St Paul's Anglican Church in Clyde

The Clyde (1) area was until a few years ago a strictly rural area and in common with most country areas the significant community buildings consisted of the School, the Hall and Churches. This post looks at the history of St Paul's Anglican Church. Most of the early history comes from A Clyde History website (see here). The Church was located on the east side of Berwick-Clyde Road, between Patterson's Road and Hardy's Road (2), on land donated by the Ridgway family (3). The early history is a bit hazy - Anglican services were held in either the School or an earlier building on the site (4).  There is evidence that the early church was called St John's (5). A new Church was erected in 1887 and officially opened on May 1, 1887 (6) and as 1887 was the Golden Jubilee year of Queen Victoria's reign the Church was called St Paul's Jubilee Church (7). 

The building was destroyed by a bush fire on February 21, 1906. This was a devastating loss to the community but they were fortunate that the fire did not cross the road and burn down the school which was sheltering 50 children.

Report of the fire that destroyed the Church

The Age February 22, 1906 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/196315900#

The people of Clyde worked quickly to replace the building and the new Church was opened by the Archbishop of Melbourne, the Reverend Henry Lowther Clarke on December 15, 1906 (8). The Church served the people of Clyde for many more decades - not only Church Services and Sunday School but a venue for the milestones of life - weddings and funerals. I have included two reports below.

Report of the wedding of Lorna Collins of Clyde to Jack Duncan of Cardinia at St Paul's, Clyde.

Dandenong Journal, October 21, 1945 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/214333655#

Obituary of Mrs Ann Hardy (nee Poole) of Clyde North. Her funeral was at St Paul's.

Dandenong Journal, April 8, 1953 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/215818398#

Times changed and the Church closed. In 1999 (9) it was relocated to Beaconhills College in Pakenham. These photos show the Church shortly before it was relocated. They are part of the Casey Cardinia Libraries collection.

St Paul's Anglican Church, Clyde, c. 1999.

St Paul's Anglican Church, Clyde, c. 1999.

St Paul's Anglican Church, Clyde, c. 1999.

Gone! Site of  St Paul's Anglican Church, Clyde, c. 1999.

Trove List 

I have created a short list on Trove of newspapers articles connected to St Paul's at Clyde, access the list here. All articles referred to here are on the list.

Notes

(1) This is an explanation about the naming of Clyde and Clyde North. It was named after the River Clyde in Scotland. The name was originally given to a watercourse that divided the Mayune and the Garem Gun runs. Apparently, a shepherd named James McKay, who worked for Alexander Cameron (1813 -1896) had cut the name on a tree whilst watering sheep, the name was then used for the creek and then the town. Clyde was initially based north of the existing town along Berwick Road, basically between Patterson Road and Hardy’s Road. When the railway went through in 1888, the town which developed around the railway station became known as Clyde and the original town was called Clyde. http://seha.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Place-names-and-their-meanings-by-Heather-Arnold-July-2020.pdf

(2) This early history of the Church comes from Campbell, John A Clyde History: Public Hall and Mechanics’ Institute Jubilee (Back to Clyde Committee, 1978. John Campbell's book forms the basis of some of the material on the Clyde History website which is researched and maintained by Joan Vanderhorn. Joan and John are siblings. See the website here https://clydehistory.000webhostapp.com/.   You can read the full entry on St Paul's here - https://clydehistory.000webhostapp.com/html/0503chpauls.html The location of the Church comes from this map from the website https://app.box.com/s/234lb7txspov3z5k488c

(3)  Campbell, John A Clyde History: Public Hall and Mechanics’ Institute Jubilee (Back to Clyde Committee, 1978) The pages are not numbered.

(4) Campbell, op. cit.

(5) Two examples of the use of St Johns - South Bourke & Mornington Journal November 16, 1881, see here  and  South Bourke & Mornington Journal May 30, 1883, see here.

(6) Campbell, op. cit.

(7) Campbell, op. cit.

(8) Campbell, op. cit.

