Historical information

This notice relates to the prohibition of lighting fires,drying clothes or bringing inflamable material near any of the bridges in the shire. Offenders will be prosecuted. With a date of 1882 and the fact that bridges were mostly made of wood, it would have been of concern that the destruction of bridges was not only of great inconvenience but also of considerable expense. But the reality of bridges providing shelter and warmth in the colder months and the ensuring fires and burnt bridges has more than likely precipitated this notice. J W Crawley was shire engineer from 1876 until 1895 and for 10 of those years he trained his son J W Crawley who succeeded his father and served in the position for 40 years.He in turn was succeeded by his son Rolf Crawley in 1935. In 1963 the bridge over the Hopkins Falls at Wangoom was named the Crawley bridge in honour of service to the Shire of Warrnambool by members of the Crawley family.
The Shire of Warrnambool was proclaimed in 1863 and covered an area of over 600 square miles. Much of it was incorporated into the Moyne Shire in the 1990's with some being included into the boundaries of City of Warrnambool.

Significance

This banner is an interesting piece of history. It shows the issues confronting early settlers such as shelter and the chores of daily life but also the importance placed on infrastructure which was slowly taking place around the district. It was in the era of drainage and roadworks and hence bridges were an important part of that infrastructure. The name J W Crawley is one of importance in the Warrnambool district for his service over many years.

Physical description

Rectangular piece of cloth printed in black ink. The back is plain.

Inscriptions & markings

Shire of Warrnambool By order of J W Crawley Shire Engineer, 13th November 1882. Thos Smith gas Printing Works Koroit Street Warrnambool.