Spent the morning learning more about the Chaffey Trail here in Mildura. We learnt about their tremendous involvement and success in setting up Renmark, SA as an irrigation town, and we were impressed that they successfully did the same here - but not without big challenges. Their influence here set Mildura up for the town and area it is today. An oasis in a desert!
Fantastic Tourist Information Centre here with very interesting and informative displays showcasing the town and area. We watched the film "The Chaffey Trail" in the theatrette, and then we hopped into the MH and hit the trail to see for ourselves how Mildura became an irrigated oasis in the midst of an arid desert. Today we visited the Mildura Wharf / Port of Mildura; Lock 11 and Weir; the Old Mildura Homestead Station; and Rio Vista House. The rest of the Chaffey Trail we'll do another day.
In 1847 the Jamieson brothers were granted a licence to take up land for pastoral use. In 1858 this site was officially named Mildura. George and William Benjamin (WB) Chaffey were developing an irrigation settlement in Ontario, California when they met the Victoria Cabinet Minister Alfred Deakin. deakin was impressed and the Chaffeys came to Australia and after protracted negotiations in 1877 purchased the then defunct pastoral lease and created the Mildura Irrigation Colony.
They developed a series of steam-driven pumps to lift the water from the Murray River, first into King's Billabong, then subsequently to various heights to irrigate up to 33,000 acres.
Their plans included many visionary concepts: an agricultural college was needed and to finance this one property in 15 was designated as college lease land providing funds for schools. Locations were made for churches and facilities for clubs encouraged. Parks and town transport were considered. The beautiful centre plantation of Deakin Avenue ( Mildura's main thoroughfare) was set out in the Chaffeys town plan. The beautiful town Mildura is today is the product of the Chaffeys dream.
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The Mildura Wharf / Port of Mildura
River transport played a very important part in the opening up of the settlement of Mildura
The Wharf and Port are still very busy today
The other side of the river is NSW |
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The original paddle steamer P.S. Melbourne heads out from the wharf on her daily steam along the river.
Looking forward to going for a 2 hour adventure on her tomorrow! |
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| Lots of houseboats in the Port - this one was a s big as a house! |
The Chaffeys vision and desire to have water permanently accessible for river transport was fulfilled through a series of locks and weirs constructed along the Murray of which Lock 11 is in Mildura.
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| Beautiful picnic ground, park and River Gums on Lock Island |
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| The Weir |
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| The P S Melbourne going through the Lock 11 - the gate starting to open |
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| Through she steams! |
CHAFFEYS HOME 1
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The Old Mildura Homestead Station
First established by the Jamieson brothers in 1847 and was later purchased by the Chaffeys
WB Chaffey built Rio Vista up the road from the Homestead and the family moved there in 1892 |
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She happily heads on down the Murray!
There are some nice beaches on this part of the river! |
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| The Rose Garden |
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| The Woolshed |
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| The roller that was used to clear the mallee scrub |
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| The first irrigation pumping for grapevines occurred at this site |
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To create an irrigation settlement, pumps were needed to lift water to the height of the land.
The original pump house still stands at Psyche Bend - it is open to visitors so you can see the reconstructed pumps, steam engine and boiler house.
King's Billabong, were the water was pumped to, is a wetland reserve and bird sanctuary. |
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CHAFFEYS HOME 2
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Rio Vista was the home of WB Chaffey and his family. It is spanish for "River View"
The Queen Anne Style house was built in 1889 and was occupied by the Chaffey family from 1891 - 1950
The fountain has an interesting story - This fountain is a replica placed there in 1991, the original now stands in Deakin Avenue having been donated to the township in 1936 to commemorate 25 years since the Coronation of King George V. Apparently one of the Chaffey children drowned in the fountain and Hattie, Chaffey's wife, wanted it gone from the home.
Have a look through this lovely grand home...........................
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The Smoking Room
Australian timbers was used throughout the home |
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| The beautiful stained glass front door and entrance |
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| The Drawing Room / Breakfast Room |
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| The Dining Room |
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A photo taken in 1890
The Conservatory was used by the Chaffeys for recreational purposes and was only demolished in 1966 to build an Art Gallery |
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| The stained glass was used extensively through the home - lovely! |
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The Hallway
The floor is inlaid with Italian tiles. The original embossed wallpaper was made in England and after
99 years is still in good condition |
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| More beautiful stained glass windows as you ascend/ descend the staircase |
The upstairs bedrooms, bathroom and hallway........................
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| WB Chaffey |
Across the road from Rio Vista is a lovely park on the banks of the river where The World Sculpture park is sited. An interesting honour for Mildura................................
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| The World Sculpture Project |
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The Grand Hotel was originally the Mildura Coffee Palace.
The Chaffey offices next door were later demolished to make way for the expansion of the Grand.
Mildura was originally planned by Chaffey as a temperance colony. |
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