Dromana & District Historical Society in Dromana, Victoria, Australia | Non-profit organisation

Dromana & District Historical Society

Locality: Dromana, Victoria, Australia

Phone: +61 3 5981 9119

Address: 359A Point Nepean Road 3936 Dromana, VIC, Australia

Website: http://home.vicnet.net.au/~dromana

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• Non-profit organisation
• History Museum

25.01.2022 Check out this page. Some recent posts about the Mornington Peninsula in particular the air crashes at Arthurs Seat

24.01.2022 And the one about after school https://www.youtube.com/watch

24.01.2022 Lance Hodgins is coming back to give us his take on The Great Mornington Election Scam on Tuesday 21st August. NOTE; This event is being held at the Dromana Scout Hall/Memorial Hall on the foreshore near the pier

22.01.2022 We have been quiet over winter but now spring is here we have organised Paul Whitaker to be our next guest speaker which we am really looking forward to. It would be lovely to see some new faces on the day.

22.01.2022 Comparison photo from 1975 to 2019 showing the Hillview Quarry and development of housing in the east of Dromana township

21.01.2022 We are saddened by the loss of another of our long term supporters and a person who made a difference in the world through his work and connection with his family and community

20.01.2022 We are looking for information on Tom Salt. Information can be sent to [email protected]

18.01.2022 Watch the master artist Michael Leeworthy work his magic on the fire fighting water tank. Michael was commissioned by D&DHS to produce this mural as part of our Creative Community Grant.

17.01.2022 Book presented to dad to celebrate the end of WW1 at the Main Creek PS by Flinders Shire 1919

16.01.2022 For our meeting on Tuesday 19th March we are having a show and tell night. We will also be screening a slide show of Safety Beach/Martha Cove showing the changes over the years. All welcome and even better bring along your favourite local photos or items and share with others. Starts at 7 pm with light refreshments afterwards.

16.01.2022 Come and join us for an interesting morning with Noel Erbs as he shares with us the history of buses on the peninsula

16.01.2022 Stephen Parsons was listed as a farmer at Main Ridge in the August 1940 Shire of Flinders Voting Roll. The photo shows Stephen Parsons who was a saddler in Victoria in June 1929. Can anyone help with information as to whether these 2 gentlemen are the same person, where they lived, relatives, etc?

15.01.2022 Thanks to Frank Singleton and Charlotte Lack we were able to help with the crash location of the Avro Anson that crashed into Arthurs Seat for the Sites of Significance Then and Now WWII project https://www.vic.gov.au/sites-significance

15.01.2022 For our meeting on Tuesday 19th March we are having a 'show and tell' night. We will also be screening a slide show of Safety Beach/Martha Cove showing the changes over the years. All welcome and even better bring along your favourite local photos or items and share with others. Starts at 7 pm with light refreshments afterwards.

15.01.2022 D&DHS are celebrating their 30th anniversary this year and are starting it off with an birthday celebration on Sunday 9th April.

14.01.2022 We are delighted to have Helen Blakeley as our guest speaker for our next meeting on February 21st commencing at the earlier time of 6.30 pm. All welcome.

13.01.2022 Come and join us for an interesting morning finding out about the tunnel that runs under Arthurs Seat and some insights into the building of this tunnel.

13.01.2022 2017 Calendars are now available for $10 each.

13.01.2022 We are celebrating the completion of our Creative Community Grant project of the Firey's Tank Mural and invite interested persons to this event. Details in the flyer below.

