Tiny pocket of land tucked away at the bottom of the Greemount Hill
This land was one of the earliest to be taken up in what was to become the Shire of Mundaring. Part of Stirling's Swan Location 16, it was bounded by the Helena River and thought to be rich pastoral soil.
The natural resource of local clay made it the ideal location for making bricks. In mid 1890s this led to the largest concentration of brickworks in a small area, with over 5 commercial brickmaking establishments operating in close proximity.
Edward Robinson was one of the men who moved to the area after arriving from the United Kingdom
He built his homestead pictured above, from bricks that had been gathered from the local clay and then fired at local brickworks. He called his farm Belle-View from which the location was originally named.
Later it was changed to Bellevue.
As usual, with the increase of population, hotels were built. Originally named the East Midland Hotel Thomas Wilkins was the first proprietor. He had previously owned the Bellevue Hotel and saw the advantage of an Hotel closer to the newly constructed Helena Vale Race Club. He had difficulty getting a license for the hotel, but after his third application in 1904, a provisional license was granted. He sold the hotel to W K Lamzed 10 years later and the name was changed to The Darling Range Hotel.
The population of Bellevue had escalated to over 600 by 1903 and the ratepayers from the nearby Midland Council wanted to change the boundaries. They wished to take some of the Bellevue land which was in the Greenmount Roads Board District for their own. The increased rates income from the extra residents was too inviting and boundaries were changed. They have changed several times since then and you still see a slightly different boundary line these days.
For more information don't hesitate to visit our offices at the Mundaring Stationmaster's House Mundaring.
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