Burwood: Kmart, Deakin University, Wattle Park, drive-in cinema
It’s home to Australia’s oldest Kmart and the country’s greenest shopping centre. And if you remember the smell of biscuits from the Arnott’s factory or seeing a movie at the drive-in, chances are you grew up in Burwood. But we better make sure …
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It might not make the news as often as some other suburbs, but Burwood has a fascinating history.
The leafy suburb is home to Deakin University and Wattle Park, and has the honour of being home to Australia’s first Kmart.
It was also once home to the country’s first drive-in cinema.
The suburb also recently welcomed the most sustainable shopping centre in the world, Burwood Brickworks.
Here’s how you know you’re from Burwood.
You’ve been to Australia’s oldest Kmart
The luxury of living so close to the mecca of all Kmart stores comes in handy for people living in Burwood. Open 24/7, the store has been a lifesaver for those who need to grab an essential (or not so essential) item late at night. The store, which opened in 1969 and is the country’s oldest Kmart, was also once home to a popular Holly’s cafe.
It was through their jobs at Kmart that Catherine and Duane Turner first met, 34 years ago.
Speaking to Whitehorse Leader last year, Duane recalled the days when Kmart Burwood was home to a chicken bar, with staff having to cook chicken on a spit on top of their other tasks.
The pair said Kmart was once also the local pet store and the place to buy guns.
Catherine said birds and fish used to be kept in store.
And she said the store only used to be open on Friday afternoons — it was closed in the morning — and until noon on a Saturday.
Part of the Burwood One shopping centre on Burwood Highway, it drew criticism from some shoppers when the cash registers were moved to the middle of the store. Finding a park at the complex can also be a challenge.
You remember the drive-in
Burwood was home to Australia’s first drive-in theatre. Located off Burwood Highway, in the park opposite where Hungry Jacks stands now, the theatre opened in 1954.
According to the information stand at the site, the Burwood Drive-In Theatre offered unique features and services to its patrons. It was capable of holding 650 cars in its natural 4ha bowl. A buffet sold snacks, while attendants served customers in their cars. A large row of cypress pines and poplar trees were planted to screen out light from the film projector. Two of the last cypress trees have been made into sculptures. The Burwood Drive-In closed in 1983 and made way for an electricity supply depot.
David Kilderry, a fan of drive-ins from a young age, previously told Leader Burwood was his favourite.
“They had beautiful gardens and trees. Burwood, the first drive-in in the southern hemisphere, is probably the prettiest. It had a lake with a steak house, illuminated children’s playground. If I had to say a favourite it would be Burwood,’’ he said.
You’ve visited the Wattle Park trams
No trip to Wattle Park as a child was complete without playing on the W-class trams.
According to the history board at the park, in the 1850s as European settlers moved into what became Burwood, the land was divided up and sold as small farms.
In 1904, Mrs Eliza Welch bought up sections of the farmland and consolidated them into one 55ha property.
In 1915 she decided to sell it to the Hawthorn Tramways Trust for 9000 pounds but only if the land was transformed into a public park.
Disused cable tram cars from the 1800s were placed in the park in the 1920s to be used as picnic shelters.
In 1963, two W-class electric tram bodies from the 1920s were then installed to replace the cable trams.
Today’s W-class trams were installed in 2008 due to the deterioration and vandalism of the previous ones.
You remember the smell of biscuits wafting from the Brockhoff factory
The Brockhoff Biscuit factory operated in Montpellier Rd for decades, giving residents in surrounding streets the chance to enjoy the sweet smell of baking biscuits.
Brockhoff’s Biscuits was established by German immigrant Adolph Brockhoff in the 1880s.
Its brands included Chocolate Royal, Family Assorted, Salada, Savoy, Cheds and Shapes.
The factory was taken over by Arnott’s, before it closed in 2002. It’s now home to the Montpellier Gardens housing estate, which includes a street called Brockhoff Drive, to honour the heritage of the site.
You’ve seen the growth of Deakin University
If you’ve been living in Burwood for some times, you would have seen Deakin University’s Burwood Highway campus develop significantly. According to the uni, the rich history of the Burwood campus as an education precinct dates back to 1954 when the Burwood Teachers’ College was established by the Victorian Education Department. Seventy nine students were enrolled, with the official opening on May 13, 1955.
Before becoming a site for the college, the site was a daffodil farm owned by a Mr. Albers.
Burwood Teachers’ College became the State College of Victoria (Burwood) in 1972.
In December 1981 the SCV (Burwood) was merged with the SCV (Toorak), SCV (Rusden) and the Prahran College of Advanced Education to form Victoria College.
In December 1991 Victoria College amalgamated with Deakin University.
The redevelopment of the Burwood campus during second half of the 1990s included five new buildings on the eastern side of the campus.
More recent development highlights include the Burwood Link Bridge, completed 1n 2017, and the Deakin Law School building, completed this year.
The Burwood campus also has an art gallery that is usually open to the public, but is closed due to coronavirus restrictions.
Today the campus is used by 26,000 students and 1500 staff.
You’ve walked or cycled along Gardiners Creek Trail
The trail has been a godsend for people in Burwood and surrounding suburbs during the coronavirus lockdown, providing a leafy and peaceful spot to walk or cycle. The trail passes through the history park in Burwood, home to the former drive-in.
It’s also home to a red car sculpture, that commemorates the FJ Holden. The track continues over Burwood Highway, past Deakin University, with an off-lead area for dogs to enjoy.
You had a party at Smorgy’s
If you grew up in Burwood, chances are you celebrated a birthday or party at Smorgy’s on Warrigal Rd. Now home to a housing development, the site was once home to one of Melbourne’s favourite all-you-can-eat restaurants. Flaming torches at volcano-inspired entrances greeted diners as they entered the Polynesian-themed buffet restaurant, before enjoying the buffet. In the 1990s Smorgy’s prices ranged from $12.95 for dinner to $9.95 for lunch. An article in the Herald Sun in 1991 said visitors could “Get a taste of Hawaii at Smorgy’s Restaurant in Burwood. Here waitresses wear muu-muus, and meals cost about $7.50 for children under 12 and $3.50 for those under four. With the convenience of a mother’s room, this restaurant will appeal to families with babies.” After Smorgy’s closed, the site became a Volcano Joe’s restaurant, before making way for the housing development.
You’ve shopped at Melbourne’s greenest shopping centre
Officially opening last December, Burwood Brickworks has been heralded as the world’s most sustainable shopping centre. It’s home to a 2000sq m rooftop farm and about 250 trees have been planted to cover the northern side of the centre, with fruit trees lining each row of the carpark. The Frasers Property development has been crafted to give back to the environment — it will generate more energy than it will consume, it will collect, treat and reuse water, and 20 per cent of the site will be dedicated to agricultural use. There are also plans are for 750 houses and apartments on the site.
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