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European Settlement
The first European to explore Yarra River who is Surveyor of New South Wales led his survey party on an expedition to Yarra River (Dights Falls). -
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History Of Dights Falls
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Melbourne Settlement
In 1835 Melbourne had settled. The land was sub-divided and shortly after the dividing the first public land sales were held. -
John Dight's purchase
Melbourne's block 88 was purchased by John Dight. The block included 26 acres of land across the Yarra River. He bought it for 481 pounds at the Port Phillip land sales that were held in Sydney. -
Flour Milling
By 1940 Dights had a flour milling business near a town called Campbell in a town in New South Wales called 'Ceres' . In April Dight throught the Sydney Herald the he was leaving to go to Port Phillip. -
First Steam Powered Flour Mill
In Melbourne, the first steam powered flour mill was constructed. Soon after this Dight brought bricks from Tasmania to build his water powered mill and built it. he used the river to power his mill, In order to ensure or regulate the flow for the times when the river was low he constructed a rough stone weir. -
Abandoned Flour Milling
In 1864 the Dight family abandoned flour milling. -
Dight's Property Sold
After the Dight's family abandoned flour milling they sold their property to Edward Trennery. Who then subdivided the land. -
New Mill and Associated Buildings
The original mill that was on the river bank remained unused. Until Gillespie, Aitken and Scott who were flour millers constructed a new mill and associated buildings on the river bank in 1888. -
More Mills and Associated Buildings
The mills were rebuilt in much the same position using bluestone blocks from Dight's old mill building. A brand new mill and associated buildings were constructed. In 1891 this was sold to the Melbourne Flour Milling company. -
History of The Weir
As we know, the existing weir at Dight Falls dates all the way back to 1895. At the time a timber structure was built to provide water for the Melbourne Flour Milling Company. In it's 100 year history, the weir has been repaired a number of times. The structure which we see today is a result of materials added to it over time. -
Destroyed by Fire
In 1909 the mills owner changed for a final time before it was destroyed by fire. The race and ruins of the mill can still be found at Dights Falls today. -
The First Documented Reconstruction Activity
In 1918 the first documented reconstruction activity occurred. It happened when part of the timber weir got washes away in flood water. It was declared by the Minister for Public Works that the weir was to be rebuilt. -
Another Rebuild and Distribution
On the 24th of December in 1940 the weir was rebuilt due to damage. As well as the rebuild 1.5 tonnes of rock was distributed from the edge of the weir downstream. -
A Further Breach
After a heavy rainfall in 1918 more damage occurred to the weir. Most of the walings, rock fill and timber decking had washed away or was very badly damaged during the flood. -
Barrier to Native Fish Migration
In 1993 Melbourne Water's constructed a rock fishway that allowed fish to move around the weir after recognising that the weir was a barrier to fish migration. The rock fishway was only partially effective. Also the Dight Falls weir continued to be a major barrier for the native fish migration in the Yarra River.