(9) The date of the removal of the Church comes from the website. You can read the full entry on St Paul's here - https://clydehistory.000webhostapp.com/html/0503chpauls.html

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Harkaway Lutheran Chuch

I wanted to find out about Lutheran Church at Harkaway so I started with one of my key resources for the history of the area  Early Days of Berwick and its surrounding districts and this (inter alia) is what the book said about the Church -
In 1869 it was decided to erect a school building. Under the guidance of builders Weise and Mayer, the settlers built a substantial weatherboard building more generally known as the German Church. On weekdays this served as a Church and on Sundays, a Church..... Because the school was  to be also used as a church, a bell was erected bear the building in 1869.....The earliest known Lutheran Pastor was Mattias Goethe, whose signature appears on the early marriage certificates. Then came Pastor Herlitz, who was suceeded by Pastor Schramm. Rev Hermann Herlitz was Pastor of the Lutheran Church at Melbourne and head of the Lutheran General Synod of Victoria.....At Harkaway during the Pastor's  absences the service swere conducted by  Dr G. Wanke. His son, the late Immanuel, acted as organist. (Early Days of Berwick, 3rd revised edition, 1979)

This photo of the Lutheran Church and bell tower is from Early Days of Berwick, 3rd revised edition, 1979.

This didn't tell me when the Church was demolished, neither did one of my other key resources In the Wake of the Pack Tracks, so I emailed Lyn Bradley, President of the Narre Warren & District Family History Group to see if the Group had any information on the Church and she sent me back a great document from 1935,  that they have in their Research Room. We don't know who wrote the article or where it was first published but it did tell us about the closure of  the Church  -   In later years due to many changes, the church in which the early settlers took such an active interest was closed. The organ was sold in 1912 and the building disposed of for removal -  so I assume the closure date was 1912 or a bit earlier and the building removed about the same time  - however there is more about the closing date below. The following is what the document had to say about the Church -

On December 11 1869 the local members of the Lutheran Church, desirous of erecting a church building secured a site having a frontage of 100 feet to Hessell's Road. The land was purchased  from the late Dr E.Wanke for the sum of 1 pound. Five trustees were elected, namely Messrs Louis Linsing, Ernest Hillbrick, John Fritzlaff, Heinrich Edebohis and Peter Erdman. As a result of a combined effort the church members erected a building which fulfilled the dual purpose of church and State school. By voluntary subscripion a bell was obtained, its weight being 210 lbs and its pleasing tone was the pride of the pioneers.  For many years Pastor Herliz (whose son, Dr Herliz, lives at Cheltenham) made the journey from Melbourne to conduct the services. He was very popular and the services were always well attended. In those days the late Mr I.G Wanke was one of those who presided at the organ.

The late Jacob Hessell conducted school for some time until transferred to the present school building.

On July 6 1882 five new trustees were appointed, Messrs Jacob Hessell, John Fritzlaff, Rudolph Halleur, August Dubburke and Rudolph Anderson. In later years due to many changes, the church in which the early settlers took such an active interest was closed. The organ was sold in 1912 and the building disposed of for removal. Two cypress trees that were planted many years ago by the late  Gottlob Aurisich,  are still growing on the site. At the  special request of the then two remaining pioneers, the  late  I.G Wanke and R Anderson, the bell was retained, and being close to the cemetery. it is tolled on the occasion of funerals, and is always rung on New Years Eve.  Those interested having passed away the site was developed into a 'no mans land'. Consequently, on  on February 25, 1935 a public meeting was held in the local hall. Cr D Boyd presiding, and those members of the Lutheran Church who attended appointed three trustees for the site Messrs H.I Wanke, J.W Nicol and H. C Weist. Mr Wanke is chairman and Mr Weist secretary and treasurer. On Saturday last, June 8. the new trustees entered into possession to carry out out their duties

Emulating John Batman, who had 100 years ago turned the turf with  a twig on the bank of the Merri Creek, the chairman turned the turf on the site, but with a spade, and each trustee planted a tree to commemorate the occasion. The bell was removed, and the dangerous tower pulled down  after a service of more than 60 years. Thanks to the generous spirit of Mr Nicol and several other enthusiasts, material and labour is to be provided for a new tower for the bell which, it is hoped, will ring out the old and welcome in the New Year for many years to come.  

The Bell Tower was officially opened on December 28 1935.

This is a report on the election of the Church Trustees as reported in the document, above.

Dandenong Journal March 7 1935

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article213963825

We have found this snippet of information in the Berwick Shire Council report in the Pakenham Gazette in 1917 (see below) which refers to the 'old Lutheran Church'  so this presents two possibilities - the Church building was still there in 1917 and hadn't been removed or else the site was locally known as the 'old Lutheran Church' even though the building did not exist.  

