This is an eclectic look at some themes from the history of the Koo Wee Rup Swamp and the first letter of each theme spells a seasonal greeting. This was published in the December 2025 Blackfish, the Koo Wee Rup Township newsletter. I did a previous one in 2016 for the Blackfish, read it here; and for the Garfield Spectator in 2017, read it here.
M is for Main Drain.The Chief Engineer of the Public Works Department, William Thwaites (1853 – 1907) surveyed the Koo Wee Rup Swamp in 1887 and his report recommended the construction of the Bunyip Main Drain from where it entered the Swamp in the north, to Western Port Bay and a number of smaller side drains. A tender for works was advertised in 1889. In spite of strikes, floods and bad weather by March, 1893, the private contractors had constructed the 16 miles of the drain from the Bay to the south of Bunyip and the Public Works Department considered the Swamp was now dry enough for settlement. At one time over 500 men were employed and all the work was done by hand, using axes, shovels, mattocks and wheel barrow. It has flooded many times and, in fact, this was expected from the start as the drain was constructed with dimensions to merely facilitate the removal of flood waters and thus permit the use of land between floods. The Roads such as Five Mile Road, Seven Mile Road etc were named because they are five miles and seven miles long the Main Drain from the Bay.
Iona - looking to the south side of the Main Drain.
Image: Berwick Pakenham Historical Society
E is for Electricity.
Electric power was first supplied in Koo Wee Rup by the Koo Wee Rup Electric Light & Power Company and the official ‘switch on’ took place on Friday, July 22, 1927. The State Electricity Commission was established in 1921 and the Koo Wee Rup Progress association had written to them and asked for the current to be installed here. As a result, an officer of the commission was sent to make a report, and after investigations it was learned that they had very little chance of getting electricity. However, the officer said, “Why not get one of your own.” They were supplied with all the details and the Koo Wee Rup Electric Light & Power company was formed. Dave Mickle, the man in charge of the power house and who was later a local historian, wrote that Initially the supply of single phase 230-460 V electricity was available daily from 4.00pm until midnight, except that on Tuesday the start was 2.00pm. That was because at that time, housewives’ routine was washing Monday and ironing Tuesday. Later, the power was also available between 6.00am and 8.00am. Continuous S.E.C power was switched on in Koo Wee Rup on August 1, 1935 from a line which came across from Tynong, via Cora Lynn.
The Koo Wee Rup Electric Light & Power Company Power House, built in 1927 and closed in 1935.
Image: Koo Wee Rup Swamp Historical Society
R is for Royal Automobile Club of Victoria (RACV)
Tooradin was the birthplace of the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria in 1903. Susan Priestley, in her book The Crown of the road: the story of the RACV, tells us of the formation of the RACV - On a fine weekend late in September 1903, a dozen of Melbourne's more prominent wheelmen, who were also proud owners of the new motorized cycles, took their machines on a very pleasant outing to the flat reaches of Tooradin on Westernport Bay...The outing was reported in the Australian Cyclist... and the next issue of the journal featured a prominent article on the very singular lack of a motor club in Melbourne. The writer of the article was probably Sydney Day, described by Mrs Priestley as a printer by trade but a cyclist and cycling writer at heart. Mrs Priestley says that he was one of the three like-minded friends who claimed to have hatched plans for a motoring club while on that trip to Tooradin. The other members of the trio were James Coleman (manager of a Cycle business) and Henry (Harry) Barton James, advertising manager of Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Company.
R is for Roads
The Western Port Road started at Dandenong and traversed the old Shire of Cranbourne from Cranbourne to Tooradin to Tobin Yallock (the original Lang Lang township). This section is now known as the South Gippsland Highway. There was a report on the state of the Western Port Road in the Leader newspaper of September 19, 1874.
