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The following information is reproduced from a 1858-1958 Bicentennial Celebration Information Brochure published by the City of Fitzroy. |
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New Town (later Fitzroy & Collingwood) 1841 |
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John Batman arrived in Melbourne in 1835. He made a treaty with the Aboriginal tribe known as the Doutta-Galla tribe and purchased a great area of land on which Melbourne and its suburbs now
stand. He signed this treaty on the banks of the Merri Creek. The Port Melbourne settlement, as Melbourne was at first known, was then part of New South Wales and the then Governor Gipps refused to recognise the treaty. In 1837, therefore,
he sent a surveyor named Hoddle to work out the building blocks and streets of Melbourne, including the main thoroughfares.The blocks of land were auctioned and all sold. The NSW Government then decided to subdivide the area which they called
the New Town, now Fitzroy and Collingwood. In 1839 they auctioned in Sydney a large section of this land between the river and Nicholson St from Victoria Parade northward. This land was regarded as country land and was not sold in small building
sites but in blocks of 25 acres. The price paid averaged only £7 each block, but most of the buyers divided their blocks into smaller sections and sold them for housebuilding. |
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In 1842 Fitzroy was made a ward (a part of Melbourne) and was known as the Gipps Ward. This ward also included what we now know as Collingwood. In 1850 Collingwood was made a separate ward and Fitzroy
was renamed the Fitzroy Ward, after Governor Fitzroy of New South Wales. Fltzroy, however; wanted to be independent. The leading citizens banded together and asked the Government to make Fitzroy a separate town. After a long delay their request
was granted and, on September 9th, 1858, Fitzroy was made a Municipality. On December 2nd, 1870, it became a Town, and on February 1st, 1878, it was proclaimed the City of Fitzroy.
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Royal Terrace, Fitzroy 1854 |
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20 Fitzroy men nominated for the 7 positions on the 1st Council. They were Thomas Rae, a soap and candle manufacturer; George Symons, an auctioneer; Edward Langton, a butcher; Henry Groom, a
publican; Benjamin Bell, a grocer; Edwin Bennett, a surgeon; and Thomas Hargreave, a contractor. They were the men who laid the foundations on which Fitzroy grew. This 1st Council and their successors built Fitzroy from a swampy bushland into
a great modern City which has produced many great men including a Prime Minister of Australia, Alfred Deakin, who was born in a little cottage in George St near Gertrude St. A plaque is attached to the front to recall to us the humble beginnings
of a great Australian and son of Fitzroy. Fitzroy will always keep growing and improving. A courageous slum clearance programme is now well under way. This City has welcomed migrants from all corners of the Earth. These New Australians have
come to this country with the hope of starting a new and happier life. Fitzroy offers them the key to the door of prosperity. |
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