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Detailed History
"Environmental History" Sally Wilde - 1996
CONTEXT AND SUMMARY
Section A: White settlement before 1900
In this period:- native trees were cleared and sold for firewood
- exotic trees, especially pines, were planted in considerable numbers
- market gardens, orchards and small farms were the main land uses
- the township of Oakleigh was the first built up area
- Dandenong Rd and the Gippsland railway formed the axis for later growth
- the rectangular road grid, laid out in 1853, shaped land use & traffic routes
- buildings were modest in scale, whether rural or in Oakleigh
- often there was a significant time lag between subdivision and building
- development spread out from Melbourne along the Gippsland railway
- Dandenong Rd also became important as a focus for industrial growth
- orchards and market gardens remained important
- the Metropolitan Town Planning Commission fostered growth in Mulgrave
- despite the new Glen Waverley railway, suburban development of the Waverley area was delayed until after World War 2
- the pattern of time lags between subdivision and development continued
- owner occupied detached houses surrounded by garden were the norm
- fashions in houses changed dramatically between 1946 and 1996 and his is reflected in the range of house styles in the City of Monash
- by the 1990s, almost half the population of Oakleigh was overseas born
- the railway station based shopping centres reflect this cultural diversity
- industry in the south competed with Melbourne as a work destination
- Bellairs' grid of roads continued to serve the area, plus the S E Arterial
- private and public planting substantially reafforested the area
- increases in the proportion of medium density housing, especially from the mid 1980s, meant room for fewer trees.
Last updated: 22 February 2011
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