A coach (Cobb's) leaves the Star Hotel from Dandenong every morning in week days. There is a very good metalled road from thence to the flourishing post town of Cranbourne - 9 miles - but the remainder of the road from the latter place here is simply execrable. Some portions of it are even worse than execrable, for they are, in this season of the year, and the three months just passed, absolutely dangerous, and do anything but credit to the road surveyor's department. After leaving Cranbourne, there is a couple or three miles of fairly metalled road, but after that (and this passage I pen for the especial benefit of the above department) come the counterparts of the Great Dismal Swamp, and the Valley of the Shadow of Death. One spot in particular, called Frenchman's Hole, or Flat-bottomed Creek, is highly dangerous to a stranger. The mails are carried over this beautiful spot twice a week, on horseback, and no doubt the man who carries them could give a much more graphic account of this picturesque route than myself. Be that as it may, the traffic on it is much on the increase, and I consider it shameful neglect on the part of the post-office authorities not to organise a better system of mail delivery for this district; and the sooner they let us have three deliveries a week instead of two the better for our convenience and their reputation.
Frenchman’s Hole was near Lang Lang and according to Dr Niel Gunson, the local historian, a Frenchman had tried to cross the two miles of the flat land but he disappeared down a hole, covered with water and only his hat was ever discovered or so the legend goes.
Y is for Youngsters – that is Babies
The Victorian Baby Health Centres Association was established in 1918 and Health Centres were established all over Victoria. The first Centres in this area were Garfield and Bunyip, both operating by 1936; Lang Lang was opened by 1938 and Koo Wee Rup in 1946. The annual report of the Victorian Baby Health Centres Association for 1946/1947 had the following statistics for Cranbourne and Koo Wee Rup - they both had about the same number of individual babies treated (40 for Cranbourne and 42 for Koo Wee Rup) and yet Cranbourne's total baby attendance was 586 and Koo Wee Rup's was 276. Thus Cranbourne mothers had an average of 14 visits per baby compared to Koo Wee Rup's 6 per baby - it's hard to know why - were Cranbourne babies more sickly or did more of the mothers live in the town and not on farms and it was easier to attend or did the Infant Welfare Centre Sister encourage more visits? Baby Health Centres were a valuable and free service for mothers where they received professional advice and information about looking after their babies.
C is for Cheese and Milk Factories
By 1895 there were 174 factories and 284 creameries in Victoria, including a number in the Koo Wee Rup Swamp area. Up until the 1930s the area could sustain several factories for a number of reasons. Firstly, dairy cattle numbers were at their peak in the 1920; it is estimated that the Koo Wee Rup Swamp had 12,000 dairy cattle at this time. Secondly, most farmers were still using horse and cart for transport, so local factories were necessary. Lastly, the factories had slightly different purposes. For instance, whole milk was received at Iona and Cora Lynn, whilst farms with a separator could deposit cream at Drouin, Lang Lang or Bayles. At Iona, a Creamery run by the Fresh Food and Frozen Storage Company, was opened in 1897 and by 1900 it had 50 suppliers. The Creamery operated until around 1907. In 1906, the Drouin Co-Operative Butter Factory (D.C.B.F.) established a factory in Iona on the corner of Little Road and the Main Drain. It closed in October 1928 and was demolished in 1930. The Cora Lynn Cheese factory opened in November 1911. The factory was remodelled and extended in 1932, partially to compensate for Iona closing down; in that year the factory had around 500 regular suppliers. It was closed in the late 1940s/early 1950s. The D.C.B.F took over the Bayles Butter Factory in 1944, which had been established in 1922. It was re-built and enlarged in 1966 and operated until January 1980. Yallock Southern Creamery, which was situated on the corner of the Yallock Creek and the No.5 Yallock Drain Road (which was thus also known as Creamery Road) opened in 1897, closed in 1898, re-opened 1899 and eventually sold to the owners of the Lang Lang Butter Factory. A Yannathan Butter Factory was established in the early 1900s and was purchased by Ivan Stedman at the same he purchased the Lang Lang Factory. The plants from both factories were dismantled and re-assembled at Lang Lang. Factory Road, off Heads Road, is all that is left to remind us of the Yannathan Butter Factory.
R is for Roads
The Western Port Road started at Dandenong and traversed the old Shire of Cranbourne from Cranbourne to Tooradin to Tobin Yallock (the original Lang Lang township). This section is now known as the South Gippsland Highway. There was a report on the state of the Western Port Road in the Leader newspaper of September 19, 1874.
