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GLENISLA WEIR

Location off Red Rock Creek Road, GLENISLA VIC 3408 - Property No 0510 File Number 551 Level Stage 2 study complete

[1/1] 23743 Copy of 4544 Glenisla

Statement of Significance

What is significant?
The Glenisla Weir, located west of Red Rock Road on Red Rock Creek and about 1.0km south of Anderson's Road was built in the 1860s by Samuel Carter. The principal owner of the Glen Isla squatting run, he was particularly interested in irrigation and water works. The creek system draining from the Victoria Range was dammed and channelled to maximise and maintain the water supply. Through extensive channels, it eventually supplied the great hot water sheepwash near the original Glenisla woolshed. The Pooley-Symons family who also worked for the Carter family selected some of the land, including the allotment with the dam. Their vernacular homestead survives in a ruinous condition nearby. The dam was rebuilt in the twentieth century and much of the channelling is still evident. It was one of the largest and most sophisticated private water supplies in Victoria in the nineteenth century. Samuel and John Carter were also responsible for the first dam of what became the Wartook Reservoir in the upper reaches of the Victoria Valley. These and other works reflect Samuel Carter's subsequent role in the Western Wimmera Irrigation and Water Supply Trust.

How is it significant?
The Glenisla Weir, on Red Rock Creek, is of historical and scientific significance to the Southern Grampians Shire.

Why is it significant?
The Glenisla Weir is of historical significance for demonstrating Samuel Carter's determination to control the elements to his benefit and for the benefit of others. It is of scientific significance as one of the largest and most sophisticated private water supplies in Victoria in the nineteenth century. Both these points of significance must be seen in the broader context and in connection with the whole of the Glenisla landscape, including the occupation and cooperation of the squatter and selector classes.