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Footscray
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Newsletter No. 159 February 2010
Note: Only recent newsletters are on this web site. Please contact the Society for back issues.
| : Footscray Historical Society Inc. |
No. 159 February 2010 |
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Alexander Dove was born in
Inverkeithing Scotland. Information about his early life is
sparse but we know that he was apprenticed to the sea and, at
that time, he would have been barely in his teens. At the age
of 21 he was the captain of an emigrant ship sailing to America.
In later years his widow remembered that on that voyage an outbreak
of fever resulted in the loss of a number of both passengers
and crew and his own illness when he arrived in New York. She
said that it resulted in his hair turning grey. Voyages also
were made to Russia.
Many will remember the studio
of Edwin Warden in Paisley Street and, indeed, may have samples
of his work on the mantelpiece. The society received an early
Christmas gift when Eddie's son Ted Warden, telephoned us with
the offer of the collection of photographs and negatives held
by his late father. The offer was accepted sight unseen. We
now find that we have a large number of framed and unframed photographs
and various types of negatives. Fortunately we also have the
documentation of many of these. 
http://aso.gov.au/titles/newsreels/footscray-church-pulled-down/
The annual gathering
hosted by The Henry Lawson Memorial & Literary Society Inc
will be held on Sunday, 7th February commencing at 1.30 pm.
As usual the gathering is held before the Lawson Memorial in
Footscray Park.| : Footscray Historical Society Inc. |
No. 158 October 2009 |
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| : Footscray Historical Society Inc. | ||
No. 158 October 2009 |
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The next Quarterly Meeting of the FHS will be held on Sunday
May 24 at 2.00 pm at THE CHURCH at the rear of the Town Hall.
The speaker will be Suzanne Zahara from Heritage Alliance. The
subject will be ALL ABOUT THE BURRA CHARTER NEWS FROM 'ERCILDOUNE' Recent Acquisitions: Fifteen Railway Stations of the West
- Researched & Written by Tom Rigg. A publication to celebrate
the 150th anniversary of the opening of the Footscray to Sunbury
Line 13th January 1859. Donated by Tom Rigg THE AVENUE OF HONOUR by CATHERINE REICHERT At the last Quarterly meeting of the Footscray Historical Society Inc the newspaper report of the proposal to move the plaques in the Avenue of Honour in Geelong Road to Spotswood was discussed. Those present felt very strongly that the plaques should remain in this city. A motion was passed unanimously to this effect and, as instructed, a letter was sent in a letter to the Mayor and Councillors of Maribyrnong. As not all our members may know the story of the Avenue of
Honour, a short history and outline of the present situation
may be useful. The suggestion for the citizens of Footscray to
plant an Avenue of Honour to commemorate those who had enlisted
in the forces was made by members of the Footscray and District
Tree Planters Association led by Arch Hoadley and Athol Turner.
After investigation they wrote to the Mayor and Councillors on
16 August, 1943. They considered that 3000 men should be included
and that a 'double avenue of beautiful trees' could encircle
the city. If this was considered too ambitious, 1000 trees in
four lines in Geelong Road should be planted to commemorate the
'boys who have fallen'. The Tree Planters Association called
a general meeting and wrote to the manufactures throughout the
city seeking their support. On Saturday, 8 August, 1947 the Governor of Victoria, Major-General Sir Winston Dugan, planted the first tree in Footscray's Avenue of Honour to those citizens who gave their lives in the wars of 1914-1918 and 1939-1945. The following is from the Annual Report of the Footscray City Council for 1946-47. The Planting Ceremony and Dedication of The Avenue of Honour was held on 2 August, 1947. The Avenue perpetuates the historic deeds and limitless sacrifice of gallant citizens in the wars of 1914-18 and 1939-45 - keeping forever in our minds the memory of men and women who, in the flower of their youth, gave their lives so that we might continue to live in peace and freedom. The expenditure involved in the planting of these hundreds of trees - the stately Desert Ash and the beautiful Claret Ash, four abreast along Geelong Road through our city - was voluntarily and readily subscribed by citizens of all rank to a public appeal launched by a representative civic organization, the City of Footscray Avenue of Honour Memorial Committee (implementing suggestions originating through the Footscray and District Tree Planters' Association). The Committee plans to continue its activities as guardians so that the avenue will grow to maturity and beauty, to fittingly symbolize the sacred purpose for which it was planted. The Advertiser on 4 October, 1947, reported that Stawell stone was selected for the columns to be erected at each end of the avenue and that Standard Quarries (a local firm) were preparing estimates for this work. The next FCC Annual Report, 1948-49, recorded the erection of the 20ft stone columns at each end of the avenue. It also noted that the Desert Ash and Claret Ash trees were being planted four abreast along Geelong Road. 720 trees had been planted and another 200 were to be planted. At the foot of each tree a bronze tablet was to be set in concrete giving the name of the serviceman commemorated with that tree. Families and organizations sponsored trees and plaques. Group sponsors included the Mums & Dads, Footscray, Old Scholars Geelong Rd State School, FCC employees, Michaelis Hallenstein employees, Footscray Rowing Club members. Over the years many plaques would be decked with flowers at significant times of the year. However, times changed and in The Mail 21 September, 1967, Gary Sargeant (although his report included many inaccuracies) noted that many trees had died and others were in a 'sick and sorry state' and that some plaques were missing. He hoped that the