Yarrambat Structure Plan Project - Nillumbik Council · This report was commissioned by Nillumbik Shire Council. It provides one of the Technical Assessments for Stage 1 of the Yarrambat

Yarrambat Structure Plan Project Heritage Assessment Report

October 2013

Prepared for

Ni l lumbik Shire Counci l

by

Samantha Westbrooke Pty Ltd 13 Richards Street Coburg, Vic, 3058

Table of Contents

1.0 Introduction ............................................................................................................ 3 2.0 Existing & Potential Heritage Sites .................................................................. 4

2.1 Exist ing Heritage Sites ............................................................................................. 4 2.2 Potential Heritage Sites ........................................................................................... 5

3.0 Heritage Significance of Yarrambat Township ............................................ 8 3.1 Aspects of Cultural Heritage Signif icance ...................................................... 8

4.0 Heritage Recommendations ............................................................................. 10 4.1 Heritage Review Work ............................................................................................. 10 4.2 Future Development ................................................................................................ 10 4.3 Heritage Opportunit ies ........................................................................................... 10

5.0 References .............................................................................................................. 12

Yarrambat Township Structure Plan Project Heritage Assessment Report

Samantha Westbrooke Pty Ltd (ABN 99 140 239 149) 13 Richards Street Coburg Vic 3058

T: (03) 9354 3451 E-mail: [email protected] 3

1.0 INTRODUCTION

This report was commissioned by Nillumbik Shire Council. It provides one of the Technical Assessments for Stage 1 of the Yarrambat Structure Plan Project. The study area for this assessment comprises the Yarrambat Township and surrounding land as marked on the aerial image below:

Yarrambat Structure Plan – Township Study Area

Stage 1 of the project will undertake targeted consultation and a series of technical assessments to identify issues and opportunities relevant to the project. Stage 2 will then draw on the information obtained in Stage 1 to make recommendations regarding the future role of Yarrambat Township. The purpose of this Heritage Assessment is to inform the Yarrambat Structure Plan Project of existing and potential heritage values (historic and Aboriginal) in the study area and to assist the project to make recommendations, which protect these values.




2.0 EXISTING & POTENTIAL HERITAGE SITES

2.1 Existing Heritage Sites Nil lumbik Shire Heritage Overlay There is only one site currently included in the Nillumbik Shire Heritage Overlay located within the Yarrambat Township Study Area as follows: HO219 St Michaels Angl ican Church, 469-475 Ironbark Road, Yarrambat

This weatherboard church was opened in 1954 after a long community effort to raise funds for a church in Yarrambat. The place is historically significant as the only church building in Yarrambat and the oldest public building in the township on its original site. The church is of social significance as the venue for a long period of worship (over 50 years) in the Yarrambat community.

Extract of the Heritage Overlay map showing the location and extent of the Heritage Overlay

l isted site within the Yarrambat Township Study Area (outl ined in blue)




Victorian Heritage Inventory There are currently no Heritage Victoria, Heritage Inventory Sites located in the Yarrambat Township Study Area.

2.2 Potential Heritage Sites The following sites within the Yarrambat Township Study Area have been identified as being potentially of local significance and worthy of further investigation for potential inclusion in the Heritage Overlay. Further investigation and assessment may reveal that they do not have sufficient local significance to warrant inclusion in the Heritage Overlay. 1. Yarrambat War Memorial Park, Ironbark Road Yarrambat

Yarrambat War Memorial Park is included on the Victorian War Heritage Inventory. This area was acquired soon after WW2 by the City of Heidelberg Council. In the early 1950’s Heidelberg Council provided a concrete cricket pitch and over following decades the area was well used for a variety of purposes. No buildings on the site appear to have any potential significance, however the park has potential significance for its purpose as a War memorial and for its use as a cricket and football ground since the 1950s. 2. Eltham & Distr ict Woodworkers Building, Ironbark Road, Yarrambat

This house was built by local identity Mr Jarvis Worn on land now used by the Primary School. In 1987 construction of the current primary school began and this house was relocated to its present site on the Ironbark Road side of the War Memorial Park, adjacent to the fire station, by the Shire of Diamond Valley for use as a Youth Drop-in Centre. The Eltham and District Woodworkers Association took over use of the house in 1992. The building has potential historical significance as the former residence of a well-known and early Yarrambat resident and of social significance as a building valued by the community.




