Mornington Peninsula 150th

150M O R N I N G T O N P E N I N S U L A

The townships of Dromana, Rye, Mornington and

Hastings/Tyabb are commemorating 150 years

of gazetted history. The Weekly has created this

special edition magazine as a tribute.

[ 2 ] 150th anniversary souvenir edition September 5, 2011

The Mornington Peninsula

Shire would like to Congratulate

the townships of Mornington,

Dromana, Rye and Hastings/Old

Tyabb on Celebrating their

150th Anniversary

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September 5, 2011 150th anniversary souvenir edition [ 3 ]

MORN I NGTON

main street

www.mainstreetmornington.com.au

where the shops meet the sea . . .

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BLAST FROM THE PAST

6-7 What a time: Major milestones over 150 years

9 On duty: Hasting’s “ham and beef” battery

11 Artistic endeavours: The peninsula’s fi ne art heritage

14 Family album: The life and times of a pioneering clan

Pioneering editor Harvey Roulston would be amazed by this photograph, which uses technology to blend past and present photographs of Mornington’s iconic jetty area.

Roulston was the founding father of The South Bourke and Mornington Journal, launched in 1865 a mere 30 years after the founding of Melbourne.

The Journal’s circulation in the County of Mornington, South Bourke and South Gippsland saw it bringing much wanted news to districts including Mornington, Dromana, Hastings, Balnarring, Rye and Sorrento.

Fairfax Community Network’s Peninsula Weekly newspaper, while not a direct successor, shares the same passion for providing news to our community.

Unlike Roulston’s era, we can draw on digital photography, graphic design and showcase our stories and photographs in online versions of the Weekly and on our website.

But the people of the peninsula remain our biggest resource.

In a tribute to our region’s rich history, the Weeklyteam has produced this special souvenir publication to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Dromana, Rye, Mornington and Hastings/Tyabb offi cially becoming towns.

Special thanks go to Mornington & District Historical Society, Dromana and District Historical Society, Hastings-Western Port Historical Society, Rye Historical Society and Sally Robins, local history offi cer at Mornington Peninsula Shire for their assistance in producing this snapshot into the past.

As always, we will continue to cover the events and achievements of our community that eventually wend their way into the history books.

Thepassion continues 20 Beneath the waves: Our underwater history

30 Golden days: The short-lived gold rush

44 Then and now: Snapshots of our past

46 Last word: Message from Premier Ted Baillieu

Fascinating stories from the peninsula’s past in this special edition include:

Picture: Daryl Gordon

Compiled by Melissa Walsh, Sandra Bull, Jo Winterbottom and Melissa Cunningham.

Sandra Bull Editor


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I think the Mornington Peninsula is travelling quite well.

The towns are becoming better looking as we’re pumping more

money into footpaths and vegetation. Our preschools and halls are also getting

more funding.All the towns celebrating

their 150th anniversary have a lot to offer. They’re

not urban, they’re not suburban and all have

different histories. They also have living histories — generations that go way back.

The peninsula is 10 per cent of Victoria’s coastline — it’s just magnifi cent. If you go inland to the Murray, or further inland, you miss the salt air, it’s something the human species does long for.

And we don’t just have the sea. There’s wineries, award winning restaurants, a strong arts community and a growing, vibrant night life.

PENINSULA LINKI am very concerned about the effect Peninsula Link

will have on the place and we’re doing our own study on what the project’s effects will be. I think it’s ruined any chance of [extra] public transport and while it may encourage day visitors to come down, it’s uncertain at this stage whether they will bring their own food, use our facilities and leave their rubbish behind.

AGED CARE The elderly are bringing a lot of money down

here, they certainly do contribute to the vibrancy and well-being of the peninsula. There’s discretionary income and they are not scared to spend on

restaurants. Increasing demands on council services by older residents will have its challenges but I think they are manageable.

GREEN WEDGE[Preserving] the green wedge is probably our

biggest challenge. I just feel north, south and east in Melbourne have all expanded. We’re fi ghting it but we could be King Canute. When it’s gone, it’s gone.

People expect to put a house on their title on the peninsula [in the green wedge]. We’re seeing a lot of small areas with houses for sale as it’s getting too much for their elderly owners. Then we get applications [from the buyers] to whack on new, usually massive houses.

One applicant described a proposed 780-square-metre house as modest. But they are being built, including in this case, if they successfully argue they are essential for the agricultural purpose of the land.

A lack of resources prevents us coming back and checking they have implemented the farming strategy they were required to do to gain the permit.

Not everyone, but many, are blatantly disregarding these farming plans.

The challenges we faceMornington Peninsula Shire mayor Graham Pittock talks to Sandra Bull about how far the peninsula has come over the past 150 years

— and the challenges that lie ahead.



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Gone are the days when a Telstra Store wasjust about mobile phones.The Telstra Stores in Mornington and

Rosebud Plaza have well and truly jumped intothe technology era with a comprehensive displayof fully working products, including the latestT-Box and T-Hub products from Telstra.

The T-Box has a digital set-top box with all thefree-view channels plus the Bigpond channels,include TVN Racing, V8 Supercar dedicatedchannel, a dedicated AFL channel and Bigpondnews. It also enables 2000 videos on demand.

Peter Bennett-Hullin, owner-operator of theTelstra Stores, says: ‘‘This is a new product thatTelstra has launched in the past six months.

‘‘We have those products live in the store soyou can literally see the videos and browse thechannels.’’

Telstra has made it possible to bundle theproducts together at discounted prices.

‘‘When you bundle Telstra’s Home phone,internet, T-Hub and T-Box products together,

you actually get significant savings as a result.‘‘We have the latest technology on display, and

we can help you get more value from buying withour Telstra bundles,’’ Mr Bennet-Hullin said.

‘‘We talk to customers about how they usetechnology, and what they do in their downtime,as we want to be able to provide a total solutionthat incorporates all these products, many ofwhich our customers already have, so they cansave a bundle of money.

‘‘Not only this, but every one of the mobiledevices on display is live and a fully workingmodel so customers can try before they buy. Allthe phones have SIM cards in them, so customerscan send text messages and even make videocalls.’’

And in a new innovation available at theMornington and Rosebud Plaza Telstra Stores,customers can now book appointments insteadof waiting in a queue.

‘‘We understand that businesses and customersare time-poor and we want to make it easier to

visit our stores and investigate the available com-munication products,’’ Mr Bennet-Hullin said.

‘‘We also have technical staff that can assistwith the set up of calendars and email accountson customers’ devices, and while some ofthese tasks are on a fee-for-service basis, thereis a full menu for people to choose from,

and we operate on a no-fix, no-charge basis.’’Your local Telstra Stores are at Mornington

Village shopping centre, 241 Main Street, and atShop R13 at the Rosebud Plaza shopping centre.You can also visit the Telstra Store online orphone 1300myTelstra to book an appointmentwith technical staff.

12 months.

Peter said.

Peter said.

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AFFORDABLE HOUSINGWe do have trouble in making this available. Locals

tend to scream and shout about the issue. We listen to them but have to make a decision for the good of the peninsula. And the good of the peninsula is for everyone to have a house.

CLIMATE CHANGEFlooding is already an enormous impost on local

government, particularly with the more volatile weather patterns we are now experiencing. I would say it’s all due to climate change — the fl oods, the fi res and rising sea levels.

We will keep addressing the issue of rising sea levels, we’re looking at mapping fl ood areas now and houses built there will need to be special constructed under planning permits.

WASTE DISPOSALIf people don’t want their rates to go up,

something’s going to suffer. Our present landfi ll in Rye will be full in about seven years. We’re looking at using an empty quarry in Dromana as the next tip but that will only have a lifespan of 25-30 years.

We have got to change the culture. People think they have the right to dump their garbage, but I think it’s more of a privilege to fi ll up fi nite landfi ll areas. We’re thinking of supporting a state government push for container deposits where you might be able to claim back the deposit at the point of sale.

EDUCATIONI totally support Flinders MP Greg Hunt’s push for

a university-level marine study facility to be built at Point Nepean. It would give our local children access to top education.

ARTHURS SEAT CHAIRLIFTIt’s an important tourist asset that we really

missed over the past fi ve years. The new chairlift will be a big tourism drawcard.


HASTINGS timeline

1860 Hastings was known as King’s Creek after Martha Jane King, who held the pastoral lease of Bunguyan which included the area of Hastings. The area near the pier was known as Star Point. In 1861 the government gazetted this township as Tyabb however by 1864 the name Hastings was coming into popularity. The area was a favourite with early fi shermen as the fi sh were plentiful and there was a good market in Melbourne

1861 The township of Tyabb is offi cially gazetted.

1864 Hastings Pier constructed and this has been in constant use

1871 Hastings township was offi cially recognised and surveyed enabling blocks of land to be purchased

1871 Hastings came under the Shire of Mornington

1872 The fi rst free school under the Education Act of 1872 was opened with John Betteswarth Flemyng as the fi rst teacher followed by Josiah Ingamells. This school No. 1098 was fi rstly known as Tyabb and then Hastings State School. Hastings Primary School No. 1098 is the oldest established school in the area

1878 The Mechanics Institute and Athenaeum Hall was built in Pike Street(now High Street)

1887 The Hastings Football Club was formed

1889 The double storey Royal Hotel was built – this is now known as the Westernport, the oldest hotel in the area.

1898 Mounted trooper, James Watt was the fi rst police offi cer stationed at Hastings. He used his residence as a police station which was on the corner of Church and Salmon Streets

1893 Hastings came under the Shire of Frankston & Hastings

1938 Hastings swimming pool was offi cially opened. It was closed in the early 2000s

1854 Government opens up land for sale

1857 The fi rst school at Schnapper Point is set up and run by a Mr Armstrong. This school was situated at 3 Vancouver Street

1858 Schnapper Point jetty commenced construction and was completed in 1860

1861 The settlement known as Schnapper Point is gazetted and offi cially named Mornington

1863 Mornington Park is gazetted as a public park

1885 The Mechanics Institute building was completed

1889 The railway track from Baxter to Mornington was completed.The line was offi cially closed in 1981

1890s Irvine Royal Public Baths on Shire Hall Beach were advertised. As well as bathing facilities it offered rowing and sailing boats for hire. During World War II Sunday night dances were held in the baths. The Baths continued to be used until the 1960s when they were converted into a kiosk and paddle boat hire business. They were demolished in 1981

1911 First race meeting of the Mornington Racing Club held on the present site

1939 Balcombe Army Camp was built

1994 The Shire of Hastings, the Shire of Mornington and the Shire of Flinders amalgamated as the Mornington Peninsula Shire

