Welcome to the Westgarth Strip - Neighbourhood Postcards

Welcome to the Westgarth Strip - Neighbourhood Postcards created by History At Work

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Summary

Our latest set of Neighbourhood Postcards is a collection of illustrated stories about some of Westgarth shopping strip’s people, places and events over the years.

Description

Only eleven residents or businesses were in Westgarth in 1900: on the east side there was only James Boulton, a carpenter near Candy Street. The more buit-up west side had an estate agent, builder, produce merchant, newsagent, two greengrocers, a bootmaker, a woodyard, and a couple of residents. Today the place is bustling and thriving with 21st century services and shops.

You can explore the curious and the everyday histories and stories of Westgarth's local people and places with History At Work's Neighbourhood Postcards that probe the memories of our communities and places across Victoria. We've mined the archives for stories of past residents - their pre-occupations and how they lived, worked, played and shaped today's Westgarth.

Click on this link and scroll down to see the complete set of Welcome to the Westgarth Strip postcards with map and hyperlinks, extra images and information, and stories in more detail
Neighbourhood Postcards - Welcome to the Westgarth Strip

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Points of Interest

1. Becoming Westgarth

Sandwiched between Clifton Hill and the increasingly popular Ruckers Hill this township had some identity issues to begin with - it had several names until settling on Westgarth around 1912.

2. Boatbuilding in Westgarth

An unlikely spot, but Westgarth local Harold Blake built a 41 foot sailboat on the banks of the Merri Creek near the bridge. Our email is on the last postcard if you know more about Blake or his boat

3. The entrance to Northcote

The photographers title for this image. A local remembered 'sometimes we could walk faster than the cable trams... we used to put lead on the tracks and when the tram ran over it made a loud bang'

4. Who is Westgarth?

Considered a 'merchant, financier, politician and historian ... intent on mobilising the merchantile community', William Westgarth never lived here but the area was named after him by admiring locals

5. 'Lighting up the whole of Northcote'

The Exhibition Boot Factory fire in 1910 attracted media attention across Australia and supposedly drew to the street a '15,000' strong crowd on foot, cycles, horse vehicles and motorcars'

6. The Hales Bros.

The Hales were grocers, who bought their 1st shop at #83, supposedly from John Cain Snr before he became Premier of Victoria, and a 2nd shop at #55. Les Hales was also Mayor of Northcote 3 times

7. Westgarth Theatre

Locally financed, designed & built, in the 1960s it provided Greek films for the large post-war Greek population in the area, became an arthouse cinema in the '80s and is still immensely popular today

8. Indigenous fauna

Native fauna is represented throughout the strip - dragon fly wings on poles and sculptured bicycle racks in the form of body parts - by artists Bodycomb, Rak & Camdal for a 1998 precinct art program

9. Westgarth Station

Built in 1912 it had plenty of local complaints at first - 'an island in a sea of mud', and with no crossing some 'including ladies' climbed the fence to save a long walk.

10. Myra Bostock & Arthur Shands

Shands provided tailoring services for about 50 years, and was one of those responsible for the Westgarth Theatre in 1921. To save money Myra walked from Darebin Rd most days for her apprenticeship

11. First peoples

The Wurundjeri willam are the traditional owners of this area. Lady Gladys Nicholls was not Wurundjeri but she and her husband provided a hostel for rural Aboriginal girls needing a home in the city

12. The new kid on the strip

With the adaptations required by Covid19 Baketico and Pandy are two new Westgarth members 'looking for new beginnings' by mentoring hospitality aspirants and providing vegan food