Thousands of students are a step closer to accessing hi-tech equipment with the construction of the new Banyule-Nillumbik Tech School underway. The school will be based at Melbourne Polytechnic's Greensborough Campus.News article 1 page, black text.banyule city council, nillumbik council, banyule-nillumbik tech school, melbourne polytechnic

The earliest known photograph of Patrick Cummings barn - the Primitive Methodist Church and School and the Diamond Creek Gold Mine both established in the early 1860's.Black & white photographnoneprimitive methodist church, methodist church, diamond creek school, nillumbik school

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Black & white photographnillumbik school, diamond creek

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Colour photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Colour photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, diamond creek, nillumbik school

Community Project. One of a series of calendars which the Shire of Eltham and the Shire of Nillumbik published annually Photography by Graham Hosking Photography. Monthly calendar printed in landscape mode, with feature photograph and template of dates for each of the 12 months presented. Includes advertisements. Back of the calendar includes a list of emergency numbers.calendar,1996,shire of nillumbik,research primary school,eltham north adventure playground,edendale gateway,tony trembath,eltham leisure centre,diamond valley railway,kangaroo ground pony club,eltham community and reception centre,eltham community centre,shire of nillumbik,swimming pool,yarra river,, diamond creek trail,yarrambat golf course,sugar loaf reservoir,map

Book 1. Softcover book with ochre yellow cover, brown text and highlights with 100 pages. Book 2. Softcover book with light blue cover with black text and highlights with 100 pages.tancks corner, yarrambat, yarrambat primary school, nillumbik

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, nillumbik

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, nillumbik

Black & white photographdiamond creek state school, nillumbik

Cameo of Mick Chick, This and that, Farwell Alicia [Ansell], We want supermarkets!!!, Nillumbik Historical Society, School news, Montmorency & District Horticultural Society, Letter to the Editor.Newsletter, 19 p., illus. and textgreenhills and north greensborough progress association, greenhills, apollo parkways progress association, apollo parkways

This edition includes a report on the Apollo Parkways Progress Association's January 1976 meeting, Community voice... Apollo Parkways Progress Association beginnings, Farewell O'Donnells, Eltham Living and Learning Centre, This and that, Nillumbik Community School, Diamond Valley Repertory, Meet the natives, Guide news, Greenhills Amateur Basketball Club, School and Kinder news, Nursing Mothers Association. A digital copy of this Newsletter is available from Greensborough Historical Society.Newsletter, 24 p., illus.greenhills and north greensborough progress association, greenhills, apollo parkways progress association, apollo parkways

This edition includes a report on the Progress Association's December 1974 meeting, Councillor's report, Nillumbik Co-operative School, From the Council Chambers, Meet the natives, Diamond Valley Arts Society, Diamond Valley Repertory, This and that, Conservation notes, Conservation Trust. A digital copy of this Newsletter is available from Greensborough Historical Society.Newsletter, 20 p., illus.greenhills and north greensborough progress association, greenhills

Subtitled mines, myths and memories of Diamond Creek the book covers the following topics: early days, first settlers, Nillumbik- the town, state school, the churches, growth of a town, early pioneers and stories of the past. PhotographsPaperback; 55 p. : ill., port. ; 21 cm.ISBN 0959895019diamond creek, nillumbik, gold mining, gold miners

Undated black and white photograph of view across the creek flats towards Diamond Creek township showing the railway line, with the Diamond Creek under flood. Situated behind the vicinity of Diamond Valley College, Main Hurstbridge Road, Diamond Creek. Diamond Valley College was formed in 1989 from the almagamation of Diamond Creek Technical School and Hurstbridge High School. Nillumbik Historical Society collectionflood, diamond creek, nillumbik historical society

A photographic essay and celebration of the artists, musicians and diverse characters who make Nillumbik so interesting. EDHS_07135 - School Crossing Supervisor, Jock Read on his horse Lofty supervising Eltham High School students crossing Main Road near Dalton Street, Eltham is reproduced in the bookartistic.portraits, diamond valley. nillumbik, photography, jock read