3. Yarrambat War Memorial Hall , 450 Ironbark Road, Yarrambat

Yarrambat War Memorial Hall is included on the Victorian War Heritage Inventory. The building was acquired in 1948 from Langwarrin and transported to Yarrambat in sections where it was rebuilt. The community raised funds for its relocation and re-erection in Yarrambat and was also responsible for its re-erection under the leadership of local builder Bob Graham. The hall was officially opened on August 25th, 1950. 4. Yarrambat Store Residence, 466 Ironbark Road, Yarrambat

While the Yarrambat Store dates from the 1940s, located behind the store is a circa 1880s brick residence. Alfred Stuchberry, an early prominent settler in Yarrambat initially lived in this house with his family before obtaining a freehold lease on a property to the west of Yan Yean Road where he established a farm. The aerial image of this residence shows that its original double hipped roof form is substantially intact. It would also appear to be the earliest surviving building located in the Yarrambat Township Study area.




A map showing the location of the four potential ly signif icant sites within the Yarrambat Township Study Area (outl ined in blue).

Note that sites 1-3 are all located on the same parcel of land owned by Nillumbik Shire Council.

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3

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3.0 HERITAGE SIGNIFICANCE OF YARRAMBAT TOWNSHIP The following section summarises the aspects of the Yarrambat Township Study Area that are of cultural heritage significance to Yarrambat and the greater Nillumbik Shire.

3.1 Aspects of Cultural Heritage Signif icance Brief History of the Township The gold rushes brought an increase of population to the Diamond Valley and in their wake came the selectors who under the Selection or Land Acts of the 1860s, were able to purchase small holdings of land and, with the proviso that they improve them by clearing, fencing and building, gradually pay them off. Yarrambat, originally known as Tanck's Corner had a couple of gold rushes, one before 1860 and the other after 1900. However not enough gold was found to create a thriving township. The town was therefore primarily established by selectors, among them Frederick Tanck and his neighbour Thomas Reynolds. Tancks Corner was a T-intersection where Ironbark Road meets Yan Yean Road. Frederick Tanck and Thomas Reynolds owned properties on the north side and south side respectively. The T-intersection was referred to as both Reynolds Corner and Tancks Corner in official documents, however as Reynolds sold his land before Tancks, Tancks Corner was the name for the township that prevailed. Many of the people whose names became associated with Yarrambat did not settle there until the 1880s or 1890s. Henry Montague Pepper, with his wife and family, took up their selection in 1889. Thomas Collins, who had lived in Diamond Creek, moved with his wife to Yarrambat to start an orchard in 1886. Another early family, the Stuchberry's, did not select their land, but bought two acres of the Oatlands Estate in 1890. On the banks of the Plenty River, together with their twelve children, they established a market garden and built a house, dairy and stable (this site is outside the Study Area). The name of the town was officially changed to Yarrambat in 1929. It is unknown why the name was changed however Yarrambat is named from an Aboriginal word meaning "high hills" or "pleasant views". For a long period of time community life in the township centred on the school, which opened in 1878 on land donated by Thomas Reynolds. Although there was a blacksmith's shop and store at Yarrambat, the school was the only community building until the 1940s, when the fire station was built in 1947 (replaced in 2001) and the Yarrambat Hall in 1948. Parishioners of St Michaels, who met in the school, prior to having a dedicated church of their own, worked from the 1930s to clear land and build their Church. It was officially opened in 1954. The original school building has been moved to Yarrambat Heritage Park (located adjacent to Yarrambat Golf Course outside the Study Area). Signif icance of Yarrambat Township Study Area to Yarrambat The T-intersection where Ironbark Road meets Yan Yean Road is important as the location of the beginning of the township of Yarrambat with the settlement of selectors Frederick Tanck and Thomas Reynolds on opposite corners of Ironbark Road. The section of Ironbark Road located in the Study Area is historically and socially significant to Yarrambat as the civic centre of the township since 1878. It was in 1878 that a school was established on Thomas Reynolds’ land at the corner of Yan Yean Road and Ironbark Road. While the school was the only civic building in the township for many years, other civic buildings including the Fire Station, Memorial Hall and St Michaels Church were built along this section of road in the mid 20th Century. This section of Ironbark Road also became and remains the commercial and social centre of the township with the Post Office and General Store located in the vicinity of the civic buildings. The civic buildings in the township demonstrate a boom within the development of Yarrambat during the 1940s and 1950s. The Township Study Area also contains one of the earliest surviving residences in Yarrambat dating




