CLOVER DAM CONSTRUCTION CAMP SOUTH

The Clover Dam Construction Camp South consists of the landscaped remnants of a workers camp constructed and used in the 1930s and 1940s. It is located adjacent to the Clover Power station on the Bogong High Plains Road.

The Clover Dam Construction Camp South is of historical and scientific (archaeological) significance 

The Clover Dam Construction Camp South is of historical significance as part of the largest Hydro Electricity Scheme to be constructed in Victoria. Together with Clover Dam Construction Camp North, they were home to hundreds of predominantly migrant workers, who, like the larger Snowy Mountains Scheme, found a new home in Australia and made a major contribution to Australia society.

 

 The Kiewa Hydro-Electric Scheme, built from the 1930s to the 1960s, was the largest civil engineering project of its time in the State.  The Kiewa Scheme provided massive employment, new townships and roads to the Shire, and enabled the development of Falls Creek ski field.

 

 The Clover Dam Construction Camp South is of archaeological significance for its capacity to provide information (through archaeological investigation) of the lives of the construction workers, in a context that is currently poorly documented or understood. The relative isolation of the workers, their diverse origins, and their ability to adapt to an unfamiliar environment provide opportunities for important archaeological research. The same isolation and lack of local services also creates a rare context where material objects related to the occupation of the site are highly likely to remain in their original context, or very close to their place of use. As such the site has the potential to preserve a unique archaeological record.