Newspaper article: $6000 grant to Our Lady's, The Advertiser, July 2, 1996 - Grant given to Parish of Our LadyHelp of Christians which is taking over the use of the Eltham War Memorial Hall in Main Road and the Nillumbik After School Program. (Other items include: St Andrews Submission Re application to subdivide 1726 Heidelberg-Kinglake Road; Minister's decision awaited - A six-eight lot subdivision at Eagles Nest Road, Strathewen; Mt Pleasant Rd petition - Need for a shared pathway; Policy on ad signs - Amended policy on advertising signs for community events; Main Rd streetscape plan - Plans for streetscape improvement in Main Road to go on display; Special meeting dates set - Special meetings to consider formal submissions and then adopt a final proposal for Shire's electoral structure for Ministerial approval and gazettal. Letter Eltham District Historical Society to Nillumbik Shire Council, 16 September 1996: Proposed roundabouts Main Road Eltham at Dudley Street and Panther Place. Newspaper article: Diamond Valley News 16 October 1996, Pre-school welcomes plan for traffic lights.main road, eltham, property, roundabouts, dudley street, panther place, eltham pre-school, eltham war memorial

In 2016 the Welcome to Eltham community project started to welcome Syrian refugees into the community and made Welcome Butterflies to say welcome to them. In addition to the physical book, EDHS also holds several hundred digital images pertaining to the development of the Welcome to Eltham campaign, photographs, artworks and graphic designs, which resulted in the publication of this book. EDHS also holds further material from the period 2016 to 2017 associated with the Welcome to Eltham campaign group. Contents: 1. Welcome Book Welcome Book includes selected page extracts and images as published December 2016 Contents: • Greetings to our Country P2 • Offering P8 • Your neighbours P10 • Rotary P39 • Eltham Baptist Church P44 • Eltham Farmers Market stall holders P48 • The Eltham community P54 • Surrounding communities P60 • Our Lady Help of Christians Primary School P64 • Nillumbik Greens P66 • Our Lady Help of Christians Church Eltham P68 • Catholic Care Eltham P70 • St Vincent’s P71 • Montmorency South Primary School P72 • Victoria Police P73 • Catholic Ladies College P74 • Warrandyte P76 • Eltham Toy Library P78 • Eltham-Montmorency Uniting Church P82 • Gingerbread P84 • Scouts P86 • Eltham businesses P89 • Surrounding communities P96 • The Seed P101 2. Administration 1. Welcome to Eltham Infant Plan, Purpose and Scope (Aug. 2016) 2. Circle of Friends; A draft proposal from Welcome to Eltham, 26 August 2016 3. Welcome to Eltham; a resident support group for refugees settling in Eltham (Sep. 2016) 4. Welcome to Eltham; Purpose and Scope (Sep. 2016) 5. Welcome to Eltham Plan (Sep. 2016); 10 pages typed of tasks broken into four categories, 10 pages 6. Welcome to Eltham Team/Volunteer organisation structure, volunteers’ skills assessment and role assignments, strategies, 11 pages 7. Briefing Document: Refugees being welcomed in Eltham, 2 Oct. 2016; 5 pages 8. Public Engagement Plan, 2 Oct. 2016; 2 pages 9. Welcome to Eltham 2016 Review, Values and Structure, 2017 10. Welcome to Eltham Incorporated Financial Report July 2016 – June 2017; 3 pages 11. Letter: Nina Kelabora and Welcome to Eltham Team to Bolton Street Fruit Market re offer to provide fresh fruit, 30 Jun. 2017 12. Welcome to Eltham Incorporated Annual Report 2016–2017; Oct. 2017; 4 pages 13. Certificate: Jagajaga Community Australia Day Award 2018 to Nina Kelabora, signed Jenny Macklin MP, Federal Member for Jagajaga 14. Certificate: Jagajaga Community Australia Day Award 2018 to Welcome to Eltham, signed Jenny Macklin MP, Federal Member for Jagajaga 15. Letter: Simon Le Plastrier, Principal, Eltham College to Nina Kelabora, 20 April 2018 offering congratulations for the work achieved by Welcome to Eltham group 16. Photo: River pebble covered in spray paint of multiple colours. The rock was used to hold down templates for painting butterflies on the footpaths near Andrew park as a counter to protesters assembling for the ‘Battle for Eltham’ demonstration on 5 November 2016 17. Photo: Welcome to Eltham team member, Gillian Essex 18. Photo: Welcome to Eltham team member, Kirsten Bate 19. Photo: Welcome to Eltham team member, Lara McKinley 20. Photo: Welcome to Eltham team member, Nina Kelabora 21. Photo: Welcome to Eltham team member, Sarah Hooten 22. Incorporation • AGM-minutes-2017 • Certificate of Incorporation • Mission and Values • Ordinary Business of the AGM 2017 • Welcome to Eltham Rules 23. Advocacy • Eltham Butterfly Effect Corflute panel design 5 November 2016 Rally • MemeFest PowerPoint presentation 23 November 2016 • Oxfam PowerPoint