100 years ago
5 March 1925
52nd BATTALION
CONSECRATION OF COLORS
An interesting ceremony will take place at the Show grounds, Dandenong, next Saturday., when the King’s colors of the 52nd Battalion Infantry will be consecrated by Lieut-General Chaplain J.A Gault, O.B.E, whose splendid record of work amongst the troops in France is well known. The 52nd Battalion, the headquarters of which are at Dandenong, draws its personnel from Oakleigh and Caulfield, as well as Dandenong and it is expected that there will be a good muster of the whole of the whole battalion. Lieut-Colonel G.H. Knox, C.M.G., the commanding officer, was extremely gratified at the soldierly bearing of the lads in camp recently. The Battalion, headed by the band, will march at 2.40pm from the Drill Hall to the Showgrounds.
50 years ago
4 March 1975
Lind denies quit rumor
Mr Alan Lind MLA, the member for Dandenong, is not retiring. Mr Lind yesterday refuted a rumour sweeping Dandenong that he would step down. He said “Rubbish! Definitely not. As long as the people and the party want me, I’m here to continue my Parliamentary career.” Mr Lind, who is admired by people of all political leanings for the work he does for people of the district over and above his normal parliamentary duties, is a man of many parts. A former teacher, he joined the Education Department in 1932. In 1942 he served as a gunner in the 2/12th field regiment AIF in the Middle East and South-West Pacific war zone. He came to Dandenong in 1955 and taught in district schools until 1969 and he was principal of Hallam Primary School when he retired. In 1969 he was elected as the Member for Dandenong and has continued in that role … “and for many more years if the people want me.”
20 years ago
7 March 2005
‘Green’ police station opened
The $4.4m Endeavour Hills police station was officially opened last Tuesday by the Police Minister Tim Holding. He said the station would be an asset to the community and that being in the fastest growing municipality, it was time Endeavour Hills had its own station. “Previously Endeavour Hills was serviced by neighbouring stations, so the time was right for the area to have a police station to call their own.” Mr Holding said the state-of-the-art station was one of four ‘green’ stations that had been built with energy-saving features, including natural ventilation and rain water retention for irrigation. “It also has two holding rooms, staff amenities areas, including a gymnasium and a secure compound for staff and operational carparking.”
5 years ago
3 March 2020
Vote gets personal
Greater Dandenong’s tradition of attendance voting at council elections may be overruled by the State Government. After a lengthy meeting debate, a majority of councillors opted to stick with the ballot-booth method for the October poll. Greater Dandenong’s decision is an exception, with 70 out of 79 Victorian councils opting for postal voting. Cr Mathew Kirwan said Greater Dandenong’s electoral results had been less swayed by ‘dummy candidates’ as a result. “In the councils around us that have postal voting it is widely known that that there is a large amount of dummy candidates. Why? Because unlike attendance voting, dummy candidates in postal elections don’t need to front up on election day and don’t attract volunteers like real candidates.” On the other hand, a postal vote election would save Greater Dandenong Council $200,000 and give voters time to decide “in the comfort of their homes”, Cr Sean O’Reilly argued.
Compiled by Dandenong & District Historical Society
