World War 1 - Gottlob Schafter - Alleged Spy
"Lifting" Cherries at Doncaster (1908)
At the Box Hill police court on Friday, before Messrs Walker (chairman) and Ingatnells, J's.P., two boys, named respectively Herbert A. Wadham and Ernest Rohl, were charged by Constable Dent with stealing cherries from the orchard of Reinhold Dehnert, in Waldau road, East Doncaster, on December 1. Senior-constable O'Leary prosecuted, and Mr Wadham appeared for the youthful defendants. Albert Dehnert deposed that about 4 o'clock on the afternoon of Sunday, December 1, he was in his father's orchard when he saw the accused picking cherries. He chased them and they ran into the road towards two bicycles, which they mounted and rode off.
Witness followed, and Wadham fell and was caught. Wadham had some cherries in his shirt, and near where the bicycles were, two bags full of cherries were found. One was an oatmeal bag and the other a school bag. Witness took Wadham to the police station, and on the road they met Rohl, and Wadham told his mate not to come near, but clear out. Rohl would not do so, and all three went to the police station, where Constable Dent took their names and addresses. The constable weighed the cherries and found they had 21 lbs. Where they picked the cherries from were a lot of cherry boughs pulled off and thrown on the ground. The cherries were worth 2 1/2 d. per lb. Constable Dent gave corroborative evidence. Mr Wadham said his boy was evidently the worse of the two. He urged the bench not to record a conviction against the lads. They were very sorry for what they had done, and would be careful to behave themselves in future. Mr Walker administered a severe caution to the lads, and they were let off on agreeing to pay 4/- for the cherries and 11/- costs.
1908 "Lifting" Cherries at Doncaster. Reporter (Box Hill, Vic. : 1889 - 1918), 17 January, p. 4. , viewed 22 May 2017, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article90313162
100 YEARS AGO
On Boxing Day in 1894, Henry Fromhold was at a picnic in an adjoining paddock when he saw two youths in his orchard. They had broken some branches off cherry trees and were taking them away. John Pump and some other men, who were at the picnic, came over and helped Fromhold to detain the youths while he went and called Constable Hartshorn. At the Box Hill Court, Henry Fromhold said the cherries were worth one pound. The youths who had spent the morning drinking at the Tower Hotel were given two months gaol each.
1993 03 DTHS Newsletter
DRUNK AND DISORDERLY.
Samuel Plant was charged with being drunk and disorderly at Canter-bury on Saturday, December 22nd. Prisoner pleaded not guilty and stated that he had walked to Glenferrie and back and was resting when he was arrested on a charge of drunkenness. Fined Is. and 2s. costs, in default 24 hours; time being given to pay. John Ryan, who was charged with a similar offence, pleaded guilty, and produced a certificate that he had signed the pledge for 12 months. Fined 2s. 6d. and 2s. costs, in default seven days. DAMAGING FRUIT TREES. Two lads named George Birch and John Wilson were brought up on a charge of destroying fruit trees at Doncaster. Henry Fromhold gave evidence that while at a picnic in the adjoining paddock on December 20th he noticed several youths in his garden and upon going over noticed these two with others coming out with branches of cherry trees in their arms. He told them to put them down and they did so, but afterwards returned and were about to take them off, when he sent for the police and gave them in charge. He estimated the damage done at about £1. John Pump said he was at Don-caster on the 26th of December last, and saw prisoners in conjunction with about four others in MIr. Fromhold's garden. Did not see them break the branches off. but they were carrying the branches. All made off but these two who were detained while he went for the police. Constable Hartshorn (of Melbourne) was on duty at Doncaster on the date mentioned and the last witness came to him and said he was wanted. On going to the garden, found the prisoners, who admitted they had been in the garden, but had not broken the trees. The branches produced were similar to those broken off the trees. He had seen them in the morning at the Tower Hotel, where they were with several others from Port Melbourne and were even then the worse of drink, and had evidently come out for the express purpose of creating a disturbance. Sentenced to one month each.
BOX HILL POLICE COURT. FRIDAY DECEMBEB 28, 1894. (Before Messrs. Ellingworth (Chairman), Blackburne, and Bishop, J's.P.)
1895 'BOX HILL POLICE COURT.', Reporter (Box Hill, Vic. : 1889 - 1918), 4 January, p. 3. , viewed 26 Feb 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article90364204
 |
| Stealing Apple c1877 (origin unknown) |
1908 "Lifting" Cherries at Doncaster. Reporter (Box Hill, Vic. : 1889 - 1918), 17 January, p. 4. , viewed 22 May 2017, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article90313162
100 YEARS AGO
On Boxing Day in 1894, Henry Fromhold was at a picnic in an adjoining paddock when he saw two youths in his orchard. They had broken some branches off cherry trees and were taking them away. John Pump and some other men, who were at the picnic, came over and helped Fromhold to detain the youths while he went and called Constable Hartshorn. At the Box Hill Court, Henry Fromhold said the cherries were worth one pound. The youths who had spent the morning drinking at the Tower Hotel were given two months gaol each.
1993 03 DTHS Newsletter
DRUNK AND DISORDERLY.
Samuel Plant was charged with being drunk and disorderly at Canter-bury on Saturday, December 22nd. Prisoner pleaded not guilty and stated that he had walked to Glenferrie and back and was resting when he was arrested on a charge of drunkenness. Fined Is. and 2s. costs, in default 24 hours; time being given to pay. John Ryan, who was charged with a similar offence, pleaded guilty, and produced a certificate that he had signed the pledge for 12 months. Fined 2s. 6d. and 2s. costs, in default seven days. DAMAGING FRUIT TREES. Two lads named George Birch and John Wilson were brought up on a charge of destroying fruit trees at Doncaster. Henry Fromhold gave evidence that while at a picnic in the adjoining paddock on December 20th he noticed several youths in his garden and upon going over noticed these two with others coming out with branches of cherry trees in their arms. He told them to put them down and they did so, but afterwards returned and were about to take them off, when he sent for the police and gave them in charge. He estimated the damage done at about £1. John Pump said he was at Don-caster on the 26th of December last, and saw prisoners in conjunction with about four others in MIr. Fromhold's garden. Did not see them break the branches off. but they were carrying the branches. All made off but these two who were detained while he went for the police. Constable Hartshorn (of Melbourne) was on duty at Doncaster on the date mentioned and the last witness came to him and said he was wanted. On going to the garden, found the prisoners, who admitted they had been in the garden, but had not broken the trees. The branches produced were similar to those broken off the trees. He had seen them in the morning at the Tower Hotel, where they were with several others from Port Melbourne and were even then the worse of drink, and had evidently come out for the express purpose of creating a disturbance. Sentenced to one month each.
BOX HILL POLICE COURT. FRIDAY DECEMBEB 28, 1894. (Before Messrs. Ellingworth (Chairman), Blackburne, and Bishop, J's.P.)
1895 'BOX HILL POLICE COURT.', Reporter (Box Hill, Vic. : 1889 - 1918), 4 January, p. 3. , viewed 26 Feb 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article90364204
Pictures Victoria - Pictures Australia - Australia in Pictures
PictureVictoria is a Victorian Local History Project, funded from Arts Victoria, through the Statewide Public Library Development Grants. This project aims to increase the accessibility of the local history collections held by Victorian public libraries, in particular through the development of a digitisation strategy.
The primary focus of PictureVictoria is to provide a single portal for access to pictorial and photographic collections held in Victoria's public libraries. This site aims to complement existing portals, such as Picture Australia and the State Library of Victoria's Picture Collection.
Picture Victoria's limitation is that it only displays low quality thumbnails of pictures shared with it by historical societies such as ours. Internet users then have to contact the relevant historical society.
Pictures here are at high quality and downloadable at original resolution.
The primary focus of PictureVictoria is to provide a single portal for access to pictorial and photographic collections held in Victoria's public libraries. This site aims to complement existing portals, such as Picture Australia and the State Library of Victoria's Picture Collection.
Doncaster Templestowe Historical Society (DTHS) has added hundreds of photos from our collection to this catalogue with the cooperation of the Whitehorse Manningham Library.