MORNINGTON timeline


RYE timeline

1855 Tootgarook Common School No 623 was established, probably in a tent on Crown land granted by the Victorian Government to the Church of England, on the site of St Andrew’s Church opposite the present primary school in Lyons Street

1860 Rye Pier was built to enable lime from the local lime kilns to be transported by boat to Melbourne for building purposes

1860s Rye’s fi rst hotel known as the Rye Hotel was built between Napier and Lyons Street

1861 The settlement known as Tootgarook was gazetted on February 16 1861 and the township was named Rye

1866 The fi rst Church of England service was conducted on the original school site, under a pine tree

1870 Tootgarook Post Offi ce No 165 opened January 18 1858, possibly in the school, with teacher Thomas Courtney acting as Post Master. The name was changed to Rye on September 1 1870

1875 Tootgarook School No 1667 was built on current site, the name changed offi cially to Rye School No. 1667 in 1884

1895 The Mechanics Institute and Free Library was built. It burnt down in 1949 and re-built in 1950. Rye Civic Hall was upgraded in 1961, keeping the original jarrah fl oor from 1950

1898 First postal service began from the home of Mrs Mitchell who lived on the corner of Lyons and Nelsons Streets. It was to move several times before opening up at its present site in 1970

1940s After World War 2 holiday houses started to appear

1964 Rye’s fi rst police station built at a cost of 18,000 pounds on the site it still occupies. A new station replaced it in 2005

1975 Rye Yacht Club opened


2003 Rye School completely re-built – keeping the 1923 building – the ‘Old Schoolhouse’ which is now the home of the Rye Historical Society

1837 Edward Hobson takes up land between Dromana and Rye, known locally as Kangerong

1841 Jamieson’s Survey is granted

1850s Richard Watkins builds the Dromana Hotel

1860 First school room in Dromana was established for the McCrae children at the McCrae homestead

1862 Dromana Pier was constructed

1864 Dromana’s fi rst police station was built – it was located somewhere on the highway. It burnt down and a new station was designed in 1887 on the present site. In 1888 it was recognised as the fi rst police headquarters on the Southern Peninsula

1929 Arthurs Seat Tourist Road was opened

1933 Dromana Bush Nursing Hospital is opened on Pt Nepean Road (Hospital Corner)

1939 Dromana is ravaged by a devastating bushfi re

1942 A Beaufort bomber heading for submarine patrol over Bass Strait crashes into Arthurs Seat, Red Hill Road, killing all on board

1960 Arthurs Seat chairlift commenced operations

1963 Dromana drive-in was opened


DROMANA timeline


1854 Crown Land in Dromana

subdivided

1861 Dromana Primary School

established

1862 Dromana Pier built (later changed to concrete in 1960)

1871 The main Heronswood house was constructed in Dromana

1896 Dromana Football Club formed

1975 Arthurs Seat declared a state park

2001 Refurbished and expanded Dromana Hub

Shopping Centre opens

1967 Dromana Technical School open (later

becoming Dromana Secondary College)

1858 Dromana Post Offi ce opened

1920 Dromana-Red Hill RSL

Memorial Hall opened

1941

Dromana Fire Brigade established

1961

Dromana Drive-in opened 1996 Ritchies Supa IGA

joins Dromana Hub

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The year is 1889 and the quiet little township of Hastings is suddenly thrust into the world of defence with a meeting held to establish a battery of soldiers.

It is December 15 and the meeting is held at the Fishermen’s Union, with speaker Major Otter authorised to raise and organise a volunteer corps for the defence of the local area.

The unit would number 120 offi cers and be used to man a battery of 40 pounder guns.

Local men, fi shermen and farmers in the area soon took up the request and became the Hastings Battery, which would be named the Ham and Beef Battery after the man in charge, Captain D Ham (pictured), and the fact that the guns were hauled by bullocks.

David Taylor of Hastings-Western Port Historical Society says four guns were bought down to the area.

‘‘It is believed that they were defending the area from the Russians, although no gun was fi red in anger, purely for practice,’’ Mr Taylor said.

‘‘The locals enjoyed the battery and all the gun practice they had to do, but the footy and cricket clubs didn’t think too much of it as the men would rather be at battery training than footy practice. We even have one of the guns on display at the Hastings Museum, gun No. 272.’’

The men took up the challenge with gusto and soon were transformed from awkward squads into a corps which exhibited the full range of military discipline.

Soon, everything fell into place for the battery. Captain Ham introduced the idea of using bullocks to haul the guns which were far

too heavy for horses, and one of the battery members just happened to be a bullock driver and grazier.

Not long after, a corrugated iron-clad gun shed was built in Hastings to be used as a drill hall for the unit and their guns. The men were all delighted as this meant practice was much closer to home.

After thriving for 14 years, the Ham and Beef Battery was disbanded in March 1908 when the federal government ordered volunteer units to be replaced by professional military outfi ts.

Guns first, sport second

Home front: Ham and Beef battery members in a drill practice. Pictures courtesy Hastings-Western Port Historical Society.


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Mornington Race Club this year is celebrating a major milestone — it’s 100 years since the fi rst race was held at the club’s current site in Racecourse Road, formerly known as the Drywood estate.

Mornington & District Historical Society president Diane White said Mornington was a thriving little community at the turn of the century and the races added a touch of glamour when they started on February 15, 1911.

‘‘Mornington was a rural community back then and it was a chance to have some entertainment,’’ Mrs White said. ‘‘A lot of people would have come down from Melbourne, taking the opportunity for a day to get out of the city.

‘‘It would have been a chance for people to dress up. The women would have worn their fi nery. In those days, people usually only had two lots of clothes — everyday wear and dressy.

‘‘A lot of them would have come in a charabanc, which is a horse-drawn bus.

‘‘The races would have been a picnic event, much like it is today, although it was more a family day, without as much emphasis on gambling and drinking.

‘‘They would have bet on horses but not like it’s done today. There was a station out near where Padua College is now and racegoers used to walk across the paddocks to the races.

‘‘Around 1900, Mornington was becoming a mecca for holiday makers, and it was known as the queen of Victoria’s watering places. There were plenty of hotels and boarding houses, and people from Melbourne would get the steamer across the bay to the Mornington pier and later on the train.

‘‘Women would wear long dresses, hats and gloves and have parasols, while the men would wear suits and hats. Some would have stayed at the hotels and guesthouses, many of which like The Grand Hotel, Kirks and Federal House, are still standing today.’’150

M O R N I N G T O N P E N I N S U L A

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The reasons that bring many of us to call the Mornington Peninsula home — its maritime beauty, rural landscapes and proximity to Melbourne — are the inducements that have brought waves of artists to the area for more than 200 years.

The peninsula is perhaps unique in Australia for the roll-call of distinguished artists who have lived and painted here to capture its light, life and landscape.

The history of landscape painting and drawing in Australia can be traced through works executed on the peninsula.

Georgiana McCrae, a European settler after whose family the town was named, was among the fi rst European artists to paint the peninsula scene, in particular the view from Arthurs Seat.

She was taught by John Glover, widely reckoned the father of landscape painting in Australia, and maintained her craft despite her family’s insistence that it was an unworthy profession for a well-to-do woman and “money must not be made in that way”.

Hot on the heels of Glover, who was based in Tasmania, and McCrae was Viennese painter Eugene von Guerard, the fi rst master of the National Gallery of Victoria’s School of Painting, who painted Port Phillip Bay in 1857. Noted for its ability to accurately capture botanical detail, von Guerard’s work has been used in bush rehabilitation projects in Victoria.

Louis Buvelot, a Swiss painter who arrived in Melbourne in 1865, was the link between von Guerard and the famed Heidelberg School, tutoring several artists who would later

fi nd fame for their Australian Impressionist work and advocating painting en plein air (in the open air) to best capture the essence of a scene.

It became a major focus of the Australian Impressionists, as it was for their European counterparts, who were preoccupied with light and capturing momentary sketches of life and land.

For artists obsessed with light, the peninsula was the perfect natural studio and many of those who painted here in this period were, or would become, feted and infl uential artists: Arthur Streeton, Charles Conder and Ambrose Patterson among them.

Generations of Australia’s pre-eminent art dynasty, the Boyd family, were frequent visitors to the peninsula. Arthur Boyd, who trained at Balcombe Army Camp in Mt Martha during World War II and owned a property on Western Port, cut his artistic teeth painting Port Phillip Bay seascapes under the tutelage of his grandfather, Arthur Merric Boyd.

Over the past century of quickly changing artistic eras the peninsula has remained an inspiration to artists and its landscapes have been depicted by Albert Tucker, John Perceval, Charles Blackman, Fred Williams, William Delafi eld Cook, Stewart MacFarlane, Lynne Boyd, Ken Smith and Rick Amor.

There are two artists’ trails for devotees to follow on the

Mornington Peninsula. The Sorrento Portsea Artists’ Trail is a series of walks along cliff tops and foreshore dotted with signs giving historic detail and reproductions of paintings produced from various vantage points along the walk.

The other is the Peninsula Studio Trail, where visitors can see contemporary artists at work in their studios, proving the peninsula remains a mecca for artists.

Details of both trails are at visitmorningtonpeninsula.org

A canvas for two centuries

Ambrose Patterson, Bathing Boxes, Mornington circa 1913,

oil on canvas. Private collection.


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150 Years of Parliament in the

Mornington Electorate

THE PAST STATE MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT FOR MORNINGTON DISTRICTWilliam Lyall (1859–1861)

James Purves(1872-1880)

James Gibb(1880-1886)

Sir James McCulloch(1862-1872)

Louis Smith(1886-1894)

Alfred Downward(1894-1929)

Robin Cooper(1985-2006)

Herbert Downward(1929-1932)

Henry Champman(1861-1862)

Alfred Kirton(1932-1947)

William Leggatt(1947-1956)

Roberts Dunstan (1956-1982)

DAVID MORRIS MP Member for Mornington Parliamentary Secretary for Local Government

David Hassett(1982-1985)

David Morris(from 2006)

www.davidmorr is.org.au 321 Main Street Mornington 5975 4799

150O

Taking to the waterWhen construction started on the Hastings swimming pool on

December 10, 1937 there was much excitement in the town.Taking almost a year to build, it was offi cially opened on

November 19, 1938 by Mr McKenzie, an engineer with the Post Master General’s Department and the Country Roads Board.

The saltwater pool had a three-metre diving well built in 1939. In March 1940, Mordialloc and Frankston High School became the fi rst school to hold its competitive swimming sports there. For the next six decades, the pool was popular for school swimming sports and local use, until it was closed in the early 2000s to make way for the Pelican Park Recreation Centre.

The culmination of years of work and a community vision, the state-of-the-art shire centre, on the Hastings foreshore, includes a 25-metre eight-lane pool, a toddlers’ pool, a spa and sauna, gymnasium, group fi tness facilities and a 130 seat a la carte training cafe.

