A BRIEF HISTORY OF SURREY HILLS
Updated: Sep 8, 2022
A very short history of Surrey Hills until the 1950s, with a focus the area around Corio Bay Villa. This information has been collated and consolidated from a number of sources and websites which are credited at end of the page.
IN THE BEGINNING
Victoria is home to many indigenous nations who have inhabited the land for thousands of years prior to European settlement. For more than 40,000 years, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have lived on these lands and practiced traditional cultures and languages.
The Wurundjeri-Balluk tribe are the traditional custodians of the land on which the City of Whitehorse is located. They are one of five tribes that constitute the the Wurundjeri people. The Wurundjeri people are deeply spiritual people that honour the creator spirit. Historically the tribe would camp along the banks of the many creeks and rivers that flow through the City of Whitehorse and named parts of the local area Namenarren, or Nunawading as we know it today.
1800s - EUROPEAN SETTLEMENT
Lieutenant John Murray entered Port Phillip Bay in 1802, explored Corio Bay, and formally took possession of the area for Britain and the Crown. In 1934, Victoria's first permanent European settlement was officially established at Portland Bay, not far from Corio Bay, after which the house is named.
The following year John Batman found his way to what is probably Edgar's Creek (near Thomastown) and 'signed' two treaties with the local Aborigines by which he claimed 500,000 acres north of Melbourne and Corio Bay, and 100,000 acres around Geelong. A few year later in 1837 Governor Bourke approved plans for the town of Melbourne and Melbourne was officially incorporated three years later in 1842.
The areas of Boroondara and Whitehorse were sold by the Crown to Henry Elgar in 1842 before Melbourne had even been officially recognised, and long before the country of Australia was federated. The referendum to approve a national federation was not passed in Victoria until 1898.
So who was Henry Elgar? He was a British merchant who came to Australia in late 1840 and by mid 1841 had purchased 5,120 acres of land in Victoria known as the Special Survey (now the area in City of Whitehorse and Boroondara). He must have had cash and as well as friends in high places. He then left in early 1842 to return to Manila, where he had business interests. Evidence places Henry in Manila in 1842 and 1844. Beyond that, until his death in 1864, little is known. He was an international man of mystery, who no doubt made his descendants very rich indeed through the purchase and then on selling of land.
1880s - REALESTATE BOOM
Melbourne was booming in the 1880s on the back the gold rushes of the 1850s. Although the gold rushes prompted a massive influx of immigrants to Melbourne, Surrey Hills remained predominantly rural and sparsely settled, while the inner suburbs were becoming over crowded.
The large area of land acquired by Henry Edgar was subsequently broken up into farmland in the 1850s to 1870s and presumably the traditional owners of the land were pushed out.
The name ‘Surrey Hills’ was reputedly first used by real estate agent John Hanlon Knipe in his 1878 subdivision of land south of Mont Albert Road. On hearing that an extension of the Hawthorn railway line was planned, real estate developers associated with the Freehold Investment and Banking Company bought up farmland in the area and subdivided land in the area, advertising it as Windsor Park estate. You can read more about the developers in another post titled Windsor Park.
Melbourne experienced a suburban development boom in the 1880s. Posters advertising Surrey Hills were produced by real estate conglomerates, such as the one shown below, which states in part:
"Only individuals of good circumstances and of respectability need trouble themselves in considering the following:
Gentlefolks, provident persons, and others desirous of investing a moderate amount of cash in freehold property that will improve. The following particulars will be interesting;
First the lithograph plan above describes to some extent the position of the locality that, in the future will be known a Surrey Hills."
Source: Batten & Percy. (1800). Surrey Hills., from the State Library of Victoria, viewed 12 April 2022 http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/173753
Real estate companies aimed to make the suburbs as appealing as possible. The streets in Surrey Hills and Mont Albert had been laid out and planted with avenues of oak and pine trees. Some streets were named after English places or esteemed families from the United Kingdom, such as Windsor, Churchill and Newton. Large auction events were held where free champagne was offered and people were encouraged to buy blocks of land in distant areas. Land parcels were sold like trading stock and bought as speculative investments. Some land, however, was bought with a view to settle in the newly developed suburbs.
Charles Emberson was one such man to be enticed by the promise of a new start. He purchased allotment 16 from the Economic Permanent Building Society, situated approximately 2 kms from Surrey Hills Station (title shown below). Presumably the properties that were further away from the station would have been more affordable. However, after building Corio Bay Villa in 1890, the economic crash brought development in Surrey Hills to a grinding halt.
Corio Bay Villa remained the only house in the street for seventeen years, although there were homes on other streets nearby. There was no sewer or mains water in those days. Being two kilometres away from the closest station and shops, a horse and cart would have been required for a family to travel and shop.