presentation 16 June 2017 • Eltham Rotary PowerPoint presentation 1 June 2017 • Welcome to Eltham Gift Card artwork 3. Artwork • Logo: Welcome to Eltham • 12 artworks by children of the Eltham Child Care Co-Operative (ECCC) o Me at the Immigration Museum by Ethan B. o Immigration Museum by Edie o Me with my family and lots of hearts by Charlotte o My suitcase like the refugees we learnt about with Bec by Jarvis o Me at the football with my friends by Harley o My suitcase if I had to leave the country by Ellen o Me at the park near the library by Chloe o Books at the library by Addison o Ethan’s grandfather who died in the war and this is him in his grave by Ethan o A nursery by Annabel o The age care home we visit by Ari o This is my mum the Ranger by Mia • Butterfly Effect, Ona Henderson 2016, inscribed “Dedicated to Nina, in appreciation of your butterfly effect for ‘Welcome to Eltham’; reproduced p1 • Ona and Sid gifting her artwork for use by the campaign; reproduced p1 • Duat and Iuk, Mandy Nicholson, Wurundjeri woman; reproduced p3 • These hands welcome you to Australia, Mungo, Warrandyte resident; reproduced p9 • The Library by Rose; reproduced p15 • Welcome to Eltham from Maia; reproduced p19 • Billy, Warrandyte resident; reproduced p20 • Through my window, Janet Boddy; reproduced p23 • Eryn and Lachie, Eltham residents; reproduced p25 • Eva, Eltham resident; reproduced p29 • This is the community hall across from my house by Cinta; reproduced p30 • Welcome, Brenda, Eltham resident; reproduced p34 • Flying over Kerry Crescent, Kerry, Eltham resident; reproduced p38 • A dragon called 'fat' from Joe, 6; reproduced p42 • A rainbow-heart-welcome from Trixie, 8; reproduced p42 • A lovely message from Sarah; reproduced p53 • Monique; reproduced p56 • Tom; reproduced p56 • Josh; reproduced p56 • Chloe; reproduced p56 • Jack; reproduced p57 • Mia; reproduced p57 • Ann Curry, Montmorency resident; reproduced p60 • From Mia: "Keep your head up high and be confident. I'm sure that you will soon find that Eltham is a very nice place and I hope you can have a happy life."; reproduced p77 • Amy; reproduced p79 • Ben; reproduced p80 • Welcome, Kayla, Warrandyte resident; reproduced p94 • Lucas; reproduced p98 • Ale; reproduced p98 • Grace; reproduced p99 • Hugo; reproduced p99 4. Australian-Syrian Charity • ASC – Certificate of Appreciation; Awarded from Australian-Syrian Charity presented to Welcome to Eltham Group by Rev. Fr. Samir Haddad, ASC president, 30 Sep. 2016 including two images of Father Samir and WTE organiser, Nina Kelabora 5. Butterflies • 148 images of handcrafted butterflies and artwork of butterflies edited for reproduction throughout the Welcome to Eltham book and for use on other placards, gift cards and promotional materials including the original source photographs (232 total) • 128 other images of butterflies submitted or photographed installed at various locations around Eltham • 11 images of metal butterfly artworks created by Linda MacAulay and Tim Read showing the works during creation at Bend of Isles and at initial install at the roundabout on Main Road at Luck Street then at the final install to greet the new arrivals and residents alike at St Vincents Aged Care Services (since demolished). 6. Eltham and Surrounds Residents and Local Businesses • 195 photos (157 published in book) submitted by local residents and businesses with people holding Welcome to Eltham placards including: Eltham Farmer’s Market, Eltham Baptist Church, CatholicCare Eltham, Nillumbik Greens, Hurstbridge Wattle Festival, Our Lady Help of Christians Eltham, Our Lady Help of Christians Primary School, Montmorency South Primary School, Warrandyte Primary School, Bronnie Hattam, Mayor, Nillumbik Shire Council, Vicki Ward, MP for Eltham, Jenny Macklin, Member for Jagajaga, Bend of Isles, Eltham Toy Library, Eltham Library, Eltham-Montmorency Uniting Church, Catholic Ladies College (CLC), First Eltham North Scouts, Warrandyte Primary School, Ona Henderson and many individuals and businesses. 7. Events • Alistair Knox Park, 12 August 2016 • Syrian Community Dinner, 30 September 2016 • Pop up Picnic, Eltham North Adventure Playground, 1 October 2016 • Alistair Knox Park, 7 October 2016 • At Our Lady of Help of Christians, 7 October 2016 • Andrew Park Butterfly Effect v Battle for Eltham, 5 November 2016 • City Rally, 5 November 2016 • Eltham Library Children’s Garden, 12 November 2016 • Eltham Festival, 13 November 2016 • Welcome Book Fundraiser, St Margaret’s Church, 11 December 2016 • Nillumbik International Women’s Day Dinner 9 March 2017 • Bush Dance, 17 June 2017 • Eltham Police Morning Tea, 29 July 2017 8. House warmers • Approximately 40 images of gift care items donated (food, drink, blankets, etc) intended