DOMED WELLS 1 AND 2
1865 THOMPSONS ROAD CLYDE NORTH, CASEY CITY
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Statement of Significance
The wells are significant as intact examples of a domed or beehive well dating to the late-nineteenth / early-twentieth century and relating to the early farming history of the Clyde North area.
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DOMED WELLS 1 AND 2 - History
The farm on which the wells are situated was part of the Garen Gam run taken up in 1840 by Dr James Bathe and T.J. Perry. Bathe became a well-known racehorse owner and breeder, and the run is said to have carried 60 horses and 400 cattle. The run was subdivided in 1845 and proceeded to change hands thirteen times between 1868 and 1982. It appears to have remained a small farming property throughout this period and currently carries a small number of cows and horses. The property was sold recently for a residential development.
The construction technique utilised for the wells / cisterns indicates a construction date between the late-1890s and the 1930s (see below). In 1894 the farm was inherited by Frank and Isabel Alice (Westfield) Wisewould, who leased the land from the late-1890s. Their 'model farm' was offered for sale in 1900 and the description included three underground brick tanks and a well. This suggests that these two wells / cisterns were built in the decade before 1900, either by Frank and Isabel Wisewould, or by Frank's parents, James and Sophie Wisewould, who owned the property from around 1868 until 1894.
DOMED WELLS 1 AND 2 - Interpretation of Site
The site comprises two "beehive" wells that may have functioned as cisterns. The use of concrete rendering over brick in the construction ofunderground tanks came into practice in the late-1890s and continueduntil around the 1930s. The two wells utilise the same constructiontechnique and were probably built in the same time period, to provide asource of fresh water for agricultural purposes. Tanks were able to beconstructed above-ground from the 1930s due to advances in reinforcedconcrete, which saved on the cost of excavation and prevented pollutionfrom groundwater. The two wells do not appear to be still in use.
Heritage Inventory Description
DOMED WELLS 1 AND 2 - Heritage Inventory Description
The wells are circular red brick, concrete-rendered structures situated 49.4 metres apart from each other within farm paddocks. One well is approximately 18 centimetres in height above the ground surface, with a circumference of approximately 1.8 metres. It has a hand-made octagonal iron cover. The well and the cover are in very good condition with only minor weathering apparent.
The second well is a large, circular red brick, concrete-rendered structure in very good condition, approximately 1.8 metres in height above the ground surface, with a circumference of approximately 5 metres. A loose brick found alongside the well is a Hoffmans brick with a central frog manufactured from around 1880. It is not apparent, however, whether the well is constructed from the same type of bricks. The well is in very good condition with only minor weathering apparent.
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DOMED WELLS 1 AND 2Victorian Heritage Inventory
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