Eight years after the centre opened, it continues to be extremely popular with the people of the Mornington Peninsula and Western Port.

Local schools continue to do their swimming lessons there and children of all ages splash around in the water having fun, just as they did seven decades ago. Former glory: Hastings community members enjoy a swimming carnival. Picture: Courtesy of Hastings-Western Port Historical Society.


G4262239AA-dp5Sep

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137 Mornington Tyabb Road (Cnr Bruce Street) MorningtonPhone: 5975 2600

Bob Smith Carpet Choice have been supplying and installing all types of floor coverings for nearly fifty years. Located in busy Main Street Mornington for most of those years we have witnessed firsthand the massive growth in this area.

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We invite you to come in and check out the changes at Choices.

There is a belief that knowing more about where we came from brings a deeper understanding of who we are.

For Dromana resident Elaine Hitchiner, family history is present in her everyday life, as a descendent of the McLear family, one of Dromana’s fi rst pioneering clans.

This month, Elaine will celebrate her 81st birthday surrounded by her four sons and husband of almost 60 years in her beloved home town of Dromana.

Elaine’s cousin, the late Colin McLear, wrote about his family in his book A Dreamtime of Dromana — A history of Dromana through the eyes of a pioneering family.

Perhaps it is no coincidence that Elaine is also a member of the Dromana and District Historical Society, with such a connection to the history of the area.

‘‘I was born in the front room of our original home called Maryfi eld,’’ Elaine recalled, while perched among old photos and memorabilia at the historical society. ‘‘The home was built by my great-grandmother, Mary Ann McLear in 1860.’’

Mary Ann McLear (nee Adams) was born in Strabane, a town in Londonderry, on December 25, 1808. She married Irishman John McLear in her home town in 1832 and their fi rst child was born the next year.

Six years later, the couple emigrated to Australia and took up residence in NSW, where they had two more children but sadly, their fi rst born, Martha, died when

she was just eight. In 1846, the family moved to the Plenty River, which would become the new colony of Victoria.

Colin McLear’s book states that disaster struck on Boxing Day three years later when, after a race meeting, John McLear became embroiled in a fi ght at the Plough Inn and was struck over the head by a Thomas Mason with a huge plank of fence paling and died immediately.

In that split second, Mary Ann McLear was made a widow and her entire life would change. Forced to raise fi ve children on her own, she made the choice to move to Jamiesons Special Survey, where the Dromana family legacy would begin. She moved into a hut of vertical slabs, and had as many as 12 men working on the farm where she grew wheat.

In 1860, Maryfi eld was built out of wattle and daub. Asked why she was so excited about the homestead, Mary Ann said ‘‘at last she had a home of her own, which she named herself’’.

Over the years, Maryfi eld was always known for its hospitality and the kettle was always on.

‘‘It was wonderful growing up there,’’ Elaine Hitchiner said. ‘‘I lived there all my life until the day I got married. My grandfather George was the only one of the children who stayed at Maryfi eld.

‘‘He met my grandmother, Emmeline, out on the 166-acre property one day. She was a governess from Suffolk and

was out taking the children for a walk. He yelled out to her ‘what are you doing here?’ and that’s how they met. They were married about a year later in 1891.’’

Elaine’s mother, another Mary Ann, continued to live at Maryfi eld with her mother after her father died in 1918.

‘‘Mum and dad stayed on at Maryfi eld because grandma was getting older. So I was lucky enough to be bought up on the property. We had lots of cousins so I was never lonely. We climbed apple trees and grandmother had planted lots of fruit trees.

‘‘Dad set rabbit traps and I learnt how to skin a rabbit, which we’d sell for two shillings. We also went through exciting times when the Americans were here. Colin and I would ride our bikes to places where the troops had been camping and fi nd cutlery, clothing and sometimes even American money.’’

Elaine and her husband, Reg, continued to live at Maryfi eld for two years after they got married, while their house was being built. ‘‘After grandma died, Maryfi eld was sold but mum made sure she had two acres

A lifetime of love for Dromana


Elaine Hitchiner with the fi ve men in her life — husband Reg and sons Dale, Grant,

Scott and Stuart.


Shop 1, McCrae Plaza, 739 Pt Nepean Road McCrae 3938

Ph: 5986 6661 Fax: 5981 1360 [email protected] www.martindixon.org

Martin Dixon MP� State Member for Nepean

“Protecting the Peninsula”

� Better standards of law and order

� Prevention of over development on

the Mornington Peninsula

� Protection of our beaches and

natural environment

� Improved Public Transport Services

� Aquatic Centre for Rosebud

G4203411AA-dp5Sep

Fine Art GalleryEst. 1987

Utopia Aboriginal Art Specialists

www.mbantua.com.au

161 Main St,

Mornington VIC 3931

ph: 03 59736651

Opening hours: Mon to Sat 9am - 5pm Sun 10am-4pm

Featuring the work of

Minnie Pwerle during 2003-2006

G4234783AA-dp5Sep

25 CARBINE WAY, MORNINGTON (Off Racecourse Rd) 5975 6599

Specialists in:• Natural stone paving (tiles

and crazy)

• Granite, marble and

caesarstone for benchtops

G4234814AA-dp5Sep

To find out more about the historic Point Nepean National Park

telephone 13 1963 or visit www.parks.vic.gov.au

POINT NEPEAN NATIONAL PARK

Over 150 years of history on the Mornington Peninsula to discover.

Explore the historic buildings of the Quarantine Station, Fort Nepean’s tunnels and gun

emplacements, view the beach where Prime Minster Harold Holt disappeared and enjoy the

spectacular coastlines of Bass Strait and Port Phillip Bay. Walk or cycle the coastal tracks

through Moonah Woodland, hear the fascinating history through our audio tours.

End of Point Nepean Road, Portsea

Open everyday

G4203473AA-dp5Sep©FCNVIC

Point Nepean Quarantine Station circa early 20th century.

divided off the property. Reg built them a house to live in there in 1967. A city doctor bought the remainder of the property but the Maryfi eld homestead was mysteriously destroyed by fi re in 1970.

‘‘My son, Dale, still lives on the two-acre property now with his wife Mandy and their two children,’’ Elaine said.

Elaine, Reg and their four sons continue to live in Dromana and Rosebud.

Strong and independent: Mary Ann McLear raised fi ve children and built Maryfi eld.

George McLear, Elaine Hitchiner’s grandfather, 1840-1918.


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When Philip (Jack) Johnson found trapping foxes would make more money than searching for gold at Tubbarubba, the story of Foxeys Hangout began.

The year was 1936 and there was a government bounty on fox ears produced for the government inspector.

Jack, who had come over from Tasmania, had to dispose of the rest of the carcasses and used to hang them on a tree or fence.

One night, a couple of mates dropped around to Maxwelton, where Jack was staying, and saw the foxes hanging on the fence. Andrew Firth and his companions, the Kerrs, the Heggins, and Lou Connell, called in for a chat and Lou started saying he could get more and bigger foxes where he worked.

The gauntlet was thrown and soon there was a competition to see who could produce the biggest catch.

The boys had a tree each to hang their foxes on. Jack’s was a clear winner with plenty of foxes on his eucalyptus tree, dubbed Foxeys Hangout, at the corner of Tubbarubba Road, where he continued to hang foxes until his untimely death in 1946.

The murder of Jack Johnson would be the third on the Tubbarubba goldfi eld region, after his body was found hidden under corrugated iron on the property.

Jack had been living with a man called McKenzie on a property near Foxeys Hangout. Soon after Jack went missing, McKenzie confessed to killing a man at Foxeys Hangout.

The motive was never discovered, although the family speculated it was for a gold nugget that Jack had with him for good luck.

After the murder, friends and neighbours continued the hanging practice but it gradually ended over the years. The tree was then adorned with wooden and metal fox replicas and became a popular site for tourists.

Queen Elizabeth paid a visit to the site in 1954 on a visit to Australia and a plaque commemorating the event hung among the dead foxes.

In May this year, Foxeys Hangout, still adorned withreplica wooden foxes, was pulled down after it was deemed a safety risk. Several attempts have been made to grow a new tree at the location to no avail.

Hanging out with the foxes

Foxeys Hangout: Wooden foxes used to hang on the famous tree. Picture: Daryl Gordon.Below: Foxeys Hangout, circa 1946. Picture courtesy Balnarring Historical Society.



CNR BENTONS & DUNNS RDS, MORNINGTON EAST

Mornington’s Most Successful

Shopping Centre

OPEN 7 DAYS

G4198433AA-dp5Sep

My Time Health and Fitness 5975 8622

Dental Care @ Bentons 5976 3288

Mt Martha Medical Centre 5976 3666

Priceline Pharmacy 5973 5766

Lindens Fresh Meats 5976 3331

Bakers Delight 5977 0277

Bentons Square Newsagency 5976 3366

Express Cuts 5973 5545

Bentons Square Noodle Bar 5975 5342

Wendy’s Supa Sundaes 5973 4371

ILahi Homewares & Gifts 5973 5889

Blooms on Bentons 5973 6436

B Kids 5975 4350

BentOn Health 5976 4400

Ocean Catch 5976 3444

Bentons Sq Charcoal Chicken 5976 3333

Taste Design Young Fashion 5973 5353

Woolworths 5977 2522

Woolworth Petrol 5973 5492

All About Kids, By Best & Less 5973 6282

Dan Murphys 9497 6810

Socks & Jocks Shop 5976 4392

Hartfords Hairdressing 5973 6066

John Old Optometrist 5975 5720

Kari Accessories 8669 0557

Essential Stuff 5976 8996

Fresh Fruit Haven & Fine Foods 5976 8350

Goldsmith Jewellers 5976 4674

Nail D’Zign & Beauty 5975 5773

Subway 5976 8071

Bubba Pizza, Pasta & More 5975 2899

Blue Water Bay Real Estate 5976 1188

Video Ezy 5977 2492

Clothing Angel Dry Cleaning 5976 4144

& Alterations

Degani Cafe & Bakery 5973 4102

Essential Beauty 5973 6300

Taste Design 5973 5353

Flight Centre 5975 2232

Amazing Toys 5976 8889

Tobacco Station 5973 6469

Booksmart Books & Art Supplies 5975 1135

Keeva Kitchens 5972 0700

Ferguson Plarre Bakehouses 5973 4170

More Exciting Retailers Opening Soon

WHEN Bentons Square shopping cen-tre opened in 2002, it was a modest centre comprising a Safeway store,

service station and 16 specialty retailers.

Today, the centre is catering to large popula-tion growth in Mornington East and has extended to 45 tenants offering more variety, choices and savings.

The centre is soon to be fully leased and centre manager Maree Abbott thanked the Mornington community for its extended contribution in this growth.