Picture Victoria's limitation is that it only displays low quality thumbnails of pictures shared with it by historical societies such as ours. Internet users then have to contact the relevant historical society.
The system was conceived as part of a National Library of Australia (NLA) project "Picture Australia" but this project floundered.
Picture Australia has been absorbed into Trove and published on Flickr. It was originally launched in September 2000, and at that time, was a unique and ground breaking service, bringing together digitised images from cultural heritage collections around Australia for not only all Australians to see but also the world.
Contemporary images were sourced from Flickr via a series of Groups, which ensured individual contributions to Picture Australia were included in the snapshot of Australiana. We will continue with this tradition using the Trove: Australia in Pictures Group.
Picture Australia has been absorbed into Trove and published on Flickr. It was originally launched in September 2000, and at that time, was a unique and ground breaking service, bringing together digitised images from cultural heritage collections around Australia for not only all Australians to see but also the world.
Contemporary images were sourced from Flickr via a series of Groups, which ensured individual contributions to Picture Australia were included in the snapshot of Australiana. We will continue with this tradition using the Trove: Australia in Pictures Group.
Pictures here are at high quality and downloadable at original resolution.
Picture Australia's publication of free access to 346 000 high resolution photos of Flickr is part of a worldwide trend to provide free full text and full quality imagery direct to the world.
If Flickr goes bust, the library is easily moved to another service. The metadata (information about the picture) is usually embedded inside the picture to make this process extremely simple.
If Flickr goes bust, the library is easily moved to another service. The metadata (information about the picture) is usually embedded inside the picture to make this process extremely simple.
It is confusing, but NLA also have another Flickr account: Flickr: National Library of Australia.
Discarding German names in Doncaster 1916
The petition received at the January meeting of the Doncaster shire council signed by F. Zerbe and 22 other residents of Bismark, Wilhelm, and Waldau roads, requesting that these roads be re-named, and suggesting that the names be substituted of King street, Queen's avenue, and Wetherby road, was dealt with at the meeting of that body on Tuesday night, February 8. - Cr. Pickering pointed out there was a Queen's avenue in Doncaster al-ready, though it had not yet been taken over by the council. He had spoken to some of the petitioners about that. There was a suggestion that the name should be George street, and they were quite satisfied with that. Since this petition had been received, similar action was being taken, not only in Doncaster, but in Box Hill, Heidelberg, Hawthorn, and other places, as those names were not much thought of at the present time, and it would be a good thing if these were changed. He (Cr. Pickering) moved that the request be acceded to, with the exception of Queen's avenue, to be replaced by George street. With regard to Wetherby road, it was foolish to have that name on one side, and Bismark street on the other. - ln seconding the motion, Cr. Crouch thought if they were going to change Bismark street, they should call it George street right through. The president (Cr. Zerbe) was also in favor of wiping Wetherby road right out, and suggested that some other name be fitted in - Cr. McNamara asked who the street was named after. There may have been some good reason for giving it that nomenclature. - Cr. Tully contended that no monarch had been held in greater regard than Victoria, and if that title were given to the street from the main road it would not clash with any other name. - Cr. Crouch likewise supported calling it Victoria road in lieu of Wetherby road, and the motion was altered accordingly and agreed to. The following names will now be substituted :- Wilhelm street to be called King street; Waldau road to be George street; and Bismark road to be Victoria road.
1916 'DISCARDING GERMAN NAMES.', Reporter (Box Hill, Vic. : 1889 - 1918), 18 February, p. 2. , viewed 22 May 2017, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article75164841
Beautiful Melbourne Motor Char-a-banc Trips - Blackburn & Doncaster 1910's
Beautiful Melbourne Motor Char-a-banc Trips 1910s Withers & Sons MV482635
"BEAUTIFUL MELBOURNE" MOTOR CARS have decided to make Extended Afternoon Tours from the 1st of November till the 3oth of April, and to advance the fare from 2,6 to but are making an allowance for family parties of fid. on each fare. We beg to thank our numerous patrons for the liberal patronage extended to us in the past, and hope the new trips now introduced will meet with the success they merit. We can ask no more. All-day Runs are also now introduced, which will enable those who desire to spend a day in the Country the opportunity to do no at a moderate cost. The Evening Run to Hampton, Brighton, hc., will prove a boon to those who wish to enjoy an evening run around the beach in comfort.
Waldau Town
Christmas Eve at Waldau
Fifty children played games, laughing and shouting, during the afternoon. As evening approached, their parents called them to the meal set out on tables under the trees alongside the church. Pastor Goethe led them in a hymn and prayer before they settled down to enjoy their Christmas tea.It was Christmas Eve, 1860. The year Max von Schramm had opened his school in the Waldau church. As an end to the school year, the Lutheran congregation had agreed to hold a tea meeting and Christmas celebration. Women of the church had visited families to obtain gifts and food for the festival. English friends had been invited. There was Mr. Grant, Mr. Newman, Mr. Serpell, and Mr. Clarke. Pastor Goethe had come from Melbourne for the occasion.
At dusk, the ringing of the heel invited the gathering to the church. As the children entered, they were delighted at the magnificent sight of a Christmas tree, reaching right up to the roof, covered with decorations and Christmas gifts, and brilliantly lit by many candles.
The congregation was addressed by Pastor Goethe, Mr. Thiele, Mr. Newman, Mr. Grant and Mr. Serpell. Then the gifts were removed from the tree and handed round till every child had a present. Afterwards there were prayers and singing .
As the happy group joined in the carols a feeling of goodwill and contentment spread among them. They had left their families and homes in Germany to come to a new and strange land, driven by faith and a love of freedom. They had experienced adversity, hard work, and the homesickness of isolation from their families. Now, on this Christmas Eve, these German pioneers were gathered together in a new community, established by their own hard work. This was their new home!
Irvine Green writing in 1983 12 DTHS Newsletter
Waldau Christmas
On Tuesday evening, the 24th December, a most interesting meeting was held at Waldau, known by many as Germantown. It, was the usual gathering at a German Christmas Eve. Dr. Embling, J.P. presided. The refreshments were partaken of in the open air, the chapel being appointed for the even-ing meeting; Two very handsome Christmas trees partly filled the chapel, loaded with presents; and a table at the rear of the President's chair was covered with articles for distribution among the children of the school. Waldau occupies a highly picturesque situation amid the hills, and is chiefly cultivated by Germans. The school musters nearly 50 scholars, and everything betokens the presence of an industrious population. After the opening remarks of the Chairman, Pastor Goethe addressed the meeting. B. N. Clarke, Esq;, J.P., and other gentlemen then pressed upon the friends and children present the advantages of education, especially in a young community, where every individual mind may make itself powerful for good or evil. The presents, were then distributed, and after several hours of pleasant intercourse, the friends, whose numbers densely packed the building, adjourned, until another Christmas Eve shall call them to gather to their pleasant rendezvous - "The Chapel on the Hill."1862 'NOTES AND NEWS.', South Bourke Standard (Vic. : 1861 - 1873), 3 January, p. 2. , viewed 22 May 2017, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article66903280
The Dawn Service at the old Lutheran Church site, Victoria street, Doncaster, on Easter Sunday 1973. The service was held in a clearing made for Schramm's Cottage which was to be rebuilt here after having been dismantled and removed from its original site in Doncaster Road. The congregation is here surrounded by the stones of the walls layed out in preparation for the rebuilding. Some of the people in the photograph are Eric Collyer at the organ, Muriel Green (directly behind Eric), Olaf and Glenys Soderlund on the right in the second row. DP0574
Waldau School, Doncaster
Waldau School
Waldau school was operating on the Dehnert St site since the early orchards were established. |
| 1977 02 DTHS Newsletter |
Andersons Creek, Warrandyte
In 1839, the first white settler, James Anderson, established his cattle station in an area just west of the present Warrandyte township. He erected a hut and stockyard near where the creek (Anderson’s Creek) joined the Yarra.
In 1841, James Dawson established a second station to the east of the township, about 1 mile (1.6km) From the bridge. By the mid 1840’s, Anderson had sold his holding to a Major Newman, a former officer of the Indian army.