Pakenham Gazette June 8 1917

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article92154301

To throw another possibility into the mix the Narre Warren & District Family History Group also have a copy of  the Harkaway Cemetery: a brief history* in which an historic overview of Harkaway was written by Val Exell on September 29, 2000.  Mrs Exell writes this about the Church - On this site the belfry and the Lutheran Church were built in 1869, the bell coming from Germany. Until destroyed by fire the building was used for school on weekdays and Church on Sundays and closed in 1912. So the 1912 closure date is confirmed but Mrs Exell says the building was burnt down and not 'disposed of for removal'  

In the end whether the Church building was burnt down or removed (or possibly both) it doesn't really matter but I was a bit surprised that the Church closed as early as 1912 given the prevalence of the German ancestry amongst the Harkaway settlers, but the building was 43 years old by then and the Harkaway Hall was only three years old (it opened on June 9, 1909) so this would have been an alternate gathering place. 

This photo of the Church is from Oak Trees and Hedges:  a pictorial history of Narre Warren, Narre Warren North and Harkaway (published by the Berwick Pakenham Historical Society in 2002)

*Harkaway Cemetery: a brief history was created through a Work for the Dole program and published in 2001 by the Peninsula Training and Employment Program Inc.

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The local Catholic Community from the pages of The Advocate

The Advocate is available on Trove from 1868 until 1954. The Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne website provides this great summary of this paper Melbourne’s Advocate was one of Australia’s great Catholic newspapers. It was first published on 1 February 1868 by Samuel Vincent Winter and his brother Joseph to report on events in Australia and overseas from the viewpoint of the Catholic paradigm. Its goal was to “fairly and intelligently represent the Catholic and Irish section of the community, and, while defending their legitimate interests, would aim at promoting the prosperity of the colony, and cultivating a friendly feeling among all classes of the community”. In 1902, The Advocate imported a font of Irish type and became the first newspaper in Australia to be able to print the Gaelic language. In 1919, The Advocate was bought by the Archdiocese of Melbourne and became its official newspaper. The Advocate remained a weekly newspaper up until it ceased publication in 1990. 

 In this post we will take a look at the sorts of local historical information we can find in The Advocate, concentrating on reports of the opening of Catholic Churches in the Casey Cardinia region, but before we do here is a short overview of the Parish structure in the area. As early as the 1840s Priests from Melbourne used to visit the area - Pakenham, Nar Nar Goon and the Western Port region. In 1853  the Brighton Misson was established, a very large area that covered the south east part of Melbourne, the Mornington Peninsula, Bass Coast and West Gippsland. In April 1883 the Dandenong Parish or Mission  was established which covered nearly all of the Casey Cardinia region, plus Dandenong, Phillip Island, down to Wonthaggi and the Mornington Peninsula. This Parish was eventually split up with the Iona Parish being created in 1905, Koo-Wee-Rup in 1946, St Mary's North Tynong (or Maryknoll) in 1950 (combined with Iona in 1968), Pakenham in 1954, Berwick (including Cranbourne) in 1956, Doveton in 1962, Cranbourne in 1973, Endeavour Hills in 1980 and Narre Warren in 1982. This information and some of the information in the rest of this post comes from A Parish carved from the bush: the centenary history of the Dandenong Parish, 1883-1983.

Back to The Advocate -  the first Catholic Church in the area was St Agatha's at Cranbourne which was opened on February 6, 1861, so a bit too early to be reported in The Advocate. However, the  second St Agatha's which was opened on January 20, 1929 had a full page report, which you can read here. This church was opened by Archbishop Mannix and the total cost including fit-out was just over 3,100 pounds. The current St Agatha's was built in 1981. This Church was partially funded by a generous bequeath of $492,000 from Mr Eddie Donnelly who passed away in 1979. You can read more of the history on their website   http://www.stagathas.org.au/

The opening of St Agatha's Church at Cranbourne in 1929 with the original weatherboard Church next to it.

The next church to open was St Patrick's in Pakenham which opened in 1871. The existing Church was built in 1976. The original Church is still standing and is now part of the St Patrick's School.

A report on the building of St Patricks in The Advocate July 29, 1871.

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article170154046

An early photo of St Patricks at Pakenham.

