Historical information
The old weatherboard building, possibly dating from the 1860s, comprised a dwelling with a shop in the front room opening off a timber verandah deck which directly fronted the Main Road footpath. At the rear was a brick building of much later date which was for many years used for the bakery. The buildings were demolished in 1979 for construction of flats.
The old bakery was one of the earliest stores in Eltham. It was once run by Luther Haley who was evicted when Mrs Burgoyne bought the shop in 1902. Luther built the first shop in the new business district next to the railway station in 1902 (later Staffs general store).
It was also the scene of a suspected murder when the baker's wife was found dead at the bottom of the well but that was more urban myth. The unfortunate woman suffered a medical episode resulting in her death and she consequently fell in to the well, so no murder after all. The incident happened in 1898 and the owner and baker was Mr Clement Brown. It was his wife Martha that met her unfortunate demise. A description of her struggle is in the link below. J.N. Burgoyne bought the bakery in 1902 (Mrs Burgoyne was the owner but it seems a lot of men back in those days put their businesses in the names of their wives). The subject of murder first came to light in a newspaper story in 1954 when their son J.J. (Jack) Burgoyne was speaking about the business after it had changed hands to Mr Jim Arnett and family. It was again referenced by Harry Burgoyne (grandson) in 1979 when the bakery was demolished. Seems like what may have been an embellished yarn of old became urban folklore but was simply not true.
DEATH IN AN UNDERGROUND TANK. (1898, March 4). Evelyn Observer, and South and East Bourke Record (Vic. : 1882 - 1902), p. 2 (MORNING.). Retrieved June 16, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article60698063
The bakery and shop was run by the Parkes family in the 1940s.
Physical description
35 mm colour positive transparency
Mount - Kodak Kodachrome Card
Inscriptions & markings
Processed Jul 1974
