The Willows Historical Park (Melton)

The Willows Historical Park is a picturesque public open space located in the heart of the Melton Township showcasing the history of Melton from its establishment to the present day.

Features of the Willows include:

Willows Historical homestead tours available from Melton District Historical Society (MDHS) on Wednesday and Sundays between 1pm - 4pm or by appointment - contact MDHS on 0402 053 175 or meltonhistoricalsocietyinc@gmail.com
Historical walking trail
Australian Native garden
BBQ and undercover picnic area
Public amenities
Melton Men's Shed
Dunvegan Cottage which is a historically significant bluestone cottage located within the grounds of The Willows Historical Park. The Victorian style house with gable roof, verandah and coarse, square rubble bluestone walls served as the town's first police station.

Opening Hours:

The Willows Historical Park is open every day, during daylight hours.

Cost:

Entrance to the park is free.

Review:

A pleasant park with picnic facilities such as a shelter, picnic tables, BBQs, water tap and toilets with a splash of history.

The park has a series of information boards. Some of the information provided is:

The Willows of Yesteryear... - The Willows, Melton's oldest surviving building, serves not only as a reflection of a bygone era but also as a monument to Victoria's pioneers. Victoria of the early 1800s was a wild and unforgiving place, void of established roads or even tracks to follow. Those venturing inland required the strength and fortitude of the most intrepid explorer. Here at the Willows you can glimpse Melton's pioneering past.

The journey inland took many different routes, where tracks came together at suitable creek crossings villages often grew. As is the case with many townships, Melton's growth as a postal village was due to its location at an easy crossing of the Pennyroyal Creek on the way to the goldfields.

Initially a resting place where many tracks met, the Pennyroyal Creek, as it was then known, provided a cool watering place before continuing the journey inland. The surrounding rich basalt plains proved ideal for cropping and grazing. The area was first settled around 1838 but was around the time of Victoria's gold rush in 1851 that Melton's growth really began.

Dry stone walls - history and heritage - Dry stone walls are much more than field boundaries or stock barriers. They add beauty and character to rural landscapes, and are valuable habitats for wildlife and native flora They connect us to the past and tell us about the history of a place. The craft of dry stone wailing building in stone without mortar or cement is ancient, How old? No one really knows for certain, but there are walls in North-West Europe that date back to Neolithic times. A well-constructed dry stone wall can last for centuries and, unless tampered with, will often outlive its mortared cousin.

A colonial tradition - Dry stone walling in Australia emerged in the mid 1800s in areas where the early settlers needed to clear the many stones and rocks that littered their land. Dry stone walls (and other structures including buildings, wells, dams, bridges and more) provided a very strong, stable form of construction using readily available field rocks.

Although dry stone walls were a practical and economic form of fencing, the specific style of wall often reflected the status of both the builder and the landowner. The wall builder's expertise was an important part of the construction because the stability of the wall relied on the interlocking weight and careful placement of each stone.

Melton Shire's rocky landscape - The Melton Shire landscape is characterised by flat basalt grassy plains, several low volcanic cones to the south and rolling forest covered hills to the north: Its rural areas were mostly settled in the mid 1800s for grazing and limited cropping. The plains provided excellent land for wool growing and cattle grazing and were within easy reach of the Newmarket saleyards in Melbourne.

As the graziers and farmers cleared their land. they collected the stones to construct fences and other necessary buildings and structures. The abundance of exposed rocks meant that dry stone wails became the predominant form of fencing in the Melton Shire. You can easily guess how Rockbank got its name, can't you?

A feature of the Shire's local volcanic landscape is the rounded or oval shaped stones it produces. Rounded stones limit the height to which a wall can be built so in some areas the wails or fences were topped with post-and-wire or post-and-rail. The posts for these fences were often taken from woodlands on the plains around Rockbank, Toolern Vale and Exford.

Today, valuable reminders of the natural and cultural assets of the Shire's past are still evident in the remnant areas of these former woodlands and the many fine examples of dry stone walls which separate farms and define the paddocks of rural pastures.

The Rush Begins - The discovery of gold in 1851 changed the way of life for the early settlers oi Melbourne, gold fever entered peoples hearts and minds. The impact of gold can be seen through the words of John Chandler, from his book '40 years in the wilderness'

'There were several rumours of gold being found. I remember I was helping my father with a load of stones at the quarry. When the quarry-men got the news that gold had been discovered at Ballarat, they said to my father, "No more stone Chandler, we are off to the gold diggings tomorrow'.

'We camped the first night on the Keilor Plains in a clump of she-oak There were several parties camped near us, and we could see fires a long way off. We were evidently among some of the first parties, for there was not much of a track to be seen. There were all sorts on the road. Doctors, lawyers, tradesmen, farmers, sailors and policemen;. Very few knew anything about digging. As we ascended the hill the following morning, the string of carts, horses and bullocks, and some who could not afford to get a horse, were taking their things in wheelbarrows. How they got on at Bacchus Marsh and other bad places, I never knew.

Along the Bullock Track - The construction of the masonry arch bridge spanning the Djerriwarrh Creek in the late 1850's, made the journey to the goldfields far less dangerous. However, the journey was not without its perils. Aside from rocky terrain, the forested country surrounding Melton posed one of the greatest dangers of attack from bushrangers.

Bushrangers like John Saunders and William Johnson were so feared that in 1857 Cobb & Co coaches decided to convey mail by night to avoid attacks. The district's most notorious pair held up a number of hotels on the Keilor Plains before their capture. They were tried in October 1861 and later executed for robbery, rape and kidnap.

