Local government in Darebin can trace its roots back to 1841 and the establishment of the District Council of the County of Bourke. Drawing its members from prominent local landowners, it included Thomas Wills, Alexander McCrae and Major G.F. St. John. The District Council was an advisory body, reporting to the Superintendent of Victoria on such matters as police services, roads and tolls.
A significant step was taken in 1853 when the Central Roads Board was created. This organization was established to oversee the development of Victoria’s roads. The following year the residents of Preston, Thomastown and Epping petitioned the government to establish a local road board. Their petition was granted and the Epping District Roads Board was founded.
The area covered by the Epping District Roads Board was significant. It went from Bell Street in Preston to Bridge Inn Road in Mernda, and from Darebin Creek to Merri Creek. It was in fact the first Victorian super council. The Victorian Government granted the fledgling council £2,000. To raise further revenue the Board had the power to establish road tolls, a power it was quick to use.
Early Meetings
The first meeting of the Epping District Roads Board was held at the Darebin Creek Hotel on the Darebin Creek in Ivanhoe. After that the Board convened at the Sir Henry Barkly Hotel in Woodstock; a new hotel constructed only the year before.
Later the Board transferred its headquarters to the in Thomastown, before moving to the Merrilands Hotel in Reservoir. The latter moved proved a mistake as just prior to one Board meeting the councillors discovered that all the council furniture had been repossessed to pay the publicans debts.
Growth and change
Although the southern part of Preston joined the Epping Districts Road Board in 1860 Northcote continued to maintain its independence. To maintain the quality of its road links the Board was forced to spend some of its money repairing Northcote’s roads and bridges, even building a bridge over the Merri Creek for Northcote in 1857.
In 1864 Northcote finally joined the Epping District Road Board. It soon became apparent that the area covered was too unwieldy for the Board to manage effectively. For Northcote representatives it took a whole day just to reach the Belmont Hotel for a meeting.
In 1870 the Epping District Road Board ceased to operate and was replaced by the Shire of Darebin. The Shire had 22 Councillors and met for the first time at the Foresters’s Hall in Preston on 12th October 1870.
Almost immediately the southern councillors clashed with their northern colleagues. A push to build a Shire Hall at Epping met with firm resistance from the Preston and Northcote councillors. The rancour was so strong that it ended in a court case which was lost by the southern contingent. Within a few months Northcote and Preston left the Shire of Darebin and formed the Shire of Jika Jika
Early representatives
The first Preston representatives were local storekeeper Edward Wood, gardener John Clinch, nurseryman James Tyler and John Blackie, the chemist. When Northcote joined the Epping Road Board on 11 April 1864 it sent storekeeper Edwin Bastings (1828-1909), George Plant, publican of the Peacock Inn, and F. Mitchell.
Other representatives included George McCormick of Bournefield Park, the President in 1870, F. R. Godfrey of Woodstock and Moses Thomas of Morang.
Sources
* Carroll, Brian and Rule, Ian. Preston: an Illustrated History. Preston: City of Preston, 1985.
* City of Northcote. Northcote Jubilee celebrations 1883 – 1933 : souvenir & official program. Northcote, 1933
* City of Preston. Preston Jubilee celebrations: 1885 – 1935. Preston (Vic.) : City of Preston. 1935
* Forster, Harley. Preston Lands and People. Melbourne: Cheshire, 1968.
* Lemon, Andrew. Northcote Side of the River. North Melbourne (Vic): Hargreen, 1983.
* Northcote Historical & Conservation Society. Northcote: Glimpses of Our Past. Northcote (Vic), NHCS 1988.
* Northcote Leader (Melbourne), Newspaper, Northcote 1882 –
* Payne, J.W. The Plenty: a centenary history of the Whittlesea Shire. Kilmore (Vic.) : Lowden Publishing, 1975
* Preston Historical Society. Centenary of local government in Preston: 1871 – 1971: a pictorial record with a brief review of Prestons’ progress and achievements. Preston (Vic.) City of Preston. 1971
* Preston Post Times (Melbourne), Newspaper, Preston 1978 –
* Swift, William George. The history of Northcote: From its First Settlement to a City. Northcote (Vic.):Leader Publishing, 1928.