The centre has about 550 free parking spaces for customers.

Bentons Square has a medical centre, dentist, women’s gym and drycleaners and specialty stores include Video Ezy, Wendy’s, Baker’s Delight and an Australia Post outlet.

All stores are on one level, which makes the centre very accessible and easy to navigate.

Bentons Square shopping centre is at210 Dunns Road, Mornington East, and is open seven days a week. Opening hours are 9am-5.30pm Monday to Thursday, 9am-7pm Friday and 9am-5pm on weekends. Centre management: 5973 5331.


ALL PRICES INCLUDE GSTPAYMENT BY CASH OR CREDIT CARD ONLY

E. & O.E

For price and availability of all your building supply

needs please call

Ph: 5981 0943Fax: 5987 3887

1 Dalkeith Drive, DromanaMon-Fri 7am-4pm Sat 7am-12 noonwww.dromanatimber.com.au

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2400x300 ............................................$11.00ea2400x450 ............................................$17.00ea2400x600 ............................................$22.00ea1800x450 ............................................$13.50ea1800x600 ............................................$17.00ea3600x450 ............................................$26.50ea3600x600 ............................................$35.00eaNot Edged2400x1200 ..........................................$35.00ea2400x1200x3mm ................................$18.00eaPINE LINING

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TREATED PINE SLEEPERS

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Timber Meranti S/Bevel42x14 ................................................... $1.95mt67x14 ................................................... $2.65mtPrimed MDFS/Bevel 42x15 ...................................... $1.00mtS/Bevel 67x15 ...................................... $1.30mtS/Bevel 67x18 ...................................... $1.35mtL/ Tongue 67x18 ................................... $1.35mtL/ Tongue 92x18 ................................... $1.95mtL/ Tongue 140x18 ................................. $3.25mtB/nose 67x18 ....................................... $1.35mtB/nose 92x18 ....................................... $1.95mtCYPRESS PINE PICKETS

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18x18 Quad/Fillet/DAR ...........................$1.30mt42x18 DAR ............................................$2.20mt66x18 DAR ............................................$3.20mt90x18 DAR ...........................................$4.40mt138x18 DAR ..........................................$6.60mt30x30 Int Stop .......................................$2.70mt57x30 Ext Stop ......................................$4.85mt42x42 DAR ............................................$4.35mt66x42 DAR F7 .......................................$6.75mt90x42 DAR F7 .......................................$8.50mt138x42 DAR F7 ...................................$12.75mt185x42 DAR F7 ...................................$16.95mt230x42 DAR F7 ...................................$26.85mt280x42 DAR F7 ...................................$32.50mt

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Point Nepean National Park — a treasure trove of Victorian history — has never been more accessible to the community.

At the very tip of the Mornington Peninsula, the 560-hectare site is home to artefacts spanning more than 150 years of quarantine and army use — two activities which used to preclude the public from visiting this scenic and signifi cant location.

Cheviot Hill, the panoramic park’s highest point, overlooks the beach where former Prime Minister Harold Holt disappeared in 1967.

And the fi rst shot of World War I of all the allied forces was fi red from Point Nepean.

Park manager Stuart Hughes said the target was a German merchant vessel, the Pfalz, which had sailed from the Port of Melbourne just after war was declared.

‘‘The message arrived to not let the vessel leave the bay and a shot was fi red across its bow from the Point Nepean gunning placement. An Australian pilot aboard to guide them out eventually convinced the captain the next shot would sink them if they kept going.’’

One of the major attractions is the Point Nepean quarantine station, established in 1852 and now part of the park, and which has been only open to the public since December 2009.

The sprawling facilities were used for quarantine purposes until 1979 and a former isolation hospital and morgue, infl uenza huts and a disinfecting and bathing complex are still standing. A nearby cemetery was created to bury

victims from the disease-plagued Ticonderoga vessel in 1852.

The quarantine station site was used by the army as the Offi cer of Cadet School from 1952-85 and as the School of Army Health from 1985-98.

Mr Hughes said many more visitors — especially from the peninsula — were visiting the park since entry fees were scrapped in July last year.

‘‘What I love about the place, and what I think other people love, is the amazing landscapes and the big fortifi cations right on the edge of the cliff,’’ he said.

‘‘And of course there’s the stories of the historic role the place had. There’s nowhere else in Victoria like it in terms of the developing health of the state. For so many immigrants, it was their fi rst experience of Australia.

‘‘When you’re there for the fi rst time and among the big old buildings there’s a sense of what life was like then that’s very compelling.’’

Above Right: The 2009 community open day at the former quarantine station.

Right: The same location in 1910. Picture: Courtesy the State Library of Victoria.


In a healthy state


NICHOLAS DESIGN

IS BACK

THANK YOUTO ALL THE PEOPLEIN THE PENINSULA

FOR YOUR SUPPORTTO OUR CUSTOMERS

SUPPLIERS & FRIENDSWE COULD NOT

HAVE DONE IT

WITHOUT YOU

AFTER THE FIRE

30 WATT RD MORNINGTONG4182673AA-dp5Sep©FCNVIC

OPENING HOURS: LUNCH 5 DAYS 12-2.30

MORNING & AFTERNOON TEA 10.30-4PM

DINNER FRIDAY & SATURDAY 6.30 TILL LATE

CLOSED MONDAY & TUESDAY

The Briars Historic ParkNepean Hwy, Mt Martha Ph: 5974 1104

Varied Menu / Light Lunches / Weddings & Functions

G4286084AA-dp5Sep

Great seasonal menu’s with Fabulous food

RESTAURANT AT THE BRIARS

The human history of the Mornington Peninsula belongs largely to the Bunurong people, part of the Kulin nation who have occupied south-central Victoria for untold millennia.

The European history of Victoria begins in 1803 in Sullivan Bay, between what is now Sorrento and Blairgowrie townships.

The short-lived Collins Settlement is still a historical treasure trove and an archaeological dig at the site later this year will seek to unearth graves newly discovered by Nepean Historical Society through sonar surveys.

The settlement was named after Lieutenant-Colonel David Collins, commander of the offi cers, marines, 56 free settlers and 301 convicts who weighed anchor at Sullivan Bay in early October.

The venture was ill-fated from the start and one imagines the ships were hardly unloaded before Collins decided to upsticks and move to Hobart Town in Van Diemen’s Land the following January.

While Sullivan Bay is indeed beautiful and

sheltered from prevailing winds and had long been frequented seasonally by the nomadic Bunurong for collecting shell fi sh, there is no reliable fresh water source within cooee and the colonists found building timber scarce.

In addition, the entrance to Port Phillip Bay was found to be too treacherous for frequent passage and thus unsuitable for industries such as whaling or sealing, and the small number of marines made the settlement vulnerable to attack.

An exploration party dispatched by Collins had failed to fi nd the Yarra River in their reconnaissance of the bay and reported that the land about was of poor potential.

While the settlers left few physical clues of their brief occupation of Sullivan Bay, there are voluminous records which detail the hardships experienced, evidenced by 30 deaths in the few short months of the summer 1803-04.

The Collins Settlement historic site is in Point Nepean Road, Sorrento, and is open daily from sunrise to sunset.

How it all began

150


HMAS CERBERUS OPEN DAY

SUNDAY 23 OCTOBER 2011The Open Day represents an ideal opportunity to showcase Navy’s premier training

establishment, the Royal Australian Navy and the wider Australian Defence Force to the public.

A number of ADF Schools are resident at CERBERUS which will also be celebrating 100 years

of service for the Royal Australian Navy.

GATES OPEN 10AM-4PM - FREE ENTRY

Entry is from South Beach Road (Mel Ref 194 D1) Free Car Parking

• RIDES AND GAMES • NAVY HELICOPTERS • RAAF ROULETTES

• DISPLAYS • LOCAL SERVICES • NAVY BAND PERFORMANCE


From the fi rst time Bob Wealthy saw the bow of the sunken Eliza Ramsden sticking six metres out of the sand, he was hooked on shipwrecks. Luckily, the Mornington Peninsula offers a myriad wreck sites from which to choose.

The treacherous currents, hidden reefs and narrow channels of Port Phillip Heads have seen the demise of more than 200 vessels, the fi rst recorded wreck in 1840.

One of the most popular dive sites to this day is the Eliza Ramsden which was built in 1874 and sank a year later.

‘‘This iron sailing ship hit Corsair Rock when it was coming through the heads,’’ Mr Wealthy said. ‘The ship was built by Samuel Ramsden and named after his wife. In July 1875 she left Melbourne for Newcastle, in ballast. She struck Corsair Rock in the Rip, and the ebb and tide caused her to be stuck fast. All crew were evacuated safely. She fl oated free on the rising tide and a skeleton crew attempted to beach her near Nepean Bay but she became unmanageable and sank in the South Channel.’’

The Eliza Ramsden is now considered the most spectacular wreck dive in the bay, at a depth of about 21 metres. The hull is a haven for sponges, ascidians and sea stars, which attract fi sh such as leather jackets and clingfi sh. Diving can only occur at slack water when there are no ships using the channel.

In November, 1940 the war came to Port Phillip Bay with the sinking of the Goorangi. All 24 on board died in the disaster which is one of the more recent wrecks in Port Phillip Bay.

‘‘There is a memorial at Queenscliff to commemorate those who died,’’ Mr Wealthy said. ‘‘It is one of Victoria’s greatest maritime disasters.’’

The Goorangi lies in 15 metres down in the South Channel on a sandy bottom and is host to a huge variety of plant and animal life. The wreckage is scattered and provides a great dive for the photographer — but special permission must be granted to dive as the wreck is in the shipping channel.

More than 60 shipwrecks can be found in the waters of the Mornington Peninsula, pieces of history that now lie at the bottom of the sea.

Some have been deliberately scuttled, while others fell prey to conditions but all provide a wonderful insight into our underwater history.

*Bob Wealthy and Stan Bugg are the authors of Shipwrecks Around Port Phillip Heads.

Beneath the waves


Right: Ship wreck mystery - a diver explores one of the many wrecks on the peninsula.

Top Right: Off Rye pier - a diver explores the underwater landscape. Picture: Courtesy the book Beneath Our Bay — discovering the hidden secrets of Port Phillip.


5975 466551 Yuilles Rd, Mornington 3931 www.peninsulacurtains.com.au

The complete window furnishing centre

& blinds

In the beginning we hadour mobile showroom &we came to you!

Serving the Peninsulafor over 30 years!

1980Theyear

One of our first newspaper

adverts.

The good old days!

Then...We started making ourown blinds in our factoryand used our own fitters.

Our manufacturing facility in Mornington.

