This is how the
Herald newspaper of January 19, 1908 started a report about the new road to Mount Buffalo -
One of Mr Bent's favorite expressions is that Victoria is "God's own country." Mr Catani, the Engineer for Roads and Bridges, has now discovered where the Garden of the Gods is situated. It is in the Buffalo Mountains, and if his anticipations are realised, it will be easy of invasion by mere mortals before next winter.
The report continues with
Last session the State Parliament approved of a sum of L5000 being expended in making a road from Porepunkah to Buffalo, and yesterday tenders were received for the construction of the first three miles. It is intended to call for tenders for an additional two miles each week, until the distance, some twelve miles is completed. The steepest grade will be 1 in 17, and, to use Mr Catani's words, it ''will be fit for the most beautiful motor car in Australia."
Before we look at this road the idea of creating a tourist resort on Mount Buffalo was investigated Edward John Dunn (1844 - 1937), who conducted a geological survey of the mountain in 1906 for the Minister of Mines. I believe that he was the first to use the term
Garden of the Gods to describe the region. His geological report, with 53 photographs, can be found on-line at the National Library of Australia, it was published in 1908 as
Memoirs of the Geological Survey of Victoria, and you can access it,
here. This report does not include any tourist references, but they were reported on in the newspapers. Read, for instance, the report in the
Leader of December 1, 1906,
here. You can read Edward Dunn's entry in the
Australian Dictionary of Biography,
here.
One of the impressive granite formations, photographed by Edward Dunn in his report on the Geology of Mount Buffalo.
Back to the Mount Buffalo road. On January 24, 1908 the first sod was turned by Mrs Mackey, wife of the Minister for Lands. Mrs Mackey performed this task with a
suitably inscribed silver spade. This event took place at the foot of the foot of the Buffalo Falls, on the Eurobin Creek. Also present were William Davidson, Inspector- General of Public Works; Mr Reed - Surveyor General, some local and State politicians and, of course, Carlo Catani. (
The Age, January 25, 1908).
The road construction created some controversy over the use (or non-use) of employed men to build the road. The Premier, Sir Thomas Bent, insisted that Carlo provide work for unemployed men from Melbourne on the construction of the Buffalo Road. In a letter to the editor of
The Argus, published February 7, 1908 Alfred Billson wrote about this issue -
I read with considerable surprise that Mr Bent had, in an imperious manner, directed Mr Catani to provide for the employment of a number of unemployed on the construction of the Buffalo-road. He then provided a number of cogent arguments against using the unemployed, including providing jobs to city men at the expense of locals and that many lacked the required skills and he finished off with this question
When is the interference by the Premier with responsible officers, who enjoy the confidence of the people, to cease?
The opening of the road to the Chalet, 1908.
The Premier, Thomas Bent, is in front of the ribbon. Alice Manfield, is on the right, holding the ribbon. You will read more about her, below.
State Library of Victoria Image H2003.96/84
There were further issues when some of the unemployed men complained to the newspapers about their conditions, lack of appropriate tools, rate of pay and the initial refusal of local stores to supply them with credit, before they were paid. Carlo disputed these issues. (
The Age, March 7, 1908). In spite of this rocky start, progress on the construction of the road continued. The road to the summit of Mount Buffalo was officially opened by the Premier on October 9, 1908.
The Age of October 12 had a detailed report of the opening and extravagant descriptions of the beauty of the scenery -
a region of awe-inspiring grandeur....... towering heights on the one hand and ever deepening abysses on the other, each turn in the road presented a grander panorama of space and distance..... The official party stayed on the mountain overnight and the next morning
standing on the great mass of granite on the edge of the gorge, looking away over the Eurobin Valley, the Buckland Valley and the Ovens Valley, far down in the distance, the morning light revealed the giant peaks of distant ranges capped with snow. These included the two highest mountains in Australia. Towering over intervening ranges, in the furthest distance, 90 miles away, could be seen the peaks of Kosciusko. This is the highest mountain in Australia, with an altitude of 7256 feet, and owing to the configuration of the country it is possible to see more of the earth's surface from the top of this mountain than from any other in the world. There also rose plainly to view in the breaking dawn the crest of Mount Bogong, one of the Australian Alps, which with an altitude of 6508 feet, is the second highest mountain in Australia and the highest in Victoria. (The Age October 12, 1908, see full report
here)
The Age report mentioned that the Premier thanked Carlo for his organisation of the opening event, but
The Argus quoted the Premier as saying
So far as the new road was concerned it was the finest piece of work of its kind he had seen in any part of the world, and great praise was due to Mr. Catani, who was in charge, and all those who assisted in its completion. (The Argus, October 12, 1908).