In 1841, James Dawson established a second station to the east of the township, about 1 mile (1.6km) From the bridge. By the mid 1840’s, Anderson had sold his holding to a Major Newman, a former officer of the Indian army.
"Plassey", the Zelius Home
On the corner of Doncaster Road and Dehnert Street stands an old grey house with delicate cast iron decoration. In 1888, Martin Zelius built the house with love and care giving it the name "Plassey".
 | |
| A standard Italianate villa, unusually elegantly carried through with metal ridge cresting and finials, patterned slate roof, double-curved verandah roof, and stuccoed front with label moulds to the windows and statuary niches flanking the door. (VHD-B2986) |
Eastern Freeway
Run, Ride, Roll the Freeway (Freeway Opening 1997)
The greater part of the DTHS archive relates to the period 1850 to 1950. But the area is constantly changing and the events of today will also be of interest to later generations.These photographs were taken on Sunday 7 December 1997, when the new extension of the Eastern Freeway from Doncaster Road to Springvale Road was opened with the invitation to the public to run, ride, roll (or walk) the freeway prior to its being open to traffic.
 |
| Taken from one of the bridges over the freeway and shows cyclists travelling in both directions. 1977. DTHS-dp0859 |
Tower Hotel, Doncaster
The Tower Hotel
The Tower Hotel at Doncaster was built one hundred years ago in Doncaster Road at the corner of the present Tower Street. The Hotel was built by Alfred Hummel, a gentleman farmer, who three years before had built the Doncaster Tower.Hummel had provided refreshment rooms at the base of the Tower but, after visitors had climbed the Tower, the strenuous exercise made them feel in need of something stronger than a cup of tea. Seeing large parties ignore his facilities and go off to a hotel was too much for Hummel. He was a proud Englishman who did not like to be beaten.
The Hotel that Hummel built was bigger and better than any other in the district. There were thirty nine rooms and stables for twenty horses. He called it the Beaconsfield Hotel.
His decision to build a hotel, however, caused considerable criticism both from his family and the community. Hummel had been a supporter of the temperance movement in Doncaster. The Hotel had caused them to lose credibility and his wife Jane was one of the Lawford family who were strict teetotallers.
Hummel began to have financial problems. He had invested heavily with the Tower, the Hotel, and his many land holdings. In 1885, he sold up all his properties and moved to Tasmania where he lived for the rest of his life.
The Hotel was bought by William Meader, a man with much experience in the hotel business. Meader had come from Dorset at the age of twenty four and arrived at the time of the gold rushes. Meader became more interested in the land boom than in being a publican. He leased the Hotel, now called the Tower Hotel, to John Nicholls.
Nicholls was an auctioneer and land agent who already owned a large orchard in Reynolds Road, alongside Deep Creek. He lived at South Yarra and employed G. Edwards and his wife to run the Hotel.
A party who visited Doncaster while Nicholls was host wrote a description of the Tower Hotel:
“…. I say Doncaster Tower is the place for us all. The hills are beautiful and green, the sea breeze is fresh and cool in the town, and a wire before we start to Host Nichols will find a splendid spread waiting for us on our arrival. What better can we require.”
One hour from the start from town, our friends were seated in one of the numerous large summer houses attached to the hotel, indulging in various beverages suitable to their several tastes…..
This property has only changed hands last June (1888). It contains 13 acres of splendid land, with flower garden, picnic grounds, swings, track for foot and bicycle races. A roller skating track is about to be laid, and my intentions are to erect an extensive coffee palace, to be lit with electricity, for the accommodation of all classes of society. This tower, which has a world wide reputation, gentlemen. It runs up to a height of 219 feet, and is over 700 feet above the level of the sea. We have a splendid Assembly Hall, which will seat two hundred people, and is used by our guests for balls and parties in the season, several pianos, public dining hall, and private parlors. We cater for one or four hundred. Every delicacy that can possibly be procured at town establishments, we supply here at a very short notice, and no expense is spared to make this what it undoubtedly is - as near as poor mortals have to that desired goal - perfection.”
In 1895 the Tower Hotel was owned by C C Nisson and Passmore was the caterer and licensee. Alongside the bar was a small room where lamps were stored during the day and filled with kerosine. On January 25th, Nisson lit a lamp and returned to the bar to serve a customer. He looked back and saw the room filled with a mass of red flames. It was a hot north-wind day and soon the Hotel was blazing. Nisson tried to beat out the fire but was overcome with smoke and had to be carried out.
A bucket brigade was formed to carry water from the Hotel's large well to the fire. One of the Petty boys worked the pump. He pumped so hard that he broke the pump.
At the Box Hill Fire Station, the lookout saw the flames and rang the fire bell to call the fire crew from their homes. The men grabbed the first available horses and quickly harnessed them to the fire engine.
The Fire Brigade set off, hurrying along the tram line straight for Doncaster. It was a hard pull up the long hill to Doncaster Road and the horses were uneasy. They were accustomed to working on their own, pulling bakers' carts and farm carts, and did not like being harnessed alongside strange horses. Nearing Serpell's Corner, the horses jibbed and started to play up. By now the flames from the fire at the top of the hill were roaring up into the sky, all the brighter in the darkening light of evening, making the firemen aware of the urgency, but frustrated by unco-operative horses. The Captain, a large, portly man, struggled to control them, when from the side of the road a voice called out "Get off and walk. They'll go better without your weight!"
As the firemen once more got the team going, the engine moved forward to the scene of the fire, with a crowd running alongside. Amongst it, eight-year old Ted Galbus from the dairy.
At the fire; the hose was quickly dropped into the underground tank. The fire crew, despite the intense heat, manned the engine's pump. Two men on each side worked the rocking bar that forced water along the hoses. The building was a blazing inferno. As the hoses poured water onto the fire, part of the roof collapsed, sending sparks high into the sky.
The flames on the top of Doncaster Hill were seen by look-outs at Kew and Hawthorn.who sent their Brigades. It was too late to save the Hotel but they were able to stop the fire.
spreading to the Recreation Hall.
The Tower Hotel was re-built. An elaborately decorated brick building was erected in front of the old Recreation Hall. A curved drive led into the entrance with a light on a post to welcome visitors at night and there was a horse trough to refresh their horses.
In 1898, a local man, Edward Kent; took over the Hotel and ran it for six years till Wenke , became the licensee. In 1914, the Tower was dismantled and three years later the Hotel was delicensed. The building became Thomas' Grocery Store and a shop-front was added on one side. Later the shop was used by the Doncaster Mower Service and, in 1969 when Doncaster Road was widened, the building was demolished. The solicitor's office of Garry Glover now stands on the site of the Tower Hotel.
Irvine Green writing in 1981 02 DTHS Newsletter
c1910 Tom Wenke's Tower Hotel and the Doncaster Tower, both on the north side of Doncaster Road between Williamsons Road and Council Street. Among the signs on the cladding of the tower is an advertisement for Latham's prize ales. The sign on the picket fence behind the lamp post reads "Tower Hotel - Martin Wenke - Afternoon Teas - Good Accommodation". Another sign, on the front of the hotel, mentions "The Cyclists Rest", indicative of the time when cycling road races [such as the 'Kew Flyer' race] were in vogue. The original of this photo was a Kodak Post Card. DTHS-DP1058
| "Greeting from Doncaster Victoria. Looking towards Melbourne from the Tower Doncaster." Roof paint: Tower Hotel Doncaster M. Wenke. Doncaster Williamsons Cnr visible c Serpells building. Posted to Facebook by Belinda Smith. |
| After 1920. Jimmy Thomas' general store at the corner of Doncaster Road, Doncaster, Victoria, and Council Street. The shop was built on to the front of the Tower Hotel after it closed in the 1920s. The shop and the attached dwelling were demolished about 1970 when Doncaster Road was reconstructed. (DTHS-DP0135) |
Doncaster Templestowe Historical Society - 50th Anniversary 2017
Schramms Cottage Complex Open Day
Saturday 29 April 2017, 10 am to 4.30 pm. Schramm's Cottage Complex Rieschiecks Reserve, Muriel Green Drive, off Victoria Street, Doncaster
Warrandyte School No 12 (1875) - 42 - 52 Brackenbury Street
A tent housed the first school at Warrandyte and a few planks formed the seats, but 29 years later, classes were held in a solid stone building. Opened in 1858, as a Church of England school, two years later it had the unusual experience of being moved to another town. There was a lull in mining at Andersons Creek, as Warrandyte used to be called, so many families moved across the river to the Caledonia Goldfield.