And now we have...• 5 Mobile showrooms

carrying over 3500 samples• 5 Service vans• 8• Our own electricians for

control and powered blinds

each

Interior decoratorsremote

G4262187AA-dp5Sep


Park open 9am-5pm. Entry is FREE!Wildlife Reserve open 9am-4.30pmHomestead open 10am-4pm Entry Fees Apply

One of the Peninsula’s original pastoral properties is still farmed today, around heritage listed buildings and gardens dating from the 1840s.

Soak up the beautiful Cultural landscape

The Briars Park

Nepean Highway, Mt MarthaFor more information please phone: 5974 3686 or email: [email protected](Mel Ref 145 D11)

Explore the Wildlife Reserve and search for koalas and kangaroos,

and view the water birds from special “hides”.

Bring a barbecue lunch and picnic.

See the Homestead and learn about the Balcombe family’s connection with the Emperor

Napoleon.

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When you’re a child, nothing really compares to the magic of sleeping under the stars. Most of us have treasured memories of packing the car up and driving for what seems like eternity before arriving at a campsite or caravan park for an exciting summer holiday.

Some of us grew up spending endless summers parked next to the same family. Friendships blossomed over years of holidays.

Every year, hundreds of families and holidaygoers still do that on the picturesque foreshore of the Mornington Peninsula.

Rosebud, Rye, Sorrento, Blairgowrie, Point Leo and Stony Point are all coastline favourites in a tradition dating back to the late 1920s.

Mornington & District Historical Society president Diane White says the availability and affordability of cars after World War II paved the way for droves of people to visit the

summery shores of the peninsula. ‘‘After the Second World War, a lot more

people started to get their own car so it opened up all of these new places they could travel to easily,’’ she said.

‘‘Before this a lot of people would travel to the peninsula by paddle steamer, but usually they would only stay for a day or night before moving on to the next spot.’’

During the early 1940s when camping on the foreshore really began to peak, there was an uproar from the local council.

‘‘There were too many people everywhere along the foreshore and locals really weren’t ready for the infl ux,’’ Mrs White said. ‘‘The council built up fences to restrict people from camping in certain areas, but people were just doing it anyway or pulling down the fences and setting up camp.’’

With not enough toilet facilities or space to

cope with the growing number of visitors, the council began to create designated camping areas.

‘‘These areas were designed to encourage people to stay but to also preserve the region,’’ she said.

This was followed by caravan parks popping up all over Australia during the 1970s as affordable and family friendly holiday spots.

150O R

The campers’ mecca

Top: Happy holidays - The Merrymakers Holiday Campers and locals join together in 1923 on the foreshore of Rosebud. Picture: Courtesy Peter Wilson from his book On the road to Rosebud. Above: Treasured memories - summer holidaymakers camp out on the Dromana foreshore during the 1950s. Picture: Courtesy Dromana and District Historical Society


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The Mornington Peninsula’s fl air for fi ne wine has a rich history dating back to the 1800s.

You only have to drive along the coastline or quiet country roads to catch a glimpse of the region’s long-standing passion for all things fresh.

In 1886, Dromana wine was awarded an honourable mention in an intercontinental exhibition. Following that success, 14 peninsula grape growers went on to be mentioned in a royal commission into the fruit and vegetable industry in Australia in 1891.

Despite the seeds of great wine already sown, the region’s wine industry crumbled during the Depression and with the exception of vines at the Morning Star Estate, most of the local vineyards were abandoned or uprooted.

The Franciscan friars planted the vines at the Morning Star estate in 1932, in what is now known as the Franciscan block, and to this day the vines still produce quality wine.

During the 1970s business picked up again, and the peninsula began to pave the way for an increasingly successful band of wine producers.

An instrumental vigneron during this period was Nat White, a mentor and pioneer to today’s peninsula winemakers.

In 1975, Mr White and his wife Rosalie purchased the renowned Main Ridge Estate in Red Hill, inspired by a trip they had taken to Europe.

‘‘I have always been drawn to the rural life,’’ he said. ‘‘I think there is something very special about growing

and planting a vine in the ground and creating it into something that people really enjoy. Wine culture in the peninsula didn’t really exist until the 1970s, when it began to move very rapidly into its status of premium quality wine.’’

Mr White says the climate in Mornington mirrors that of Burgundy in France. Nestled between Bass Strait, Port Phillip Bay and Western Port, it is one of the few maritime wine regions in Australia, and its cooler climate allows certain types of grapes to fl ourish.

‘‘There is similarity of climates between the peninsulaand the great Burgundy in France, historically known for their pinot noir and chardonnay,’’ Mr White said. ‘‘The changing temperature, humidity and rainfall here make it the ideal conditions to produce the wine.’’

About 1000 hectares across the peninsula brim with wine grapes, the main ‘drop’ produced being pinot noir. The Mornington Peninsula Vignerons Association says pinot noir accounts for about 50 per cent of plantings in the region, while 25 per cent are chardonnay and 11 per cent are pinot grigio. The rest are a diverse range of other varieties, including shiraz.

Mr White says the future of peninsula wine is bright.‘‘There is plenty of room for growth. As the area

becomes more and more recognised, the demand for wine will increase. The industry will expand with growth of more wine grapes and rather than become a surplus, the focus will remain on what the peninsula is known for — fi ne wine quality.’’

Growing demand for fine wine

Colourful history: Main Ridge Estate vigneron Nat White played a part in making wine on the Mornington Peninsula what it is today.

Picture: Daryl Gordon


THE DROMANA DRIVE IN IS THE PERFECT PLACE TO TAKE IN A FILM AND ENJOY THE NOSTALGIA OF A CLASSIC 60’S DRIVE-IN.

The Dromana Drive-in theatre opened as the ‘Peninsula’ in 1962 with a single screen and parking available for 500 cars. It was built by the Whitaker family who has continued to operate the drive-in since it opened. A second screen,which came from the Hoyts Altona drive-in, was added in 1992. A third screen was constructed new, in 2002.The Dromana Drive-in is historically and socially significant as one of only three drive-ins in Victoria to survive intact and still operating out of the 60 that once existed, the last remnants of a once extremely popular cultural phenomenon, one that appears to have had a real impact only in the US,Canada and Australia. The Dromana Drive-In is the only one in Australia of the three, to be continuously in operation, never closed. Inspired by American cultural trends, drive-ins were a new type of private or domestic space, a mobile extension of the family living room, and characterized a trend in personal behavior to be less formal and inhibited in public spaces. They grew out of the extraordinary popularity and increasing affordability of cars, and provided a novel and easy form of entertainment. They catered to a wide range of audiences, allowing a whole family with young children the

convenience of staying in their car, for teenagers to socialize apart from their parents, and especially for young adults who were attracted to particular fi lm genres and the intimate private space provided by the car. Dromana Drive In is located at Dromana, the gateway to the Mornington Peninsula; approx. 15 minutes drive from Frankston. It is a popular destination place for all tourists and locals, all year round. “We show movies for all tastes; for the romantics, the comics, for families through to the thrillers”. The Dromana Drive-In also features ‘Shel’s Diner’, which is modeled on the authentic 50’s style American Diner and inspired by ‘Mels Diner’ in the U.S.A. Shel’s Diner is a unique feature to the Drive In, and is exclusive to patrons, the ‘back-seat’ benches, black & white floor tiles, movie memorabilia, jukebox…… where you will find the classic burgers, the real deal. Market @ Drive In operates on Sundays, see web site for more details. www.drivein.net.au “Take a trip back to memory lane and visit a classic 60’s drive- in picture theatre, relive an experience, with your favorite guy or gal, bring the kids,we cater for all ages”.

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One hundred and fi fty years ago, transport in townships on the Mornington Peninsula was a far cry from today, with dirt roads carrying horses and drays and bullocks pulling carts with produce.

Says Mornington & District Historical Society president Diane White: ‘‘People would have come down to the area on a boat of some sort, probably a sailing boat, until the paddle steamers came in about the 1880s, and the train came in the late 1890s.’’

In 1857 the pier at Mornington was completed and it soon became the shipping centre of the Mornington Peninsula with more than 15 fi shing boats permanently moored and ships arriving

daily to bring supplies and transport produce to Melbourne.Passenger ferries were stopping twice a week at Mornington

and Sorrento, bringing holidaymakers to the peninsula.Not long after, the railway came to the peninsula, providing a

faster mode of transport for produce and fi sh.In the early 1900s, horse-drawn drays would meet the steamers

and train to take passengers to Rosebud and picnic parties at the lighthouse at Cape Schanck. In the 1920s George Dyson bought a bus service that ran in Flinders, Sorrento, Rosebud and Dromana. The Shaw family ran a bus which did the Arthurs Seat run.

Transport moves with times150O R N I N

Above: Moving ahead - Mornington Train Station in the early 1900s. Picture: Courtesy Mornington & District Historical Society. Right: Dyson’s bus fl eet. Picture: Courtesy Dromana and District Historical Society.


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To the untrained eye, Tubbarubba Reserve is simply a bushy slice of land on the Mornington Peninsula, much like any other country property with a modest steel gate allowing bush walkers access.

But if the land could talk, the 5.6-hectare property would tell of a colourful, if short-lived, history of gold prospecting and murder in the 19th century.

In their book The Golden Plains Tubbarabbabel, Mary Karney and Bruce Bennett relate tall but true tales of prospecting on the peninsula.

‘‘There were rumours of gold at Mt Eliza and Dromana and some gold was taken out on the eastern shoulder of Arthurs Seat, mainly by Chinese diggers,’’ the authors wrote.

In 1862, the Melbourne newspaper The Argus reported on a motion by Mr Edward Downward to petition to ‘‘withhold from alienation from the Crown of Land within a distance of six or eight miles of Schnapper Point which was believed to be a payable goldfi eld, until it had been further prospected’’.

By 1914, the Downward family would own the majority of the Crown lands of Tubbarubba. The recommendation of Mr Downward is believed to have launched Tubbarubba as an accepted gold fi eld.

Over the next nine years, there was some prospecting but it wasn’t until July 1871 that the news spread that three gold-bearing reefs had been struck in Tubbarubba Creek.

The Golden Plains Tubbarabbabel states that another rush took place with a considerable number of claims being staked out and reports of a company being formed to work a claim: ‘‘A shaft of 20 to 30 feet deep was sunk and gold was said to be present in the quartz taken from it. It was estimated that a couple of hundred diggers participated in this rush.’’

A report in the local newspaper noted, however, ‘‘I may safely say that gold in payable quantities will not be found’’ in the area.

This gloomy assessment resulted in many of the diggers deserting Tubbarubba. Soon after, Chinese prospectors arrived but it is believed they fl ed after one of them was murdered.

