a fireman from the brigade.This work forms part of the collection assembled by the historian Dorothy Rogers, that was donated to the Kew Historical Society by her son John Rogers in 2015. The manuscripts, photographs, maps, and documents were sourced by her from both family and local collections or produced as references for her print publications. Many were directly used by Rogers in writing ‘Lovely Old Homes of Kew’ (1961) and 'A History of Kew' (1973), or the numerous articles on local history that she produced for suburban newspapers. Most of the photographs in the collection include detailed annotations in her hand. The Rogers Collection provides a comprehensive insight into the working habits of a historian in the 1960s and 1970s. Together it forms the largest privately-donated collection within the archives of the Kew Historical Society.A photographic print of the Kew Fire Brigade, presumably copied from W.D. Vaughan's 'Kew's Civic Century' (1960)."2nd Fire Brigade, Walton St., taken shortly before Belford Rd., built. (Demolished). 2nd fire brigade, Walton St., Kew. No photo of 1st except on membership certificate."kew fire brigade, walton street - kew

A Volunteer Fire Brigade was established in Kew in 1879 and a fire station established in Walton Street, Kew. The Brigade was formally disbanded by the Fire Brigade Act of 1890 and the volunteers replaced by a unit of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade in 1891. The building shown in this rare photograph was constructed in 1893. In the background can be seen a house on the corner of Walton and Peel Streets, one of two, built in 1893 for firemen of the Brigade. An article in The Weekly Times (1 April 1911) records that: "Kew Troop - A,S.M. Williams reports:- The troop under S.M. Kellett. marched to the Kew Fire Brigade station, to receive instruction in fire drill from Mr Gross, the officer in charge, but as he was unexpectedly called away, the S.M. S and A.S.M had to instruct the Troop. Every boy was taught how to sink the hydrant, and how to couple and uncouple the hose. The hose reel was then brought into action, and the boys were divided into sets of six, each division taking its turn in pulling the reel up a hill to the water plug, where the hydrant was quickly sunk by one Scout, two more uncoupling the hose and coupling it on to the hydrant. We have gained four recruits during the last week, and are expecting two more next week."This is a fine, original photograph, probably taken by a commercial photographer, showing the 1st Kew Scouts in front of the old Kew Fire Brigade building in Walton Street in 1911. The building, constructed in 1893 was later demolished in 1941. This is a rare historic photograph of the Station. Unfortunately the name of the photographer is unrecorded.1st Kew Scouts undertaking a fire drill in front of the old Kew Fire Station in Walton Street, Kew. The reverse details the names and addresses of the Scouts featured in the photograph. An integral part of the Scout program is service to others and working with the fire brigade would have been just one of many such training activities enthusiastically undertaken by the Scouts. The Kew Fire Brigade had hand-drawn fire appliances up until 1919 when a motorised vehicle was purchased. The fire station was replaced by the Belford Road station in 1941 and subsequently demolished. Front: "First Kew Scouts - Fire Drill - In front of Kew Fire Station - Walton St. Kew" Reverse: "Walton St Kew / Kew Fire Station / Mr Gross o/c Fire Station / Bert Gundy Clark, part-time fireman / Allan Sewell Gellibrand St. / Clappy Williams Hawthorn ? / Allan Barrett Cobden St / Allan Woollard High St"kew fire brigade - walton street, scout groups --- kew (vic), 1st kew boy scouts

The 1st Kew Scouts was one of the first Scout Troops in Victoria, being formed in 1909. From 1927 they met in a magnificent Scout Hall in Disraeli Street, Kew until it was demolished in 1993. Still operating (in 2020) from their new Scout Hall on the corner of Kilby Road and Kellett Grove, Kew.A Scout Troop is divided into smaller teams called ‘patrols’. At this time the Scout in charge of a patrol was called a patrol leader (‘PL’) and his assistant a ‘second’ (‘Sec’). Each patrol of boys would chose a patrol name, often an Australian animal or bird. Other 1st Kew patrols called themselves the Kookaburra Patrol, the Kangaroo Patrol and so forth. The shield the Emu patrol is proudly displaying is possibly the trophy for being the ‘Champion Victorian Patrol’. Some of the Scouts pictured are identified on the mount of the photograph.Back row left and centre: "Pettinger, Evans" Front row left to right: "J. Edwards, R Craven [PL], R.T. Timms [Sec], P. Bennett scouts - kew, 1st kew scouts, kew fire brigade - walton street

The Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works (MMBW) plans were produced from the 1890s to the 1950s. They were crucial to the design and development of Melbourne's sewerage and drainage system. The plans, at a scale of 40 feet to 1 inch (1:480), provide a detailed historical record of Melbourne streetscapes and environmental features. Each plan covers one or two street blocks (roughly six streets), showing details of buildings, including garden layouts and ownership boundaries, and features such as laneways, drains, bridges, parks, municipal boundaries and other prominent landmarks as they existed at the time each plan was produced. (Source: State Library of Victoria)This plan forms part of a large group of MMBW plans and maps that was donated to the Society by the Mr Poulter, City Engineer of the City of Kew in 1989. Within this collection, thirty-five hand-coloured plans, backed with linen, are of statewide significance as they include annotations that provide details of construction materials used in buildings in the first decade of the 20th century as well as additional information about land ownership and usage. The copies in the Public Record Office Victoria and the State Library of Victoria are monochrome versions which do not denote building materials so that the maps in this collection are invaluable and unique tools for researchers and heritage consultants. A number of the plans are not held in the collection of the State Library of Victoria so they have the additional attribute of rarity.Original survey plan, issued by the MMBW to a contractor with responsibility for constructing sewers in the area identified on the plan within the Borough of Kew. The plan was at some stage hand-coloured, possibly by the contractor, but more likely by officers working in the Engineering Department of the Borough and later Town, then City of Kew. The hand-coloured sections of buildings on the plan were used to denote masonry or brick constructions (pink), weatherboard constructions (yellow), and public buildings (grey). Public buildings, coloured grey on the Plan 1582 include the police station and post office, churches and schools. The earliest church school, Common School No.356 was located at the rear of the Congregational Church in Peel Street. It was constructed in 1859. The first buildings of Kew Primary School No.1075 on the other side of Peel Street were constructed in 1871. The school in 1903 only occupied a small fraction of its current site. In 1903, where the rear playground is now located, were two weatherboard and one brick villa. Trinity Grammar School was founded in 1902 and opened in the Parish Hall at the rear of Holy Trinity Anglican Church. It was not to move to its current site until 1906. The outline of the building housing the Kew Fire Brigade in the centre of the north side of Walton Street is shown but not named on the plan. Further down Pakington Street stood the two-storey Italianate mansion ‘Overton’. The home of Stanford Chapman, it was to be featured in the Imperial Institute series of bromide photographs of Victoria, Vol. 1: Homes and scenery. It was later to become a boarding house before it was later demolished.melbourne and metropolitan board of works, detail plans, maps - borough of kew, mmbw 1582, cartography

1879 - The Argus, Friday 11 July 1879, page 4. The Kew Borough Council having decided to initiate a fire brigade, invited volunteers to send in their names. About 40 complied with the invitation and met at the Town-hall to choose 12 of their number to form the brigade. The 12 elected then chose their officers as follows :— Councillor Gray, captain ; Mr. Thomas Greenhill, foreman ; and Mr. H. Loxton, secretary. The brigade decided to apply to the council for uniforms and a bell; and after adopting rules for their guidance the meeting separated. The brigade now possesses a reel and 500ft. of hose, and a shed is being erected in Little Walpole-street for a station. The council have applied for six additional fireplugs in the Main-road, so that the brigade may now be considered fairly established. The Volunteer Fire Brigade was replaced in 1891 by a detachment of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade and a new Fire Station in Walton Street constructed in 1893; subsequently demolished in 1941.The certificate includes the only known image of the first fire station in Kew. It was donated by Mrs L. Bray. The donor's father, Mr. A. Wood, was a member at time of the Brigade's 'disbandment'.Kew Volunteer Fire Brigade: Certificate of Membership, 1886. Testifying that Herbert Woollard was an active member of the Kew Volunteer Fire Brigade between 4th May 1883 and 2nd July 1886. Signed with pen and ink H. Kellett (Captain) and F.G.A. Barnard (Hon. Sec.). The certificate is believed to include the only picture of the first Kew Fire Station.The certificate lists the original members of the brigade on the left side as: Captain H. Gray, Lieutenant T. Greenhill, and Secretary H. Loxton; [Members} F.G.A. Barnard, W. Cleverdon, L. Gurzanscky, T.G. Jellis, J.A. Kay, H. Kellett, H. Kirby, D. McLachlan; (Honorary members) W. Atkins, W. Cleverdon, H. Gray, T. Greenhill. At the right is a list of members at the time of disbandment: Captain H. Kellett, Lieutenant H. Burmeister, Sub-Lieutenant A. Wallis, Secretary F.G.A. Barnard; [Members] J. Burke, W. Gardner, L. Gillman, F. Kay, H. Kirwood, W. MacKenzie, C. Wallis, A Wood; [Honorary members] G. Hinchcliffe, T. G. Jellis, J. A. Kay, D. McLaughlan.Troedel & Co. Lith [printer].kew volunteer fire brigade, h. woollard, brougham street -- kew (vic.)