A coach (Cobb's) leaves the Star Hotel from Dandenong every morning in week days. There is a very good metalled road from thence to the flourishing post town of Cranbourne - 9 miles - but the remainder of the road from the latter place here is simply execrable. Some portions of it are even worse than execrable, for they are, in this season of the year, and the three months just passed, absolutely dangerous, and do anything but credit to the road surveyor's department. After leaving Cranbourne, there is a couple or three miles of fairly metalled road, but after that (and this passage I pen for the especial benefit of the above department) come the counterparts of the Great Dismal Swamp, and the Valley of the Shadow of Death. One spot in particular, called Frenchman's Hole, or Flat-bottomed Creek, is highly dangerous to a stranger. The mails are carried over this beautiful spot twice a week, on horseback, and no doubt the man who carries them could give a much more graphic account of this picturesque route than myself. Be that as it may, the traffic on it is much on the increase, and I consider it shameful neglect on the part of the post-office authorities not to organise a better system of mail delivery for this district; and the sooner they let us have three deliveries a week instead of two the better for our convenience and their reputation.
Frenchman’s Hole was near Lang Lang and according to Dr Niel Gunson, the local historian, a Frenchman had tried to cross the two miles of the flat land but he disappeared down a hole, covered with water and only his hat was ever discovered or so the legend goes.
Y is for Youngsters – that is Babies
The Victorian Baby Health Centres Association was established in 1918 and Health Centres were established all over Victoria. The first Centres in this area were Garfield and Bunyip, both operating by 1936; Lang Lang was opened by 1938 and Koo Wee Rup in 1946. The annual report of the Victorian Baby Health Centres Association for 1946/1947 had the following statistics for Cranbourne and Koo Wee Rup - they both had about the same number of individual babies treated (40 for Cranbourne and 42 for Koo Wee Rup) and yet Cranbourne's total baby attendance was 586 and Koo Wee Rup's was 276. Thus Cranbourne mothers had an average of 14 visits per baby compared to Koo Wee Rup's 6 per baby - it's hard to know why - were Cranbourne babies more sickly or did more of the mothers live in the town and not on farms and it was easier to attend or did the Infant Welfare Centre Sister encourage more visits? Baby Health Centres were a valuable and free service for mothers where they received professional advice and information about looking after their babies.
C is for Cheese and Milk Factories
By 1895 there were 174 factories and 284 creameries in Victoria, including a number in the Koo Wee Rup Swamp area. Up until the 1930s the area could sustain several factories for a number of reasons. Firstly, dairy cattle numbers were at their peak in the 1920; it is estimated that the Koo Wee Rup Swamp had 12,000 dairy cattle at this time. Secondly, most farmers were still using horse and cart for transport, so local factories were necessary. Lastly, the factories had slightly different purposes. For instance, whole milk was received at Iona and Cora Lynn, whilst farms with a separator could deposit cream at Drouin, Lang Lang or Bayles. At Iona, a Creamery run by the Fresh Food and Frozen Storage Company, was opened in 1897 and by 1900 it had 50 suppliers. The Creamery operated until around 1907. In 1906, the Drouin Co-Operative Butter Factory (D.C.B.F.) established a factory in Iona on the corner of Little Road and the Main Drain. It closed in October 1928 and was demolished in 1930. The Cora Lynn Cheese factory opened in November 1911. The factory was remodelled and extended in 1932, partially to compensate for Iona closing down; in that year the factory had around 500 regular suppliers. It was closed in the late 1940s/early 1950s. The D.C.B.F took over the Bayles Butter Factory in 1944, which had been established in 1922. It was re-built and enlarged in 1966 and operated until January 1980. Yallock Southern Creamery, which was situated on the corner of the Yallock Creek and the No.5 Yallock Drain Road (which was thus also known as Creamery Road) opened in 1897, closed in 1898, re-opened 1899 and eventually sold to the owners of the Lang Lang Butter Factory. A Yannathan Butter Factory was established in the early 1900s and was purchased by Ivan Stedman at the same he purchased the Lang Lang Factory. The plants from both factories were dismantled and re-assembled at Lang Lang. Factory Road, off Heads Road, is all that is left to remind us of the Yannathan Butter Factory.
