The cultural heritage significance of a place or object
is the sum of intergenerational heritage values
recognised in that place or object.
Welcome – WominjekaThanks for coming back for the 7th Edition of the Heritage Council's quarterly newsletter. If you're a new subscriber, thanks for signing up! Before you read on, if you would like more information about the Heritage Council of Victoria and what we do, check out our website.
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Fine Art Gallery, Ballarat (H0680)
Contents:- Recent inclusions in the Victorian Heritage Register
- Launch of the ‘HCV Hub’
- Custodian Interview: Camp Hill Central School (H1642) – Christopher Barker (School Principal)
- Happy 50th Birthday: The Underground Car Park (H1004)
- If you missed it...VHR Criteria and Threshold Guidelines 2022
- If this place could talk... Redesdale Bridge (H1419)
- Can you guess what this is?
- Updates from Heritage Victoria
- Upcoming
📷: Flinders Telegraph Cable Complex and Pier (H2413), Mornington Peninsula, Heritage Victoria 22
1. Recent inclusions in the Victorian Heritage RegisterThe Victorian Heritage Register, established under the Heritage Act 2017, includes the state’s most significant heritage places, objects and historic shipwrecks. The role of the Heritage Council of Victoria is to ensure that our diverse cultural heritage is enjoyed, managed and protected for current and future generations; so the Heritage Council decides which places and objects are included in or removed from the Victorian Heritage Register.
The Flinders Telegraph Cable Complex and Pier is associated with the installation and first successful operation of submarine telegraphic communications in Victoria. Telegraphic communications between Victoria and
Tasmania were operated and expanded at this site until the introduction of telephonic communications in the 1930s. This place connected trade between Victoria and Tasmania and enabled rapid communication between Tasmania, the rest of Australia, and the world. The archaeological deposits and features at the site of the Flinders Telegraph Cable Complex and Pier may contain information about the construction and location of original buildings and structures. Future archaeological investigations could reveal information about the establishment, occupation, and development of the place over time, as well as its abandonment. The Flinders Pier is also socially significant to the community that has grown around the scientific study and popular observation of the Victorian Common or Weedy
Seadragon, Phyllopteryx taeniolatus. The pier has been a focus of accelerating levels of activity related to the study and observation of seadragons since at least the 1970s. The high profile and popular appeal of the seadragon has led to widespread attachment of the community who are drawn to this location.
The Albanian Mosque in Shepparton was opened in 1960 and is known in Albanian as Xhamia Shqiptare, Shepparton. It is the earliest purpose-built mosque in Victoria which has fulfilled a
religious function since its opening and has also operated as a community centre for the transmission of Albanian culture and language. In the early to mid-twentieth century, Albanians were one of the largest Muslim groups to settle in Victoria, most migrating to the Goulburn Valley area to undertake agricultural work. In 1955, the community formed the Shepparton Albanian Moslem Society and decided to build a mosque in their new permanent home (notably at a time when mosque building in Albania and other Eastern bloc countries was outlawed). These factors explain why Shepparton, rather than Melbourne, was the location of the state’s first purpose-built mosque. Today there are around 3500 Muslims in the Shepparton area and while the majority of the congregation come from non-Albanian
backgrounds, the Albanian Mosque remains the most popular. This mosque is known across Victoria as the first and is visited by Muslims from around the state seeking to better understand the history and traditions of Islam.