Source: North of the Line:  a pictorial record published by the Berwick Pakenham Historical society

The first Berwick Catholic Church was officially opened by Archbishop Goold on March 31, 1878. It was originally known as St Joseph's, but later changed to  St Michael's. The Advocate described the Church as a handsome and commodius edifice. You can read the full report here. The second Church at Berwick was opened on January 24 1937 by Archbishop Mannix.  The Advocate had  full report, including photographs, which you can read here.  The old wooden church was removed having been sold to Dan Cunningham of Nar Nar Goon, but burnt down before he could use it. The current St Michael's Church was opened in 1984.

Archbishop Mannix at the opening of St Michael's in Berwick in 1937.

The Advocate January 28, 1937.

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article171926375

St Joseph's at Iona was the next Church to be opened, which took place on December 16, 1900. Iona was  known as Bunyip South until 1905. The current St Joseph's Church was opened on April 14 1940. You can read The Advocate report about this  here.

The opening of St Joseph's Iona in December 1900.

The Advocate December 22, 1900

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article169870021

Iona Church and Presbytery, c. 1909

Photo: 100 years of a faith community: St Joseph’s Iona 1905-2005 by Damian Smith (St Joseph’s Catholic Church, 2005)

The first decade of the twentieth century continued to be  a busy time for the Dandenong Mission with three other Churches  established. Two years after Iona, another Church was opened on the Koo-Wee-Rup Swamp, this time at Koo-Wee-Rup. St John the Baptist Church  was opened on August 24, 1902. You can read about this here. The current Church, built in Modernist Design, was opened in 1962. The Nar Nar Goon Catholic Church opened on May 29, 1904 on land donated by James Kelly.  There is a short account in The Advocate here. The current St James was opened on March 13, 1971. On September 14, 1908 the Lang Lang Church was opened, it is called St Marys. The Advocate report can be found here. 

St John the Baptist Church at Koo-Wee-Rup, 1950s.

Koo-Wee-Rup Swamp Historical Society photograph.

The  Tooradin Catholic Church  opened on December 3, 1922 and, as befits a fishing village, it was named St Peters, after the Patron Saint of Fishermen. The report is here. The Church was closed and the building was moved to St Peter's College in Cranbourne in 2003 where it is used as a Chapel.  A few weeks later, on December 31, 1922 Scared Heart Catholic Church at Gembrook opened. Here is the report. The Church was scheduled to be officially opened in July 1922, but the Archbishop couldn't make it due to the bad state of the roads after a lot of rain,  it was rescheduled for October and had to be postponed again for the same reason. Gembrook was in the Fern Tree Gully Parish. 

On September 3, 1950 St Mary's Rural Settlement was opened by Archbishop Mannix at North Tynong. Now called Maryknoll, you can read about the history of the settlement here.  The Holy Family Church was opened in 1963, so we can't read a report on Trove as The Advocate is only digitised until 1954, about it, but this is the link to the report of the opening of the Community from The Advocate of September 6, 1950.

The Advocate September 6 1950

http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article219303689

There are other Catholic Churches in Casey Cardinia which were opened after 1954 - The Holy Family Church at Doveton was opened in 1960. In either late 1961 or early 1962 St Kevin's at Hampton Park was opened - this was in a building that had been transported to the site - the old St Leonard's Church from Glen Waverley. You can see  a photo of it on a blog post I have written on the history of Hampton Park here. They appear to have  a newer building now, but I don't have any details on it. Our Lady Help of Christians Catholic Church was opened in February 1980 at Narre Warren and the St Paul Apostle Catholic Church at Endeavour Hills was opened on August 14, 1983.

If you come from a Catholic Family there is a whole range of local and family information in The Advocate which may be of interest including  obituaries, school activities, debutante balls, advertisements from Catholic businesses, sports results, charity reports, crime reports.

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Reverend Alexander Duff (1824 - 1890)

The Reverend Alexander Duff played a large role in the early development of the Cranbourne area. He was born in Coagh in Northern Ireland in 1824 and obtained a Master of Arts from the University of Glasgow. He married Annie Tucker in Belfast when he was 29, around 1853, and they came to Australia soon after. Their eight children were all born in Victoria.

Alexander Duff. 

Photograph scanned from The Good Country:  Cranbourne Shire by Niel Gunson.