In the early 1860's Government grants were no longer available to Denominational Schools, so Andersons Creek school that had returned to the corner of Forbes Street became Common School No. 12. The low number did not mean that it was the twelfth school. At this time schools were numbered in alphabetival order, so Andersons Creek was twelfth on the list. The building now had to comply with new regulations. The roof had to be raised so that the walls could be heightened by three feet. Structurally, the building was weakened and soon became dangerous, so eventually a new building was recommended by the District Inspector.
In 1875, a new timber school was planned for Andersons Creek. A member of the School Committee, William Masterton, had been a stone mason before coming to Victoria. The Committee decided that the new school house should be built of stone. The estimated cost using local stone was £543/9/0. Masterton resigned from the School Committee, and with a fellow miner James Sloan as a partner, built the new school.
There were similarities in the life of both Masterton and Sloan. Both had come to Andersons Creek in the early days of gold mining; both had been stone masons; both men had children at the school and both were among the few early gold-miners whose descendants are still living at Warrandyte.
They built a stone schoolhouse designed on the lines of an English Village School, with simple and pleasing proportions. The steep gabled roof had a single ridge. At the east end was an entrance porch and along the side a simple row of windows.
Inside, the school was divided into two rooms. Stone for the walls came from a quarry in the hills behind the school. The stoneówork shows a high standard of craftsmanship. Rough squared stone blocks of varying sizes were laid in regular courses giving a neat finish. Bricks, the colour of which harmonised with the stone, were used around the door and window openings to give a straight edge for the joinery.
The roof was covered with wooden shingles as an iron roof would have cost £20 extra. Later when the shingles cracked and began to leak they were covered with iron. It was not till 1902 that the school bell was installed on its wooden stand where it still stands outside the porch.
During the 1920's the population of Warrandyte increased and more accommodation was needed at the school. A third room was added on the south side. The addition was designed with complete disregard for the appearance of the old stone schoolhouse. Although internally the one building, the quality of the old building sets it apart from the southern wing as though they were completely separate buildings merely pushed close together.
Perhaps at some future date the school authorities may remove the unfortunate addition. Then the old stone schoolhouse, while fulfilling a school purpose, may stand on its own as the No. 1 historic building of Warrandyte.
Source: Irvine Green writing in 1971 02 DTHS Newsletter. Drawing from 1971 02 DTHS Newsletter. Reprinted in 2000 12 DTHS Newsletter
Of local significance as the earliest school remaining in the municipality, with particular importance for the Warrandyte community, and of interest for the use of local sandstone and the demonstration of considerable stonecraft skills in its construction.
http://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/22635
Warrandyte school No 12, centenary 1875-1975 : souvenir programme ; 16th August, 1975, centenary celebrations.
http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/31401108
Place No. 14
Designer H.R. Bastow, Chief Architect,
Warrandyte's first school (c.1856) was a Church of England school, soon closed owing to a lack of pupils as Warrandyte's diggings were deserted for more promising places. Schooling re-commenced in 1863 in the court house while the first Andersons Creek School No. 12 was being built on a site in Yana Street. This school was opened in 1875. The name changed to Warrandyte Primary School in 1908 [1].
This school was completed on 20 July, 1875 under the direction of Chief Architect H.R. Bastow, by the builder William Bolger of Collingwood, at a cost of 543.9.0 pounds. The stonemasons were William Masterton and James Sloan. The stone was quarried in the valley behind the school by the builder. In 1903 the timber shingled roof [2] was covered with iron and the gable vents removed. In 1925, a rendered brick classroom with a porch was added, gable-end windows were enlarged, metal roof vents, a stove and a screen were added, the galleries removed and a timber shelter shed built.
The 1875 school has brick quoins around the windows, and stone window sills. It is constructed of ashlar sandstone with a gable roof. It is a characteristic 80-type single room school, altered by the removal of galleries and finials, the addition of a rendered brick classroom, porch and roof vents, and the enlargement of the gable-end windows. The porch has some architectural pretensions, influenced by English Baroque through Sir John Vanbrugh.
The porch has three bays, the central bay rising as a gable, a strong cornice line with the central entrance bay, decorated with ruled courses and pilaster strips. There is a timber shelter shed.
Some comparisons are Templestowe Primary School (173.07) and Doncaster East Primary School (194.23).
Creation Date 1875 Change Dates
Associations Local Themes
James Sloan and William Masterton - sto 6.03 - Schools
STATEMENT OF Of local significance as the earliest school remaining in the municipality, with particular SIGNIFICANCE importance for the Warrandyte community, and of interest for the use of local sandstone and the demonstration of considerable stonecraft skills in its construction.
Heritage Register Listings Register
Heritage Schedule External Paint Controls: On VHR: Internal Alteration Controls: Prohibited Uses:
VHR Ref No:
Manningham Heritage Study Context Pty. Ltd. page 430
Warrandyte Primary School No.12 time capsule was buried in stone August 1975.
https://www.facebook.com/warrandytehistoricalsociety/posts/1632970840248805
Anderson's Creek's earliest school was a tent school established about 1856. Classes were then taught in the Court House and later in a split slab building by Mrs Rosa Pretty. In 1863 the Board of Education declared the Anderson's Creek Common School No.12 on its alphabetical list. However by 1874 the old school building was reported as becoming increasingly dilapidated with parents reluctant to send children to a cold and draughty school. The resulting pressure and demands from parents and residents led to a new school building of local stone (quarried from nearby Whipstick Gully) and built by local miners and stonemasons William Masterton and James Sloan.
Extract from 'Wonderful Warrandyte A Portrait' by Valerie Polley. Copies available from Warrandyte Historical Society Museum.
In the early 1860's Government grants were no longer available to Denominational Schools, so Andersons Creek school that had returned to the corner of Forbes Street became Common School No. 12. The low number did not mean that it was the twelfth school. At this time schools were numbered in alphabetival order, so Andersons Creek was twelfth on the list. The building now had to comply with new regulations. The roof had to be raised so that the walls could be heightened by three feet. Structurally, the building was weakened and soon became dangerous, so eventually a new building was recommended by the District Inspector.
In 1875, a new timber school was planned for Andersons Creek. A member of the School Committee, William Masterton, had been a stone mason before coming to Victoria. The Committee decided that the new school house should be built of stone. The estimated cost using local stone was £543/9/0. Masterton resigned from the School Committee, and with a fellow miner James Sloan as a partner, built the new school.
There were similarities in the life of both Masterton and Sloan. Both had come to Andersons Creek in the early days of gold mining; both had been stone masons; both men had children at the school and both were among the few early gold-miners whose descendants are still living at Warrandyte.
They built a stone schoolhouse designed on the lines of an English Village School, with simple and pleasing proportions. The steep gabled roof had a single ridge. At the east end was an entrance porch and along the side a simple row of windows.
Inside, the school was divided into two rooms. Stone for the walls came from a quarry in the hills behind the school. The stoneówork shows a high standard of craftsmanship. Rough squared stone blocks of varying sizes were laid in regular courses giving a neat finish. Bricks, the colour of which harmonised with the stone, were used around the door and window openings to give a straight edge for the joinery.
The roof was covered with wooden shingles as an iron roof would have cost £20 extra. Later when the shingles cracked and began to leak they were covered with iron. It was not till 1902 that the school bell was installed on its wooden stand where it still stands outside the porch.
Warrandyte Primary School, Brackenbury Street, 1970 showing the original stone-built school with the cement-rendered brick entrance that was added in 1925. The original building was built in 1875. DP0243
Perhaps at some future date the school authorities may remove the unfortunate addition. Then the old stone schoolhouse, while fulfilling a school purpose, may stand on its own as the No. 1 historic building of Warrandyte.