With the opening of the new road, accommodation had to be provided for the tourists. There were already two accommodation buildings on the mountain - Carlile's Hospice and Manfield's Chalet. Carlile's Hospice was operated by Ted and Mary Jane Carlile and Manfield's by James and Jane Manfield. Their daughter, Alice, was a noted naturalist, tour guide (she was known as Guide Alice) and photographer. You can read more about the Carlile and Manfield familes in the book,
The Mount Buffalo Story, 1898-1998 by Dan Webb and Bob Adams.*
Alice Manfield, wrote of her memories of the day the Mount Buffalo Road was officially opened in a wonderful letter to
The Argus, published May 25, 1940 -
Guide Alice Manfield (formerly of Mt. Buffalo) writes:- Publication of the picture of the opening of the Mt. Buffalo road in "The Argus" Weekend Magazine on May 4 was particularly interesting. I well remember the opening of the road. Among many honours bestowed on me that eventful day was holding the ribbon at the opening. I was the first woman to drive a buggy and pair to the summit. Because of a heavy snowstorm, vehicles could not cross to the plateau, and the remainder of the journey had to be made on foot, each person having to carry his luggage to Manfield's Chalet for the banquet in honour of Sir Thomas Bent, the Premier and many other distinguished visitors. Because my parents were pioneers of the mountain, I was invited, and was the only woman guest. After the ceremony, I pulled the official party, including Sir Thomas Bent, Sir John Mackay, Mr. Billson, and Mr. Catani, to a selected position overlooking Echo Rocks, when they investigated the building of a chalet from Buffalo granite. Sir Thomas Bent died before this was done. (
The Argus, May 25, 1940)
The Mount Buffalo Chalet, 1930s. The catalyst for the building of the Chalet was the opening up of Mount Buffalo by the construction of Carlo Catani's road and several scenic tracks.
State Library of Victoria Image H92.318/29
However, the Government decided to build a hospice and initial plans were drawn up by Mr G.H. B. Austin, of the Public Works Department. This was to be built of local granite, at an estimated cost of £10,000 but the building material was soon changed to weatherboard for financial reasons. The site for this new hospice had been surveyed by Carlo on September 19, 1908 (
Yackandandah Times, September 24, 1908). The Chalet was opened around August 1910, I believe, I cannot find the exact date (even though I like to know these things). The full history the Mount Buffalo Chalet can be read in
The Mount Buffalo Story, 1898-1998 and there is a short history of the building on the Victorian Heritage Database,
here.
The magnificent scenery was not the only attraction on Mount Buffalo. On Saturday, February 25, 1911 a nine hole golf course was opened on the plateau near the Chalet. The idea for the course came from the Minister for Public Works, William Baillieu, according to a report in the
Leader of March 4, 1911. It was Carlo's project to carry out this work and he engaged the professional golfer, Richard 'Dick' Banks to
advise as to the feasibility of the project reported favorably on the proposal...Banks, under Mr. Catani's direction, commenced about three months ago to lay out a nine-hole course. (Leader, March 4, 1911)
Dick Banks, died in Melbourne in January 1930 at only 53 years of age. The fairway was sown down with alpine grass, imported from Italy.
Opening of the Mount Buffalo Golf-Links - Mr M'Kenzie (Minister for Lands) driving the first ball. Carlo Catani is second from right.
The Australasian, March 11, 1911
There was a report in
The Argus of February 28, 1911 about the opening of the golf course, and it was titled
Mr Catani's enthusiasm and it is a great tribute to Carlo and his passion for the tourist potential of Mount Buffalo.
While the others were playing golf the Minister for Lands was driven round in one of the State motor-cars. Mr Catani, who opened up the Buffalo to tourist traffic with his road up the Buffalo - an engineering feat which calls forth the admiration of all who see it - acted as guide, and with relentless enthusiasm insisted upon Mr. M'Kenzie leaving the car at frequent intervals and climbing up and down the slopes to inspect the various wonders of the mountain..... Wherever Mr Catani took the Minister he pointed out alluring schemes for further expenditure. About £300 would, he said, add 3ft. to the height of the weir, and make perfect the already magnificent artificial lake he has created. Less than £500 would make the golf links fit for champions. Twenty new bedrooms could be added to the chalet for £2,000. The road to the Horn could be taken almost to the top along a route already surveyed for no more than two or three hundred pounds. An additional circular road on the mount could join up several famous "attractions" for so-and-so. The suggestions were innumerable. Mr M'Kenzie, however, declined to commit himself to do more than "consider" these proposals. (The Argus, February 28, 1911, read full article,
here)
Lake Catani, Mt Buffalo, c. 1914. Photographer: Rose Stereograph Co.