as housewarming hampers 9. Media Media Releases • Eltham elders take to social media to welcome refuges, video goes viral; Wednesday 28 October 2016 • Eltham locals use their bodies to say WELCOME to refugees; 1 October 2016 • Community group welcomes Minister’s decision so refugees can call Eltham home; 5 October 2016 • Locals answer far-right “Battle for Eltham” with butterflies: thousand of them; 5 November 2016 Newspaper articles • Group fosters goodwill; organisation works to assist refugees; Brittany Shanahan; Diamond Valley Leader, Wednesday, August 17, 2016, p3 • Refugees are welcome (Gillian); Care is for the elderly alone (Fred); Plenty of positives in plan (Kirstin); Open your hearts and doors (Alison); Flood of families a worry (Cath), Conversations, Diamond Valley Leader, Wednesday, August 17, 2016, p11 • Support refugee housing; Diamond Valley Leader, Pamela Nash via Facebook, Janet R. Body, Eltham, Glenise Michaelson, Montmorency; Letters (online), 5 October 2016 • Refugees find a haven, and, Groups to fundraise for arrivals; Wednesday, October 12, 2016, p5 • Site for resettlement of refugees on a flood plane (Jacquie Bellchambers); Accommodating young families from a foreign culture in an established western culture retirement home will only lead to both parties feeling …. (Margit Alm); Great news for our community … (Nean Tatnal); Conversations, Diamond Valley Leader, Wednesday, October 12, 2016, p19 • Refugee scrap looms; daughter of Eltham aged-care resident upset as extreme group hijacks debate; Brittany Shanahan. Diamond Valley Leader, Wednesday, October 26, 2016, p1 • Many ready to welcome refugees into community (Megan Anne) and others; Conversations, Diamond Valley Leader, Wednesday, October 26, 2016, p20 • On a wing and a prayer; Chris Vedelago, Tammy Mills and Mark Hawthorne; Sunday Age, November 6, 2016, p3. – It was billed as the “Battle for Eltham”, but in te end the butterflies carried the day. • Rally hits trade; Diamond Valley Leader, Wednesday, November 9, 2016, p1 • Protests bad for business; Brittany Shanahan; Diamond Valley Leader, Wednesday, November 9, 2016, p8 • Police earn praise for keeping protest calm; Re: Battle for Eltham rally (Maree Quinlan) and others; Conversations, Diamond Valley Leader, Wednesday, November 9, 2016, p14 • Butterflies to counter anti-Muslim protest; Bianca Hall and Marissa Calligeros, The Age, November 5, 2016 • Rally created challenges but it’s time to move on; Re: Battle for Eltham rally (Local Area Commander Acting Inspector Danielle Leemon) and others; Conversations, Diamond Valley Leader, Wednesday, November 16, 2016, p19 • Praise for warm welcome (Linda Jajawi) and others also photo “Officers from Eltham police station welcomed newly arrived refugees to the community”; Conversations, Diamond Valley Leader, Wednesday, August 9, 2017, p15 • Refugees welcomed; Diamond Valley Leader, n.d. 2017, p12 • Refugee plan riles; Retirement centre residents voice concerns; Brittany Shanahan, Diamond Valley Leader; n.d. 2016 Facebook Responses • Responses top frequent Facebook comments regarding the housing of refugees in aged care at Eltham 10. Placards and Promotional Flyers • Selection of placard images and Welcome to Eltham Gift Card artwork 11. St Vincents • Two hand drawn sketches showing plan views of proposed front and rear units at St Vincents to be used by refugees 12. Videos • Feisties; several local seniors read online comments made by objectors and offer their own opinions; 00.02.28 • Tour of unit at St Vincents, 31 July 2016; 00.00.44 • Drone view of people creating Welcome sign at Eltham North Adventure Playground, 14 September 2016; 00.00.14 • Launching of the butterflies (campaign); Nina Kelabora releases the first butterfly into the wild; 00.00.24 • Gillian Essex, Welcome to Eltham, discussing counter strategy to protest demonstration (Battle for Eltham) scheduled for later in the day; 5 November 2016; 00.01.45 • Glenise Michaelson, Eltham local for 69 years discussing counter strategy to protest demonstration (Battle for Eltham) scheduled for later in the day; 5 November 2016; 00.01.30 • The Butterfly Effect, counter strategy to protesters 5 November 2016 Battle for Eltham rally; 00.02.24 with ten associated photos of the seniors involved; 31 October 2016 • Butterfly art ninjas 1 (15 secs), 2 (26 secs) and 3 (14 secs), showing the butterflies remaining in existence on the paths around Andrew Park, 16 November 2016 • Butterfly capture and release with Nina Kelabora– butterflies around Andrew Park relocated to the Children’s garden at Eltham Library, 17 November 2016; 00.00.28eltham (vic.), welcome to eltham (vic.), syrian refugees, refugees, social life and customs, butterflies, welcome butterflies, nina kelabora collection