Karney and Bennett write: ‘‘The murdered Chinese was supposedly buried at the scene of the crime and later the remnant of the plains, now known as Tubbarubba Reserve, was called by the local inhabitants ‘The Cemetery Reserve’.’’

This was not the only murder at Tubbarubba. In 1874 the body of a man named John Moriarty was found concealed in scrub near a hut in which he lived on the property. He had sold 200 sheep for which he received 50 pounds in gold and notes and intended banking his money on a Saturday. Five days later he and his dog were reported missing.

‘‘True to racial discrimination of the times, the Chinese were

immediately under suspicion,’’ Karney and Bennett wrote.

‘‘The man who reported him missing, Patrick Shanahan, was later tried for the murder but acquitted. A coroner’s report on Moriarty’s body spared no grisly detail. Suffi ce it to say that, using an axe found near the body, someone had infl icted brutal wounds to the victim around the head and the chest ... in 1895 a prospector named Moat, digging a depth of 3 feet, found a silver lever open-face hunting watch and a set of gold scales and weights. The articles were supposed to have belonged to Moriarty.’’

In 1894, a William Barnes started mining on the land of Alfred Downward, the son of Edward Downward, near the junction of the Bulldog and Tubbarubba creeks. He built a small dam and would become the most successful miner in the area.

An article written on Barnes the following year stated he and his son had taken out 10 pieces of gold and quartz from their diggings.

Karney and Bennett wrote: ‘‘The Barnes father and son, working in a valley between the two hills, after 18 months had found a piece of gold of two grains of weight. They were digging only about six feet from the surface and working along the bed of the creek, having constructed a dam to divert the course of the stream. They were using a horse puddling machine.

‘‘Some 16 feet from the workings a quartz vein crossed the creek bed and here they found their nuggets of quartz and gold weighing 170 ounces in all. They were reported to have made one thousand pounds from their fi nd. No other miner at Tubbarubba came close to this.’’

In September 1895, 13 shareholders — including Alfred Downward — formed the Tubbarubba Gold Mining Company. The Mornington Standard reported a year later that the area was being mined day and night. A near catastrophe was avoided when one of the workers narrowly escaped death when a basket of rubble he had sent up to the surface tumbled down on him.

The next 30 years would see sporadic mining in the area but there was no news of large gold fi nds. During the Depression of the 1930s, local men would fossick along the creeks to fi nd enough gold to help make ends meet.

Evidence of gold mining was found by geologist RA Keble in 1937. On his expedition, Mr Keble found a gold-bearing reef, mine shafts, tunnels, an old battery site and prospecting holes around Tubbarubba Creek — reminders of the long-forgotten time when the peninsula had a taste of the ‘wild west’.

Our golden moments


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150 Right: Still a landmark - Arthurs Hotel today. Picture: Yanni

Below: Bird’s-eye view - Arthurs Seat chairlift, circa 1970. Picture: Courtesy Dromana and District Historical Society.


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Arthurs Seat is the most recognisable of all Port Phillip Bay landscape features, rising above the Mornington Peninsula to an impressive 314-metre summit.

The mountain represents a rich kaleidoscope of colourful times and characters — from the fi rst landholders with a squatting run to a wattle plantation — and later aircraft crashes, bushfi res and, of course, the iconic chairlift.

In 1802, Captain Matthew Flinders was the fi rst European to climb Arthurs Seat — little knowing it had already been discovered 10 weeks earlier by Lieutenant John Murray on his fi rst exploration of Port Phillip Bay .

Lieutenant Murray then went on to name Arthurs Seat after a mountain near his home town of Edinburgh, Scotland.

Flinders said that from the summit of Arthurs Seat, he could see much, but not all, of Port Phillip Bay, and Western Port. In his journals he wrote of ‘‘this great piece of water’’ and of Arthurs Seat being more than 1000 feet high.

In 1896, the fi rst resident settled on the top of the mountain, farmer and orchardist James Chapman building the fi rst track to the summit. Mr Chapman was the fi rst owner of Seawinds, which would later be developed by Sir Thomas and Lady Travers in the 1940s. The area was declared a state park in 1975.

In 1929, a properly graded road was built to the top of Arthurs Seat, and in 1962 the road was widened and sealed, making it safer for buses and tourist to reach the summit.

When the road was opened, fi ve plaques were

unveiled to acknowledge the early history of Arthurs Seat and they can still be seen at lookout vantage points along the roadside.

The fi rst lookout tower was built in 1934 but four years later, tragedy struck the mountain when routine aircraft exercises turned to tragedy.

Five RAAF Avro Anson A4 aircraft from the No. 2 squadron were undertaking navigational exercises. Due to worsening weather, the aircraft were recalled to Point Cook Air Force Base.

At 9.45am while fl ying in low cloud over Arthurs Seat, A4-64 crashed into the north-western face of the hill. The front of the aircraft was demolished after ploughing through trees, but the tail and mid sections were reasonably left intact.

Of the fi ve crew members, the only survivor was the turret gunner, who was in the rear section of the aircraft.

The second crash occurred in 1942. At 7am on July 12, a Bristol Beaufort A9-64 fl ying in low cloud and mist just managed to clear the summit of Arthurs Seat, but crashed into the scrub land south of the lookout tower. All four crew were killed. A monument at the summit is dedicated to the crews lost in the crashes of the two aircraft.

For many years the mountain had been a favourite picnic ground for visitors after the road from Dromana was opened, but in the Christmas of 1960 when the chairlift was opened, its population increased dramatically.

The largest of Victoria’s chairlifts, it was 950 metres long and rose 225 metres on its ascent from the entrance to the Arthurs Seat public park summit station.

Visitors enjoyed magnifi cent views of Port Phillip Bay on the chairlift built by Dr Vladimir Hajek, the Czech-born pioneer of chairlift transport in Australia, and enjoyed a meal or drink at Arthurs Restaurant which was built in the early 1930s and remains today.

The chairlift recorded an estimated 100,000 users in 2002 according to the Mornington Peninsula Tourism Council but in 2003, problems started when a pylon tower supporting the chairlift collapsed, injuring 18 people and leaving 65 others trapped for several hours.

An investigation found the chairlift had met all required standards and was regularly inspected, and safety and testing requirements were subsequently strengthened by the Victorian Government.

Repairs worth $500,000 were spent on the tourist attraction and it reopened a year later but in March 2004 a second incident occurred when a chair came loose and a 77-year-old woman suffered two broken legs.

The ride was closed down by WorkSafe Victoria but was allowed to resume operations in October that year. The company was fi ned $110,000 in October 2007.

May 2006 saw the fi nal incident before the chairlift closed, when a mechanical failure stranded but did not injure about 12 tourists.

The frame of the chairlift stands as a reminder of its former glory. Visitors still fl ock to the top of Arthurs Seat for those stunning views, barbecue and picnic facilities, the Arthurs Hotel, the state park, walking tracks and Seawinds gardens.

And in an expected lift for the local tourism industry, plans are well under way to build a new chairlift.

Mountain of joy and sadness

Sad end: Wreckage of Avro Anson A4-29 at Arthurs Seat.

Picture: Courtesy Discover Mornington Peninsula

website.


G4405251AA-dp5Sep


Long before the First and Second World Wars exacted their terrible toll on Australian families, Mornington experienced a disaster which was equally devastating to the tiny town. Certainly, it took a huge proportion of the town’s menfolk with one family losing three young sons in one night, never to be seen again.

The memorial at the end of Main Street is often mistaken for a war memorial but is in fact a tribute to 15 locals aged 14 to 35 who died on Saturday, May 21, 1892 after a match at Mordialloc.

Like young men throughout time, the players of Mornington Football Club looked for adventure wherever it could be found, so when Charles Hooper offered his sail boat for the trip to Mordialloc there was no shortage of takers.

Hooper, married with fi ve children, was a fi sherman and racing sailor and his boat, a 28-foot yawl called the Process, could be fi tted out for either purpose.

To make the trip fast and exciting for his football mates, Hooper fi tted the Process with racing gear for the trip and 12 footballers joined him, his son Charles jnr, 14, and fi sherman John Comber on the boat.

The forecast was for ‘‘fresh WNW winds and moderate seas’’ — benign conditions for such experienced boatmen — and the 15-mile trip was made in a festive mood, with William Coles reportedly playing his cornet to entertain the team. Ominously, among the tunes played was the folk song, The ship that never returned.

The game ended in a draw about 5.30pm and some of the Mordialloc players went to the pier to farewell the Mornington team, which sailed without its captain

Mr Coxhew, a well known baker.According to a contemporary report in the

Australasian newspaper, the team’s skipper had ‘‘at the last moment, fearing ... a return of his seasickness, and giving way also to a presentiment of danger, made up his mind to return [to Mornington] by rail’’.

As the story by ‘Our Special Reporter’ notes: ‘‘All were perfectly sober’’, the game having fi nished so late and football perhaps not being so intimately connected with alcohol in those days. Four Mordialloc footballers and some fi shermen near Frankston were the last to see the 15 men alive.

Mr Short, the manager of the Commonwealth Bank, who had returned to Mornington by train, arriving about 8pm, began to worry when the Process had not been sighted from Schnapper Point by 9.30pm and Mr Grover, whose son and brother were on the boat, set out in his buggy for Mordialloc to see if she had set out.

Mr Short joined Mr Hutchins, a fi sherman who had also returned by train, at Mornington jetty, where they maintained a vigil until 3am before alerting the Reverend Caldwell, whose three sons were on board the Process.

Police and telegraph operators were roused and three search boats launched from Schnapper Point, scouring the coast.

Their worst fears were realised when an upturned boat was spied on the reef at Pelican Point between Canadian and Daveys bays in Mt Eliza. No bodies were found nearby.

The reporter describes the condition of the meticulously-maintained boat when it was towed back

to Schnapper Point by the Wanderer: ‘‘But now the gay paint on the bows was all torn and scratched, as though a dozen pairs of clinging hands had fought and clutched at the smooth painting in the desperate hope of getting handhold where none was to be found.’’

As the Wanderer approached Mornington: ‘‘Tears and sobs broke out from those on the shore because the fl ag on the yacht was half-mast high.’’

When the Process was righted, the body of Alfred Lawrence, 19, was found tangled in rigging. In the following days, search parties combed the beach from Mornington to Mordialloc and dozens of boats trawled the area, but no survivors were found.

‘‘Not a shred of clothing, not the splinter of a spar was to be found’’, the Australasian reported, although other reports listed one oar, three coats, a hat, some sails, a waistcoat, trousers, a pair of boots and a watch among the piteous fl otsam.

In the next 2 1/2 weeks three more bodies were

found — James Firth and John Kenna on the beach at Mt Eliza and Charles Hooper jnr at Rosebud beach.

