MALVERN TRAM DEPOT

The Malvern Tramway Depot Zig-Zag Air Raid Slit Trench was identified in the 1945 aerial imagery of the Malvern Tramway Depot site. It comprises three roughly north south aligned zig-zag air raid slit trenches in what is now the Malvern Tramway Depot staff carpark. Aerial imagery dating from 1951-1968 suggest that this area was primarily used for stockpiling and was levelled off in 1968 by adding darker sediment. It was used as an unpaved carpark from 1978 to 1984, with evidence of bitumen having been added in 1987. As such, it is possible that the remains of the base of the zig-zag air raid slit trench are still extant in a subsurface context. Features may include sandbags, timbers, corrugated iron, iron rods, and drainage infrastructure, along with the potential for discarded items dating to the period the trench was in use.

The Malvern Tramway Depot is of historic and archaeological importance to the State of Victoria. 

The Malvern Tramway Depot is of archaeological significance for its potential to contain archaeological evidence of the design, construction, use, and remediation of air raid precaution slit trenches constructed during World War II (1939-45). The trenches were probably built in 1942 after Japan's entry into the war in late 1941, to shelter staff who worked at the Malvern Tramway Depot. The slit trenches were constructed in response to the fear of air attack during World War II and represent precautionary measures taken in Victoria's urban public areas. The distinctive zig-zag pattern of the trenches was typical of those built in several Tramway Depots, city parks and gardens as the preferred shelter for protecting large numbers of people from bomb blasts. There has been some disturbance from introduced fill (identified in the aerial photographs) since the trenches were backfilled.

The three zig-zag trenches comprise a significant archaeological feature of Melbourne’s history during World War II which are not commonly investigated archaeologically. Evidence found has the potential to provide information on the technology, construction, and use of the air raid slit trench in an urban context. This will provide information on how the people of Essendon responded to the possibility of war during, and after, World War II.