Hollies contributes to social history of Drouin
The Hollies has made a “considerable social contribution” to the history of Drouin, a Planning Panels Victoria hearing was told last week.
Two community submissions to last week’s panel included Judy Farmer representing Friends of Drouin’s Trees and Ellen Burrows of the Drouin History Group.
Ms Farmer said “stories and heritage give heart and soul to a place and a community.”
“The Hollies is worthy of recognition and preservation for the man who built it and lived in it…the man who designed it…the trees…its considerable social contribution to the history of Drouin,” she said.
Ms Farmer said the spectacular trees on the property were recorded on Drouin’s significant tree register and trees were often the “last living link” to history.
Ms Farmer outlined an extensive history of Anglican Bishop Arthur Green and his association with Drouin.
Rates records presented by Ms Farmer showed Bishop Green as the owner of the Main South Rd property firstly in 1900 and until 1914/15.
She presented evidence of Bishop Green commissioning Ballarat architect William Chandler to build a house on the Drouin property.
The Ballarat Star 1905 reported that Chandler had designed a “neat and convenient residence” in Drouin for the Bishop on his country property.
The house was described by Chandler as a “picturesque addiproperty tion to the architecture of the district.” Ms Farmer said features of the house included three corbelled brick chimneys with polished Kauri and Californian pine lining of Edwardian style and built atop a hill.
Ms Farmer also spoke about Bishop Green’s engagement with the Drouin community.
She referenced several West Gippsland Gazette articles from the early 1900s that referred to Bishop Green addressing community groups, filling in for the Christ Church minister while he was on leave, and helping to extinguish bushfires in Gippsland.
Ms Farmer said other residences owned by Bishop Green were listed on the Victorian Heritage Register including the chimney and two Seqouia pines at Ballarat and house in Heidelberg.
“All the houses he lived in are listed as significant on registers except for Drouin,” she said.
Ms Farmer said as a student, Bishop Green was described as brilliant and went on to earn a reputation of being and “man of the people” and “a significant figure in the Australian Anglican story.”
Following Bishop Green’s ownership, Ms Farmer outlined subsequent owners, including the Love, Scale and Stoll families.
Ms Farmer said many newspaper articles during the 1930s referred to the Scale family of “The Hollies.”
“If you received an invitation to The Hollies during the Scales’ ownership it was considered an honour…the house was held in high esteem,” she said.
The Stoll family owned the from 1948 to 2018 and rented the house.
Ms Farmer said stories from people who lived at the house indicated people had been conceived there, born there, married there and died there.
She said teachers, footy players, immigrants, farmers and council staff had all called The Hollies home.
Drouin History Group spokesperson Ellen Burrows said The Hollies was a “wonderful example of a heritage property and demonstrates a wonderful opportunity to preserve our town’s early and farm heritage.”
She told the hearing the group would like to see King Parrot Bvd, in the approved subdivision, moved to allow protection of The Hollies property.
“The area and plantings around the house are significant.
“It’s not just a building, it’s about the people who were in it and without their stories it is just a structure,” she said.
Ms Burrows outlined the early history of the property, from its settlement by John Startup who was an early pioneer and settler in the district. She said he was important to the early development of Drouin and a member of the first shire council.
Ms Burrows said social media comments on the group’s Facebook page showed strong support for protection of the policy.
There was a common theme for the comments from people who said they had “loved this house forever” and “it is testament to the history of Drouin.”