Moonee Ponds Heritage Trail
This 5.3km walk starts at the Court House Museum in Mt Alexander Road and takes in many fascinating sites of historical interest in the Moonee Ponds area. Many of the buildings you will see on this walk are private residences. Please enjoy the sights from the street, and resist the temptation to venture onto any of the properties.
Difficulty: Moderate
Surface: Concrete, bitumen
Limited wheelchair access: All sections of this trail are sealed with some road crossings.
Parking: Parking is available in the median strip on Mt Alexander Road and around Queens Park.
Moonee Ponds Heritage Trail Map
Moonee Ponds Heritage Trail Walk Notes
1 Moonee Ponds Court House (1890)
This building was classified by the National Trust in 1975 and added to the Historic Buildings Register in 1994. This former Magistrates Court is now used as a Museum by the Essendon Historical Society.
Head south along Mt Alexander Road.
2 St Thomas' Anglican Church
St Thomas' was founded in 1849 and was the first church built in the district. A church school was opened in July 1855. In 1856, the Reverend Edward Puckle was appointed vicar and was responsible for Essendon, Moonee Ponds, Ascot Vale, Flemington and Albion. The foundation stone of the present church was laid in 1857 and the vicarage built in 1889.
3 Clocktower Centre
The Clocktower Centre has a colourful history. Built in 1880 as the Essendon and Flemington Institute, the building was purchased for use as the Essendon Town Hall after the separation of the Flemington and Kensington Wards in 1882, and was formally opened in 1886. In 1974 the civic offices were relocated and the building became the Essendon Community Centre. In 2000, after a major refurbishment a new state of the art performance and civic function centre was unveiled, and re-named the Clocktower Centre.
Cross to the west side of Mt Alexander Road and turn right into Puckle Street. Walk on the north side of the street.
4 Puckle Street
Puckle Street took over from Mt Alexander Road as the commercial centre of Moonee Ponds after the land was subdivided and sold in 1882. The north side of the street, where most of the commercial development occurred, was an orchard owned by a Mr Whittaker. The south side was open farmland owned by Sydney Puckle, whose father Edward was the Anglican Minister at St Thomas' from 1856 to 1878. The south side of the street remained residential for some time.
5 Number 13 Puckle Street
Moonee Ponds Picture Theatre (1911) is renowned as one the first and largest brick theatres built outside the city. The narrow entrance with shops either side was an unusual feature for a theatre. Some of the original interior fittings remain at the back of the present store.
6 Number 39 Puckle Street (The Arcade)
The Arcade is inside the shell of the home of Dr Fishbourne, built in the 1880s. In 1893 he added a wing to the house and opened a boarding school for intellectually disabled children, which was known as St Aidan's School. Operated in conjunction with his daughter Leata, it is regarded as the forerunner of Special Education in Victoria. It closed at Fishbourne's death in 1911. In the same year St Aidan's Hospital commenced here, and moved from these premises in 1923. The shops were later built in front.
Continue along Puckle Street. Cross under the railway line and turn right along Norwood Crescent.
7 Norwood Crescent
Take time to examine the Edwardian style shops on the corner of Holmes Road and Norwood Crescent. The corner of Norwood Crescent and Ardmillan Road was the site of "Rothmaise", a home occupied in 1888 by C.W. Langtree. By 1896 it was in use as the Sydenham Ladies College, and much later as an elderly persons home. It was demolished and Ardmillan House built about 1963.
Turn left at Ardmillan Road and left into Grosvenor Street
8 Grosvenor Street
This street, first listed in post office directories in 1883, features homes built from the late 1880s through to the 1890s. Occupying large blocks, the properties were later subdivided. Many of the infill houses date from around 1910. "Moriac" at Number 24 is a double storey Italianate villa (circa 1880s). Number 20 dates from 1925 and Number 6 from 1925.
Turn right into Elington Street.
9 Elington Street
Houses of interest include: Number 68 'Clair View' circa 1890. Number 70 'La Blaka' circa 1890. Number 74 circa 1925.
Turn right into Milverton Street (Milverton Street becomes Mantell Street).
10 Mantell Street
Mantel! Street was named after the Reverend W.W. Mantell, vicar at St Thomas' from 1879 to 1884. Thomas Henry Jennings, Essendon Councillor from 1883 to 1887 (including a term as Mayor), also lived in Mantell Street (at number 3). Jennings Street, off Ardmillan Road, was named in his honour.
Turn left at Ardmillan Road and right at Victoria Street, turn left at Park Street.
11 Park Street
Number 83 Park Street, built about 1872, was formerly called 'Wahgunyah: In 1922 the property was acquired by Penleigh Presbyterian Girls School. The school originally began in 1872 as 'Dorset House' in Mt Alexander Road. After a number of moves, it finally settled on this site in 1922.
Turn right at Clarinda Road.
12 Clarinda Park
The park was once a marshy lagoon, fed by a creek that crossed Buckley Street, near Washington Street. It is a wonderful place to have a rest or snack before completing the walk.
Turn right at Levien Street.
13 Levien Street
Number 11, 'Gowriel, was built around 1890 and occupied from 1899 to 1907 by Douglas Elder, a stock and station agent His son, David Elder, lived nearby at 'Remuera' in Leslie Road. Number 15 dates from 1935. H.V. Lynch, a wholesale merchant of Ascot Vale, owned this house, built in the Modern Style. The house became an icon, with people coming from all over Melbourne to see the portholes.
Turn right at Locke Street and left into Riverview Road.
14 Riverview Road
Number 2, built in the Modern Style, dates from 1935 -1936. The house was designed by renowned architect Roy Grounds who also designed the Victorian Arts Centre.
Turn right into Leslie Road and left into Park Street.
15 Park Street
Number 65, "Saddleworth", was built in 1883 for Mr Rogerson, a railway contractor who was involved in building the railway line in the area. The land originally extended from Mantell St to Victoria St. In 1906 the property was sold to Mr J. Whitehead who owned racehorses.
Turn right into Margaret Street and left into Albert Street At the end of Albert Street, turn right into Mt Alexander Road, proceed to the next crossing and cross to your point of origin at the court house.
Acknowledgements Essendon Historical Society Inc.
Location
770 Mount Alexander Road, Moonee Ponds 3039 Map
Web Links
→ Moonee Ponds Heritage Trail Brochure (PDF)