One of Victoria's most infamous bushrangers, Andrew Scott, known as Captain Moonlight lived a double life. Scott worked as a lay preacher at the Holy Trinity Church, Bacchus Marsh. By day he travelled around the Melton district delivering sermons and as 'Captain Moonlight' he conducted daring hold ups at night. Captain Moonlight was finally arrested in Sydney while preparing his escape to Fiji; his career came to an end at the gallows of Darlinghurst in January 1880.

A Traveller's Life - The first regular coach service from Melbourne to Ballarat began in 1851 and ran twice weekly. James Watt, owner of the Border Inn in Bacchus Marsh, operated the coach; it departed at 2pm every Monday and Thursday from the corner of Lonsdale and Elizabeth Sts, the journey took 25 hours at the cost of 25 shillings.

Cobb & Co coaches began their daily run (except Sunday's) in 1856. For the sum of four pounds travellers could depart on the 6am coach from Melbourne, arriving in Ballarat later the same afternoon. In 1860 Cobb & Co ran the 'Leviathan' coach, holding 100 people and drawn by up to 22 horses to help people travel between Melbourne and Ballarat.

The completion of the Melbourne to Ballarat rail line saw the demise of Cobb & Co coach service to Melbourne, with travellers preferring the faster travel of the steam train.

Local Enterprise - The Chaff Mill - Charles Barrie came from Ballarat some time before 1900 to setup business in the district as a chaff cutter. Initially, Barrie employed mobile chaff cutter that he took from farm to farm, milling hay for farmers in the district. Around 1905 Barrie built a Chaff Mill in Station Rd, Melton South and district farmers would cart their hay to the mill. In 1916 Barries' Mill was sold to H.S.K Ward, which was later to become Ward & McKenzies.

Chaff was a thriving industry in Melton, the two local chaff mills produced up to 1800 tons of chaff each month. Resident, Bill Cahill, can recall a time at the chaff mill when 'wagons and drays began to line up at 2am to offload hay which left Melton as chaff for local and export markets. Machinery was run by steam, using timber brought down in cart loads of six-seven tons from Breakneck, and illumination for the night shift was provided by hurricane lanterns'.

W. C. Yuille - Master of the Turf - Some of Victoria's most famous and influential pioneers settled the surrounding district making Melton synonymous with prosperity and success. One such pioneer was William Cross Yuille.

After landing in Australia in 1836, W.C. Yuille, moved to inland Victoria in 1838, on a 10,000 acre run he called Ballarat. The City of Ballarat covers the land where Yuille's sheep once grazed.

After marriage, Yuille settled down on a modest 640 acre run called Rockbank having 11 children. William sold his Rockbank property to W.J.T Clarke in 1853 and returned to Scotland from 1854 until 1858, before returning to Australia and becoming one of Victoria's pre-eminent racing experts.

Yuille was a keen horseman and owner of numerous champions including 1865 Melbourne Cep winner 'ToryBoy'. Yuille is best remembered as the founder of the Australian Stud Book, tracking thoroughbred stud stock in Australia. Following his death in 1894, the Stud Book was completed by his son, Archibald.

Pyke's Hunt - The Pyke Brothers settled in Australia between 1838 and 1844. William was the first of the brothers to settle in Melton in 1838, taking up land on the Pennyroyal Creek. William Pyke, was a registered surgeon, however his brother Thomas Pyke was more renowned.

Thomas, known as 'Gentleman Pyke', was a keen huntsman. He introduced hunting into the Melton district and was also responsible for importing foxes into Australia in 1845. Before the importation of deer and fox, dingoes and kangaroos were hunted for sport.

Pyke's Hunt was one of the highlights of the Victorian social calendar, bringing a slice of the 'old Country' to the new land. The Hunt was held on the banks of the Toolern Creek, and it is from this pursuit that Melton was named. A huntsman suggested that Melton should be named after the fashionable hunting ground Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire, England.

The graves of George (died 15 July 1855) and William Pyke (died Sept 1850), can be found on banks of Toolern Creek, whilst 'Gentleman Pyke' is buried at Ballan.

Champion of the Turf - Gloaming - A revision of the Australian Jockey Club rules in 1918, to allow geldings to run in the prestigious AJC Derby gave rise to a horse that would gain unequalled reputation as a true champion of the turf. So great was his success that even Australia's most celebrated racehorse, Phar Lap, would be compared to him in years to come.

Winner of the 1918 AJC Derby, Gloaming was born at the Melton Stud in 1915, fathered by champion sire 'The Welkin'. His owner Mr E.E.D. Clarke sold Gloaming as a yearling to New Zealander Mr G Greenwood for 230 guineas.

Gloaming raced until he was 9 years old and won 57 of his 67 starts, running second 9 times and was unplaced only once when he fell at the barrier. Gloaming had a streak of 19 consecutive wins, equaling the Australian record held by Desert Gold. During his racing career Gloaming earned an Australian record (for his time) of $86,000 pounds in stake money.

No other horse, including the champion Phar Lap, has since, equaled record of wins on Australian racecourses.

Darke's Map - Early references to the Melton district can be found in plans prepared at the time of the 'Batman Treaty' 1835. It is generally believed, Surveyor William Wedge Darke made the first maps of the area in 1837. References to deserted huts in Darke's writings, suggest that American Whalers or escaped convicts may have also explored the Port Phillip Hinterland in the times before recorded white settlement.

A 'Plan of Parish of Djerriwarrh' 1839, shows the first subdivision. Lots of approximately 80 chains by 80 chains were unsuccessfully put on sale in 1840, however the lots sold readily a few years later. In 1852 Lot 8 was further subdivided to become the village of Melton.

In 1856 Melton was proclaimed a Postal Village. The gold rush ensured rapid growth and by 1862 Melton had become the centre of a flourishing pastoral district of 73,000 acres, boasting a population of 1000 with a church, school, hotels, stores and 112 permanent homes.