THEMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY ABORIGINAL HISTORY Prepared for City of Greater Bendigo FINAL REPORT June 2013 Adopted by City of Greater Bendigo Council July 31, 2013 GREATER BENDIGO THEMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY JUNE 2013 Table of Contents Table of Contents 1 Introduction 4 Greater Bendigo 4 Thematic framework 5 Related places 5 Aboriginal history 5 Note on sources 6 Statement of significance 6 1.0 Theme 1: Shaping Greater Bendigo’s Environment 8 1.1 Tracing climate and topographical change 8 1.2 Tracing the emergence of Greater Bendigo’s plants and animals 10 1.3 Appreciating and protecting Greater Bendigo’s natural wonders 12 2.0 Theme 2: Peopling Greater Bendigo’s places and landscapes 16 2.1 Living as Greater Bendigo’s original inhabitants 16 2.2 Exploring, surveying and mapping 21 2.3 Migrating and making a home 22 2.4 Maintaining distinctive cultures 22 2.5 Promoting settlement 28 3.0 Theme 3: Connecting Greater Bendigo by transport and communications 35 3.1 Establishing pathways 35 3.2 Linking Greater Bendigo by rail 39 3.3 Linking Greater Bendigo by road 42 3.4 Travelling by tram 43 3.5 Linking Victorians by air 44 4.0 Theme 4: Transforming and managing Greater Bendigo’s land and natural resources 48 4.1 Grazing and raising livestock 48 4.2 Farming 49 4.3 Gold mining 50 4.4 Exploiting other mineral, forest and water resources 57 4.5 Transforming the land and waterways 62 5.0 Theme 5: Building Greater Bendigo’s industries and workforce 74 5.1 Processing raw materials 74 5.2 Developing a manufacturing capacity 83 5.3 Marketing and retailing 86 5.4 Exhibiting Greater Bendigo’s innovation and products 89 5.5 Banking and finance 90 5.6 Entertaining and socialising 92 6.0 Theme 6: Building towns, cities and the Greater Bendigo area 102 6.1 Establishing settlement in the Greater Bendigo Municipality 102 6.2 Creating Bendigo 104 6.3 Shaping the suburbs 108 6.4 Living in country towns 110 6.5 Marking significant phases in development of settlements, towns and cities 112 LOVELL CHEN 2013 1 GREATER BENDIGO THEMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY JUNE 2013 7.0 Theme 7: Governing Greater Bendigo area 133 7.1 Developing institutions of self-government and democracy 133 7.2 Struggling for political rights 135 7.3 Maintaining law and order 137 7.4 Defending Victoria and Australia 139 7.5 Protecting Greater Bendigo’s heritage 140 8.0 Theme 8: Building Greater Bendigo’s community life 144 8.1 Maintaining spiritual life 144 8.2 Educating people 147 8.3 Providing health and welfare 152 8.4 Preserving traditions and commemorating 155 8.5 Marking the phases of life 157 9.0 Theme 9: Shaping Greater Bendigo’s cultural and creative life 164 9.1 Participating in sport and recreation 164 9.2 Nurturing a vibrant arts scene 168 Bibliography 173 2 LOVELL CHEN 2013 GREATER BENDIGO THEMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY JUNE 2013 Authors/contributors The authors of this history are: Lovell Chen: Emma Hewitt, Dr Conrad Hamann, Anita Brady Dr Robyn Ballinger Dr Colin Pardoe In addition, Dr Dannielle Orr, Heritage Planner, City of Greater Bendigo, has provided considerable input and assistance into the revised structure and content of the history, including editorial assistance. LOVELL CHEN 2013 3 GREATER BENDIGO THEMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY JUNE 2013 Introduction This Thematic Environmental History has been prepared for the City of Greater Bendigo. It is a component of a larger project which also involves preparation of a study Overview Report; community consultation including community workshops held across the municipal area; compilation of a list of known and potential heritage places associated with the themes identified in the history; preparation of a statement of significance for the municipality; and the identification of priorities for future heritage study work. In undertaking this work, the authors acknowledge that the history is written about country of which the members and elders of the Jaara people of the Dja Dja Wurrung language community, the Barapa Barapa people, the Taungurung people, and the Ngurai-illam Wurrung people and their forebears, are the traditional owners. Greater Bendigo The Greater Bendigo municipality includes Victoria's third largest city by population, Bendigo, as well as a significant rural hinterland. Smaller townships are located at Axedale, Elmore, Goornong, Heathcote, Huntly, Lockwood and district, Marong, Mia Mia, Neilborough, Raywood, Redesdale, Sebastian and Woodvale. The municipality encompasses a total land area of approximately 3,000 square kilometres, of which a significant proportion is set aside as national, or regional parks; various crown land reserves; and public forests. Much of the private rural land is used for agricultural purposes, including poultry and pig farming, sheep and cattle grazing, and as vineyards. In the Thematic Environmental History, the historical names have been used: Bendigo Creek or goldfields for the early years, Sandhurst (1853–1891) and Bendigo (1891-to date). The city was also known briefly as Castleton, but it was not a