s h i r e o f m e l t o n h e r i t a g e s t u d y（s h i r e o f m e l t o n h e r i t g e s t u d y）（134页）.docVIP

Shire of Melton Heritage Study: Environmental History David Moloney May 2007  Contents Chapter One: Exploration 2 Chapter Two: The Aboriginal People 9 Chapter Three: Pastoralism 18 Chapter Four: Farming 30 Chapter Five: Community 51 Chapter Six: Transport 74 Chapter Seven: Other Industries 88 Chapter Eight: Horses, Hounds, and Hares 96 Chapter Nine: Water and Fire 105 Chapter Ten: Developing Communications: Radio and Aviation 121 Chapter Eleven: Satellite City 130 Chapter One: Exploration The volcanic Keilor and Werribee plains figured prominently in two of the most critical early explorations of Port Phillip. In 1803 Grimes’ party, after a venture up the Maribyrnong River, reported poorly on the agricultural potential of the district and recommended that Port Phillip was unsuitable for a new settlement. No further exploration occurred until the Hume and Hovell journey of 1824. Their reports of this same land’s potential for grazing contrasted dramatically to the earlier assessments, and generated particular interest in Van Diemen’s Land where opportunities for pastoral expansion were running out. John Batman’s 1835 tour of the area launched a fleet of small craft, brimful of sheep, onto Bass Strait. Harbours at Melbourne, Williamstown and Geelong were founded as the squatters rushed to claim their share of the open volcanic plains to the west and north of Port Phillip Bay. In their wake came surveyors, and even the Governor. The main legacy of the exploring period in the Shire of Melton are the names of some of its most prominent topographical features, such as Mount Cottrell and Mount Aitken, and, less directly, names such as Exford and Holden Road. The records of these early tours of discovery of the Shire of Melton are also an important part our cultural heritage, describing as they do its attraction to Europeans, and the reason for Port Phillip’s settlement. The European occupation was of co