FORGOTTEN VILLAGE: Healesville resident and local By DION TEASDALE
A FORGOTTEN village on the Black Spur has been brought back to life thanks to the efforts of a local historian.
Healesville resident Bryan Mitchell has handcrafted a three dimensional scale model of Fernshaw, a village that existed between Healesville and Narbethong for a period of 26 years in the 1800s.
Mr Mitchell, a member of the Healesville and District Historical Society, is the greatgrandson of two of Fernshaw’s original settlers, Richard and Maria Rendell.
“Most people know so little about the history of Fernshaw. They think it is just a picnic spot on the Black Spur,” Mr Mitchell said.
“I wanted to show people that there was much more to this forgotten village. I wanted to show what the town was like in three dimensions.”
Mr Mitchell, who spent five weeks recreating the village from photographs using craft wood, foam and paint, said the project helped him reconnect to his family’s heritage.
“My greatgrandparents were amongst the first people to settle at Fernshaw and were the last residents to move out of the township,” he said.
“They grew raspberries and apples at Fernshaw, had 11 children, 10 of whom were born at Fernshaw, and two of their children died whilst the family lived there. Their graves are amongst some of the few things that remain.”
Mr Mitchell said Fernshaw was founded in 1864 and continued as a village until 1890, and at its peak the township’s population stood at 100 residents.
“The government of the time decided in 1872 that the town would become part of a water catchment area and the land my greatgrandparents lived on was taken by compulsory acquisition,” Mr Mitchell said.
“Even though they were forced to leave, there is still a strong family and spiritual connection to the place and by creating the model I feel like I’ve helped bring the place back to life.”
Mr Mitchell’s wife, Alma Mitchell, the secretary of the Healesville and District Historical Society, wrote and published a history of the town, titled ‘Fernshaw the Forgotten Village’, in 2001.
She said that in its heyday, Fernshaw was bigger than Healesville and was the top tourist township in Victoria throughout the 1870s.
Mr Mitchell’s model of Fernshaw is currently on display at the Healesville and District Historical Society which is open Monday and Friday from 1.30pm to 4pm.
For more information phone 5962 1655.