📷: State Library Victoria Mohammedan Mosque, Shepparton, Vic. 1920-1954 Rose Stereograph Collection H32492/8988 Fine Art Gallery, Ballarat (H2425)
The Wombeetch Puyuun Grave Monument and Dawson Family Grave is of historical significance to the State of Victoria. Wombeetch Puyuun was a well-known member of the Liwura Gundidj clan of the Djargurd Wurrung
people, who are the Traditional Owners of the Camperdown area. Wombeetch Puyuun was a leader, poet, astrologer and revered elder who held much cultural knowledge. Wombeetch Puyuun developed a close friendship with Scottish pastoralist James Dawson. Together with his daughter Isabella, Dawson recorded Aboriginal languages and culture, and Wombeetch Puyuun was a key informant. In 1876 Dawson was appointed a ‘Local Guardian of Aborigines’ (a term used in the Aboriginal Protection Act 1869) and publicly advocated for Aboriginal people and highlighted injustice at a time when such activism was rare. Following the death of his friend in 1883, James Dawson was horrified that Wombeetch Puyuun had been buried in a segregated ‘Aboriginal section’ of the Camperdown Cemetery without a
headstone. Dawson constructed the monument in mid-1885 and had Wombeetch Puyuun’s body reinterred at its base to give the elder the respect and dignity he deserved. At 6 metres tall the Grave Monument was the grandest of several colonial monuments/headstones in Victoria and was the tallest monument in Camperdown Cemetery for decades. The Wombeetch Puyuun Grave Monument and the Dawson Family Grave together speak to the relationship of respect between James and Wombeetch Puyuun, and the actions of James and Isabella to advocate for Aboriginal people. Today, the Eastern Maar people hold James and Isabella Dawson in high esteem for their efforts to defend the rights of their people at a time when such acts of what some may now see as ‘reconciliation’ were uncommon.
📷: Wombeetch Puyuun Grave Monument (H2423), Corangamite, Heritage Victoria 22
📷: Royal Botanic Gardens (H1459) | Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria
2. Launch of the ‘HCV Hub’
The Heritage Council of Victoria is committed to ensuring its regulatory processes, conducted pursuant to the Heritage Act 2017, are accessible, user-friendly, and are integrated with other government agency systems, including those of Heritage Victoria.
To accomplish this, the Heritage Council has launched the ‘HCV Hub’, an online portal for the quick and secure lodgement of material for its hearings and reviews.
For more information on the HCV Hub, lodging submissions in relation to Executive Director recommendations and participating in Heritage Council hearings and reviews, please visit the Heritage Council website.
If you have any queries, please contact the Heritage Council via email at heritage.council@delwp.vic.gov.au
Did you know Australia’s oldest Chinatown is in Melbourne?There are 19 places/objects on the Victorian Heritage Register which directly reflect the contribution and experiences of Victoria’s Chinese communities.
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Camp Hill Central School (H1642)
a) What do you think is most significant about the Camp Hill School’s history/why is it important to protect? "This year we celebrate 150 years of state education – Camp Hill Primary School has existed for 147 of those years...Locally the building is iconic and is part of the rich tapestry of heritage buildings in Bendigo. Immediately adjacent to the school building is the police barracks, used to house the police officers stationed on the gold fields.
The building initially designed to house the police horses remains on the school site and is used as a multipurpose room."
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Camp Hill Central School (H1642)
b) What do you feel are the benefits of teaching in a heritage building versus a completely modern building? "The physical layout of the heritage building allows for quite open spaces and accommodates our senior students. Having a heritage building provides the opportunity for students to engage in local history and to recognise their membership in a learning community which extends over 147 years. The Camp Hill Primary School...[is a] purpose-built heritage building, [and] continues to serve this purpose more than adequately, as it has done for over 100 years." c) What is your favourite part of the Camp Hill School building and grounds? "My favourite part of the school building is it’s façade and bell tower which sits atop of the building. The building looks out over the Rosalind Park precinct which provides a lush green vista for the playground."
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Camp Hill Central School (H1642)
d) Do you have any favourite facts about the Camp Hill School? "A couple of the interesting facts I have learned about Camp Hill is there was a fire man stationed in the bell tower 24 hours per day 7 days per week, until a new fire spotting tower was established at One Tree Hill. The other interesting fact I learned whilst giving a tour of the building, is the pine used in the construction of roof trusses was all imported, as all of the timber at the time had been consumed by the gold mines. The Welsh slate used on the roof of the school building is the same slate
used on Buckingham Palace."
e) If you could personify Camp Hill School, what 3 words would you use? "Majestic, significant, stoic"
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Camp Hill Central School (H1642)
f) What did you know about cultural heritage and its protection before you started working at the Camp Hill School? And what has it taught you? "Living in Bendigo I was aware of the heritage protection on many of the historic buildings. Taking on the custodianship of a heritage building has taught me the importance of maintaining these buildings for the benefit of those in the future. "Working in and having responsibility for a heritage building, especially one that continues to serve its original purpose, has given me a great historical sense, that at some time in the future generations will look back and recognise the role I and others played
as members of the Camp Hill Primary School community."