1890s - ECONOMIC CRASH
The prosperity and speculative trading of the 1880s gave way to the bank and property collapse of the 1890s. While most of the properties had been sold, many buyers defaulted and properties remained vacant. Only about a third of the properties had houses built and newly developed suburb of Surrey Hills remained largely empty. According to the census of 1892 there were only 352 people living in Surrey Hills at the time, and much of those would have been concentrated near the station. Local dairy farmers and residents with animal stock were free to let them graze on the the open lands.
Image: photograph, timber merchant and ironmonger, Canterbury Rd, c1899.
Source: Victorian Collections, accessed 30 April 2022, https://victoriancollections.net.au/items/5bd901fba1feee3080d07fb2
1910s - WWI
Despite the slow start, the population of Surrey Hills was steadily rising, and by 1911, the population had tippled to 2,703 people. The population of Surrey Hills continued to grow slowly despite the First World World, which had a significant effect on the lives of all Australians.
Roughly 40% of the male population aged 18 to 44 enlisted for service in the First World War. This would have had an enormous impact on daily life, including the availability of labour, the day-to-day running of services, international trade, and most importantly the everyday lives of the families left behind.
While the majority of Australians were not at the war front in Europe, every Australian experienced the war at home and in the suburbs where they lived and worked. It was a time of scarcity. There were food shortages, fabric shortages and limited supplies all around. Families such as the Turnbulls would have had to stick together during this difficult time.
Photograph, Empire Day in Surrey Hills, Union Road looking south towards Canterbury Road, c.1912.
Source: Victorian Collections, accessed 30 April 2022, https://victoriancollections.net.au/items/5bb152e0874ffc17544b561e
During this decade some houses were built in the top end of Newton Street, close to Canterbury Road. Numbers 13 and 19 Newton Street were built around this time, and the house at 13 Newton Street still stands today. The area around Corio Bay Villa, however, which was further away from Canterbury Road remained undeveloped until the late 1940s or 1950s. The children of Mr and Mrs Henry, and then Mr and Mrs Kitchener who were tenants of Corio Bay Villa in the early twentieth century, would have had access to large areas in which to play and explore.
Image: Map of Surrey Hills, 1910.
Source: Sands & McDougall's directory of Victoria, 1910, courtesy of the State Library of Victoria, accessed 28 April 2022, http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/404444
1920s - THE ROARING TWENTIES
After the devastation of the First World War and the Spanish flu pandemic, the 1920s marked the beginning of an optimistic new era. The 'roaring twenties' brought significant changes to society, including new technology, women’s freedoms, and the Australian suburban dream. The state and federal governments took on massive public debt as they embarked on ambitious nation-building projects.
After the First World War, the next major phase of suburban development took off. Real estate agents were still eager to emphasise the qualities of Surrey Hills, promoting the area as an idyllic and convenient retreat from the city. With more cars on the road, the suburbs were becoming more accessible and the population of Surrey Hills experienced rapid growth. Many garages opened in the area, including the one callled Engine Works that Arthur John Turnbull worked at.
The State Savings Bank of Victoria financed the construction of many houses in Surrey Hills as part of their campaign to encourage home ownership. This included homes for returning soldiers which were based on standard designs to reduce the cost of housing.
Residential expansion radiated outwards form Surrey Hills station. In order to keep up with the population growth, Chatham station and Chatham primary school were opened in 1927.
During the late 1920s electricity was becoming more readily available to homes. In 1924, Victoria started transmitting electricity from Yallourn Power Station in the Latrobe Valley to Melbourne, which was 160 kilometres away. Despite the availability of electricity many Melbournians limited their electrical use to lighting. The electrical white-goods of the 1950s were yet to be invented.
Image: Garage at 260 Canterbury Road, Surrey Hills, after 1927.
Source: Victorian Collections, accessed 30 April 2022, https://victoriancollections.net.au/items/5f0951a321ea67206c211f2a
1930s - THE GREAT DEPRESSION
The stock market collapsed on Wall Street in 1929, which led to British banks calling in their loans in from Australia. This resulted in a decade of economic depression. In 1932 nearly a third of all Australians were out of work. These years were marked by economic upheaval, high unemployment, political and social unrest, and the shattered promise of the 1920s Australian dream.
Inner city suburbs like Collingwood, Richmond, North Melbourne and Carlton were overrun with derelict housing, starving families, crime and disease. While not free of all these afflictions Surrey Hills must have still seems comparatively idyllic compared to the overcrowded laneways of the inner suburbs of Melbourne.
The area around Mont Albert Road was middle class, while the area south of Whitehorse Road was more working class. The area south of Canterbury Road still remained relatively underdeveloped. The photo below shows the view from Goodwood Street in Surrey Hills, looking south-east in 1930 and there is not a house is to be seen.
Image: south-east view from Goodwood Street, Surrey Hills, 1930.
Source: Victorian Collections, accessed 29 April 2022, https://victoriancollections.net.au/items/5bb152dd874ffc17544b546f.
Local development slowed during this decade, although it did not stop entirely. Unpopulated areas of land were still being using for cattle grazing. At Corio Bay Villa, the Crocker family owned cows and would often share their produce with neighbours who were struggling financially during the great depression.
