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Old Pubs and Hotels

The origins of Pubs and Hotels are often a forgotten aspect of local History. It seems strange because the hotel is looked upon as a hub venue in any town. People congregate there to gossip, to bet and certainly to relax and tell stories. The City of Whittlesea has many old Pubs and Hotels within its boundaries, some dating back...

Buildings

Wollert Primary School

Wollert Primary School No. 1861 The Education Department acquired the site for this school on High Street from Mr. Cameron in 1875 for 5 Pounds. It was on the 1st of March 1877 that Wollert State School no.1861 was officially opened. It had an initial enrolment of 84 children and the Head Teacher was Mr Josiah Willmott. In 1878 he even...

Buildings

Christ Church Whittlesea

Christ Church Anglican, Whittlesea In 1863 a Whittlesea resident Thomas Wills donated fifteen acres of land to the Church of England for the use of promoting the Christian religion within the area. More specifically though Wills directed that part of this land was for the erection of a building for public worship and of a dwelling for the Minister duly...

Buildings

Lockwood Family Clock

Have you noticed the clock on the wall of the Whittlesea Post Office? Have you wondered where did it come from and what is the story of this old clock? Here is my story. I was made by Thomas Gaunt who was born in 1829, and arrived in Melbourne in 1852. By 1858 he had established his business as a...

People

William Lockwood

William Lockwood – First Engineer of Whittlesea William Henry Lockwood was born in Glossop, Derbyshire c 1832. He migrated to Victoria on the first voyage of the Marco Polo in 1853 and married Naomi Bullock in St.Peter’s Church of England Melbourne on 27th December 1856. They had nine children, four of whom died in infancy and were buried in Yan Yean...

People

Launceston Elliot

Britain’s First Olympic Champion who later came to live in Whittlesea. Launceston Elliot was born in India on 9th June 1874, but his parents,who married in Carlton in 1873, chose his name because he had been conceived in the City of Launceston. Launceston was the son of Gilbert Wray Elliot and his third wife Anne Mason. Gilbert who was descended...

People

Tarawera Road – Whittlesea

An old brick house known as “Tarawera” still stands in Lime Street Whittlesea. It was erected about 1861. It was not built by JAMES MORRIS as ascribed in some histories, as James never owned the land. His son, FREDERICK JAMES MORRIS, born in 1864 did however live in “Tarawera” for over forty years.The house consists of six rooms, verandah on...

Street Names

Lambrigg Place – Laurimar

One of our newer Estates, Laurimar, has a street called Lambrigg Place. I soon found out that Lambrigg was the name of a Parish in Westmoreland, England, but what was the Australian connection? A search through the National Archives database revealed that Lambrigg was the name of William James FARRER’s property. FARRER was the man who was interested in cross...

Street Names

Harvest Home Road – Epping

Previously called Harvest Home Lane this road is named after the old Harvest Home Hotel. A bluestone hotel of five rooms which stood facing High Street at the corner of Harvest Home Lane. It was built in 1869 by Henry LUDEMAN , a German immigrant who had arrived in Victoria in 1854 and in 1868 had bought the ten acres of...

Street Names

Trawalla Avenue – Thomastown

At the very south-west corner of the City of Whittlesea, close to Mahoneys Road and the Merri Creek, is a small street called “Trawalla Avenue”It is in an industrial area (in fact it runs off Industrial Avenue) and includes the Boral Brick Company, Pantalica Cheese Co, Bertocchi Smallgoods and five Monumental Stonemasons. Trawalla Avenue in the 1960’s gave access to...

Street Names