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Camp Hill Central School (H1642)
h) Do you ever get feedback from visitors or students about the Camp Hill School building? What do people think? "We constantly get feedback from visitors, some are past students, others have photos of relatives who once attended, while the vast majority are visitors to the town. In most instances the comments relate to the architecture of the building and how majestic it looks perched high up on the hill. "Stories of the resident ghost are probably better left to another time."
We would like to thank Christopher Barker for his time and work at the Camp Hill Primary School. If you would like to find out more, you can read about this place in the Victorian Heritage
Database or head to the School website.
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Camp Hill Central School (H1642)
Did you know the oldest building originally built in Melbourne is St James Old Cathedral (H0011), built in 1839.It was relocated from its original location on the corner of Collins and William Streets to King Street Melbourne in 1914.
📷: University of Melbourne | Underground Carpark (H1004) | Building no.195
4. Happy 50th Birthday to the Underground Carpark at Melbourne University (H1004)The Underground Car Park is located in the heart of the University of Melbourne's Parkville campus. You may recognise it from the film Mad Max! The car park had been provided for in the Campus Master Plan which was prepared by Bryce Mortlock in 1970. The scheme provided a solution to the problem of too many cars on the campus whilst simultaneously providing a landscaped area
above - a space known as South Lawn. It was designed by the architectural firm Loder and Bayly in association with Harris, Lange and Partners. The engineer in charge of the project was JL van der Molen. The Underground Car Park is constructed of reinforced concrete shells with parabolic profiles supported on short columns. The columns contain drainage pipes which allowed for the planting of the lawn and trees of the South Lawn. The east entrance contains a door from a 1745 house in St Stephen's Green, Dublin whilst the west entrance is framed by two Atlas figures from the demolished Colonial Bank, Elizabeth Street. At the time of its construction no other car park in Australia was fully enclosed and concealed underneath landscape. The vaulted form of the car park interior creates a dramatic
and evocative space. The design demonstrates an innovative and imaginative solution to the mundane and utilitarian problem of car parking.
📷: University of Melbourne | Underground Carpark (H1004) | 'Building no.195 Atlantis' West entrance via Professors Walk
VHR Criteria and Threshold Guidelines 2022 – revised version The Heritage Council of Victoria is pleased to announce the publication of a revised version of the Victorian Heritage Register Criteria and Threshold Guidelines. The Guidelines are an essential document for guiding the assessment and determination of the cultural heritage significance of places and objects under the Heritage Act 2017. To ensure they continue to be an effective tool, they are regularly
reviewed. The most recent review has concluded and the changes that have been made have been grounded in feedback from regular users of the Guidelines. The revisions provide greater clarity in how the Guidelines are to be used and the Criteria are to be applied. The Criteria themselves have not changed. The Heritage Council would like to thank Heritage Victoria, past Heritage Council members and the many heritage practitioners and specialists who generously provided feedback and contributed their expertise to the consultation and review process. The revised Guidelines and a summary of the main changes can be found on the Heritage Council website. PLEASE NOTE: The revised 2022 Guidelines apply to all new recommendations made by the Executive Director AFTER 1 December 2022 and to all nominations to the Executive Director. The previous Victorian Heritage Register Criteria and Threshold Guidelines 2020 apply to any Executive Director recommendation that was made prior to 1 December 2022 and any hearings in progress prior to that date. Both versions of the Guidelines can be accessed from the Heritage Council website. If you have any questions about which version of the Victorian Heritage Register Criteria and Threshold Guidelines applies
to your matter, please contact heritage.council@delwp.vic.gov.au or call (03) 8508 1656.
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Redesdale Bridge (H1419)
6. If this place could talk... Redesdale Bridge (H1419)The township of Redesdale is 95 kilometres north-west of Melbourne and is located in the City of Greater Bendigo. The parish and township was named after Captain Robert William Rede who was goldfields commissioner and sheriff of Ballarat at the time of the Eureka Stockade Rebellion in 1854 (Victorian Places –
Redesdale). Redesdale grew near the crossing of the Campaspe River, catering to miners en route to the Heathcote Goldfields, and soon established itself as a solid agricultural township (Redesdale – History). In 1868 the Redesdale steel lattice-truss bridge was built across the Campaspe River (Redesdale – History). The trusses for the bridge were originally imported for a river crossing in suburban Hawthorn in 1859 but the ship
bringing the trusses to Melbourne caught fire and sank in Hobsons Bay (Redesdale – History). Ten years later, the trusses were salvaged and used to erect the Redesdale bridge (Redesdale – History).