11.01.2022 BOOK REVIEW W.H. BLAKELEY PIONEER SAW MAKER, FARMER & TRADE UNIONIST Red Hill and Brighton identity, Helen Blakeley has written a book entitled W.H. Blakeley Pioneer Saw Maker, Farmer & Trade Unionist. The book is a biography about Helens grandfather William Henry Blakeley. The reader is conveyed a sense of what life was like for the everyday person in industrial England, early Melbourne and making a home and farm at Red Hill. William Henry Blakeley was born in 183...9 in Sheffield, England where he learnt his craft of saw making before accepting a commission from the Tairua Timber and Sawmill Company in New Zealand to install and operate a wide bandsaw. After completing this project he travelled on to Melbourne to visit his mother who was living on Edward Barkers selection at Red Hill. He established a saw making business in Melbourne and also worked part-time for Carrons Timber Yard as a saw doctor. Here he became a founding member and treasurer of the United Saw Mills & Timber Yard Employees Society. By the 1870s his business was prospering and William purchased land at Red Hill above Eatons Cutting (on the southeastern corner of Arthurs Seat Road). He called the property Ecclesall after his home town in England. William and his family lived on this property part time, constructing a timber dwelling and managers house. Parts of the property were cleared, crops were grown and an orchard planted. At times the property was worked by a manager and at other times the property was leased out. The book tells of how W.H. Blakeley & Co weathered the depressions of the late 19th century and the early 20th century despite some unwise business decisions which necessitated the selling of the familys Melbourne home and moving to rooms above the business then moving to the farm at Red Hill. In 1931 a long standing business debt saw part of the Red Hill property sold to Thomas Chapman. William died in 1921 at Ecclesall leaving the business to be jointly owned by his wife Annie, and his son Leslie. (Footnote - The property Ecclesall remains in the family today and the business of W.H. Blakeley is still managed by descendants of William Henry Blakeley). See more

11.01.2022 Fishing was one of the earliest occupations of those who settled in the Dromana and Rosebud area and these 3 photos from our collection show a glimpse our early fishermens daily life. Fish caught were sold to local residents and also transported to Melbourne by ship to be sold there. These early fishermen often lived on the foreshore in huts constructed of various materials found locally such as the wattle and daub hut with thatched roof shown here. Nets required on-going maintenance and the pier proved to be a useful spot to hang nets to dry and for mending.

10.01.2022 Liz Dart had the vision to produce a historical display for the 90th Red Hill Show at held at Red Hill. Unfortunately Liz fell and broke her leg so was unable to see the project through. It was left to our members to put the display together. A big thank you goes out to all our members involved in producing an informative and interesting display within the time available.

09.01.2022 We have been able to secure booking the Sandy Christie Room at the Old Shire Office Building for our meetings again this year. Our first meeting of the year is on Tuesday 18th February 2020 at 7 pm when we have shire archivist, Claire Sandell coming to talk to us about what her job involves and to share some highlights of this role so far. All welcome.

09.01.2022 Christmas seems a dim memory now and Australia Day has been done and dusted so soon it will be time for our next meeting and time to find out what Gerry Shepherd can tell us about the Early Peninsula and Life of a Sailor. This is an evening meeting on Tuesday February 20th commencing at 7 pm in the Sandy Christie Room.

09.01.2022 Lance Hodgins is coming back to give us his take on 'The Great Mornington Election Scam' on Tuesday 21st August. NOTE; This event is being held at the Dromana Scout Hall/Memorial Hall on the foreshore near the pier

07.01.2022 Nearly there putting the exhibition together. Looking forward to seeing the end result.

07.01.2022 It was an interesting and busy afternoon

07.01.2022 No meeting for June but we are having an open day for working on the research for the book and video about the WWI enlistees from Dromana and surrounds. If your relatives were from the area and enlisted we would love to hear your stories about them, where they lived, what they did before they went to war, what they did after the war, how the war changed them, did they marry, did they have children, did they stay in the area, etc. Date: Tuesday June 19, 2018 Where: D&D...HS Museum, 359A Point Nepean Road, Dromana Time: 11 am - 3 pm What to Bring: Yourself with a willingness help with the research for this project Light Refreshmnents provided during the day Enquiries: [email protected] Note: Once the WWI book has been completed we are planning on following up with a similar publication for WWII enlistees so if you know someone who should be included or should be interviewed please contact us at the above email address.

06.01.2022 Interesting article about George Blomfield and his trucks

06.01.2022 In the interests of our members our museum in the OSO Building will be closed until the situation with Covid-19 has resolved and the building is open to the public once more. We are still happy to answer any queries you may have via email ([email protected]) or through messenger.

