Woodford WWI Avenue of Honour
Bridge Road WOODFORD, WARRNAMBOOL CITY
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Statement of Significance
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Veterans Description for Public
Woodford WWI Avenue of Honour - Veterans Description for Public
The Woodford Avenue of Honour comprises of a row of seven English Oaks and Elms (Quercus robur and Ulmus procera) planted on Bridge Road. The Avenue was established as a memorial to those who served and fell in the First World War from the Woodford and Bushfield districts. Unfortunately the condition of the avenue has been compromised by poor pruning practices associated with power line clearing.
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.
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Woodford WWII Avenue of HonourVic. War Heritage Inventory
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Mt Taurus HomesteadNational Trust
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Woodford State School Honour RollVic. War Heritage Inventory
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