According to Niel Gunson in his book The Good County: Cranbourne Shire Duff was appointed by the Presbyterian Church to Dandenong on June 26, 1855 and on September 20 he was ordained. The Duffs initially lived with Alexander Cameron and conducted services in his house until Scots Presbyterian Church was opened on May 27 1860. A manse was also built at the same time. Duff also preached at Berwick in the early days and as far south as the Bass River area. He visited parishioners on his horse, Dobbin.

The original Scots Presbyterian Church, opened 1860. Thus Church was replaced by the existing Scots Church in, I believe, 1953.

A Presbyterian School opened in Cranbourne on June 1, 1856. This school was located on the site where the Presbyterian Church stands,  the first teacher being James Henry, the next teacher was Archibald Thomson. In 1862, the Commons School Act was passed and the School became Cranbourne Common School, No. 144. The School was closed in 1878 and the students moved to a new School on the South Gippsland Highway (where the Elderly Citizens are now located). In 1969, the Cranbourne State School, No. 2068, moved to Russell Street location.

State Government Gazette  http://gazette.slv.vic.gov.au/

In October 1855 Alexander was appointed the Registrar of Births and Deaths for Cranbourne and Dandenong. The Reverend Duff also held evening classes for young men and women on 'arithmetic, physics, mathematics, English, Latin, Greek, French and German. He was obviously interested in intellectual pursuits but he also valued physical activity - Niel Gunson writes that he tried his hand at black smith work and that he experimented with ways to improve cheese making. He ploughed his own paddocks and, in 1858, the Mornington Farmers Society held their ploughing competitions on his farm.

Duff retired to his farm at Cardinia in 1888 and he died on December 22 1890 aged 65. He left his entire estate to 'my dear wife, Annie Duff'. The value of his Estate was personal property of 1312 pounds and real estate valued at 1574 pounds.

Extract from Rev Duff's will dated August 11, 1884.

(Public Records Office of Victoria)

Obituary from the South Bourke and Mornington Journal December 24, 1890.

http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper

As we mentioned before, Alexander married Annie Tucker in Belfast around 1853. He was the son of Thomas Duff and Ann McMorran.  They had eight children - Walter (1855 - 1925, married Eva Sharp); Annie Elizabeth (1857 - 1934, married John Gason); William Tucker (1859 - 1935, married Alice Hobart); Dora Robina (1861 - 1939, married Robert Gibb); Maggie (1864 - 1938, married James Lecky); Mary Clarissa (known  as Minnie, 1865 - 1924, married Inglebert Gunnelson); Alexander (1869 - 1941, married Mary Irwin) and lastly Edward John Tucker, born and died 1877. Annie died November 24, 1905 aged 74. The three surviving sons farmed in the Cardinia area. Walter Duff, James Lecky and Robert Gibb were all Cranbourne Shire Councillors.  Mary and Inglebert Gunnelson lived in Garfield and two of their sons, Inglebert and Percy,  were killed in the First World War.

Alexander's brother, Robert (1827 - 1861) was also in Australia. He and his wife Margaret (c.1832 - 1902) established the Cranbourne Hotel, around 1860. It was in High Street, where Greg Clydesdale Square is now and was demolished around the 1970s. Margaret was also a Duff, perhaps a cousin, and her father operated an Inn in Coagh, County Tyrone, the birthplace of Alexander and Robert. After Robert died, Margaret married Edward Tucker (c. 1836 - 1872), who was born in America and operated a store in Cranbourne. Edward's brother William (born in Belfast)  was also in the area. What connection were they to Annie Tucker, the wife of the Reverend Duff?  Some sources say that she was the sister of Edward and William Tucker, however in the Early Settlers of the Casey Cardinia District their parents are listed as Edward Tucker and Elizabeth Moore and Annie's death certificate has her mother's maiden name as Phillips, so I am not sure.

 Cranbourne Hotel, established circa 1860, by Robert and Margaret Duff. 

Photograph scanned from The Good Country:  Cranbourne Shire by Niel Gunson.

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Gembrook Union Church

These are photographs taken in the 1980s of the Gembrook Union Church and the Gembrook Catholic Church, Sacred Heart. The Union Churches have always interested me - they seemed to have been built in small communities, with a eucumenical spirit. There was one built at Yannathan in 1890, which was used by the Anglicans, the Presbyterians and the Methodists.It was used until 2011, when it closed down and was sold. There is also a Union Church at Officer. This was built in 1929 after 500 pounds was raised from members of the public. Previous to this, church services took place in the public hall.