1940s - WORLD WAR II
The losses of the First World War were still fresh in the minds of Australians as young men were again sent to fight overseas. Melbourne, with its deep-water port and its nationally significant airport construction factories, was feared to be a target for enemy attacks.
Similar to the First World War, life on the home front was altered in both dramatic and benign ways. Melbournians were instructed to cover their windows at dusk, and shops were forced to close at 6pm. Victorian railways removed the names of stations in case of invasion, and passengers had to count the stops to ensure they got off at the right one.
The war years brought austerity in the form of food shortages and long working-hours, but they also offered new opportunities for women who were entering the paid workforce for the first time.
The residential housing expansion was inhibited by the Second World War due to the rationing of building materials. In Surrey Hills, the rate of growth slowed but population still continued to rise. The popularity of the motor car consolidated Surrey Hills as a hub for Melbourne workers and a number of garages opened around Union Road in response to the growing rates of car ownership.
As mentioned previously the south-east part of Surrey Hills was the last area to be fully developed. This areal view from 1945 shows he area around Corio Bay Villa (marked in orange) which is situated between Canterbury Rd, Elgar Rd, Riversdale Rd, and Union Road. Many streets Surrey Hills were still dirt roads and free of housing.
Image: aerial view of Surrey Hills between Canterbury Road and Riversdale Road, 1945.
Source: 1945 Melbourne, accessed 29 April 2022, https://1945.melbourne/
1950 - POST WWII
Life in the early 1950s was still shadowed by the fallout of WWII, but by the end of the decade things were looking up. The city of Melbourne was very cosmopolitan and considered itself the cultural and business capital of the Australia.
Australia no longer exclusively encouraged British citizens to immigrate to Australia. Australia now welcomed immigrants form post war Europe, such as Italians, Greeks and Polish people. Corio Bay Villa welcomed its first European immigrant, a Polish man called Kazimierz Lagowiski.
By now the city of Melbourne was serviced by excellent train services from all directions. Land was opening up for residential development further afield in places such as Williamstown, Moreland, McLeod, Templestowe, Ringwood and Frankston. The greater city of Melbourne was expanding.
The housing crisis of the inner city suburbs was being addressed by the Housing Commission who were building ready to assemble, pre-cast concrete housing for low income families. In 1951 alone it produced 951 houses. The 1950s also saw the introduction of building companies like AV Jennings who caught the public imagination with cream brick triple fronted houses with steel window frames. New houses were going up in Surrey Hills and all over Melbourne. The 1950s saw the addition of many houses around Corio Bay Villa, including house directly across the road.
As people moved out into newer housing, recently arrived Greek and Italian migrants took their place, often buying run down houses to renovate or knockdown. Luckily Corio Bay Villa was not knocked down. Instead it was renovated in an attempt to modernise it.
We don't know exactly who renovated Corio Bay Villa in this post war era, however it was most likely Mr and Mrs Lagowski or Mr and Mrs Vincze. You can read about the changes that were made to Corio Bay Villa over the decades in a separate post: The Villa Over the Years.
REFERENCES:
· 1945 Melbourne, https://1945.melbourne/
· 1950s Melbourne, 1950s Melbourne, https://1950smelbourne.com/1950s-melbourne/
· Best, Kylie, Put out that light!’ Brownout Melbourne during World War II, State Library Victoria, https://blogs.slv.vic.gov.au/our-stories/ask-a-librarian/brownout-melbourne-during-world-war-ii/
· City of Whitehorse, Melbourne School of Design, https://msd.unimelb.edu.au/sdg-cities/cities/city-of-whitehorse-victoria-australia
· Enlistment Statistics First World War, Australian War Memorial, https://www.awm.gov.au/articles/encyclopedia/enlistment/ww1
· Everyday War, eMelbourne, https://www.emelbourne.net.au/everydaywar/
· Exciting New World: Australia in the 1920s, Royal Australian Historical Society, https://www.rahs.org.au/exciting-new-world-australia-in-the-1920s/
· Exciting New World: Australia in the 1930s, Royal Australian Historical Society, https://www.rahs.org.au/exciting-new-world-australia-in-the-1930s/
· Miles Lewis, Growth of Melbourne in Victorian Times, Culture Victoria, https://cv.vic.gov.au/stories/built-environment/what-house-is-that/miles-lewis-growth-of-melbourne-in-victorian-times/
· Surrey Hills - A Brief History, Surrey Hills and Mont Albert Progress Association, https://www.surreyhillsprogress.org.au/surrey-hills
· Surrey Hills and Canterbury Hill Estate Heritage Study, City of Boroondara, https://www.boroondara.vic.gov.au/media/18331/download?inline
· Surrey Hills, Victorian Places, https://www.victorianplaces.com.au/surrey-hills
· The Federation of Australia, Parliamentary Education Office, https://peo.gov.au/understand-our-parliament/history-of-parliament/federation/the-federation-of-australia/