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Redesdale Bridge (H1419)
If the Redesdale Bridge could talk, I wonder what stories it would tell? Before the bridge was even constructed, it was the source of gossip. The Melbourne salvaging firm that raised the ironwork from the bottom of the bay arranged sale to the government. But details of the deal were released, and it caused a scandal in Parliament. The material was then sold privately – two hundred tons was sold to the goldfield shires of McIvor and Metcalfe for only £1000. The original consignment of British wrought-iron bridge materials weighed around 350 tons, and along with the erection cranes, it cost £10,500. So, the sinking of the ship carrying the consignment represented a disaster for Melbourne's metropolitan bridge
scene. The Redesdale Bridge bears the date 1867, despite construction being finished in 1868 (Goldfields Guide). The bridge was designed by engineer TB Muntz and built by a contractor named Doran. It was completed late because the rivets were unsuitable for the bridge, so they needed to be reissued, and the project went considerably over budget at £6274 (To Melbourne).
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Redesdale Bridge (H1419)
According to the Kyneton Observer the opening of Redesdale Bridge was a most celebrated affair with lines of horses and carriages and many festivities throughout the day – "invitations were sent to a great number of gentlemen including 70 or 80 representatives of public bodies (The Kyneton Observer [Vic: 1856 – 1900], Tue 28 Jan 1868, Page 2, ‘OPENING OF THE CAMPASE BRIDGE’)". The Redesdale Bridge spans 45.7m across the river and has two roadways which are carried between three metal lattice girders in a through truss configuration. It was constructed earlier
than any other rural Victorian lattice-girder truss bridge, all the others having been built with the benefit of hindsight into the devastating potential of freak floodwaters that had been unleashed across the State in 1870. It is the second-oldest lattice-girder bridge in Victoria.
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Redesdale Bridge (H1419)
The Redesdale Bridge is one of Victoria's most historically interesting bridges, built for a cross-country mail route that linked the prosperous goldfield centres of Kyneton and Heathcote. In retrospect, any impartial observer today would have to concede that councillors of the adjoining shires of Metcalfe and McIvor in that long-departed era of gold-fever, had indeed struck a bargain in their purchase of the materials for this very long-lived road bridge. The Redesdale Bridge stands today as an impressive monument to Britain's Industrial Revolution, built in a remote corner of the British Empire that once thrived on gold.
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Redesdale Bridge (H1419)
7. Can you guess what this is?Can you guess which Victorian Heritage Register object this close-up is of?
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography
Here are some clues: Constructed in 1906 to the design of Australian sculptor Charles Douglas Richardson. It is one of the largest marble sculptures in the state. It was made to commemorate the 50th anniversary of something happening in Bendigo.
The answer will be in the next edition of the newsletter.
Previous edition answer: The Bendigo Pottery (H0674) 📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography
Heritage Victoria, in the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, administers the Heritage Act 2017. Heritage Victoria makes recommendations to the Heritage Council in relation to places and objects nominated to the Victorian Heritage Register, assesses permit applications to make changes to heritage places and objects, and manages the enforcement and compliance provisions of the Heritage Act 2017. It is also responsible for the operation of the Living Heritage Program, and managing historical archaeological sites across Victoria and maritime heritage in State and Commonwealth waters. General permit exemptions to go-live later this monthHeritage Victoria is excited to announce the introduction of general permit exemptions later this month. They will apply to all places and objects included in the Victorian Heritage Register (VHR) and empower custodians to carry out certain everyday works and activities without approval from Heritage Victoria. Maintenance and cleaning, minor repairs, and vegetation and landscape management are among a range of works and activities covered by general exemptions, making it easier for owners and managers to preserve and protect their piece of Victoria’s history. General exemptions are the result of an extensive period of considered
research and targeted consultation with key stakeholders. A major driver behind this change is strengthening Heritage Victoria’s valuable partnership with owners and managers of heritage assets and enabling better heritage outcomes. For more information on general exemptions, keep an eye on the Heritage Victoria website and DELWP social media for further updates.