The Gembrook Union Church, taken in the 1980s.

According to Bill Parker in his book Forest to Farming, the Gembrook Union Church was opened on April 6, 1879. The land, on the corner of Ure Road and Mountain Road,  was donated by the Reverend John Bromby  on the condition that the building could be used by all denominations. The property was 'owned' by the Pastoral Aid Society, a union between the Church of England and the Presbyterian Church.  The first services were Anglican and they were conducted by the Minister at Berwick. Later services were Presbyterian. The church is now the Gembrook Uniting Church. In 1905, an Anglican Church was built in Gembrook, St Silas.  St Silas was closed around 1994 and is now privately owned, though it does still seem to be used for some services.

Another view of the rather austere Gembrook Union Church, taken in the 1980s.

The third church built in Gembrook was Sacred Heart Catholic Church, built in 1921. Bill Parker writes that it was built by a Mr Twyford, 'a skilled carpenter and devout Anglican'. It is in Main Street in Gembrook and still operates today. It is pictured above, in a photograph taken in the 1980s.

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B.J Wallis Gardens and the Lily Pond at Pakenham

Near the Cardinia Shire Offices, in Henty Way, at Pakenham are the B.J. Wallis Gardens, created from an old quarry, and the Lily pond, which is off Duncan Drive. The B.J. Wallis Gardens were officially opened on May 30th 1993 by the Shire President, Cr Bill Ronald.

The old quarry before the gardens were complete. The Lily pond is on the right, towards the top of the photograph.

The gardens were named in honour of the Shire Secretary, Barry John Wallis. Mr Wallis was Shire Secretary of the Shire of Berwick from 1966 until 1973 and the Shire of Pakenham from 1973 until 1982. A report in the Pakenham Gazette of June 2nd, 1993 which covered the opening of the Gardens mentioned that Barry Wallis grew up in Pakenham and regularly visited the quarry as a child and that during the construction of the Shire Offices (officially opened July 28th 1983) he recognised the potential of the quarry to become a landscaped garden. The Gardens now include a rotunda and a series of walking tracks.

The B.J Wallis Gardens, shortly after completion.

The gardens were created around a quarry, originally owned by Thomas Henty of Pakenham Park. Thomas was the grandchild of Thomas and Frances Henty, who with their children James, Charles, William, Edward, Stephen, John, Francis and Jane had arrived in various Australian colonies from 1829 to 1832.

Thomas Henty was born in Launceston in 1836 to James and his wife Charlotte (nee Carter). Thomas purchased the property Pakenham Park from Dr James Bathe in 1865. Henty was a member of the Berwick Shire Council from 1866, and Shire President on two occasions from 1869-1872 and 1873-74, and from 1884 to 1887 he was a member of the Legislative Council. He married Lucy Pinnock in 1869 and they had eight sons and two daughters. The first regular Church of England services in Pakenham were held at Pakenham Park and Thomas Henty purchased six acres of land in 1871 for the ‘old’ Church of England, on the corner of Main Street and McGregor Road. He also laid the foundation stone for the building on December 7th 1883. He named the Church St James, in honour of his father. The first service at the Church was held in May 1884.

After Thomas Henty died in 1887 the land was taken over by his son, James Reginald Henty, who retained the homestead block until he died in 1929. James Henty enlisted in the Boer War, was a Berwick Shire Coucillor and Shire President 1913-1914. A boulder, near the Shire Offices, marks the place were his ashes were scattered. After Henty died the land was purchased in 1932 by Frank and Evelyn Duncan, after whom Duncan Road is named.

A view of the Rotunda and Quarry walls, taken shortly after completion.

Henty’s quarry supplied stone used for the construction of the Melbourne to Sale railway line. The Oakleigh to Bunyip section opened October 1877. During the construction of the line a canvas town developed on Henty’s hill, with a population estimated at 400. The men worked on the line and worked in the quarry.

The Lily Pond was also part of Henty land and was originally of eight acres (around 3.2 hectres). It is pictured below in 1929.

These photographs were taken in 1929.
The original inscription on the photograph above is The dam at Pakenham.
The original inscription on the photograph below is Seddon gathering lilies, Pakenham Park dam.

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