06.01.2022 We are celebrating the completion of our Creative Community Grant project of the Fireys Tank Mural and invite interested persons to this event. Details in the flyer below.

05.01.2022 The museum has been broken into and a number of our artifacts are now missing. If you see or know anything about the whereabouts of these items please contact the police or send us a message. Photos of some of the items stolen and the extra large photographs in the Sandy Christie Room were removed from their frames and taken. Photos of these photos can be seen on our website at http://avoca.vicnet.net.au/~dromana/photosforsale.html

04.01.2022 Our November meeting is a tour of Mt Martha house on The Esplanade at Mt Martha commencing at 10 am. Hope to see you there.

04.01.2022 AR & F DITTERICH RESERVE, 431 MAIN CREEK ROAD, MAIN RIDGE Arthur Ralph Ditterich was a Shire of Flinders Councillor from 1961-1964. A.R. & F. Ditterich were Lif...e Members of the Main Ridge Cricket Club Ralph and Frank Ditterich were keen cricketers and involved in community affairs. They were involved in the planning and building of the bowls club and other works associated with the grounds. Both had orchards and lived in Valley View Lane, Main Ridge. Prior to 1926 Main Ridge was known as Main Creek and the name change was brought about by Frank Ditterich. Seven acres (2.8 hectares) was bought from C. Rigby in 1932 for a recreation ground at Main Ridge for the sum of 50 pounds ($100). A 10 pound ($20) deposit was raised by the community, funded in part by a sheep guessing competition. The balance payable over five years was raised by community fundraising efforts. In 1957 the gates were given as a gift by Mrs Lillian Adams of Main Ridge. On 28th April 1959 the Shire President was invited to unveil a plaque in memory of Frank Ditterich. Frank was born in Long Gully, Bendigo on 17th September 1895 and died on 28th December 1956 at Mentone. He married his wife Jessie in 1930. They had two sons Richard and David. Ralph was born in St Arnaud on 4th July, 1893 and married his wife Margaret in Palmerston, New Zealand in 1926. Their son Allan was born in 1929 and died in 1947. Ralph died in Redcliffe, Queensland in 1974.

02.01.2022 Our very own Ethel features in this video about school days https://www.youtube.com/watch This video and the following one about what children did after school were funded by a grant received by the Local History Network from the MPSC. The project was undertaken by Way Back When and involved Grade 5 and 6 students learning how to undertake oral history interviews, interviewing older people who had attended local schools and the results were then put together into a series of 4 videos and hopefully will be used as an educational resource to encourage more inter-generation interaction.

02.01.2022 Limited 2021 Calendars now available. To purchase a calendar send an email to [email protected] Price of calendars $15 plus postage if needed

02.01.2022 Photos taken at yesterdays celebration of the completion of our Creative Community Grant which resulted in Michael Leeworthy painting this striking mural and an art competition which produced some outstanding artworks from the students of Red Hill Consolidated School in Grades 3-6.

01.01.2022 We are having our November get together somewhere different this year. McClelland Gallery in Langwarrin is the venue and viewing of the sculptures is on agenda followed by lunch in the cafe.

01.01.2022 Hi All, about 5 years ago I painted this mural in Red Hill, Vic. Its at the entrance to the Epicurean restaurant RedHill Shoreham rd. Sorry not a Silo. I was ...struggling to get Murals to paint so I offered to paint it for free. It was a turning point for my art and work started coming and I now paint murals full time. The mural celebrates the new railway that came to the Mornington Peninsula in the 1920s. If youre interested heres a link to all my murals. https://www.facebook.com/simonwhiteart/ See more

01.01.2022 One of the clearest photos showing the town from the pier and the surrounding orchards and farms (from D&DHS collection). Note the wood piles ready for shipping on the left.

01.01.2022 Spring is just about here and with it our next guest speaker Noel Erbs to share his knowledge of Australias luxury liner the TSMV Kanimbla. The Sandy Christie Room is not available so we are availing ourselves on the hospitality of The Peninsula Club for this talk. Feel free to go after the talk or stay for lunch and a chat. T