Historical information

After meeting for 14 years in rented premises, in the Prince of Wales Hall, Wodonga Council built its first Shire Hall on the corner of High and Elgin Streets in 1890. The first Shire Hall was demolished in 1971.
The second building, Wodonga’s new Municipal Offices in Woodland Grove were used for the first time by Wodonga Councillors on 7th August 1957. The Woodland Grove building has since been used for a range of purposes, most recently as a café, but is currently unoccupied. The third purpose-built council chambers were opened in November 1976 with the first council meeting there on 1st December 1976.

Westminster Fine China Australia started in the Melbourne suburb of Cheltenham at 7 Arnold Street, in 1954 by Stanley Rogers and Son Ltd. They initially used imported blanks from Japan, which were made to their specifications, and which were then decorated locally. They produced a standard range of shapes for souvenir ware, later expanding into a wide range of tea sets, dinnerware and many other styles of china ware. The Abbey mark, based on Westminster Abbey in London, was used from the start of production until about 1962.

Significance

Woodland Grove was named in honour of Wodonga Shire’s first president, John Woodland. The building depicted served as the centre of municipal government for approximately 20 years, throughout the 1960s and 1970s. Woodland Grove is a central point in the Wodonga CBD and a focus for many civic and cultural activities.

Physical description

Small square plate with gold trim and central coloured image of Wodonga Shire Chambers. The trademark of Westminster Fine China Australia is on the under side of the plate

Inscriptions & markings

On front beneath image "SHIRE CHAMBERS WODONGA VIC"

Underneath the plate, surrounding an drawing of Westminster Abbey "FINE CHINA/WESTMINSTER CHINA /AUSTRALIA/ 7"