Centred on present day Diosma Rd, Stokes Pl, Nyora Rd and Eucalyptus Rd Historic Aerial Imagery Source: Landata.vic.gov.au Aerial Photo Details: Project No :5 Project : MELBOURNE AND METROPOLITAN AREA PROJECT Run : 36 Frame : 60546 Date : 12/1945 Film Type : B/W Camera : EAG4 Flying Height : 10200 Scale : 6000 Film Number : 195 GDA2020 : 37°42'47"S, 145°09'56"E MGA2020 : 338306, 5824438 (55) Melways : 22 C4 (ed. 42) A History of the Development of Crown Allotment 15, Section 5, Parish of Nillumbik – Stokes Orchard Crown Allotment 15, Section 5, Parish of Nillumbik (CA15) is a square allotment of 158 acres or approximately a quarter of a square mile. It lies just beyond the eastern end of Pitt Street, south of Nyora Road to the northern end of Eucalyptus Road and extends east from Eucalyptus Road to Reynolds Road. The topography of CA15 is generally steep, sloping up to a hill near the centre of the land, the ridgeline passing through the properties along the southern side of Diosma Road. Eucalyptus Road is a straight north-south road with its northern end at the north west corner of CA15. Until the end of the 1970s this road was an un-named Government Road and was largely not open to traffic. With residential development in the 1970s the road was constructed, and the council allocated the name obviously in recognition of the predominant species of the local bushland. CA15 was purchased from the Crown by George D’Arley Boursiquot, a prominent Melbourne printer, on 28th October 1852. On November 23, 1922, former Member for Gippsland and Melbourne Real Estate Agent, Hubert Patrick Keogh purchased the allotment then sold it March 13, 1925, to local farmer, Robert David Taylor, a former Shire of Eltham Councillor (1911-1920) and Shire President (1919). Taylor had extensive land holdings stretching west towards Bible Street and Main Road. The Taylor home was situated at the top of the hill in Bible Street at present day 82 Bible Street. At the time of Taylor’s purchase in 1925, CA15 was subdivided into 48 lots that could be described as small rural properties or large residential lots. A typical lot size was one hectare or 2.5 acres. The subdivision created two roads, Nyora Road, and Diosma Road, each following an irregular alignment between Eucalyptus and Reynolds Roads. However, the lots were not sold off separately nor were the roads constructed. The land effectively remained as one parcel for many further years. Robert David Taylor died November 30, 1934, and probate was granted to his son of the same name, Robert David Taylor of Bible Street, Salesman and William McLelland Vance Taylor of 73 Emmeline Street, Northcote, Clerk, with the transfer of the land into their names on July 8, 1935. Frank Stokes worked as a qualified accountant at Kennons leather factory in Burnley, while living at 1 Thomas Street, Mitcham. He suffered from migraines and wanted to return to working the land (he had previously worked on farms and orchards since coming to Australia from England in 1926, both in WA and Vic.). He first travelled to the district by train in July 1942 to find land with the intention to establish an orchard. By chance he met Arthur Bird of Bird Orchard (bounded by Pitt Street, Eucalyptus Road, and Wattle Grove) and they got talking over their common interest. Arthur put Frank up for the night and pointed out the land, 158 acres- part of the Taylor Estate- £900, Crown Allotment 15, Section 5, Parish of Nillumbik (CA15) somewhat diagonally opposite Bird Orchard. Stokes applied through the Riverina Agency to purchase the land who in turn applied for permission from Canberra to sell as there was a new government regulation introduced during the Second World War banning land sales except for immediate production. Stokes obtained a loan on his Mitcham house of £600 @ 5% and paid £450 deposit with quarterly payments of £15 spread over 5 years. Stokes was assisted and advised by Arthur Bird who farmed the neighbouring orchard. In early 1943 Stokes took possession and would catch the train out to Eltham on Fridays after work and began building a hut on the corner of Nyora Road and the Government Road (Eucalyptus Road) for shelter and to lock up tools. He established an orchard on the central western part of the land through the centre of which ran a natural waterway (part of the present-day linear park) and was able