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Darley Refractories Pty. Ltd.
Grey Street DARLEY, MOORABOOL SHIRE

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Moorabool Shire
Darley Refractories Pty. Ltd.
Darley Refractories Pty. Ltd.
Darley Refractories Pty. Ltd.
Darley Refractories Pty. Ltd.
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Statement of Significance

An early tentieth Century industrial plant, buildings and chimneys, manufacturing firebricks for almost a century, and possibly since the 1880s. Sections of early buildings survive and three prominent brick chimneys: circular (southernmost, 1902), square(central, 1907) and northernmost (square, 1909). There are early clay brick hand presses and c1930s claybick processing equipment.

The equipment, plant, buildings, quarry and chimneys are of state historical significance as a representative embodiment of an early twentieth century industrial and extraction process.

It issocially significant, locally as a local landmark, used by the community for orientation.

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    • Physical Conditions

      Darley Refractories Pty. Ltd. - Physical Conditions

      Reasonable. The industry is now located in the developing residential suburb of Darley, and presumably its viability must be limited for this reason.

      Intactness

      Darley Refractories Pty. Ltd. - Intactness

      Reasonable.

      Physical Description 1

      Darley Refractories Pty. Ltd. - Physical Description 1

      The principal buildings include a bank of down-draft kilns, the clay processing works and brick processing works. These later two contain machines of c1930 vintage including edge-runner mills and dry-press brick-making machines. Other hand presses appear to date from a much earlier period, as does the edge-runner mill sitting in the yard, which bears the makers plate of G.M. Seward & Sons of Melbourne. Little evidence survives of the tramway system once used for clay and brick transference. Sheds are of timber and corrugated iron construction, but the processing buildings have substantial brick footings for machinery and drive trains.

      Sections of early buildings remain along the east side, where original timber louvred walls are intact. These provided ventilation for drying green bricks before firing. The kiln shed at the northern end also appears to be an early structure, while the tall clay processing building may be original in part, but has been extensively altered, to accommodate modem plant, and has recently been entirely reclad in colourband sheeting.

      Three brick chimneys survive, although only the southernmost is in use . This dates from 1902 and is circular, with iron reinforcing bands added. It has lost its ornamental top, having been truncated by several metres some time after the 1950s. The central chimney, which is believed to date from 1907, is square, with decorative cream brick bands and retains its corbelled and ribbed crown. This was built for the steam boilers and engine which originally drove all the machinery via line-shafting and belting, some evidence of which can still be found. Concrete pads mark the boilerhouse site just north of the chimney. The northern-most chimney is also square, and dates from 1909. It is not shown in the available early illustrations, but closely matches the boilerhouse chimney with a similar decorative crown.9

      9 Moore & Oomes, p. 64; D.B. Doyle, (Manager David Mitchell Estate ) 'Manufacture of Gas Works Refractori es A Local Enterprise', The C.G.A . Servi ce Messenger, December 1942.

      Usage/Former Usage

      Darley Refractories Pty. Ltd. - Usage/Former Usage

      USE: Fire brick works.

      Historical Australian Themes

      Darley Refractories Pty. Ltd. - Historical Australian Themes

      HISTORIC THEME: Industry/Mining

      Heritage Study and Grading

      Heritage Study and Grading

      Moorabool - Bacchus Marsh Heritage Study 1995

      Author: Richard Peterson and Daniel Catrice
      Year: 1995
      Grading:

Public contributions

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