The History of Dights Falls

By Emilyphu

  • European expedition of the Yarra river

    It is believed that, Charles Grimes, Surveyor General of New South Whales, was the first European settler to explore the Yarra river.

  • Melbourne settled

    In 1835, Melbourne was eventually settled and the land was subdivided and the first public land sales were held shortly after.

  • John Dight purchased Melbourne block 88

    John Dight purchased the Melbourne block 88, which included 26 acres of land along the Yarra river for £481 at the Port Phillip land sales held in Sydney.

  • John Dight said that he was leaving to Port Phillip

    In 1840, John Dight was already in business of flour milling. In April, he notified his customers through The Sydney Herald that he was leaving to Port Phillip.

  • First steam powered flour mill built in Melbourne

    In 1841, the first steam powered flour mill was constructed in Melbourne. John then built his water powered mill from bricks bought over from Tasmania.

  • Abandoned flour milling

    The Dight family abandoned flour milling in 1864

  • Edwin Trennery property was sold

    The Dight family sold their property (Edwin Trennery) in 1878. Trennery subsequently subdivided the land.

  • The original mill on the river bank remained unoccupied.

  • A new mill was constructed and sold

    This enterprise, was sold in 1891 to the Melbourne Flour Milling Company.

  • A timber structure was built to provide water for Melbourne

    The existing weir at Dights Falls dates back to 1895 when a timber structure was built to provide water for the Melbourne Flour Milling Company.

  • The mill changed hands for a final time

    The mill changed hands for a final time in 1909 before it was destroyed by a fire. The ruins of the mill, can still be found at Dight Falls today.

  • First documented reconstruction activity occurred

    The first documented reconstruction activity occurred in 1918 when part of the timber weir washed away in flood waters. The Minister for public Works at the time declared that the weir would be rebuilt, although the extent of these works is not known.

  • A breach prompted another rebuild

    A breach of the weir on the 24th of December 1940 prompted another rebuild and the distribution of 1.5 tonnes of rock from the edge of the weir downstream.

  • A breach occurred after heavy rainfall

    A further breach of the weir occurred after heavy rainfall in 1967. Most of the timber decking, walings and rock fill had washed away or were irreparably damaged during this flood.

  • Original timber piles were capped by concret

    The following year, the original timber piles were caped by concrete, replacing the timber deck and resulting in the weir structure that we see today.

  • Melbournians realised the weir was a barrier

    In 1993 Melbourne Water, recognising the the weir was a barrier to fish migration constructed a rock fishway to allow fish to move around the weir. Whilst considered best practise at the time, the rock fishway was only partially effective and the Dight Falls Weir continues to act as a major barrier to native fish migration in the Yarra River.