Most of the men aboard the Process were strong swimmers and there was widespread consternation and conjecture about the cause of the disaster. An inquest was held in Mornington and it is generally thought the boat was in deep water off Pelican Point under full sail when a sudden squall blew in, snapping the stay which secured the mast and sail and causing her to pitch dramatically.

The crew, sitting on the windward side of the boat, acting as human ballast, would have been thrown into the choppy water.

The townsfolk rallied to support families of the deceased and £1600 was raise, £75 of which was used to erect the memorial which stands overlooking the bay, that capricious mistress which, now as then, bewitches and bedevils those lucky enough to live on her shores and work and play on her waters.

Above: Mourners look over the Process at Schnapper Point after it was involved in Mornington’s greatest maritime disaster. Right: An artist’s impression of the Process as it was found on Pelican Reef, its ballast having slid to the stern during the calamity. Pictures: Courtesy of the Mornington & District Historical Society.

Town’s tale of tragedy


Brownlow Breakfast

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16 September, 7am - 9.30am

Join AFL legends, including Brownlow

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Phone for more details 9788 7739.

VCE Revision Lectures

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A world class

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The Class of 2010 enjoyed one of the finest set

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BY JO WINTERBOTTOM

You never argued with Syd Hutchins about whether it was safe to go fi shing on Port Phillip Bay.

My grandfather knew the bay like the back of his hand, probably better, and you could plead to go out aboard the Nancy to catch fl athead, but if he looked at the water and said, ‘‘No, too choppy’’ or ‘‘No, the weather’s coming in’’, that was that.

Mostly, I loved to watch him catch fi sh; a quick jerk of his hand line moments after he had rebaited and put it back in the water meant he had hooked another large fl athead and he would pull it in hand-over-hand, the line spooling neatly at his feet.

In quiet moments he would gaze out to sea, silent, often exhorting us to ‘‘shush’’.

I loved the put-put-putter-put of the slow diesel engine; Syd was never in a hurry, never pushed his boat or otherwise tempted the bay to prove her power over him or his beloved Nancy.

On the way back to Schnapper Point he would clean the fi sh we had caught, his long, deft fi ngers working with a skill acquired over decades of practice taught by generations of experience. I watched and learned but have never been able to replicate the way he worked by feel and instinct and with a certain elegance.

In his 90s, when the hand lines lay dusty in his shed, I would buy fl athead for his lunch.

‘‘Pick a nice whole fi sh and ask them to fi llet it for you,’’ he would say. Once, in a hurry, I grabbed

some fresh ready-fi lleted pieces, but he could not be fooled.

As a teenager, Syd Hutchins fi shed and ran charter trips from Rosebud but when the Depression struck, like many young of the time, he sought a ‘government’ job and joined the police force.

It was always his intention to return to fi shing and he declined promotions so he could retire early and join his cousins and various other Hutchins fi shing on the peninsula. He operated a long-line licence with Stan Hutchins, shooting the line at night and returning hours later to collect the snapper it caught.

He spent so much time on the water that when he joined Mornington Bowling Club 10 years after his wife Lillian, members remarked that they had assumed she was a widow.

When, in his old age, his daughter Patricia asked him to moved closer to her in Lilydale at the foot of the Dandenongs, he looked at her as if she was mad. ‘‘I couldn’t leave the water,’’ he said.

There were many other Hutchins who fi shed the waters of Port Phillip Bay, Western Port and Bass Strait — Mick Hutchins was a crayfi sherman based at Sorrento who would camp at Camerons Bight during the season, boiling crays in a steel drum and selling them off the beach, and Hutchins men were there when a massive shark was caught and later displayed in a tent in Sorrento, where the curious paid to view the rotting behemoth.

Brothers Neville and Dalton Hutchins continue the tradition, one of few professional teams still fi shing Port Phillip Bay. When their red ‘fi sh’ sign is on the cliff top at Fishermans Beach in Mornington it means Neville and Dalton are down below, selling their latest catch from their blue boat shed on the beach — or in their dory being followed about by recreational anglers keen to hit a prosperous fi shing ground.

They net and long line, but they still use hand lines and when Neville takes holidays, it is to go fi shing in eastern Victoria.

I often wander down there to purchase gar or fl athead, but also to tap into the generations of wisdom held by Neville and Dalton. ‘‘Why are there fewer gannets this winter?’’, I will ask (it depends on where the whitebait are), or ‘‘how will all this rain affect the bay?’’ (a fl ush out now and then is good for fi sh stocks).

I enjoy travelling and have lived in many different towns and cities, but I have lived on the shores of Port Phillip Bay for 10 years now, getting to know her character and seasons. Like my grandfather, I would fi nd it very hard to leave the water now.

The calling of the bay

Proud tradition: Syd Hutchins, left, and his cousin Len Hutchins bait a long line

aboard the Nancy at Mornington pier.


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Stories handed down through generations of indigenous people occupying the shores of Port Phillip tell of a catastrophic event eons ago in which ‘‘the earth sank and the sea rushed in through the Heads till the void places became broad and deep as they are today’’.

Before this event, as told to Georgiana McCrae in the 1850s, people had been able to walk from the Mornington Peninsula to Corio on the other side of what is now Port Phillip.

The Bunurong people, part of the Kulin Nation that has occupied southern Victoria for at least 40,000 years, claim the coastal plains from the Yarra River basin east to the Tarwin River and the whole of what is now the Mornington Peninsula.

As nomadic hunter-gatherers, the Bunurong have left few clues to their long inhabitance, though kitchen middens containing the remains of numerous shellfi sh dinners can still be found along peninsula clifftops and artefacts such as axe heads, knives and pounding stones have been found.

A lack of fresh water stymied the fi rst European colonists who attempted to set up a new settlement at what is now Sorrento in 1803, but the Bunurong knew the many springs and swamps in the area and also developed wells along walking paths and the areas they frequented.

Among the large swamps, most of which have

now been drained and developed, were wetlands at Carrum, Dandenong, Kangerong (Dromana), Tootgarook and the Kooweerup Swamp, a vast delta on the northern shores of Western Port. Devilbend Reservoir, with it’s springs and abundant mussels was an important gathering place.

Fish, shellfi sh and plants formed a large part of the Bunurong diet. At the time of European settlement, the peninsula was described as ‘‘teeming with life’’ including kangaroos, wallabies, birds, possums, snakes, emus, bandicoots and goannas, all of which were hunted by the Bunurong. Kangaroos were said to roam in mobs of three or four hundred and ‘culls’ by European farmers of more than 2000 at a time were recorded.

Like other members of the Kulin Nation, the Bunurong suffered quickly and gravely after the arrival of white men. Bunurong numbers on the Mornington Peninsula have been variously estimated at between 200 and 400 at colonisation but by 1838 assistant protector of Aborigines William Thomas claimed there were but 83.

The reasons for this rapid decline were the same that devastated indigenous populations in many places — new diseases, loss of land and traditional modes of living, the introduction of alcohol and general disenfranchisement. Even before colonisation, Bass Strait sealers were said to

have raided communities on the peninsula, stealing women and introducing disease.

It seems probable that the Mornington Peninsula escaped the violent calamities that befell other indigenous peoples at the hands of colonists armed with gunpowder; certainly no large-scale massacres have been recorded, though there are records of Bunurong being shot by and in turn bearing arms against colonists. Georgiana McCrae noted her family was on friendly terms with the Bunurong who frequented their ‘‘run’’ on the western shores of the peninsula and an early settler at Coolart on Western Port, Henry Meyrick (after whom the area of Merricks is named), wrote that he was appalled by the treatment of Aborigines in Gippsland, where he had moved in 1846, the likes of which he had not witnessed on the peninsula.

‘‘No wild beast of the forest was ever hunted down with such unsurpassing perseverance as they are,’’ he wrote of Gippsland.

Thomas was based at Tuerong and his vast area of responsibility took in the eastern shore of Port Phillip, a large portion of Gippsland and north to the Great Dividing Range. At Tuerong he had a station of 10 square miles on which Aborigines were encouraged to settle. He was a humane and hardworking man, though his task was so onerous he could never effectively ‘‘protect’’ his charges.

Tuerong, 1200 acres on the north of the peninsula, was among the ‘‘runs’’ settled by white folk from the 1830s. Others included Bonyong (Boneo), Barragunda and Barrabang at Cape Schanck, Coolart (or Colourt), Packomedurrawurra (later called Tootgarook), Arthurs Seat, Bangunyan at Tyabb, Chechingurk (later The Briars) in Mt Martha, Carrup Carrup in Baxter, Ballygunyan and Beleura in Mornington and Davey’s and Tower Paddock in Mt Eliza. As can be seen, many were approximations of Bunurong names for the country.

In his Early History of the Mornington Peninsula, Hunter Rogers wrote that pastoralists leased their runs at 1/- per annum, less if they grew crops.

Among their produce was wheat, wool, horses and cattle for stud, meat and hides; fi rewood was taken to Melbourne by boat.

Other early industries included fi shing (‘the old fi sh track’ to market in Melbourne became Nepean Highway), lime burning and market gardening.

Nurserymen took up residence in Tyabb in the 1850s and the area’s world-renowned orchards were being planted shortly after.

There were the bakers, hoteliers and other tradespeople indispensable in the life of small settlements and as far back as the 1870s, Mornington was being touted as a ‘‘delightful resort’’ for holidaymakers.

William Thomas with four Bunurong people outside a hut.

Picture: Courtesy of the Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW.

When the sea rushed in

150O


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Rotary Clubof

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Congratulations

Mornington

on your proud history

The 1st Rotary Clubon the Peninsula

Our club shares a significant part of Mornington’s 150 year history and pledge continued support for this fi ne community

Established 29 May 1947Art Show established 40 years ago (1972). Has raised over $650,000 for local community and international projects

In 1982 established Australian Rotary Health which has become Australia’s largest health research fund

Formed several Probus clubs in Mornington

In 1997 with Shire built the Clock Tower in Main Street

Purchased yachts for “Sailing for Disabled” program

In 2006 built two gazebo’s on foreshore and later one in Memorial ParkActively supports youth in local schools

2010 funded Interplast Medical Team to Philippines

P.O. Box 57. Mornington. 3931

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In September 1939, Prime Minister Robert Menzies announced the outbreak of World War II, stating that Britain’s declaration of war meant Australia was also at war.

It soon became clear that the Mornington Peninsula would not be spared the backlash, with many young men enlisting and Mt Martha and Balcombe soon fi lling with army troops.

This was not the fi rst time the peninsula had been affected by war — almost 700 peninsula boys enlisted for the Great War and fought at Gallipoli, the Middle East and the Western Front.

Of these, 188 died which had a huge impact on a peninsula community that numbered only 6500 at that time.

A generation later, many lads enlisted as their fathers had done years before but this time the war would come to the peninsula with an even greater impact.