Bayles Milk Factory, 1943.
Image: Bayles Fauna Reserve collection.
H is for Hares
William Lyall (1821-1888), the owner of Harewood, on the South Gippsland Highway at Koo Wee Rup was an enthusiastic member of the Acclimatisation Society which was established in Victoria on February 25, 1861. The object of this Society was the introduction, acclimatisation, and domestication of all innoxious animals, birds, fishes insects, and vegetables, whether useful or ornamental ; the perfection, propagation and hybridisation of races newly introduced or already domesticated; the spread of indigenous animals, &c. from parts of the colonies where they are already known, to other localities where they are not known.
William Lyall introduced many species to his property, Harewood, including deer, partridges, pheasants and hares. There was a thread of letters to the editor of The Argus in August 1873, about the last mentioned animal, the hare, and who was first responsible for its introduction to Victoria - the Acclimatisation Society or William Lyall. This is the letter from William Lyall on the subject, published on August 22, 1873 -
William Lyall (1821-1888), the owner of Harewood, on the South Gippsland Highway at Koo Wee Rup was an enthusiastic member of the Acclimatisation Society which was established in Victoria on February 25, 1861. The object of this Society was the introduction, acclimatisation, and domestication of all innoxious animals, birds, fishes insects, and vegetables, whether useful or ornamental ; the perfection, propagation and hybridisation of races newly introduced or already domesticated; the spread of indigenous animals, &c. from parts of the colonies where they are already known, to other localities where they are not known.
William Lyall introduced many species to his property, Harewood, including deer, partridges, pheasants and hares. There was a thread of letters to the editor of The Argus in August 1873, about the last mentioned animal, the hare, and who was first responsible for its introduction to Victoria - the Acclimatisation Society or William Lyall. This is the letter from William Lyall on the subject, published on August 22, 1873 -
"Honour to whom Honour is due" Sir, - Referring to Mr. Godfrey's letter in this day's Argus, I beg to say that I imported hares, pheasants, and partridges long before the Acclimatisation Society had an existence, and that the county of Mornington and a great part of the Western district of this colony are stocked with hares from Harewood.
In fact, so proud was the Lyall family of introducing the hare to Victoria that William's daughter, Margaret, wrote to The Argus in June 1937, 64 years after her father did, also noting the Lyall role in this matter -
Sir, - In her letter on "Horsemen and Hounds" in 'The Argus" of Saturday, June 12, Mrs M. L. Drought is mistaken in thinking that Mr Godfrey was the first to bring hares into Victoria as my father, the late William Lyall released hares on his property at Western Port in the year 1858. Mr Lyall was also a member of the Victorian Acclimatisation Society. The station property was named Harewood from that date. Yours &c, Margaret M. Timms, Warragul, June 14.
In fact, so proud was the Lyall family of introducing the hare to Victoria that William's daughter, Margaret, wrote to The Argus in June 1937, 64 years after her father did, also noting the Lyall role in this matter -
Sir, - In her letter on "Horsemen and Hounds" in 'The Argus" of Saturday, June 12, Mrs M. L. Drought is mistaken in thinking that Mr Godfrey was the first to bring hares into Victoria as my father, the late William Lyall released hares on his property at Western Port in the year 1858. Mr Lyall was also a member of the Victorian Acclimatisation Society. The station property was named Harewood from that date. Yours &c, Margaret M. Timms, Warragul, June 14.
William Lyall
Image: Gunson, Niel The Good Country: Cranbourne Shire (Cheshire, 1968)
R is for Racehorse - In the 1860s and 1870s there was a racehorse named Koo-wee-rup, owned initially by Dr Leslie Ogilby Patterson of St Kilda. Here are some reports of his races. Koo-wee-rup, was entered in the Maiden Plate on the first day of the Victoria Racing Club’s Spring Meeting, in November 1868. A report of the race described Koo-wee-rup, like the majority of Touchstone’s progeny, appeared small and weedy. In the end, Palmerston won the race with Koo-wee-rup, who threw his rider directly the flag fell, bringing up the rear.