Source: Irvine Green writing in 1971 02 DTHS Newsletter. Drawing from 1971 02 DTHS Newsletter. Reprinted in 2000 12 DTHS Newsletter
WARRANDYTE PRIMARY SCHOOL (SCHOOL NO. 12)
42-52 Brackenbury Street WARRANDYTE, Manningham CityOf local significance as the earliest school remaining in the municipality, with particular importance for the Warrandyte community, and of interest for the use of local sandstone and the demonstration of considerable stonecraft skills in its construction.
http://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/22635
Warrandyte school No 12, centenary 1875-1975 : souvenir programme ; 16th August, 1975, centenary celebrations.
http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/31401108
WARRANDYTE PRIMARY SCHOOL (SCHOOL NO. 12)
42 - 52 Brackenbury Street, WarrandytePlace No. 14
Designer H.R. Bastow, Chief Architect,
Warrandyte's first school (c.1856) was a Church of England school, soon closed owing to a lack of pupils as Warrandyte's diggings were deserted for more promising places. Schooling re-commenced in 1863 in the court house while the first Andersons Creek School No. 12 was being built on a site in Yana Street. This school was opened in 1875. The name changed to Warrandyte Primary School in 1908 [1].
This school was completed on 20 July, 1875 under the direction of Chief Architect H.R. Bastow, by the builder William Bolger of Collingwood, at a cost of 543.9.0 pounds. The stonemasons were William Masterton and James Sloan. The stone was quarried in the valley behind the school by the builder. In 1903 the timber shingled roof [2] was covered with iron and the gable vents removed. In 1925, a rendered brick classroom with a porch was added, gable-end windows were enlarged, metal roof vents, a stove and a screen were added, the galleries removed and a timber shelter shed built.
The 1875 school has brick quoins around the windows, and stone window sills. It is constructed of ashlar sandstone with a gable roof. It is a characteristic 80-type single room school, altered by the removal of galleries and finials, the addition of a rendered brick classroom, porch and roof vents, and the enlargement of the gable-end windows. The porch has some architectural pretensions, influenced by English Baroque through Sir John Vanbrugh.
The porch has three bays, the central bay rising as a gable, a strong cornice line with the central entrance bay, decorated with ruled courses and pilaster strips. There is a timber shelter shed.
Some comparisons are Templestowe Primary School (173.07) and Doncaster East Primary School (194.23).
Creation Date 1875 Change Dates
Associations Local Themes
James Sloan and William Masterton - sto 6.03 - Schools
STATEMENT OF Of local significance as the earliest school remaining in the municipality, with particular SIGNIFICANCE importance for the Warrandyte community, and of interest for the use of local sandstone and the demonstration of considerable stonecraft skills in its construction.
Heritage Register Listings Register
Heritage Schedule External Paint Controls: On VHR: Internal Alteration Controls: Prohibited Uses:
VHR Ref No:
Manningham Heritage Study Context Pty. Ltd. page 430
Warrandyte Primary School No.12 time capsule was buried in stone August 1975.
https://www.facebook.com/warrandytehistoricalsociety/posts/1632970840248805
 |
| Warrandyte School c Stone building 2017 (School Website) |
 |
| Warrandyte PS 1975 SLV |
 |
| Warrandyte PS 1975 SLV |
Anderson's Creek's earliest school was a tent school established about 1856. Classes were then taught in the Court House and later in a split slab building by Mrs Rosa Pretty. In 1863 the Board of Education declared the Anderson's Creek Common School No.12 on its alphabetical list. However by 1874 the old school building was reported as becoming increasingly dilapidated with parents reluctant to send children to a cold and draughty school. The resulting pressure and demands from parents and residents led to a new school building of local stone (quarried from nearby Whipstick Gully) and built by local miners and stonemasons William Masterton and James Sloan.
Extract from 'Wonderful Warrandyte A Portrait' by Valerie Polley. Copies available from Warrandyte Historical Society Museum.
Anderson and James Streets, Templestowe
On the SW corner of Anderson and James Streets, Templestowe you will now find Carlucci's Restaurant. For many years this was the site of a general store. Later a Caltex Service Station was located there.
 |
| Keep's store, Early 1960: Keep's store, corner of Anderson and James Streets, Templestowe. Built in 1917 by Mr Hunter, it was bought in 1924 by Mr Jack Keep. (dp0516) |
Dehnert Family
Dehnert House in George Street, East Doncaster c1890s built by Rheinhold Dehnert in 1897. DP0214
Dehnert house, George Street East Doncaster | Brief Description: Pen and ink drawing by Dorothy Fletcher of the house in Waldau Lane [now George Street] built for Rheinhold Dehnert in the 1880s. This house still stands, but the drawing may have been done from an old photo. Fletcher, Dorothy [artist] DP1211
Timber Packing Shed, Templestowe
A timber packing shed, relatively intact.
It was erected in 1928 by William Hawthorn who owned property between Watties Lane and Monckton Road
20 Monckton Road's house stands and still traversed by the drive to Monckton. It is of historical significance locally with other elements of surviving physical evidence as a representative embodiment of the orcharding way of life in Templestowe in the early twentieth century. The former drive to Monckton is also significant for its association with that early homestead built in 1859 by district first settler, Major Charles Newman. It is of architectural significance as a surviving 1920s packing shed, now rare in Templestowe.
http://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/22597
Doncaster History (from Victorian Places)
Doncaster, formerly an orchard area and now residential suburb is 11.5 km north-east of central Melbourne.
Settlement a little to the west of Doncaster began with Unwin's Special Survey in Bulleen in 1841. The Special Survey of 5120 acres was bounded by the Yarra River (west and north), Foote Street (north), Church Street (east) and the Koonung Creek (south). Further settlement occurred along the Koonung Creek and other streams in the Doncaster area in the 1850s. Several of them were German, and a Lutheran church was the first one in Doncaster in 1858. A Lutheran school opened in 1860 and a denominational school in 1861.
Name
The German community was named Waldau, but the name Doncaster gradually became commonly accepted. In 1854 John Robert Wilson, from Doncaster in Yorkshire, England, built the Doncaster Arms Inn on the track through the stringybark forest to the Warrandyte gold diggings. The track was later named Doncaster Road. An alternative derivation may be from William Burnley, a Richmond land developer, who sold land in Doncaster in the 1850s. He also was from Doncaster, England.
Early settlers earned income from timber and firewood. The land proved suitable for cereals, vegetables and orchards. In the long term fruit was more profitable, and orchards predominated, growing citrus, pome and stone fruits. In 1875 the Australian handbook described Doncaster:
Settlement a little to the west of Doncaster began with Unwin's Special Survey in Bulleen in 1841. The Special Survey of 5120 acres was bounded by the Yarra River (west and north), Foote Street (north), Church Street (east) and the Koonung Creek (south). Further settlement occurred along the Koonung Creek and other streams in the Doncaster area in the 1850s. Several of them were German, and a Lutheran church was the first one in Doncaster in 1858. A Lutheran school opened in 1860 and a denominational school in 1861.
Name
The German community was named Waldau, but the name Doncaster gradually became commonly accepted. In 1854 John Robert Wilson, from Doncaster in Yorkshire, England, built the Doncaster Arms Inn on the track through the stringybark forest to the Warrandyte gold diggings. The track was later named Doncaster Road. An alternative derivation may be from William Burnley, a Richmond land developer, who sold land in Doncaster in the 1850s. He also was from Doncaster, England.
Early settlers earned income from timber and firewood. The land proved suitable for cereals, vegetables and orchards. In the long term fruit was more profitable, and orchards predominated, growing citrus, pome and stone fruits. In 1875 the Australian handbook described Doncaster:
DONCASTER, a post town in the county of South Bourke, and Bulleen electoral district, 10 miles NE. of Melbourne, lying between the Yarra river and the Koornung creek. It has a State school, an Athenaeum, an Episcopal church, and a Disciples' meeting-house.
Alfred Hummel
Doncaster Templestowe Historical Society holds a number of items relating to Alfred Hummel, the Tower Hotel and the Tower in its collection.