popularly used name. The municipality is referred to by its current name as ‘Greater Bendigo’. Figure 1 Map of Greater Bendigo. Source: City of Greater Bendigo 4 LOVELL CHEN 2013 GREATER BENDIGO THEMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY JUNE 2013 Thematic framework This Thematic Environmental History documents the principal historical themes in the development of Greater Bendigo, examining and analysing the land use and settlement patterns of the municipality within an overriding thematic framework. The report has been structured, at the request of the City of Greater Bendigo, to directly reflect and respond to the main themes and sub-themes of Victoria’s Framework of Historical Themes.1 Accordingly, the history is not structured chronologically. The Thematic Environmental History is also not a complete history of the municipality, or an overview of events. Rather, it covers the physical evolution and development of Greater Bendigo, within the thematic framework, and identifies the important distinguishing characteristics of the municipality. The history also draws connections between people, events and places, and sheds light on the role of people, industry and other activities in shaping the landscape and built form of the municipality. The ongoing influence of the cultural and ethnic diversity which emerged on the goldfields 150 years ago is a rich theme of the municipality, as is the long thread of Aboriginal history and continuity, from the pre-contact period to the present. This ‘larger story’ of the persistence of historical themes into the twenty first century shows how historical patterns have endured, and reveals the way in which the municipality remains dynamic and evolving. The greater weight given to particular themes also reflects the importance of these themes in terms of the evolution and development of the municipal area – gold mining being an obvious example. Without due recognition given to the more important themes, the value of the heritage places associated with these themes may not be fully understood. Lesser- known themes, however, are also explored, helping to reveal the complex layering of culture, society, economy and industry over the landscape of Greater Bendigo. Restrictions on the word limit of a Thematic Environmental History, as recommended by Heritage Victoria,2 also constrain the extent to which particular themes can be examined. Intangible heritage, which amongst other things relates to practices, traditions, knowledge and skills, including those passed from generation to generation, is not addressed in the Thematic Environmental History. Related places The history makes reference to places associated with the themes, either in the body of the text or listed at the end of each section, as ‘Related places’. These include known extant places; potential but unconfirmed places; places of documented or potential heritage value or significance; and places which are not necessarily of heritage significance. The purpose of identifying these places is to illustrate how tangible the themes are, and how they are physically represented in the municipality. Heritage places in Greater Bendigo encompass buildings, structures, gardens and vegetation, landscapes and spaces. Some are Aboriginal places, or ruins such as historical archaeological sites. Sites of natural significance, including those of geological value, are also within the study area. Aboriginal history An account of the daily lives of the area’s Aboriginal peoples prior to European contact was written during the research for this Thematic Environmental History. It was drawn from historical documentary records such as the written observations and sketches of the first Europeans in the area, as well as extracts from the archaeological record and contemporary scholarly research. While the significant limitations of this approach are recognised, the LOVELL CHEN 2013 5 GREATER BENDIGO THEMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY JUNE 2013 research was undertaken to achieve some understanding of life before European settlement, and to assist with tracing later patterns and changes. However, the repercussions of colonialism impacted beyond the Greater Bendigo area and it was necessary to extend the account of this area’s Aboriginal peoples to a Victorian context, to trace movement and resettlement beyond this region. The Greater Bendigo Thematic Environmental History is a post-contact history that focuses on this municipality after Europeans arrived in the area. How the Aboriginal peoples of this country were affected by, and survived, this contact is detailed in Theme 2 ‘Peopling Greater Bendigo’s places and landscapes’. This is a condensed version of the ‘Aboriginal history’ report, which is in a separate volume, bounded by the geographical area of the Greater Bendigo municipality and the post-colonial contact timeframe. Note on sources This Thematic Environmental History has relied on, and refers to, numerous published histories, local histories, reports and pamphlets, archival and primary sources, and other sources of historical information. The sources are identified in endnote references.