The fi rst huts in the Balcombe Army Camp were erected in 1939, with the Footscray Regiment and machine gunners in the fi rst houses while the militia lived in tents.

In 1940, the army’s 4th Division took over the area and, including trainees, numbered about 3000 personnel. Late in 1940 the Commonwealth Government bought 209 acres from the Graves, Ostberg and Henty families to establish a permanent camp.

Colin McLear, in his book A Dreamtime of

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Dromana, recalls what it was like as a child growing up in the war years.

‘‘Mt Martha and Balcombe fi lled with training troops and the roads repeatedly were used by troops on route marches,’’ he wrote. ‘‘As thousands of troops marched to manoeuvres about Cape Schanck, accompanied by bands and mobile fi eld kitchen, artillery, bren gun carriers and despatch riders on motor bikes, it was obvious our young men were getting ready to leave for overseas.

‘‘We schoolchildren watched fascinated as artillery lined up along the foreshore to fi re at fl oating targets in the bay. We were fascinated as shore-based search lights and anti-aircraft units with bay-based naval units hunted fl ying planes one dark night.

‘‘We became used to seeing drogue-towing Fairey-battle aircraft from Point Cook day after day passing Flinders Naval Depot where recruits practised anti-aircraft shooting. From time to time. units of the Australian Navy anchored in Dromana Bay so that recruits from Flinders Naval Depot could be ferried to the waiting vessels.’’

Mr McLear wrote that at school, the children knitted scarves, balaclavas and socks for the troops. Families became involved in making camoufl age nets and local women organised food parcels for the troops.

In 1941, Pearl Harbour was attacked by the Japanese and the US needed a camp for their soldiers for rest and rehabilitation. Balcombe Camp

was the ideal choice and soon became headquarters for the 1st Division of the US Marine Corps in 1942. They carried out beach landing exercises near Martha Point, using the ship HMAS Manoora.

Mr McLear wrote it was not long before the locals felt the American presence in the streets.

‘‘Safety Beach became the scene of invasion practice for later Pacifi c island landings. At times the Americans moved into local paddocks where they dug out weapon pits and revetments for their tanks whose tracks made a mess of the tarred highway. We local boys would follow them up after they had moved on, collecting rations thrown away and items of uniform left where they lay.

‘‘One Saturday, US marines and Australian soldiers were given leave at the same time and violent fi ghting broke out at the local hotel so the navy and military police were soon called to round them up and return soldiers and marines to the ships anchored off-shore.’’

After World War II, in 1947 the Army Apprentice School was established at the Balcombe Camp where they trained plumbers, electricians, fi tters and turners, mechanics and carpenters among other trades until 1982.

The Australian Signals and the Survey Corps also ran courses there until 1970 when it moved to Watsonia.

In 1982 the area around Balcombe Reserve was turned into a housing estate and recreational park.

A camping ground had been established after 1944 but was closed 40 years later, and an environmental park established.

The last house from the Balcombe Army Camp at Mt Martha was moved out of the site on a semi-trailer in two halves in August 1999.

The area continues to be looked after by the Balcombe Estuary Rehabilitation Group, a friends’ group formed in 1997 to preserve and restore the bushland of the Balcombe Estuary reserves.

Balcombe Estuary: Camp

sites of the training kind.

Pictures: Courtesy of the

Mornington & District Historical

Society.

War training: Balcombe army camp in World War II.


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Mornington Primary School pupils got into the spirit of Mornington’s 150-year celebrations early with a school production.

Mornington on the Map 150 Years illustrated the town’s fascinating history and looked at the milestones that have made Mornington what it is today.

Production co-ordinator Sara Darlington said many hours of rehearsals had gone into the performance.

‘‘The whole school has been involved and members of the community have helped out as well,’’ she said.

‘‘The Mornington & District Historical Society helped us with our research and the school wrote and choreographed the production.’’

The play follows Mornington’s history from the 1800s through to the present day.

Mornington Primary School, which opened 133 years ago, has always been an integral part of the community.

Jacob, one of the young stars of the show, said he enjoyed researching his role as the town crier.

‘‘The town crier was the person who told everyone the news,’’ he said.

The pupils said there were many things they loved about Mornington, Will saying: ‘‘The best parts are the beaches and the nice people we have here.’’

Principal Silvio Vitale said: ‘‘We are very proud to present this school production and proud to be part of the greater Mornington community.’’

The school has been asked to perform parts of the production at Mornington’s 150th anniversary celebrations.

Bright additionThe Mornington & District Historical Society has an

eye-catching new addition — a bright, shiny letterbox.It has been lent to the society by Australia Post as

part of the town’s 150th anniversary celebrations.

Society president Diane White said: ‘‘We are quite lucky to have it as there are very few of this type of pillar box left in the country.

‘‘Unfortunately, it cannot be permanent as it is in great demand by other organisations.’’

Diane White with the historic letterbox

Pupils recreate a fascinating history


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Mornington Secondary College, the school of the Mornington Community

On 7 February 1956, Mornington High School began with an enrolment of 91 pupils in temporary accommodation at St Andrew’s Presbyterian Hall in Barkly Street. Despite limited facilities, inaugural Principal, Mr George Findlay and four teachers began the school’s tradition of scholastic excellence and opportunities for students. From the very beginning, they laid the foundation for the teaching of good citizenship and pride in the school.

Mr Findlay’s vision was “for a high school for young citizens...... a community in which work, service, sport, leisure and social life each has a place. Honesty, truthfulness, sincerity, reliability, consideration, respect and courtesy are qualities of character essential to good citizenship within our school community.....” values which, in 2011, still resonate in the educational focus of Mornington Secondary College.

When Mornington Technical College and Mornington High School amalgamated in 2000, Mornington Secondary College proudly became the school of the Mornington community providing an inspirational learning environment for students on the Peninsula.

The college boasts attractive and well maintained grounds and state-of-the-art facilities. A strong work ethic encourages academic rigour, initiative and self-discipline. In 2010, the college achieved its best ever VCE results with the school dux obtaining an ATAR of 99.45. Students are supported to achieve at the highest academic levels and strong VCE pathways are offered. An extensive range of vocational (VET) and VCAL courses are also available for students who want hands-on, practical skills and industry preparation, ensuring that all students are well prepared to make important decisions about their future in partnership with their families.

Increased participation in sport has resulted in students competing at state level in rugby, swimming, athletics, cross country, aerobics and football. We congratulate the college swimming squad on being awarded School Sport Victoria 2011 District Swimming Champions for the first time ever in the history of the college.

Today, as in the time of George Findlay’s vision for the original school of the Mornington community, the tradition of community service is still strong, with students in all year levels supported in their community and personal endeavours through the Victoria Police Youth Corps, Broad Horizons and student leadership programs.

Mornington Secondary CollegeMornington Secondary College 1051 Nepean Hwy, Mornington Telephone: 5970 0200 www.mornsc.vic.edu.au

School Captains 2011, Shaun, Martyn, Gabby and Jess

Mornington

Technical School

time capsule,

14.8.81, buried

in the grounds

of the college,

opened at the 30

year reunion on

13.8.2011.

Class of 1956


Hastings, then and now ...Still

standing: Royal Hotel,

circa 1890, and now

known as the Western

Port Hotel.

Right: Hastings pier, circa 1890, in its heyday.

Far right: Hastings pier today with Pelican Park in the

background.

Historical pictures: Courtesy of the Hastings-Western Port

Historical Society.

Above Left: Hastings train station, circa 1889.

Left: Hastings train station in 2011


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Right: Grand Hotel

- the good old days in

Mornington.

Bottom Right:

Historic marvel - The Grand

Hotel today, as good as it was a century ago.

Mornington, then and now ...

Far Left: Bathing beauties - Fishermans Beach at the turn of the century.

Left:Glistening sands - Fishermans Beach today.

Right: Picnic time - Mornington Park,

circa 1900.

Middle: Lush lawns - Mornington park

today.

Historical pictures: Courtesy of the

Mornington & District Historical Society.


Dromana, then and now ...

Far Left: View of Dromana and Safety Beach from Arthurs Seat, circa 1915.

Left: Same view from Arthurs Seat today.

Right: Point Nepean Road, Dromana circa 1920.

Far Right: Point Nepean Road, Dromana, today.

Historical pictures: Courtesy Dromana and

District Historical Society.

Rye, then and now ...

View from Rye pier in the 1920s. Rye pier view today.

Mechanics Hall, circa 1900, woman carrying wood behind her.

Modern Mechanics Hall now.Rye Hotel today. Historical pictures: Courtesy Rye Historical Society.


It is a great pleasure to join with the Peninsula Weekly to celebrate 150 years since Dromana, Hastings (old Tyabb), Rosebud and Rye were offi cially recognised as townships of the Mornington Peninsula.

There is a very rich heritage around this region. In fact, the fi rst European settlement in Victoria was on the Mornington

Peninsula in 1803. As part of the celebrations for this anniversary, it is important to remember and acknowledge the contributions of the Peninsula’s forebears, including the indigenous community, who helped transform the region into what it is today.

The Peninsula offers a tempting escape from the city for visitors and residents alike, and it is one of Victoria’s leading tourism regions. Around 996,000 domestic and 37,000 international visitors travelled to the region last year.

There are many great reasons to live or holiday along the Mornington Peninsula and Western Port region. Whether exploring the many art and craft galleries and markets, enjoying the wineries and fresh produce, relaxing at the beach or meandering through the Peninsula’s farms, gardens and

wetlands, visitors are guaranteed to enjoy the experience.The Mornington Peninsula holds a special signifi cance for

me, and I have many good memories of adventures had in this part of Victoria as I was growing up. I add to my collection of memories every time I have the chance to visit, and I know I will have many more unforgettable times around this beautiful area in years to come.

The Victorian Coalition Government appreciates the contribution that this region makes to our State, and I congratulate all involved on this important occasion. For those visiting the Peninsula, we hope to welcome you back again soon.

Please enjoy the celebrations, and continue to enjoy all that the Peninsula has to offer.

Message from the PremierTed Baillieu

Gracefi eld Hotel, circa 1920 (now known as Rye Hotel).


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For your chance to win, simply spend

$80 at participating stores.

Terms and conditions apply. VIC permit number 11/1415. Entries open 1.09.11 until 21.9.11. The draw will take place at 1341 Dandenong Road, Chadstone VICat 11am 04/10/11. Winners details published in The Australian on 13/10/11. Colour & model of the prize car may differ from the car pictured. Some retailers & transactions excluded. For a list of participating retailers, details & full terms & conditions see customer service desk. Visit www.inseasonat.com.au for full details.

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Mornington Peninsula 150th

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Transcript of Mornington Peninsula 150th