Batman Treaty In 2001 “Southern Invasion, Northern Conquest – Story of the founding of Melbourne was published. Since then, additional information has come to hand which adds to, or amends parts of the narrative and this series of articles brings the story up to date. The first of these dealt with Batman’s journey in the […]
Aborigines in Moreland
Aborigines History of Moreland Fact Sheet 1: Aborigines Background The Woiworung people occupied 12,000 square kilometres in Victoria and it is estimated there were about 1700 of them in the years before white settlement divided into four clans (land-owning groups). For most of the year, the Woiworung lived in groups of between twenty and fifty […]
Pallaconian Brotherhood
About the Pallaconian Brotherhood The Pallaconian Brotherhood of Melbourne and Victoria “Leonidas” was established in 1961. It was originally formed in order to bring together all Australians that trace their descent from Laconia – a region in the southern eastern mainland of Greece, with the capital of Sparta. Since 1989 the Brotherhood’s Clubrooms have been […]
Darebin Libraries
Darebin Libraries was created in 1995 with the amalgamation of the Northcote and Preston library services. It has four library branches stretching from Fairfield in the south, to Northcote, Preston and Reservoir and serves an area of 153.4 km. History The Northcote Library was first established in 1891 and housed in a small office in […]
Criminal gangs
During the First World War (1914-1918) Northcote was plagued by a number of street gangs. These gangs were known as ‘Pushes’ and possessed unusual names such as the Blue Anchor Push, the Imperial Push and the Fairfield Park Push. The activities of these gangs ranged considerably, from mild pranks such as spraying passersby through to […]

Darebin Community and Kite Festival
The Darebin Community and Kite Festival is an annual event held at Edwardes Lake and All Nations Park on a rotating basis. The first Darebin Festival was held in 1994 to celebrate the creation of the City of Darebin after the amalgamation of the former cities of Northcote and Preston. The following year the Annual […]

After the Deluge Project
Introduction In December 2003 the City of Darebin was hit by the “worst storm in 100 years”. While the whole of metropolitan Melbourne was affected, areas within Darebin were the worst hit with people’s homes, schools and businesses, severely damaged and even devastated by flooding. Residents described the Fairfield shopping strip in particular as […]
Rainbow Lorikeet
The rainbow lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus) is found throughout eastern Australia, from Cape York to Tasmania and from Kangaroo Island to Eyre Peninsula. It has also been introduced into to Western Australia. The rainbow lorikeet is also found through New Guinea and South Eastern Pacific Islands. The rainbow lorikeet is common in Darebin and can be […]

Horticultural Settlement at Arthurs Creek
At the close of 2012, it [was] 150 years since the arrival of the first selectors to establish a permanent settlement at Arthurs Creek. The selection acts of the 1860s were the result of pressure to unlock the land held by the squatters. The acts encouraged closer settlement and increased agricultural production, by allowing settlers […]
Hazel Glen Wesleyan Church
‘Methodists’ was the name given to members of the Holy Club at Oxford University which included the 18th century Anglican evangelist John Wesley, the founder of Methodism. The term arose ‘from the methodical manner in which they regulated their study and religious observance’. In 1795, four years after the death of John Wesley, the Methodist […]