from circa 1880s, located behind the Yarrambat Store. While the original school building has been removed, the Yarrambat Primary School is a site that provides an important historical reference back to the beginnings of the township. The remainder of the Study Area along Yan Yean Road and south of Youngs Road is characterised by residential properties on large sites set back from the street with vegetation generally to the frontage. While this layout contributes to the historic residential character of the area, no individual heritage sites or potential heritage sites have been identified within these residential areas. Signif icance of Yarrambat Township Study Area to Nil lumbik Shire Yarrambat Township is historically significant to the Shire of Nillumbik as an early township in the Shire initially settled as a result of the gold rush in the 1860s but ultimately established by selectors in the 1880s. It is a representative example of one of the smaller early townships located on the fringes of the Nillumbik Shire supported by a surrounding farming community.




4.0 HERITAGE RECOMMENDATIONS

4.1 Heritage Review Work Further assessment for potential inclusion in the Heritage Overlay should be undertaken for the potentially significant sites identified in this report as follows:

• Yarrambat War Memorial Park, Ironbark Road, Yarrambat • Eltham & District Woodworkers Building, Ironbark Road, Yarrambat • Yarrambat Memorial Hall, 450 Ironbark Road, Yarrambat • Yarrambat Store Residence, 466 Ironbark Road, Yarrambat

The existing Heritage Overlay listing for St Michael’s Church should be reviewed to ensure the information in the citation is clear, up to date and correct. While the early buildings associated with the Yarrambat Primary School and Yarrambat Fire Station have been removed, the histories of both of these sites are important in understanding the early development of the Yarrambat Township. The histories of both of these sites should therefore be compiled and made accessible (through interpretation) to the public.

4.2 Future Development Future development within the Yarrambat Township Study Area should be sympathetic to the listed Heritage Overlay site (St Michaels Church) and the following heritage values identified in Section 3.1.

• The focus of commercial and civic activities in Ironbark Road. • A generally informal main street along Ironbark Road with a mixture of residential, civic and

commercial buildings and native vegetation. • The character of low density residential development with houses set back from the street

along Youngs Road and Yan Yean Road. • The visual distinction between the different periods of development in the township

through a sympathetic design response to the original character and appearance of historic sites.

Interpretation of the past history of the land within the Study Area should form an integral part of any new development within the Yarrambat Township. Particular aspects of the history that should be interpreted include, but are not limited to the following:

• The former name of the township, Tancks Corner and the origins of that name; • The goldmining and early settlement history of the township, particularly the two early

settlers Frederick Tanck and Thomas Reynolds; • The history of the civic and commercial development along Ironbark Road; • The history of St Michael’s Church and the identified potential heritage sites in the Study

area; and • The history of the Yarrambat Primary School and the Yarrambat Fire Station.

4.3 Heritage Opportunit ies Historically the section of Ironbark Road contained within the Study Area has been an important commercial and civic focus for Yarrambat and future development provides an opportunity to continue this history while introducing new sympathetic development that is distinguishable as a new 21st century layer of history.




The War Memorial Hall and War Memorial Park lend themselves well to being retained as key community foci and utlilised and promoted as key community facilities within any new development of the township. There is the opportunity to reveal the heritage appearance of the Victorian residence located behind the Yarrambat Store by removal of vegetation in front of the building. Exposure of this historic residence will assist in interpretation of the early settlement history of the area. There is the opportunity to develop new commercial premises along Ironbark Road that utilise innovative design as well as being sympathetic to the history of Yarrambat and complementary to the historic sites in the township. There is the opportunity for new residential development in the Yarrambat Study area that utilises innovative design as well as being sympathetic to the existing historic layout and character of the area.




5.0 REFERENCES

Information relating to the history of specific sites and buildings in the Study Area and the history and significance of the Study Area was obtained from the following sources: • Butler, Graeme & Associates, Nillumbik Shire Heritage Study Stage 1, Review, Heritage Survey

and Environmental History, 1996 • Gould, Meredith, Shire of Whittlesea Heritage Study, 1991 • Hooper, Eileen, A History of Tancks Corner – Yarrambat State School No. 2054, 1978 • Ye Olde Yarrambat Walk compiled by Yarrambat Historical Society, August 2012

Documents

Yarrambat Structure Plan Project - Nillumbik Council · This report was commissioned by Nillumbik Shire Council. It provides one of the Technical Assessments for Stage 1 of the Yarrambat