With thanks to Woodend & District Heritage Society. The society meets on Wednesdays, 10am-4pm, at the old courthouse in Forest St, Woodend. It’s June 1919. Barely seven months have passed since the end of World War I. The president of the Woodend branch of the Returned Soldiers’ Association, James McDonald, is about to address a […]
Raising a glass to the motherland
Islay House, a familiar sight on the main road through Woodend, started life as a hotel. But how did it get its name? And how should you pronounce it?
Pipped at the post
More than 1,000 people attended the first meeting at Woodend’s new racecourse in 1903. But Gambill’s victory in the Woodend Cup wasn’t the most impressive feat they saw.
Day the band played on the roof
Woodend bandstand was erected as a memorial to J.C. Keating. Such was the esteem in which he was held that a public subscription raised £700.
Ned Kelly and the blacksmith
The Redmonds’ forge in Woodend was a place where not only could you get your horse shod or your wagon repaired but you could be sure of a warm welcome.
Lead your horse to water
Bills horse troughs were mostly built in the 1930s and were dotted across Victoria and NSW. In total, more than 500 were installed in Australia and overseas. Today they stand modestly in many of our villages.