Friends of Merri Creek have been conducting oral history interviews with residents who have lived on the Creek before 1970. The interviews form the Merri Creek Oral History Project. This is an interview with Loris Macleod who lived by the Merri Creek in her youth in Goodwin Street West Preston. The interviewer is Ruth Shiel. The […]
Category: Darebin
Northcote’s Underground Rivers
Virtually anyone who has lived in Northcote for any period of time could fail to notice the impact of the Merri, and to a lesser extent, Darebin Creek on the suburb. But few will be aware of the third and probably fourth major waterway – which may or may not have existed – and may […]
Northcote’s Charlie Vaude : Radio and Vaudeville Star
Charlie Vaude, a Northcote resident for many years, was a very successful live theatre and later popular radio personality and comedian before his death at his Clarke-street home on 29 October, 1942. An archetypical “Cockney”, he was born in London circa 1882, his real name Charles Joseph Ridgway (sometimes shown as Ridgeway). In his youth, he […]
1918 : Northcote Under attack!
During the First World War, there were many references in the local Leader newspapers to the 54th Merri Infantry Battalion and the Volunteer Forces unit base at the Drill Hall in Simpson Street in what was invariably referred to as Westgarth. There was no secret that the Battalion encompassed companies of volunteers from Northcote, Preston and Heidelberg, the latter then […]
1888 : The Battle for Preston Station
Although the locals along with their neighbours in Northcote had fought for many years for a railway service, there was certainly no consensus of opinion as to where Preston actually was! Then classified as a Shire (the lowest level of local governmant authority), Preston was effectively split in two: residents of the area around Regent […]
Thomas Noble Field Swinton
The name of Thomas Noble Field SWINTON does not appear on either the Australian War Memorial’s Roll of Honour or the Commemorative Roll that records the sacrifice of Australians that died while serving with armed forces of Allied countries. He was, however, one who gave his life in the service of his country. He was […]
Northcote’s Underground River
Virtually no-one who has lived in Northcote for any period of time could fail to notice the impact of the Merri, and to a lesser extent, Darebin Creek on the suburb. But few will be aware of the third and probably fourth major waterway – which may or may not have existed – and may […]
The Tattooed Widow of Milton Street
The Australian War Memorial’s Commemorative Roll records the name of some 3,141 Australians that died in the service of Allied countries during conflicts in which Australians have fought. The number is somewhat understated – our research over the last few years has identified seven or eight others clearly noted in Death Notices, but whom AWM […]
Zwar Family of Preston
“H.P” – Henry Peter Zwar was born in Broadford on 2 December, 1873, the sixth son (and one of eleven children) of Michael and Agnes Zwar nee Zimmer, German immigrants who became naturalised Victorians in 1852. After six years at Broadford State School, Zwar in 1873 won a scholarship to Melbourne Grammar and returned to […]
James McKinley
James McKinley was born in Dublin, Ireland and migrated to Australia in the mid-1860s with his father James (a publisher), mother, Mary (nee Loughey) and brother, Alexander, and the pair became leading newspaper proprietors of the latter half of the 19th century. After originally managing the modest Talbot Leader from 1869 to late in 1871, […]