Maribyrnong River

SOURCE: MELBOURNE WATER

Some Maribyrnong River History

Maribyrnong River’s name comes from the Aboriginal phrase Mirring-gnay-bir-nong, meaning ‘I can hear a ringtail possum’. It was originally called Saltwater River due to the seawater that entered from Hobson’s Bay, into which it directly flowed.

The Wurundjeri people have always had a deep connection to the area. The river was of great importance and used for a variety of purposes:

• drinking water
• building material 
• transport
• medicine – including edible plants that grew on the river flats
• food – fish and eels thrived in the river, and big game like kangaroos and emus lived on the plains, along with smaller animals like echidnas, possums, lizards and water birds.

In 1857 Victoria’s first irrigator, David Milburn, settled in the area. He developed a way to draw water from the river using a hand pump, and grew fruit and vegetables to sell to diggers travelling to the goldfields. This was the start of Keilor’s market gardening tradition, which continued until 1983.

From the mid-nineteenth century the suburb of Footscray turned into Melbourne’s industrial powerhouse – subjecting the river to severe environmental degradation, until manufacturing declined in the 1960s and 70s. Today these industrial closures are prime development opportunities that drive the area’s regeneration, offering a waterside location close to central Melbourne.

RIVERVIEW GARDENS AND TEAROOMS

The Riverview Tea Gardens were established by the Hicks family in 1908 to take advantage of the then popular river excursions from the Maribyrnong Road Bridge. The Hicks family purchased the 112 acres of land and employed the services of John Oliver, curator of Queens Park in Moonee Ponds, to design the gardens. Facilities included sports grounds, tennis courts, a dance hall, statues and pavilion kiosks, as well as bird aviaries and a native animal enclosure. 

After running pleasure cruises with their 'River Queen’ boat, the Hicks family then established the Maribyrnong River Motorboat Company. The ferry service operated between the Maribyrnong River Bridge and the Tea Gardens with a return fare of 6d (sixpence). During World War One, the River Queen was taken over for naval use and in World War II, a boom was placed across the river as a security measure, as a result the cruises declined in popularity and the Tea Gardens ceased operation in 1947. 

The White Lady was at icon of the Riverview Tea Gardens and was one the of the few remaining features until her disappearance in the 1980’s.  Following an exhaustive and fruitless search for her, the City of Moonee Valley commissioned a reproduction in 2002. Using turn of the century photographs provided by the Hicks family, a new White Lady was crafted. Whilst she is not an exact replica, she stands on her original podium and her close likeness provides us with a glimpse of former glory of the Riverview Tea Gardens. 

 This is rather nice - the Riverview Tea Gardens on the Maribyrnong River. Photographer: Robert Macedon O'Brien. They were operated by the Hicks family from 1909 to 1947. You can see the 'White lady' statue in it's original position. If you wanted to go back in time and make a booking, their phone number was Ascot 685 J according to this newspaper report http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article74591656 State Library of Victoria Image H84.461/388

Source 'Lost Melbourne' Facebook Page

                    SOLOMON'S FORD

    FLOODING 2022. ANGLERS TAVERN IN FOREGROUND

When the Maribyrnong River tram line was extended to West Maribyrnong to serve the munitions factories in WWII it was carried across the river on a timber trestle bridge. The road ran on a separate bridge just north and on an angle (to make the bridge as short as possible). When the time came to build a new road bridge (in the mid 1960s) it was to follow the tram alignment. Here's a pic showing VR car 53 on the old tramway bridge with the new combined bridge being built beside it.

PIPEMAKERS PARK

Pipemakers Park is of national historical, social and architectural significance* as some of the oldest and most substantial early industrial structures are associated with technological innovations in manufacturing.

 

Pipemakers Park's heritage features relate to several separate innovative industries stretching over 140 years, and includes:

• The boiling down works which was one of the first of its type in Australia and the largest in Victoria.
• The Melbourne Meat Preserving Company that pioneered meat preserving with the use of a vacuum process.
• The Australian Frozen Meat Export Company which is credited with the first successful frozen meat export in the world.
• Hume Pipes an innovator in the field of concrete pipe manufacturing and the first Australian company to export a manufacturing technology as opposed to a raw material or product.

This site encapsulates the history of industrial development in Melbourne and represents some of its major development phases. Architecturally, the buildings represent advanced construction techniques from the period.  The industrial buildings from the mid-nineteenth century are exceptionally rare in Melbourne.