to pay a neighbour (Hawkins) to help with clearing and fencing 25 acres, and with a horse and single furrowed plough, planted approximately 2,500 fruit trees - cherries, peaches, plums, almonds, pears, apricots and lemons as well as a few apples and oranges; a massive task. Aerial photographs from the 1940s through to the 1990s clearly show the orchard with most of the larger CA15 site remaining as natural bushland. A huge problem was hares and rabbits eating all the new buds off the tiny trees. As well as laying poison he painted the trees with a mixture of cow manure and lime, often working by moonlight. Procurement of wire and wire netting was difficult because of the war but after much effort he obtained a permit from the Agricultural Department for supplies in March 1944. In February 1945 Stokes applied for a permit to build a “packing shed” as no house building was allowed. It was to be 33 feet x 21 feet and cost £312. It was constructed mostly from second-hand materials, which were hard to obtain, especially iron for roofing. Stokes finished work at Kennons on October 31, 1945, and in March 1946 he sold the family home at Mitcham for £1,230 plus £170 for furniture. On May 15, 1946, title to the CA15 property was issued to Frank Howard Alfred Stokes, Orchardist and Gladys Ethel Stokes, Married Woman, both of Pitt Street, Eltham. The family of five then moved into the very unfinished “packing shed” at Eltham, which was a struggle to weatherproof. Eventually rooms were divided off and lined with hessian bags and whitewashed. Their income was firewood (cut and sold), selling rockery stones and cut Sweet Bursaria. (It was discovered during the 1940s that Sweet Bursaria contained the sunscreen compound Aesculin. The RAAF utilised this compound from Sweet Bursaria during WW2 for pilots and gunners.) The orchard’s first fruit sale was a half-case of Le Vanq peaches in December 1947 for the price of 8 shillings. In 1956 plans for house were drawn and Glen Iris bricks purchased (1956 Olympic Rings variant). The building of the house commenced in 1957 - 12 feet of original packing shed was removed – and was completed in 1959. Water was connected from newly built pressure storage on the property at the end of 1959 and the electricity connection for the first time at 3pm on April 29, 1960. The house remains to present day (somewhat modified) at 1 Nyora Road, home to Nyora Studio Gallery. On occasions, spare remnants of the 1956 bricks have been known to be unearthed in gardens on the estate as they were utilised by Frank Stokes to fill in rabbit holes. On May 26, 1950, a parcel of land was compulsorily acquired by the Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works on the hilltop to establish an easement for a high-level service reservoir to augment Eltham’s water supply. The project also included pipe tracks for the necessary water mains. The reservoir has now been superseded by higher level water tanks east of Reynolds Road and its former site is now a public reserve. On November 27, 1964, the State Electricity Commission served notice to compulsorily acquire a further parcel through the eastern part of the land for a major electricity transmission line that augmented supply from the La Trobe Valley to Melbourne. The easement was registered February 11, 1966. The easement was widened July 18, 1969 for a second transmission line to be constructed. In 1971 Melbourne Metropolitan Planning Scheme amendments adopted Nyora Road as the boundary between a residential zone to the north and a rural zone to the south. This determined the future development of the land. In the mid-1970s the Shire of Eltham divided the orchard into numerous rate-able parcel lots, the 48 lots having been established in 1925 and the subsequent rates assessment proved unsustainable for Stokes. He commenced selling lots outside the boundary of the orchard, north of Diosma and South of Nyora. However shortly later the land between Nyora and Diosma Roads and west of the electricity easement was sold and subdivided into residential lots, a housing development by Macquarie Builders and marketed as the Stokes Orchard Estate. New streets were created, and most were named after trees, although one, Stokes Place, commemorates the former owners. The development was undertaken in two stages; Stage 1 (1975) encompassing Scarlet Ash Court, Ironbark