In March 1869, Koo-wee-rup was entered in the Helter Skelter Stakes of the Victorian Racing Club’s Autumn Meeting, which he won in a canter by half a dozen lengths. The horse was then sold to Mr Clarke for £41. Mr Clarke entered Koo-wee-rup in the District Plate in the Woodstock Races in May 1869, which he won. In November 1870, Koo-wee-rup was entered in the Footscray Plate on Derby Day. His Royal Highness, The Duke of Edinburgh (Queen Victoria’s son) was in attendance on the day. Koo-wee-rup came in second. In late November 1871 at the Ballarat Turf Club Spring meeting Koo-wee-rup was one of five starters in the Scurry Stakes, which he won with ease. However he was later disqualified, as being underweight as his jockey was found to be 4 pounds underweight at the after-race weigh-in
The final mention I could find of Koo-wee-rup was at the Croxton Park Race meeting on Boxing Day, 1871. The horse was entered in the Selling race, where he didn't place, and later at the same meeting entered in the Flying Handicap, a one mile race. Six of the ten horses that entered the race started, with Koo-wee-rup a favourite. He started well, but had a fall and broke his leg, so it was a sad end for our racehorse.
I is for Italian Prisoner of War Camp.
This camp opened on October 21, 1944. It was located on Main Drain Road, near the corner of Backhouses Road. The actual Camp was only 7¼ acres and it was leased from Leslie Einseidel for just over £10 per annum and he could still use the rest of the farm for cattle grazing. The camp had one officer and ten ‘other ranks’ and 88 POWs, including one who was a medical orderly. There were three sleeping huts, two kitchen buildings, two of which doubled as a mess room; a separate mess room; a store room and two buildings housing latrines. For transport, there was a one ton van and two 30cwt trucks to transport prisoners to and from work.
The Prisoners were employed by the Department of Commerce and Agriculture and they were paid 1/3d per day, plus they were provided with all equipment, blankets, clothing, food etc. The prisoners came from the Murchison Camp and had a medical and dental examination before they were ‘allotted’ to local farmers to provide labour. Local contractors would provide perishable foodstuffs and appropriate arrangements were made with the local church authorities for the spiritual welfare of prisoners. Most other arrangements e.g. financial appear to have been dealt with at Murchison. In February 1946 the camp was dismantled and the buildings sold.
S is for Snakes. Two snake tales -
From the Koo Wee Rup Sun of February 5, 1931 - Mr M. Murton, while engaged on Mr W. Goble's farm, Kooweerup, last Thursday felt a sharp sting on the arm, but went on with his task. Later he found his arm beginning to swell and punctures from a snake bite were found. Immediately a ligature was applied and the usual measures taken to counteract the poison, after which he was conveyed to the surgery of Dr. Hewitt. Mr Murton quickly recovered from the effect of the bite.
From The Argus of March18, 1933 - Koo Wee Rup - For several weeks a resident of the district has found that bread left in a box outside his house by the baker has been nibbled and he has blamed mice for it. But when a tramp was passing the box today he saw the tail of a snake protruding from it. He crept towards the box and found that the snake was eating the bread. He killed the snake.
T is for Trains
The Great Southern Railway line commenced construction on January 2, 1887 and was opened to Korumburra on June 2, 1891, and by January 13, 1892 went all the way to Port Albert. The section from Dandenong to Tooradin was relatively easy and was officially opened to the public on October 1, 1888. The stations in this section were at Lyndhurst, Cranbourne, Clyde and Tooradin. The Koo Wee Rup Swamp proved to be impediment to the building of the line. The excavation of the Main Drain to drain the Swamp did not start until 1889 and was not completed until 1893, so the rail contractors were essentially working in an undrained swamp. As noted by Railway historian, Keith Bowden at Koo Wee Rup - four separate bridges were necessary in every mile of embankment to allow for the escape of swamp and flood waters. Each of these bridges was one hundred yards long and contained seventy-two piles. To get timber to this site Falkingham [the contractor] tried bullocks but they sank almost out of sight in the mud....he was then forced to proceed very slowly, carrying his bridge timbers on his locomotive along approach embankments, and so build each bridge as he came to the site. It was impossible to build bridges in advance. The bridge crossing the main drain in the swamp had 137 eleven-foot openings, to allow for the escape of heavy flood waters. The Stations from Tooradin on the Koo Wee Rup Swamp were Dalmore, Koo Wee Rup, Monomeith, Caldermeade and Lang Lang.