State Library of Victoria Image H93.456/24
There was also a lake for skating, fishing and water sports. This lake had been suggested by Edward Dunn in his report referred to above. The
Leader of December 1, 1906 quoted Mr Dunn -
The boldest and grandest mass of granite in Victoria.....is comprised in the Buffalo Range, which rises as a great dome to an elevation of over 5000 feet above sea level.....either a road for wheeled traffic, or an electric tram line, is required to render the mountain available to all classes of tourists....At the top of the falls there is a large area of swampy ground that could be converted into a lake at small expense. This would do for skating on in winter and as a storage for water to feed the falls in summer. As a source of electric energy these falls, with 700 feet of "head," should supply motive force enough to work an electric tramway up the mountain, and also all the electric lights required.
The Eurobin Creek was dammed and the lake of 58 acres (23 hectares) was created. In June 1908, George Clowser, who was the paymaster at the Public Works Department, visited the men working on the road, in order to pay them and there was an interview published in the
Herald of June 6 1908, about his experiences and amongst other things he was quoted as saying
I am 15st. 6lb., and when I walked on the ice pond - or skating rink which Mr Catani, our engineer, has prepared near the hospice as an additional attraction to tourists, I made no impression on it - so thick is the ice. In June 1911, it was reported that the ice was five inches thick.
Lake Catani. Photographer: Alice Manfield.
The inscription reads: Lake Catani. Guide Alice.
State Library of Victoria Image H2003.97/5
In January 1911, this lake was named in honour of Carlo.
The Argus of January 24 had this report
Acting on the suggestion of the Bright Shire Council, the Government has decided that the picturesque lake on the top of Mount Buffalo shall be named Lake Catani. This is considered to be a well-deserved recognition of the work done by Mr. Catani, chief engineer of the Public Works Department, in connection with the opening up of Mount Buffalo as a tourist resort.
As well as having a Lake named after him, Carlo and his contribution to the development of Mount Buffalo as a tourist resort, was marked by the unveiling of a plaque, mounted a a large granite rock with the inscription
Carlo Catani, Chief Engineer of Public Works, 1910-1917 Ye who seek his memorial look around. The plaque was unveiled by the Minister of Public Works, Mr Jones, on October 25, 1930.
The Age of October 27, 1930 reported on the occasion and the tribute which was paid to Carlo
The Minister, before unveiling the tablet, referred to the great public service that had been rendered by the late Mr. Catani, particularly in the development of tourist resorts, and stated that probably to no other individual was so much credit due for the opening up and development of such tourist resorts as Mt. Buffalo, the Grampians, Mt. Donna Buang, and the Warburton, Healesville and Marysville districts. To his energy and enthusiasm were also due the improvements to the St. Kilda foreshore and Alexandra-avenue. (The Age of October 27, 1930, read full article,
here)
The Catani Memorial tablet, Mount Buffalo
Photo: Martin Wurt - Working Photos (courtesy of Isaac Hermann)
The Catani Memorial on the granite rock
Photo: Martin Wurt - Working Photos (courtesy of Isaac Hermann)
We will end this post with this wonderful tribute to Carlo and his contribution to making Mount Buffalo a tourist destination. It was written by Donald MacDonald and published in
The Argus of December 2, 1922
And satisfied with a first view of Buffalo as a tourists' home and pleasure place, one should turn a thought to the man who largely created it, and whose enthusiasms were never chilled by red tape or routine - the late Mr. Catani. The mountain lake has been named in his honour, but the whole place is the memorial of the kindly, lovable, Italian gentleman who was, above all things, the man of vision and of action. (The Argus December 2, 1922, read the full article,
here.)
*
The Mount Buffalo Story, 1898-1998 by Dan Webb and Bob Adams (Miegunyah Press, Melbourne University Press, 1998)
I have created a list of articles on Carlo Catani and his involvement with Mount Buffalo, you can access the list,
here, on
Trove. All the articles referred to in this post are on the list.
