Historical information

The Yarra Scenic Boulevard stretching from Hawthorn to the Chandler Highway was completed as a major project between 1933 and 1936 during a period of significant unemployment. Key dates in the construction this section the road include: 1933 when Kew Council supported the construction of the road from Studley Park to the Kew Asylum; and 1936 when the road from the Johnston Street Bridge to the Chandler Highway was opened. The inscription on the reverse of the photo 'Boulevard Fairfield' is misleading as there is no section of the Boulevard in Fairfield. A more likely interpretation is that it is a photograph of the Kew section of the Yarra Boulevard with the factories of Fairfield in the distance.

Significance

Rare early photograph of the Yarra Boulevard, taken one year after the opening of the road. The photograph is an important historical record of the results of 'Susso' labor in the creation of major works in Melbourne by the Victorian Government.

Physical description

Original, black and white positive print of the Boulevard at Kew in 1937. Key aspects to note about the photograph is that the road is bituminised; that the gutters are concreted; that the kerb is constructed of concrete blocks; and that there is an unmade footpath on what appears to be the right hand side of the road. The landscape is sparsely treed, and those trees that remain are presumably remnant vegetation. At the right, the land is fenced. The land at the left falls away sharply to the river below. On the horizon, at left, there is an industrial complex including a tall chimney that is burning fuel creating smoke.

Inscriptions & markings

"Boulevard Fairfield"