Falkingham began carrying passengers between Tooradin and Koo Wee Rup on August 19, 1889. In February 1890, the service to Lang Lang was established. The South Gippsland Railway line now stops at Cranbourne, after services ceased in the 1990s.
A trestle bridge over the Koo Wee Rup Swamp
Image: The Great Southern Railway: the illustrated history of the building of the line in South Gippsland by Keith Macrae Bowden (Australian Railway Historical Association, 1970)
M is for Mechanics’ Institute.
The public hall opened in Koo Wee Rup on April 8, 1903. It was located between the Presbyterian Church and the Historical Society in Rossiter Road. In 1912 the Hall became a Mechanics’ Institute in order for it to access government grants. In the nineteenth century the term ‘mechanic’ meant artisan or working man. Mechanics’ Institutes generally had a library, and may have offered lectures, discussions or classes. Bayles was another local town which had a Mechanics’ Institute. This was located in the Bayles Hall which had been re-located from Yallock and officially opened in January 1932. The Tooradin Mechanics' Institute was built in 1882, burnt down in 1937 and the existing Hall was opened in 1938. The old Cora Lynn hall was also originally a Mechanics’ Institute.
The Koo Wee Rup hall was of weather board and it was extended in 1919. The brick front and other rooms were added in 1925 and it was renamed the Memorial Hall to honour the First World War soldiers. The Hall was demolished in 2002 and plaque on the fence marks its location.
The Koo Wee Rup Hall, c. 1920
Koo Wee Rup Swamp Historical Society image
A is for Asparagus.
Over ninety percent of Australian asparagus is grown on the Koo Wee Rup Swamp. The first commercial grower in Victoria was Thomas Roxburgh, at his farm Cheriton Park, on the corner of Fallon Road and Simpson Road at Vervale. The farm was locally known as Roxburgh Park and was 350 acres. Thomas Roxburgh did not personally work on the farm, he employed a farm manager and by 1927 it was reported he had planted 100 acres of asparagus, and his farm was one of the most lucrative farms on the Kooweerup Swamp area, as a ready sale is found for the product at £1 per box. The rich, peaty soil is particularly adapted for the production of the plant, which grows to perfection. By 1932, the farm had 120 acres under asparagus and in the cutting season 20 to 25 men are employed every day. Most of the asparagus was canned by either the Gartside cannery at Dingley or the Rosella Preserving Company or A.J.C. (Australasian Jam Company).
During the Second World War, the Roxburgh farm had the Australian Women’s Land Army women working on the property, as well as some of the men from the Italian Prisoner of War camp. Cheriton Park was sold in 1947 to A.J.C and by that time it had 125 acres of asparagus under production.
During the Second World War, the Roxburgh farm had the Australian Women’s Land Army women working on the property, as well as some of the men from the Italian Prisoner of War camp. Cheriton Park was sold in 1947 to A.J.C and by that time it had 125 acres of asparagus under production.
S is for Stormy Weather.
From The Age, May 12, 1928 - Cyclone at Bayles. Roof carried half a mile. Butter Factory workers terrified. At 12.30 p.m. today some men working in a butter and cheese factory owned by Sage and Co. Pty. Ltd, Melbourne, heard an extraordinary noise, which appeared to be caused by a sudden roar of wind, ending in a thunderclap. They rushed out of the factory, and as they did so the roof seemed to be lifted bodily and was swept away at a terrific speed. Later on the greater portion of the tin roof, measuring 60 feet by 20 feet, was found half a mile away. The cyclone was awe inspiring, and struck terror into the hearts of those who witnessed it. The men working in the factory were not injured, and after finding out where the rest of the roof had landed they returned to work. The machinery was not damaged. The weather had been fine up to the time of the cyclone, but after that it rained heavily.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
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