The story of building dry stone structures is a long and varied one that goes back to the era of pre-European settlement in Australia. Early constructions by Dutch and French maritime explorers can be traced back to the days prior to the arrival of Captain Cook in 1770.
Prior to that, Australia’s indigenous people had also used dry stone structures for habitation and ashapeimage 3quaculture, the ruined remains of which are still present in some places. These were found in places of permanent settlement (generally where abundant food resources were present – such as at Lake Condah in south-west Victoria where extensive fish and eel traps were also built).
These shelters were built with low circular (sometimes rectangular) walls. In some cases, the walls were used to support beams made of branches that were then roofed with bark and other materials. In other cases, the walls were used to shelter from prevailing winds, but were not roofed. Gaps between the stones may have been filled with turf.
During the early settlement era, opportunities including agriculture drew Europeans to the Australian continent where they, too, built dry stone structures to fence in their stock animals which provided them with their livelihood.
Dry stone walls marking boundaries of rural holdings form a distinctive feature in rural landscapes throughout Australia. The ancient craft was brought to Australia in colonial times from many lands: England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Germany, Italy and Switzerland and, more recently, we have learned that some of our dry stone structures may also have been constructed by the Chinese, Indians and French.
Although similar in purpose to those in other countries, Australia’s dry stone walls are of many different types and styles, with characteristics that were influenced by how the craft was carried out in the in the wallers’ country of origin.
Australia’s dry stone walls not only marked the boundaries of land-holdings and defined paddocks and stockyards but also helped to clear the land so that crops could be grown and sheep and cattle could be safely introduced. Such walls were also used as a barrier against the ‘rabbit plague’ that, at one time, threatened economic ruin for many farming families. In some places, such as mining areas and difficult terrain, the craft was used to construct retaining walls alongside roads or to clear flat land for housing.
In more recent times, the ancient craft of dry stone walling has become a desirable addition to modern-day Australian landscape and garden settings. Landscape designers and artisans are engaging skilled wallers to build dry stone walls and structures in the private and public realm. Some fine sculptural examples exist at Herring Island (Melbourne), the Adelaide Botanic Gardens, the eastern entrance to Terang township and on Aboriginal land at Tyrendarra in south-west Victoria.
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History tells us that the first dry stone construction by Europeans in Australia was built on West Wallabi Island off the coast of Western Australia in the late seventeenth century. For around two centuries or so, dry stone walls were either neglected as a significant contributor to the shaping of Australia’s cultural landscape or seen as just another style of practical fencing. However, more recently, the value of these unique constructions has been recognised for the important aesthetic and agrarian contributions they have made.
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In March 2007, an Advisory Committee appointed by Victoria’s Minister for Planning released its “Review of Heritage Provisions in Planning Schemes”. (NO LINK)
Among the Review’s many recommendations was one that proposed that the Victoria Planning Provisions (part of all municipal planning schemes in Victoria) be amended so that Clause 52.37 Post Boxes and Dry Stone Walls includes dry stone walls. The overall purpose of the clause is to conserve historic post boxes and dry stone walls.
Some 22 Victorian municipalities have dry stone walls and 12 have included this control in their planning schemes. They are Baw Baw, Glenelg, Golden Plains, Greater Geelong, Indigo, Mount Alexander, Moyne, Pyrenees, Surf Coast, Warrnambool, Whittlesea and Yarra Ranges.
In those municipalities, a permit is required to demolish, remove or alter a dry stone wall constructed before 1940. In assessing an application, the Council has to consider such factors as the significance of the dry stone wall, any applicable heritage study or statement of significance and conservation policy, whether the proposal will adversely affect the significance of the dry stone wall, and whether the proposal will adversely affect the significance, character or appearance of the area.