Leader of the wool trade

IF ever there was a town that could have been said to have ridden on the sheep’s back in terms of its economic development it was early Geelong.

The earliest settlers who had arrived in the Geelong district from the mid-1830s had generally brought with them their sheep, having been drawn to the Port Phillip district by the promise of an abundance of land suitable for grazing.

Geelong had been proclaimed a town in 1838, and a list of graziers who had exported wool from Geelong in the early days included such names as Dalgety and Strachan who were to become synonymous with the wool industry.

Woolstores bearing their names soon appeared at the bay end of the town, but by 1865 moves were afoot for Geelong to step up and weave its own woollen cloth.

The Victorian Woollen and Cloth Manufacturing Company was formed in 1865 and a site chosen near the Barwon River on the corner of Swanston St and Barwon Terrace.

The resulting mill produced Victoria’s first woollen cloth in January 1868, cementing Geelong’ position as the leader of the wool trade.

The Victorian mill was soon joined in 1870 by the Albion mill the river end of La Trobe Terrace and in 1874 the Barwon mill near the Victoria mill in Factories Rd.

In 1875 a flood of cheaper woollen imports from bankrupt English mills placed great strain on Geelong’s mills. A flood of a different kind hit the mills in 1880 when the Barwon River burst its banks, causing thousands of pounds damage to the Victorian and Barwon mills.

In 1886 the Barwon mill closed and the Victorian mill was on the brink.

Businessman Godfrey Hirst bought the Barwon mill in 1892 and the Victorian mill in 1899, renaming them the Excelsior Mill No.1 and Excelsior No.2 respectively.

The former Barwon mill was destroyed by fire in March 1912, but the name Godfrey Hirst went on to be synonymous with carpets.

Hirst died at his home, Royd Grange, at Belmont in 1917.

But the firm is still thriving today with offices overseas as well as the river end of Swanston St, having expanded to include other flooring including timber. Contact: peterjohnbegg@gmail.com

Picture: GEELONG HERITAGE CENTRE COLLECTION. WOOL CRAFT: Godfrey Hirst staff gather in Swanston St in the 1880s.

The Godfrey Hirst mill in the 1940s.

The Victoria mill looking northeast from Swanston St in the late 1800s.

A sketch from the Illustrated Melbourne Post showing the weaving room at the Victoria mill.