Yarra Falls | |
---|---|
Coordinates | 37°49′09″S144°58′06″E / 37.8192°S 144.9682°E |
Yarra Falls was a waterfall on the Yarra River in Melbourne, Australia that was demolished in 1883 through the use of dynamite in order to prevent a repeat of the floods of 1863 and 1878. [1] It formed a low barrier, separating the brackish tidal water found downstream from the fresh water found above it, and in doing so provided potable water for the young settlement. [2]
The Falls, called Yarra Yarra were important to the local Aboriginal nations, the Woiwurrung and the Boon wurrung, who used it as a crossing point between their lands, in order to negotiate trade and marriages. The location was also used to meet the other three members of the Kulin nation, in order to settle disputes, trade and hold corroborees. [3]
In June 1835 John Batman arrived at Yarra Falls and immediately recognized it as the site of a new village, the only one of Australia's Capital Cities to have been identified as so before its founding. [4]
In 1839 a dam was built upon the falls using convict labour in order to secure the fresh water supply for the growing city, but did not last long, nor did its replacement. In 1845 a bridge was built at the site by a private company, but this was replaced by a government funded Prince's Bridge in 1850, which was to stand until the demolition of the Falls, despite an attempt by "some scoundrel" to sabotage it by sawing through several of its supporting columns. [5]
The only son of John Batman, Charles Batman, drowned in 1845 at the falls his father had discovered while fishing. [6]
In 1879 Sir John Coode declared that the Falls must be demolished in order to prevent a repeat of previous floods by allowing free discharge of upstream water during heavy rains. After a delay of almost four years, this process was begun by the Harbour Trust by removing the previously constructed dam, but the removal of the natural obstructions through the use of dynamite was delayed by another month due to the trust being unwilling to risk accidental damage to the Prince's Bridge without formal indemnification from the Department of Public Works. [1]
The plan was to clear the reef to a uniform depth of 15 feet 6 inches, at an estimate cost of £20,000, with the existing depth being varied, with the highest points touching the surface of the water and the lowest reaching down to 15 feet, and the demolition was complete by 1883, having been funded by a combination of the Victorian Government and the Harbour Trust. [1]
The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia.
Federation Square is a venue for arts, culture and public events on the edge of the Melbourne central business district. It covers an area of 3.2 ha at the intersection of Flinders and Swanston Streets built above busy railway lines and across the road from Flinders Street station. It incorporates major cultural institutions such as the Ian Potter Centre, Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) and the Koorie Heritage Trust as well as cafes and bars in a series of buildings centred around a large paved square, and a glass walled atrium.
Docklands, also known as Melbourne Docklands, is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 2 km (1.2 mi) west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Melbourne local government area. Docklands recorded a population of 15,495 at the 2021 census.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
John Batman was an Australian grazier, entrepreneur and explorer. He is best known for his role in the founding of Melbourne.
Melbourne tram route 75 is operated by Yarra Trams on the Melbourne tram network from Vermont South to Central Pier. The 22.8 kilometre route is operated out of Camberwell depot with A and B class trams. It is the longest route on the network.
Melbourne tram route 70 is operated by Yarra Trams on the Melbourne tram network from Waterfront City to Wattle Park. The 16.5 kilometre route is operated out of Camberwell depot with A and B class trams.
The Moonee Ponds Creek is a creek and major tributary of the Yarra River running through urban Melbourne, Victoria, Australia from northern to inner suburbs. In 2004 a reporter for The Age described it as "arguably the most abused tributary of the Yarra River, and part of the true underside of Melbourne".
John Pascoe Fawkner was an early Australian pioneer, businessman and politician of Melbourne, Australia. In 1835 he financed a party of free settlers from Van Diemen's Land, to sail to the mainland in his ship, Enterprize. Fawkner's party sailed to Port Phillip and up the Yarra River to found a settlement which became the city of Melbourne.
Batman's Hill in Melbourne, Australia was named for the Vandemonian adventurer and grazier John Batman. Now removed, the 18-metre-high hill was located to the south of today's Collins Street and Southern Cross railway station, and is the site of a steel marker the same height as the original hill.
The topsail schooner Enterprize, also spelled and illustrated as Enterprise, was built in Hobart, Tasmania in 1830 by William Pender. It was used for coastal transport of cargo such as coal, livestock, and supplies.
Batman's Treaty was an agreement between John Batman, an Australian grazier, businessman and coloniser, and a group of Wurundjeri elders, for the purchase of land around Port Phillip, near the present site of Melbourne. The document came to be known as Batman's Treaty and is considered significant as it was the first and only documented time when Europeans negotiated their presence and occupation of Aboriginal lands directly with the traditional owners. The treaty was implicitly declared void on 26 August 1835 by the Governor of New South Wales, Richard Bourke.
The city of Melbourne was founded in 1835. The exact circumstances of the foundation of Melbourne, and the question of who should take credit, have long been matters of dispute.
Princes Bridge, originally Prince's Bridge, is a bridge in central Melbourne, Australia that spans the Yarra River. It is built on the site of one of the oldest river crossings in the city, and forms a gateway into the central city from the south. The bridge connects Swanston Street on the north bank of the Yarra River to St Kilda Road on the south bank, and carries road, tram and pedestrian traffic. The present bridge was built in 1888 and is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register.
The Upper Yarra Reservoir is located east of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, beyond Warburton within the locality of Reefton. Water from Upper Yarra Reservoir supplies towns in the upper Yarra Valley, and Silvan Reservoir, which transfers water to most parts of Melbourne.
The Queen's Bridge is a historic road bridge over the Yarra River in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The bridge was built in 1889 and has five wrought iron plate girder spans, and is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register. The bridge was built by contractor David Munro, and replaced a timber footbridge built in 1860.
Jolimont Yard was an array of railway lines and carriage sidings on the edge of the central business district of Melbourne, Australia. Located between Flinders Street station, Richmond Junction, the Yarra River and Flinders Street they were often criticised for cutting off the city from the river, being the site of many redevelopment proposals. The Princes Gate Towers were built over part of the yard in the 1960s, which themselves were replaced by Federation Square in the 2000s. The rail sidings themselves were progressively removed from the 1980s to the 1990s with only running lines today, but the area continues to be referred to as the 'Jolimont railyards' by Melburnians.
Batman Park is an urban park, located on the northern bank of the Yarra River in central Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Melbourne Day is an annual celebration to mark the founding of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia, on 30 August 1835.
The architecture of Melbourne, the capital of the state of Victoria and second most populous city in Australia, is characterised by a wide variety of styles dating from the early years of European settlement to the present day. The city is particularly noted for its mix of Victorian architecture and contemporary buildings, with 74 skyscrapers in the city centre, the most of any city in the Southern Hemisphere.