proposed reconstruction of Geelong Road would lead to a new start for the avenue. Sadly that did not happen and in the reconstruction by Vicroads many plaques were lost. It seems that this is when the focus shifted from the avenue of trees to the plaques. In 1998 the Maribyrnong City Council commissioned the Victorian Centre for the Conservation of Cultural Materials to survey the plaques and make recommendations. None of the recommendations were implemented but in 2000 the related project to restore the Citizens War Memorial and replace it in its original position was commenced. That was Stage 1 of the project and Stage 2 was to be the relocation of all plaques to an area adjacent to the Citizens War Memorial, The MCC at that time decided to defer Stage 2 and 3. The Heritage Advisory Committee (HAC) was set up by the MCC in December, 2005 following the recommendations of the Maribyrnong Heritage Plan. This committee involves representatives of the Council, the community, Inner-West Branch of the National Trust, Footscray Historical Society, Living Museum of the West and Council Officers. Once established that committee reviewed its role and considered its Terms of Reference. One item ' identifying and promoting heritage projects' was discussed at length. A number of projects have been successfully undertaken but it was agreed that the Avenue of Honour should have priority and a sub-committee was set up and have been working on this project since, To date the focus has been on research into the establishment of the avenue and possible options for future action. Members of the sub-committee were surprised and alarmed at the recent media announcement of a proposal to move the plaques from Geelong Road. The general opinion had been that we should abide by the Burra Charter as laid down in the Maribyrnong Heritage Plan and that the plaques should remain geographically in the same or near the same position. At present a series of options are under consideration. Before any recommendations are made, the input of those who have a personal interest will be important. If you have a view on the matter you can express it through the society. FOOTSCRAY 150 FREE COMMUNITY CELEBRATION Footscray 150 Community Planning Day Residents are invited to attend a Footscray 150 Community Planning Day on Thursday April 30, to workshop ideas about how to best run the City's biggest party in history. "Council has some ideas about how to celebrate this historic event but it's not solely up to us to decide how to put this event together - it's also up to our active community. It's everyone's Footscray and these celebrations belong to all of us," said Mayor of the City of Maribyrnong, Cr Michael Clarke. Footscray 150 FREE Community Celebration More info 9688 0200 or www.maribyrnong.viv.gov.au/footscray150 SHE MILKED HER COW ON THE CORNER OF BALLARAT AND GEELONG ROAD Always on the lookout for historical information on the women of our city, my curiosity was aroused by a little snippet in an article on the Carroll and Douglas Hardware store in "Footscray's first 150 years". Norman Douglas and Ronald David Douglas "were sons of the late Norman Douglas who with Frank Hudson conducted at Nicholson Street what at that time was the largest grocery store in the district. One of the largest of Australian chain stores now occupies the site. Grandmother Douglas many years ago, kept cows on an area at the corner of Geelong and Ballarat Roads where the Government School children's Dental Clinic is now being established. This fine old citizen was a familiar figure to passers-by as, wearing her gingham apron, she milked her cows. A seat which she endowed is in the Footscray Park, which she actively assisted from its inception. The image of a woman milking a cow on the land where the Footscray Dental Clinic now stands is an engaging one. Who was the grandmother? This photograph shows the site in 1965 at the corner of Ballarat and Geelong Road. The tip of the roof of the Douglas's house at 9 Ballarat Road in 1912 can just be seen on the left. From looking at records, it is likely the person referred to was JANE LAUNDER. Jane was born in Sevenoaks, Kent, England, on 4th May 1846. She came with her parents to Australia very early, as her father died in Hawthorn, Victoria in 1855 when Jane was 9 years old leaving her mother with 10 children under11 years! No doubt Jane learnt to work hard and be exceedingly enterprising. Jane married DAVID DOUGLAS, born in Edinburgh in 1841, at Collingwood Victoria, on 28th November 1865 at the age of 19. She was an aunt of Thomas Howard Launder - the furniture dealer in Footscray. Perhaps his visits to his aunt and cousins, was a catalyst for him to establish the famed T.H. Launder furniture business in this location. Jane and David Douglas had 15 children born in Collingwood, Maidstone and later Footscray. In the Footscray City Voters Roll 1913, the year David died, he is described as a gentleman, and owner and occupier of a house in Ballarat Road. Jane survived her husband for a further 12 years - the years when children in the town must have seen her milking her cow - a skill she would have retained since childhood. Jane Douglas (nee Launder] milked her cow in Footscray on the corner block next to her home at 9 Ballarat Road on the land not built on until after her death. In 1912, when she looked up while milking, she would have seen, before the reserve (now Footscray Park), the quarries and crushing works of Charles Eldridge, Colonial Ammunition Co. Ltd., Geo. A. Cartwright and Thomas Moran, on the land opposite her substantial house where the old Footscray Institute now stands. If she looked further to the east, the reserve was visible. With dust and noise from the quarry work, it is easy to understand how she was one of the major supporters of the development of Footscray Park on the reserve. "Douglas On 5th June at her residence Riverview Ballarat Road, Footscray, Jane, the beloved wife of the late David Douglas and loving mother of David, Annie (Mrs Brown), Ernest, Norman, Olive (Mrs Johnstone) and Frederick. At rest." I would love to hear from anyone who has any further information, or corrections to make to the above. Top |