Close and Peppermint Grove bounded by Nyora and Eucalyptus roads and Stage 2 (1978) encompassing Stokes Place, Orchard Way, The Crest and The Lookout bound by Nyora and Diosma roads. The developer, Macquarie Builders went bankrupt shortly after the release of Stage 2 leaving many purchasers to fend for themselves and arrange for their own independent builders. There were also difficulties with sewerage for the land immediately south of Diosma Road and so the conventional residential lots were abandoned in favour of larger lots. The development of Orchard Way, The Crest and The Lookout did not proceed as planned and the proposed lots were incorporated into five-acre parcels instead. These included a low-density group housing development by the Graves family and the award winning Choong House (1983) with Gordon Ford developed garden immediately next door situated on the ridge of the hill nestled amongst the original bush, Eucalypt trees and Sweet Bursaria. In 1994, Nillumbik Shire Council applied Significant Environment and Significant Landscape overlays upon the properties on the south side of Diosma Road to ensure protection of this natural bush garden environment. With the arrival of the sewer along Diosma Road in the 1990s, most of these five-acre parcels have since been subdivided multiple times. The Choong house presently sits on a 2.7-acre property, which in 2022 Nillumbik Council nominated for Cultural Significance Heritage protection and is considered potentially significant at State level. The Stokes family were also associated with the Eltham Christian Church. In the 1970s this church had met in temporary premises in Eltham. Lots of the original 1925 subdivision remained south of Nyora Road and a number of these lots were utilized for the Eltham Christian School, which was established by the Eltham Christian Church in 1981. The school operated on this site until 2000. The premises are now used by The Vine Baptist Church. By the mid-1980s the whole of CA15 had been developed for residential and school purposes, except for the sections north of Diosma Road and between the transmission lines and Reynolds Road. Sewerage issues had been resolved for the section north of Diosma Road and in 1987 it was in the process of being subdivided into residential lots. The development coincided with the discovery of colonies of the rare and endangered Eltham Copper Butterfly on the site. This resulted in a community and political campaign to save the butterfly habitat. With the co-operation of the land developer the subdivision was altered to create two bushland reserves in the critical butterfly habitat areas. In the late 1980s the State Government was investigating options for establishing a metropolitan ring road link between Diamond Creek and Ringwood. The chosen route was adjacent to Reynolds Road and so this created a freeze on development of CA15 between Reynolds Road and the electricity easement. The ring road proposal was eventually abandoned, and this part of the land was subdivided into low density residential lots. Diosma Road has been discontinued at the electricity easement and the eastern part incorporated into View Mount Court with access from Reynolds Road. The whole of CA15 has now been developed for residential or associated purposes, ranging from conventional density to quite low density south of Nyora Road. Some remnants of the orchard remain, a few cherry trees on the Graves property and a lone apple tree in Stokes Place. The butterfly reserves comprise significant areas of remnant bushland. Linear reserves through the estate link with central Eltham via the Woodridge linear reserve and with Research along the electricity easement. CA15 as it exists today has a complicated history of rural use, Government acquisition, urban development, and community action. References: • “Stokes Orchard, an incomplete history”; Russell Yeoman with Doug Orford • Correspondence, Beryl Bradbury (nee Stokes) • Aerial Photographs, 1931-1991, Landata (landata.vic.gov.au) • Certificate of Title, Vol. 4930 Fol. 985900 • Plan Number LP 10859 aerial photo, diosma road, eltham copper butterfly, eucalyptus road, ironbark close, nyora road, peppermint grove, peter & elizabeth pidgeon collection, power transmission lines, reynolds road, scarlet ash court, stokes orchard estate, stokes place, woodridge estate, frank stokes