Lalor: the making of a suburb

Lalor’s remarkable history as a housing co-operative has been brought vividly to life by Australian National University academic Moira Scollay in a new book entitled Lalor: The Peter Lalor Home Building Co-operative 1946-2012.
Faced with a chronic housing shortage, returned serviceman from the Australian Army Pay Corps set up a building co-operative in 1946 to help young families fulfil their dreams of home ownership.
“Returned serviceman thought: ‘We didn’t come back for this’. So all parties pooled their resources and worked together to bring home ownership for all one step closer,” Dr Scollay said.
The following year swampy land was acquired some 13 miles from Melbourne CBD and over the next few years 200 weatherboard or brick veneer, architect-designed homes were created – establishing what is now known as Lalor.
The Peter Lalor Building Co-operative aimed for much more than housing however – a hospital, school, theatre and community centre were to be built – generating more than 150 jobs.
“They were at the vanguard of modern pre-fabricated building techniques and tile and timber industries were created to support the home building effort.”
Worldwide such initiatives have been deemed so successful in responding to social change, resilient in times of economic uncertainty and a great way to create jobs and build communities, that the United Nations has declared 2012 the International Year of Co-operatives.
In keeping with the ethos of such schemes, the Lalor co-operative didn’t run at a profit. All money made was to be reinvested back into the scheme, Dr Scollay said. However, post-war material shortages and rising prices eventually forced the co-operative into liquidation.
“I was surprised at the scale of the dream. The building co-operative aspired to a new world order, a new way of life. While this is Lalor’s story, it provides insights into the history of the co-operative and labour movements and urban and housing development in Australia.”
The book is an edited version of Dr Scollay’s five-year PhD thesis, completed in 2010, and combines her two passions – community development and Labour history.
Dr Scollay’s thesis was jointly supported by the City of Whittlesea, ANU and the Australian Research Council.
A website has been set up to supplement the book. The Peter Lalor Home Building Co-operative, 1946 – 2012
It includes notes, references and a full bibliography, as well as 70 short biographies of Lalor residents and 15 tables providing an overview of the entire community.

Eltham Gateway northern walk

Join the Eltham District Historical Society for a heritage excursion Saturday March 3rd. Meet at 2.00 pm at the Local History Centre, 728 Main Road, Eltham.

The Eltham Gateway is the name adopted for the section of Main Road Eltham leading from the roundabout at Fitzsimons Lane to the Eltham town centre.

The name has its origin in a 1987 planning report for Eltham Shire Council that identified this precinct as having special characteristics that warrant special planning protection. The area includes historic and other "Eltham character" buildings, significant parkland and extensive canopy tree cover. The land fronting this section of Main Road now has its own special planning controls that are intended to preserve the character that is so important to Eltham and its residents.

This part of Main Road has been the main entrance to Eltham from the earliest times of European settlement. Originally the only access was through Lower Plenty but 50 years ago the Fitzsimons Lane Bridge over the Yarra River was opened, providing alternative access. This joined Main Road at Eltham South and from there the traditional road into Eltham was followed.

Part of today’s Main Road follows Maria Street of Josiah Holloway’s 1851 subdivision of Little Eltham. It is well known local history that before the coming of the railway in 1902 the Eltham "town centre" stretched along Maria Street, generally between Brougham and Bridge Streets. The remaining buildings from this period provide a significant character component of today’s Eltham Gateway.

The Eltham District Historical Society's Eltham Local History Centre at 728 Main Road (cnr. Brougham Street, Melway ref. 21 J7) is about halfway along the Gateway and so provides a convenient starting place to walk the northern part. The walk is on Saturday 3rd March, starting at 2pm. The length is about 2km. There are many stops along the way so it will take about two hours. There is no charge and the walk is open to Society members and the general public.

The walk will extend northerly as far as the Eltham Library. It will pass many old Eltham Township buildings and we can look at photos of how they appeared in earlier times. In Alistair Knox Park we can see modern sculptures and signs on the Heidelberg School Artists’ Trail. The return walk is along the Diamond Creek path.

The Local History Centre will be open at the conclusion of the walk for those who want to view the displays, have a cuppa or a chat.

Please book with Russell at edhs1@bigpond.com

Victorian newspapers on Trove

The National Library of Australia is pleased to announce that the following titles from Victoria are now available in Digitised newspapers and more on Trove:

The Ararat advertiser (Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
The Bacchus Marsh Express (Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
Bairnsdale Advertiser and Tambo and Omeo Chronicle (Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
Ballarat courier (Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
Brighton Southern Cross (Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
The Casterton News and the Merino and Sandford Record (Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
The Colac Herald (Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
The Essendon Gazette and Keilor, Bulla and Broadmeadows Reporter (Moonee Ponds, Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
The Horsham Times (Vic. : 1882 - 1954)
Independent (Footscray, Vic. : 1883 - 1922)
Frankston & Somerville Standard (Vic. : 1921 - 1939)
Frankston Standard (Frankston, Vic. : 1949)
The Lilydale Express (Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
Lilydale Express and Yarra Glen, Wandin Yallock, Upper Yarra, Healesville and Ringwood Chronicle (Vic. : 1914)
The McIvor Times and Rodney Advertiser (Heathcote, Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
The Mildura Cultivator (Vic. : 1888 - 1920)
The Prahran Telegraph (Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
The Queenscliff Sentinel (Vic. : 1884 - 1885)
Queenscliff Sentinel, Drysdale, Portarlington & Sorrento Advertiser (Vic. : 1885 - 1894)
Queenscliff Sentinel, Drysdale, St. Leonards, Sorrento, Portsea, Portarlington, Point Lonsdale and Bellarineshire Advertiser
Record (Emerald Hill, Vic : 1914 - 1918)
Reporter (Box Hill, Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
Standard (Frankston, Vic. : 1939 - 1949)
Sunshine Advocate (Vic. : 1924 - 1954)
Warrnambool Standard (Vic. : 1914 - 1918)
Werribee Shire Banner (Vic. : 1911 - 1952)

These titles have been funded by the State Library of Victoria.

To find out the latest titles which have been added to Trove, subscribe to one of our Web feeds. (Scroll to the bottom of the complete list for Victoria)

Kinglake 350 author Adrian Hyland in conversation

As Australia remembers the 3^rd anniversary of Black Saturday - Eltham Library will present Kinglake 350 author Adrian Hyland in conversation with Arnold Zable on Tuesday 14 February at 7.00pm

Kinglake 350 is a very readable story of what took place in the Kinglake community on Black Saturday through the eyes of local policeman Roger Wood. If you want to know what actually happened on Black Saturday, this book is a good place to start.

Melbourne writer and author Arnold Zable profiles members of the Flowerdale community who were affected by Black Saturday in yesterdays Age. He ran writing workshops for Black Saturday survivors in Flowerdale and other affected towns in a project supported by the Grace Marion Wilson Trust, Alexandra Library and the Victorian Writers Centre.