Pipemakers Park Chronology

1803 Charles Grimes and James Fleming explore Maribyrnong River and pass the study area

1835 John Batman explores Maribyrnong river valley, draws map, records observations.

1836 First permanent white settlement on Maribyrnong River

1839 Subdivision of lands around Melbourne into parishes and numbered sections

1840 First detailed map of river ‘ Maribyrnong’ and valley, including study area

1843 Joseph Raleigh, English merchant, arrives in Melbourne with his family

1845 James Johnston obtains annual occupation licence at auction for Section 21 (including study area)

1846 Joseph Raleigh operating salted meat works and boiling-down works at Yarraville.
Raleigh living at ‘Mona Vale, Moonee Ponds’

1847 Joseph Raleigh purchases 409 acres in Maribyrnong, including study area.

1848 Construction of Raleigh’s boiling down works on his land at Maribyrnong

1849-52 Growth in tallow exports from Port Phillip (re-named ‘Victoria’ in 1851)

1851 Onset of Victorian gold rushes

1852 Death of Joseph Raleigh

1853 Rachel and Sarah Raleigh, sisters of Joseph Raleigh, buy additional Maribyrnong land

1854 Establishment of Robertson, Martin & Smith’s Victoria Iron Works in study area

c1855 Water colour drawing of study area by Greeves, including large building by the river

1857-8 Sub-division of Portions 4, 5, 6 and 7, section 21, including study area

1858 Portions 6 and 7 bought by Henry William Dauglish, and mortgaged

1866-7 William Cameron leasing farm on Saltwater River, from ‘Raleigh’s trustees’

1867 Formation of Melbourne Meat Preserving Company, 30 December 1867

1868 Melbourne Meat Preserving Company leasing 174 acres of land and ‘premises’ from George Petty, adapting buildings, constructing new buildings

1870 Melbourne Meat Preserving Company purchases site from George Petty. Also leasing 2,919 acres of land in what is now West Sunshine (for grazing of stock)

1872 Extensions to works – new tinsmiths’ shop and machinery room

1873 Fire destroyed kitchen, preserving room and cooling room, 7 December 1873

1874 Repair and re-building of central portion of factory. Building enlarged

1876 Factory renovated. New boiler, additional preserving pans and tallow vats added

1877 Increase in productivity (262,532 sheep slaughtered October ‘76-April ‘77)

1878 Rise in price of sheep, overseas competition, decrease in demand
Introduction of square tins. Company won gold medal at Paris exhibition
Manager, S.S. Ritchie, invents new tin-filling process

1879 Death of S.S. Ritchie, company manager

1880 Commencement of operations on site by Australian Frozen Meat Export Company

1881 Melbourne Meat Preserving Company works almost idle April-October

1882 Freezing works transferred to Newport
Meat preserving operations suspended April- October

1885 Factory running at a loss

1886 Closure of works. Factory and company’s land put up for sale

1888 Thomas Warr, merchant, purchases study area. Maribyrnong quarry in operation

1896 Slaughterhouse operating in study area
-1901

1906 Presbyterian Church of Victoria purchases 170 acres, including study area

1908 Sub-division plan of land, including study area, showing ‘old stone buildings’

1910 Walter Hume’s invention of the centrifugally spun reinforced concrete pipe, in S.A.

1912 Walter Hume and his brother begin operations in Maribyrnong, leasing study area from Presbyterian Church and using existing bluestone buildings

1913 Walter Hume on a world trip

1914 Melbourne Directory lists ‘Hume Bros. Cement Iron Works’ in Maribyrnong

1915 Hume Bros. purchase 34 acres (including study area) from Presbyterian Church

1916 Hume family living at Maribyrnong

1920 Formation of new company – Hume Pipe (Australia) Company Ltd.

1921 Two moulding machines in operation at Maribyrnong

1922 Machinery operated by electric motor, one and a half to eight horse power

1923 Factory producing concrete slabs. Influenced importance of other concrete products

1923 Walter Hume manufacturing arc-welded steel pipes at Footscray Hume Steel Ltd.

1920s Construction of building which later became known as the ‘Bottom Factory’

c1925 Construction of sub-station

1926 ‘Works’ owned by Hume Pipe Co. Ltd. listed in rate book as having NAV of £432

1920s Use of electrically-operated moving overhead lifting apparatus

1929 Hume Pipe Co. leases five acres of land from the Commonwealth for pipe storage

1940s Construction of ‘Top Factory’

1943 Death of W.R. Hume and also of his eldest son, Walter

1950 Hume Pipe Co re-named Humes Ltd.

1951 Humes firm‘ largest manufacturers of steel reinforced concrete pipes in Australia’

1960 Humes Ltd. buys out W.R. Hume Pty. Ltd – rival firm established by Hume family

1974 Humes’ application for planning permit to develop plant refused

1974 Severe flood on Maribyrnong, halts production at Hume Pipes – 15 May

1976 Re-zoning of land from ‘General Industrial’ to ‘Proposed Public Open Space’

1977 Humes Ltd. purchases five acres of land from the Commonwealth for pipe storage

1978 Purchase of study area by Board of Works

1979 Transfer of operations to Laverton. Closure of factory at Maribyrnong

1980 Dispute between Board of Works and City of Sunshine about purchase of study area

1981 Proposed amendment 157 to Metropolitan Planning Scheme

1983 Demolition of Amenities Building

1984 Brief prepared for stabilisation work

1984-6 Demolition of various sheds including bottom factory

1985 Community consultation re future of study area

1986 Stabilisation and excavation works around bluestone buildings

1987 Bicentennial grant of $2 million for development of ‘Historic Parklands’,
later Pipemakers Park

1988 Opening of Pipemakers Park

Source: Melbourne's Living Museum

YOUTUBE: 2022 FLOODING

DEFENCE EXPLOSIVES FACTORY MARIBYRNONG

Researched and compiled by Andrew Parker 2023