Doncaster Tower and the Tower Hotel. The Wenke's hotel was built in 1895 to replace the original hotel building that was destroyed by fire. A car is parked in front of the hotel. The 285 feet high tower was built in 1879 and demolished in 1914. DTHS dp0170
Schramm’s Cottage Bunya Pine Tree
Schramm’s Cottage Bunya Pine Tree
Schramm’s Cottage was originally located in Doncaster Road, Doncaster, roughly where the MC2 building now stands. Growing in the garden of the cottage was a Bunya Pine tree, a gift from Baron Ferdinand von Mueller, Victorian Government Botanist.
When Doncaster Road was widened in 1971 Schramm’s Cottage was relocated to its current site and the Bunya Pine was cut down. The timber from the tree was saved and used by Council employees to make a table and four chairs. These are now on display in the Sloyd Room at the Schramm’s Cottage museum.
In 1975 a new Bunya Pine Tree was planted near the relocated cottage by members of the Schramm family including Walter Schramm, a grandson of Max & Kate Schramm.
The Bunya Bunya Pine was a significant food source for the Aboriginal inhabitants of Australia, particularly in Queensland.
Max Schramm's tree was cut down for the widening of Doncaster Road in the early 1970s and in 1975 the Schramm family planted another tree to the west of the re-sited cottage.
Source: Kay Mack writing in Facebook. May 2017
A fine Bunya-Bunya tree stands on the hill outside the Municipal Offices. It was in the garden of Schramm's Cottage, and its history goes back to the days when Baron von Mueller, the designer of the Royal Botanical Gardens, lived in Doncaster. The new road plans mean that this tree is threatened with removal and destruction.
In the Eastern Golf Links, east of the Clubhouse, another tree marks the spot where David Mitchell (father of Dame Nellie Melba) built a cottage in 1860.
At the corner of Bayley Grove is yet another tree, that stood in Burkby Lawford*s garden. This beautiful tree has been mutilated to prevent it interfering with the unsightly electric wires. As it is close to the street line, the future of this tree must be uncertain.
Among the fine collection of trees in front of Mr. Everard Thiele's house in Church Road is another Bunya-Bunya tree. Here, then, is a unique collection of trees, many actually propagated by Mr. Frederick Thiele in the 1890s. Frederick Thiele also planted a Bunya-Bunya tree at the entrance to his father's property, now Waldau Court. unfortunately, this tree is outside the line of pegs for the proposed widening of Victoria Street.
John Finger, another of the Waldau settlers, planted two trees near Ruffey's Creek in the area that is now the Municipal Gardens (Victoria Street end).
In 1838, Andrew Petri discovered the Bunya-Bunya tree in Southern Queensland, and found that these trees were highly valued by the Aborigines. The cones were important to them, for they contained seeds 1 1/2 inches, long, which were eaten raw when young and sweet, or ripe seeds were roasted in ashes or hot coals, or even used in damper when flour was obtained from the white settlers.
Every third year a tree would have a bumper crop, and natives came long distances for feasts. The aboriginals called the tree Bon-yi Bon-yi. So Andrew Petri took samples from the trees, and gave them to naturalist J. S. Bidwill, who took them with him to England in 1843.
The tree was thus described at the Kew Gardens, being officially named in London by Sir William Hooker, ARAUCARIA BIDWILLI. The tree which grows to a maximum height of 140 feet abounds in the Bunya Mountains in South East Queensland. Valuable timber obtained from this tree is classed as eminently suitable for furniture, as it is possible for it to be cut into wide planks. It has been used for joinery, cabinet work, shelving, flooring, lathes, butter-boxes, plywoods-and veneers. It is a pale coloured fissile timber.
If lack of appreciation does not prevent the destruction of such a beautiful tree, my suggestion, as before stated to our Society, is that its timber be made into a suitable memorial, such as a seat or piece of furniture appropriately inscribed.
Source: Muriel Green writing in 1970-11 DTHS Newsletter
When Doncaster Road was widened in 1971 Schramm’s Cottage was relocated to its current site and the Bunya Pine was cut down. The timber from the tree was saved and used by Council employees to make a table and four chairs. These are now on display in the Sloyd Room at the Schramm’s Cottage museum.
In 1975 a new Bunya Pine Tree was planted near the relocated cottage by members of the Schramm family including Walter Schramm, a grandson of Max & Kate Schramm.
 |
| Schramm's Cottage while still located in Doncaster Road in 1971. The verandahs were removed by the council in the 1950s. On the right is the driveway that lead to the Council offices. The cottage was dismantled when Doncaster Road was widened in 1971. The bunya pine on the right hand side was cut down at the same time, but 4 chairs and a table were made from its wood. DP0538 |
Bunya Pine Tree
In the garden of Schramm's Cottage in Doncaster Road grew a fine Bunya Pine, a gift to Max Schramm from Baron von Mueller. |
| Photograph of the tree in 2007. Kay Mack |
The Bunya Bunya Pine was a significant food source for the Aboriginal inhabitants of Australia, particularly in Queensland.
Max Schramm's tree was cut down for the widening of Doncaster Road in the early 1970s and in 1975 the Schramm family planted another tree to the west of the re-sited cottage.
Source: Kay Mack writing in Facebook. May 2017
Bunya Bunya Pine Drawing. In the garden of Schramm's Cottage in Doncaster Road grew a fine Bunya Bunya Pine, a gift to Max Schramm from Baron von Mueller. The Bunya Bunya Pine was a significant food source for the Aboriginal inhabitants of Australia, particularly in Queensland. Max Schramm's tree was cut down for the widening of Doncaster Road in the early 1970s and in 1975 the Schramm family planted another tree to the west of the re-sited cottage. 1970 02 DTHS Newsletter
 |
| Sanding the top of the table made from the timber of the Bunya Pine. DTHS archive uncatalogued negative. |
 |
| Planting a new Bunya Pine at the present site of Schramm's Cottage in 1975. Walter Schramm and other descendants of Max & Kate Schramm. DTHS archive |
 |
| The new Bunya Pine in 2007 in the grounds of the Schramm's Cottage Museum. Photograph by Kay Mack. |
Bunya Bunya Pine Tree
A Bunya Bunya Pine has been planted in the grounds of Schramm’s Cottage by Mr. W. Schramm, a grandson of Pastor Schramm and his grandson Grant. Mr. Schramm had ordered the tree from Queensland to take the place of the fine tree that stood in front of the Cottage when it was in Doncaster Road. The grandchildren of Pastor Schramm well remember several trees that stood around the house when it was occupied by the family. Alongside the Bunya Pine was an Oak, on the west were some large Moreton Bay trees and Pine trees sheltered the Barn and stables. By planting these trees some of Schramm’s Cottage's old environment will be renewed.
Source: 1975-11 DTHS Newsletter
The Bunya Pine Tree
At present there are seven Bunya-Bunya trees growing in Doncaster, and all are closely related to the history of the district. Next year, there may be only five, and in a few years, perhaps only three, if any, could be remaining.A fine Bunya-Bunya tree stands on the hill outside the Municipal Offices. It was in the garden of Schramm's Cottage, and its history goes back to the days when Baron von Mueller, the designer of the Royal Botanical Gardens, lived in Doncaster. The new road plans mean that this tree is threatened with removal and destruction.
Shire Offices 1960s Photograph of a painting by Dick Ovenden of Schramm's Cottage, the Bunya pine and the Shire of Doncaster & Templestowe municipal offices. DP0162
In the Eastern Golf Links, east of the Clubhouse, another tree marks the spot where David Mitchell (father of Dame Nellie Melba) built a cottage in 1860.
At the corner of Bayley Grove is yet another tree, that stood in Burkby Lawford*s garden. This beautiful tree has been mutilated to prevent it interfering with the unsightly electric wires. As it is close to the street line, the future of this tree must be uncertain.
1957 - Opening of the new Shire Hall of the then Shire of doncaster and Templestowe. The guests to the opening ceremony are shown with the bunya bunya pine, Schramms Cottage and the State Savings Bank of Victoria in the background. DP0804
John Finger, another of the Waldau settlers, planted two trees near Ruffey's Creek in the area that is now the Municipal Gardens (Victoria Street end).