Successful projects in Round 7 of the Living Heritage Program What does an historic timber truss bridge in Gippsland, a former railway water tower in Murtoa and an 1850s Fisherman’s Shed have in common? They are all among the eighteen significant heritage places and objects from across the state receiving heritage grants through the seventh competitive round of the Victorian Government’s Living Heritage Program. A total of $2.212 million provided through round seven will support owners and managers of publicly accessible State-listed heritage places to carry out urgent conservation works.
📷: Queenscliffe Maritime Museum at the Fisherman’s Shed, successful applicant in Round 7 of the Living Heritage Program.
Heritage Victoria Emergency & Bushfire Recovery Team Update Heritage Victoria officers were recently deployed throughout parts of Victoria as part of the DELWP Rapid Risk Assessment teams to see firsthand how the recent storms and floods have impacted heritage places, and to help communities recover and rebuild.
While many heritage sites were impacted by the heavy rain and floods, residents in Barmah rallied together to help protect the historic Barmah Punt, the Murray River’s oldest cable punt ferry, that dates back to the early 1920s, replacing an earlier punt that dated back to the 1860s. Residents sandbagged the site, saving the historic site from floodwaters, with heritage officers noting ‘no visible impact inside fenced area on features of Barmah punt (and) no water inundation.’ Heritage officers are continuing their work across the State as they inspect, assess, and offer remediation advice to heritage places to ensure they can continue to be enjoyed for years to come.
📷: Barmah Punt (H2164) October 18 2022, before the flood peak (Photograph: Ben Edgell, DELWP)
📷: Barmah Punt surrounded by flood waters October 25, 2022. (Image courtesy DELWP)
King David’s School Visit the Archaeology LabOn Friday 11th of November, the Lab was visited by a group from The King David School’s Year 9 Archaeology class. The students came with questions about archaeology as a career, identifying artefacts, and the role of Heritage Victoria in preserving the state’s archaeology. They also impressed us with their analytical skills in identifying object types and uses when we presented them with ‘mystery’ objects that our team thought might challenge them. They puzzled over the elegant decoration given to chamber pots, and were
fascinated by 19th century children’s toys, as well as the Eureka pistol and a burial box from Pentridge Prison. The class had been studying archaeology of the Middle East for the last few terms, so it was a great opportunity for Jeremy Smith, Heritage Victoria’s senior archaeologist, to share with them his experience of working in Syria in the 90s. They will also be developing their interests more practically in a field trip planned to Israel for next year, where the students are excited to visit some archaeological sites and see up close the artefacts and archaeology that they’ve been studying. We’re sure that this visit to Heritage Victoria’s Lab will prove as an inspiring look into what historical archaeology in Victoria is like, and hopefully we may see these budding future archaeologists in the field in a
few years’ time!
📷: King David’s School students inspecting artefacts (Heritage Victoria)
📷: Heritage Victoria staff presenting to students about work conducted at the Artefact and Research Centre (Heritage Victoria)
8. UpcomingDECEMBER JANUARY
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Bendigo Masonic Hall (H0119)
As a peak heritage body, we acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the Country that we call Victoria, as the original custodians of Victoria’s land and waters, and acknowledge the importance and significance of Aboriginal cultural heritage in Victoria. We honour Elders past and present whose knowledge and wisdom has ensured the continuation of Aboriginal culture and traditional practices. Note: The statutory scope of the Heritage Act 2017 covers places and objects of cultural heritage significance to the State of Victoria, but does not apply to a place or object that is of cultural heritage significance solely on the ground of
its association with Aboriginal tradition. In this newsletter, the terms ‘cultural heritage’ and ‘heritage’ are used generically and interchangeably to refer to the ‘heritage’ to which the Heritage Act 2017 applies, recognising that heritage places and objects may have multiple attributes and values. To find out more information about Aboriginal Cultural Heritage and Traditional Owner responsibilities, see the Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Council.
📷: HIN LIM AIPP 2022 | Hin Lim Photography | Ballarat East Fire Station (H1001)
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