In This Section
In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, some Councils were able to purchase electricity which was then supplied to their residents.
We have records for the supply of electricity by both Flinders and Mornington Shires. Accounting and collecting records show the names of residents, businesses and organisations, making them a useful tool for local and family history research. These records for the Shire of Flinders show the number of lights being supplied, adding another layer of social history meaning.
Gas was a popular energy option for residents in towns at the turn of last century. By 1890 the Shire of Mornington had commissioned the construction of two Gas Works; one in Mornington and another in Frankston. The Shire Archives include records for the Mornington Gas Works until the early 1960s, when the supply of gas had become centralised and natural gas was discovered. Accounting records, Gas Collector reports and Consumer records describe Mornington households and businesses being supplied gas. These social history gems show residents’ names and addresses, the names of local businesses, and the appliances they were using.
Early last century, before sewerage or septic systems, households in townships relied on toilet ‘pans’ that were regularly collected and emptied by the Shire. Our Sanitation records for the Shires of Flinders and Mornington provide another access point for local and family history researchers. Registers of households requiring pans to be delivered and emptied, provide household names and sometimes addresses. These are further supported by letters in our Correspondence files, requesting an extra ‘pan’ visit for the holiday season, or a reduction in sanitation services. This is a quirky but essential aspect of the role local government plays in our social history. As sanitation technology advanced, Councils responded by supporting the implementation of septic and sewerage systems. These are also represented in Shire Archive rec