In 1838, Andrew Petri discovered the Bunya-Bunya tree in Southern Queensland, and found that these trees were highly valued by the Aborigines. The cones were important to them, for they contained seeds 1 1/2 inches, long, which were eaten raw when young and sweet, or ripe seeds were roasted in ashes or hot coals, or even used in damper when flour was obtained from the white settlers.
Every third year a tree would have a bumper crop, and natives came long distances for feasts. The aboriginals called the tree Bon-yi Bon-yi. So Andrew Petri took samples from the trees, and gave them to naturalist J. S. Bidwill, who took them with him to England in 1843.
Schramms Cottage in Doncaster Road in 1970 near the Council Offices. To the right of the photo is the bunya bunya pine that also had to make way for the widening and reconstruction of Doncaster Road in 1971. To the west of Schramms Cottage wad the cream colored brick veneer house owned by Alan Williams the postmaster at Doncaster during the 1950s. DP0831
The tree was thus described at the Kew Gardens, being officially named in London by Sir William Hooker, ARAUCARIA BIDWILLI. The tree which grows to a maximum height of 140 feet abounds in the Bunya Mountains in South East Queensland. Valuable timber obtained from this tree is classed as eminently suitable for furniture, as it is possible for it to be cut into wide planks. It has been used for joinery, cabinet work, shelving, flooring, lathes, butter-boxes, plywoods-and veneers. It is a pale coloured fissile timber.
If lack of appreciation does not prevent the destruction of such a beautiful tree, my suggestion, as before stated to our Society, is that its timber be made into a suitable memorial, such as a seat or piece of furniture appropriately inscribed.
Source: Muriel Green writing in 1970-11 DTHS Newsletter
zzz
Schramms Cottage The tram and tram shelter at Schramms Cottage complex, Doncaster East. When this photo was taken, the golden elm and the Bunya Bunya pine only a couple of years old, but now they are fully-grown mature trees. The tram shelter was erected in or about the year 1980. DP0866
Schramms Museum Complex Bunya Tree 2018
Schramms Museum Complex Bunya Tree Base with Sign: Schramms Museum Complex Bunya Tree Base with Sign. Text of Sign: "A native of South East Queensland this tree is noted for its sharp thorn like bark and leaves. Large pine cones grow at the top of the tree on a 3 year cycle and when ripe weighing 4 Kg fall to the ground during March. 7 large cones fell in 2010 but only 2 in 2013 possibly due to the long drought. This tree was planted here in 1974 as shown in the photograph below by the great grandson (on right) and great-great grandson (in centre) of Max and Kate Schramm. A similar Bunya Pine grew in the original garden of Schramm’s Cottage when situated off Doncaster Road, where the Manningham City Council buildings stand today."
Tree 82, Bunya Bunya Pine (Auracaria Bidwillii – in the centre of the image) located on Doncaster Road, opposite (to the south) of the stables Republished in: Manningham Heritage Overlay Amendment - Heritage Assessment Tullamore C101 - Lovell Chen May2014 - f21 p34
The Bunya Bunya Pine
When Max Schramm built Schramm's Cottage, Baron von Muller, who was a friend of Schramm, gave him a Bunya Pine. William Schramm, a grandson of Max, and also his grandson Grant, orderd a Bunya Pine from Queensland and planted it in the grounds of the Cottage to replace the pine that stood outside the Cottage when it was in Doncaster Road.
The grand children of Pastor Schramm well remember several trees that stood around the house when it was occupied by the family. Alongside the Bunya Pine was an Oak, on the west were some Morton Bay Fig trees that sheltered Schramm's barn. Willow trees hung over the fence on Doncaster Road. A seat was placed there so that people could sit in their shade on hot days
Source: 1996 03 DTHS Newsletter
The Bunya Pine
In 1970 seven Bunya Pines, grew in Doncaster. Since men three of these have disappeared but four new ones have been planted.
A fine Bunya stood outside the Council Offices. Its history went back to the 1860’s and was a gift to Max Schramm from Baron von Mueller, thee Director of the Botanical Gardens. This tree went when Doncaster Road was widened, the timber was saved by the council and staff at the Depot milled the timber to make a table and chairs for Schramm's Cottage. At the comer of Bayley Grove a Bunya grew in Burkby Lawford’s garden. The tree is no longer there. Among the fine collection of trees planted by Frederick Lawford at his home in Church Road was another Bunya Pine. It was cut down when the land was subdivided.
In the Eastern Golf Links, east of the club house, another tree marks the site where David Mitchell built a house for one of his farms in 1860. At the comer of Waldau Court and Victoria Street the Thiele family planted a tree and John Finger planted two others in Ruffey Park, north of the creek. These had been each side of a gate connecting the. orchard and a horse paddock. To celebrate a Thiele family reunion two Bunyas were planted in Ruffey Park near Friedensruh and Eric Collyer planted two more in the land of Friedensruh. In 1975 the grandson of Max Schramm, assisted by his own grandson, planted the Bunya Pine in Schramm's Cottage, on the west lawn, to replace the tree that stood in front of the cottage in Doncaster Road.
The Bunya Pine was discovered in 1838 by Andrew Petri in Southern Queensland. The Aborigines highly valued the trees and looked m the seeds as a delicacy. The seeds, extracted from the cones, about 40 miles long were eaten raw when young and fresh, or ripe seeds were roasted in ashes or hot coals, or even cooked in damper when they had flour.
Every third year a tree would have a bumper crop and natives came long distances for feasts. The Aboriginals called the tree Bon-yi Bonyi. So Petri took samples from the trees and gave them to J.S. Bidwil a naturalist who took them to England. The tree was described at the Kew Gardens, being officially named by Sir William Hooker, Araucaria bidwilli. The trees that grow to a maximum height of 140 feet abound in the Bunya Mountains in South East Queensland.
The timber obtained from the tree is classed as eminently suitable for furniture as it is possible for it to be cut into wide planks. It has been used for joinery, cabinet work, shelving, flooring, lathes, plywoods and veneers. It is a pale coloured fissle timber.
Source: Irvine Green writing in 1993-09 DTHS Newsletter
The Bunya Pine Tree
The most imposing of our specimen trees at Schramm's Cottage is the statuesque Bunya pine growing on the lawn near the entrance to the Waldau cemetery.
The story of the Bunyabunya is a fascinating one. At one time, the Bunya pine covered most of eastern Australia, but nowadays it is a rarity. During the 1860's many of these pines were felled for their first class timber.
The tree was highly prized by the aborigines for the huge cones, produced by the tree in late summer. They would walk many kilometres to the 1100-metre high Bunya Mountains, 160 metres northwest of the present Brisbane, for the gathering of the nuts they called bonye bonye. Young men would climb the trees, using toeholds on the trunk and knock down the cones when they were ripe. As they fall, the cones break up and the aborigines would cook and eat the creamy flesh. These gatherings occurred about every three years when the tree would have a bumper crop with some trees producing up to 50 cones. They can grow as large as a football and weigh up to 6 kilograms. It can be a dangerous exercise wandering in a bunya forest when the cones are ripe and ready to fall.
An interesting sideline of this yearly festival and gathering of the tribes was the comment of one of Ludvig Leichhardt's exploratory team in 1846, who noticed a group of Aboriginal people walking south. He said that the tribe was on its way to the Bunya Mountains for the harvesting of the Bunya fruit.
The last of the festivals was held in 1875. Later the felling of many of the pines and the encroachment of European settlement put an end to these festivals.
The first white man to record the tree was Moreton Bay's Superintendent of Works, Andrew Petrie in the 1830's. He took specimens from the tree, which was taken by botanist John Bidwell to the Kew Gardens in England for i entification and examination. The arborist described the pine and officially named it Araucaria Bidwelli. Actually, it is not a pine at all, being a member of the Araucariacea family.
