Welshpool Avenue of Honour

Main Street, Woorarra Road and Port Welshpool Road WELSHPOOL, South Gippsland Shire

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Vic. War Heritage Inventory

Statement of Significance

• Additional Place Information

  • Physical Description 1

    Welshpool Avenue of Honour - Physical Description 1

    The Welshpool Avenue of Honour was constructed along Main Streetbetween 1917- 1920. The Avenue comprises of approximately 32 Elm trees planted on both sides of Main Street between Shady Creek and Woorarra Road. There are about three trees in Woorarra Road and and a small number in Port Welshpool Road.
    

    Physical Description 2

    Welshpool Avenue of Honour - Physical Description 2

    Style

    Honour Avenue

    Historical Australian Themes

    Welshpool Avenue of Honour - Historical Australian Themes

    Thematic Context

    Government Institutions

    Sub-Themes

    Military Defence

    Veterans Description for Public

    Welshpool Avenue of Honour - Veterans Description for Public

    The Welshpool Avenue of Honour, on Main Street, Port Welshpool and Woorarra Roads commemorates the First World War. The avenue planted between 1917-1920, comprises of approximately thirty-two Elm trees planted on both sides of Main Street between Shady Creek and Woorarra Road. There are about three trees in Woorarra Road and a small number in Port Welshpool Road. It was the first Avenue of Honour established in the Shire and one of the first in the State of Victoria. Although parts of the Avenue have been removed and some remaining trees are in poor condition, it still complements the War Memorial erected alongside it in 1920.

    In Australia, commemorative trees have been planted in public spaces since the late nineteenth century. Arbor Days were held regularly in most Victorian State Schools during the late 1800s and early 1900s, and numerous trees were planted in parks in Melbourne and throughout Victoria to mark the visits of important and famous people.

    This tradition of commemorative planting was continued in 1901 when at the end of the Boer War trees were often planted for each soldier of the district who was killed in South Africa. These plantings, however, rarely consisted of more than two or three trees in each town.

    During and after the First World War avenues of honour consisting of trees lining significant streets became a popular form of commemoration. They represented a new egalitarian approach to the commemoration of soldiers where rank was not a consideration: each tree symbolises a person.

    Avenues of honour are a uniquely Australian phenomenon. Australians, and in particular Victorians, embraced the idea of planting them more enthusiastically than any other country in the world. Dating from May 1916, the Eurack Avenue of Honour is the earliest known avenue of honour to be planted in Victoria.

    By the time of the Second World War avenues of honour had declined in popularity as a means of commemoration. Today it is estimated that over 300 avenues of honour have been planted in Victoria to commemorate service personnel since 1901.
    
    

    Heritage Study and Grading

    Heritage Study and Grading

    South Gippsland - South Gippsland Heritage Study

    Author: David Helms with Trevor Westmore
    Year: 2004
    Grading:

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