In 1970, the late Muriel Green, wife of our past president, wrote an article about the Bunya pines growing in the district at that time. I thought it might be of interest to investigate the number of pines in 2014, to compare with the past. The seven existing pines at the time had a close connection with the history of Doncaster.
One stood outside the Municipal Offices, its history being connected with Baron von Mueller, who designed Melbourne Botanic Gardens. This was felled during the widening of Doncaster Road, at the same time as Schramm's Cottage was in the process of removal. As a permanent reminder of that tree, a craftsman built the table and chairs at present in the Sloyd room.
The second tree grew on the eastern side of the clubhouse of the Eastern Golf Club in Doncaster Road. This marks the spot where Dame Nellie Melba's father, David Mitchell built a cottage in the 1860's. This still grows in its original position.
The third tree stood in Bayley Grove, off Doncaster Road in the garden of Burkby Lawford's house. Even in the 1970's this tree had parts cut off to make way for electric wires. This pine was later cut down and removed as the street line altered.
The fourth tree, which stood in the garden of Everard Thiele's house in Church Road, has also been cut down.
The fifth Bunya pine was planted by Frederick Thiele at the entrance to Waldau Court near Friedensruh. This also has been felled for the widening of Victoria Street.
The other two trees still grow in Ruffey Lake Park. John Finger planted these at the entrance to his home. They don't seem like a pair, as one was damaged soon after planting. More details are available on the plaque placed near the site in Ruffey Lake Park.
Thus, of the seven, which existed in 1970, only three remain, but there is good news regarding the pines presently growing in the area.
When Schramm's Cottage was moved to Victorian Street, a new Bunya pine was planted in the rear garden in front of the Waldau Cemetery. This was in 1975, and it is now a splendid specimen, one of the highlights of our garden.
Eric Collyer planted a Bunya pine in the side garden of Friedensruh - facing George Street and this is still growing well, and in 1983, he planted two more in the Municipal Gardens near the house to commemorate a Thiele family celebration. There is another, smaller pine growing in the grounds of the Eastern Golf Club to add to the old one already there. A stand of young Bunya-Bunya pines has been planted in Refuge Close off Anderson's Creek Road near Blackburn Road, East Doncaster.
So we can conclude that there are actually more Bunya pines growing in our district than there were in 1970, so the fear that we may lose them all, has no foundation. It is very satisfying that people are interested in preserving this rare and beautiful tree in Manningham and we hope that they will continue to thrive.
Does anyone know of any other Bunya pines planted in Doncaster? If so, they should be noted and we would be interested to learn more about them.
Source: 2014-06 DTHS Newsletter
Bunya Pine Tree - Nov 2025
Avenue of Honour, Blackburn
The Avenue of Honour commemorating the fallen soldiers of the First World War was planted along Blackburn Road East Doncaster in 1921.
Planting the Avenue of Honour, July 1921: Children from East Doncaster Primary School with Mr August Zerbe, planting the Avenue of Honour commemorating the soldiers who died in the 1914-18 War. Zerbe, August; Beavis, Beatty; Burroughs, Doris|; Burroughs, Jack; Burroughs, Ron; Zerbe, Rupert; Crouch, Vic; Crouch, Victor; Daws, Emmy; Forest, Cliff; Sell, Ida. DTHS DP0605
Pupils of East Doncaster School planted a row of Mahogany Gums to honour past pupils, relatives and friends who served in the 1914-18 War. The trees were set out in Blackburn Road from near May Street past the school to as far as the present Saxonwood Drive. Each tree was planted by a-pupil in honour of a member of the services. A sturdy tree guard, five feet high, was placed over each gum and the name of the soldier inscribed on a narrow brass plate attached to the guard. Mr. Daws built these, using pickets to match the school fence. The trees were placed out in the road.
In the 1920's there was ample room for traffic in Blackburn Road, but by the 1970's, when traffic became heavy, an extra lane was needed at that side of the road. It was decided that the trees would have to be removed. To replace the avenue Gums, this time Queensland Box were planted in Zerbe's Reserve in Saxonwood Drive.
In 1975, a plaque was unveiled, it read: "This Plantation of Trees Replaces the Avenue of Honour Which Was Planted in 1920 by The Pupils of the East Blackburn State School in Honour of Past Pupils, Relatives and Friends who served in the Great War 1914-18," Lest We Forget 1975.
After the planting was finished there were several trees over. These were given to families of children who took part.
One went to Eva Buck and was planted on their land, now Carbine Street, another went to the Aumann family in Smith's Road, Templestowe. When the Aumann's land was subdivided, the gum stood in a block No. 5 Bebs Court. The tree was preserved by Mr. & Mrs. Cilmi building their home to fit around it. Mrs. Cilmi now plans to place a plaque on her tree.
Among the children who took part in the ceremony in 1920 were Beatty Beavis, Doris, Jack & Ron Burrows, Rupert Zerbe, Vic Crouch, Emmy Daws, Cliff Forest and Ida Sell. Beatty Beavis planted a tree for Henry McKinley and the name on tree guard in the picture is Malcolm S. Kennedy.
1986 09 DTHS Newsletter
 |
| Avenue of Honour, 1974: East Doncaster Avenue of Honor, looking south along Blackburn Road from near Anderson's Creek Road. The Avenue of Honour was planted by pupils from the Doncaster East Primary School, in 1921, as a memorial for East Doncaster soldiers killed during the 1914-18 War. DTHS dp0606 |
The Avenue of Honour
In 1920 right through the suburbs of Melbourne, War Memorials were being built. Honour Rolls being erected and Avenues of Honour planted.Pupils of East Doncaster School planted a row of Mahogany Gums to honour past pupils, relatives and friends who served in the 1914-18 War. The trees were set out in Blackburn Road from near May Street past the school to as far as the present Saxonwood Drive. Each tree was planted by a-pupil in honour of a member of the services. A sturdy tree guard, five feet high, was placed over each gum and the name of the soldier inscribed on a narrow brass plate attached to the guard. Mr. Daws built these, using pickets to match the school fence. The trees were placed out in the road.
In the 1920's there was ample room for traffic in Blackburn Road, but by the 1970's, when traffic became heavy, an extra lane was needed at that side of the road. It was decided that the trees would have to be removed. To replace the avenue Gums, this time Queensland Box were planted in Zerbe's Reserve in Saxonwood Drive.
In 1975, a plaque was unveiled, it read: "This Plantation of Trees Replaces the Avenue of Honour Which Was Planted in 1920 by The Pupils of the East Blackburn State School in Honour of Past Pupils, Relatives and Friends who served in the Great War 1914-18," Lest We Forget 1975.
After the planting was finished there were several trees over. These were given to families of children who took part.
One went to Eva Buck and was planted on their land, now Carbine Street, another went to the Aumann family in Smith's Road, Templestowe. When the Aumann's land was subdivided, the gum stood in a block No. 5 Bebs Court. The tree was preserved by Mr. & Mrs. Cilmi building their home to fit around it. Mrs. Cilmi now plans to place a plaque on her tree.
Among the children who took part in the ceremony in 1920 were Beatty Beavis, Doris, Jack & Ron Burrows, Rupert Zerbe, Vic Crouch, Emmy Daws, Cliff Forest and Ida Sell. Beatty Beavis planted a tree for Henry McKinley and the name on tree guard in the picture is Malcolm S. Kennedy.
1986 09 DTHS Newsletter
Zerbes Reserve. VHD-22471 Blackburn Road Doncaster East, Manningham City - Of regional botanical significance for its remnant stand of Eucalyptus cf. nortonii. The conifers form a local landmark. http://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/22471 Plaque Inscription: Avenue of Honour: This plantation of trees replaces the Avenue of Honour which was planted in 1920 on Blackburn Road by the Pupils of the East Doncaster State School in Honour of Ppast students relatives and friends who served in the Great War 1914-1918. "Lest We Forget". unveiled by the Hon Sir Raymond Garrett AFC AIA MLC on Sunday 10th Ap 1978.
Zerbes Reserve. VHD-22471 Blackburn Road Doncaster East, Manningham City - Of regional botanical significance for its remnant stand of Eucalyptus cf. nortonii. The conifers form a local landmark. http://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/22471
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)