The Jewish Land Settlement Trust endeavour was established at Berwick in 1927. A similar Jewish settlement had been established at Orrvale near Shepparton in 1913. Berwick was selected because it was close to Melbourne and the land could be used for market gardening or poultry which allowed a quick return for effort rather than having to wait for years for orchards to establish like the settlers did at Orrvale (1). The rationale behind the settlements was to give newly arrived Jewish immigrants an opportunity to become farmers and find employment outside the cities but with ongoing support from the Land Settlement Trust. There is an excellent overview of the rationale of the scheme and how it operated in a report in the Hebrew Standard of Australasia of August 31, 1928, read it here.
The actual settlement was at the Closer Settlement Board Estate, Hallam Valley, Berwick. This Estate was bordered by Narre Warren-Cranbourne Road on the west, Berwick-Clyde Road to the east, Golf Links Road to the north and Greaves Road to the south. The State Rivers and Water Supply Commission had purchased land in the area in 1924 with a view of cutting up the land into blocks of 10 acres to 16 acres for market gardens and intense culture, as The Age reported. (2) The report continued with A portion of the area is at present subject to flooding by the tributaries of Eumemmerring creek, but steps are being taken to reclaim this portion by means of suitable drainage. The blocks are to be supplied with water pressure by means of a pipe system from the Berwick Dandenong main race (3). The Weekly Times described it as scrub-covered, morass land (4).
Work continued on the reclamation works and The Argus reported on August 18, 1927 that it was now practicable to establish permanent settlement on the land, a large proportion of which formerly carried a dense growth of tee tree scrub covering an undrained swamp (5).
In a paper written by Jeffrey John Turnbull From Ghettoes to Gardens (6) he lists the eight initial settlers at Berwick as H. Ash, D. Brown, I. Eizenberg, A. Hayat Senior, Hayat Junior, M. Meshaloff, G. Rovkin, A. Sneid.
The Shire of Berwick Rate Books list a number of settlers from the Closer Settlement Board subdivision in the 1928/29 year. The Rate books were not always accurate with the spelling of either given or family names, but here's the most likely matches from the Rate Books. You can find the exact location of the blocks on the section of the Parish of Berwick plan, below.
Ash, Harry - 31 acres, Lots 30 & 31, Section 3 Hallam Valley
Brown, D - can't find him listed in the Rate Books, however, more of him later.
Eizenberg, I - Mordeka Eisenberg - 12.5 acres, Lot 20, Section 4
Hayat, Abraham - 20 acres, Lot 32, Section 4
Hayat, Jacob - 13 acres, Lot 21, Section 4
Mishaloff, Nathan - 19½ acres, Lot 10, Section 4
Rovkin, Gregory - 22 acres, Lot 14, Section 4
Sneid, Adolph - 25 acres, Lot 21, Section 3.
Jewish settlers were able to buy 11 blocks of the first 89 sold by the Closer Settlement Board, and this later increased to 17 blocks (7). It is hard to work out who the other settlers are as obviously the religion of rate payers is not listed, but here are some other settlers (8) who acquired land at the same time and who may have been part of this group of Jewish settlers -
Braun, Boris - 14 acres, Lot 19, Section 4.Bulate, Alex - 25 acres, Lot 28, Section 3
Ephstein, Boris - 15 acres, Lot 31, Section 3
Haber, Harry - 20 acres, Lot 22, Section 3
Kapel, Judel - 20 acres, Lot 15, Section 4
Mond, Isaac - 15½ acres, Lot 29, Section 3.
Ostin, J. Boris - 24 acres, Lot 23, Section 3
Rothfield, Jacob - 24 acres, Lot 12, Section 3
Silverstein, Abraham - 16 acres, Lot 3, Section 3
Sneider, Moses - 24 ½ acres, Lot 17, Section 4
Sokolow, Abram (also listed as Sholoff) - 12 acres, Lot 26, Section 3 and 12 acres, Lot 26, Section 3a.
A few short months ago the place looked very desolate and now, only four months since the Australian Jewish Land Settlement Trust has selected the additional four blocks, the place is fast taking shape, and already presents a pleasing picture. The landscape is changing fast. The newly-built houses are becoming surrounded with green vegetables. Poultry pens, sheds, out-buildings, are springing up. The cackling songs of pedigreed poultry are becoming louder as their numbers increase, and the faces of the settlers are becoming brighter; the hope of soon making a living from the farm does not look so very far distant now, as it did four months ago (9).
Neuman H. Rosenthal, who was acting honorary Secretary of the Australian Jewish Land Settlement Trust, was reported in the Hebrew Standard of Australasia in August 1928 - Then there is Berwick, a settlement of comparatively recent origin but already thoroughly established and already producing revenue for the settlers. Berwick is only 27 miles from Melbourne and there the main product is vegetables. But I would that you could see the difference that even six months toil has made to the immigrants who have been placed at Berwick (10).
There were various reports in the newspapers of the community and cultural life of the Jewish settlers which developed at Berwick. This report is from March 1928 and is about the first Beriss-Milah (16) which took place at the community. Beriss-Milah is the circumcision ceremony for Jewish baby boys.
Rabbi Brodie described it as “historic,” when in the midst of a comparatively large gathering at Berwick on Wednesday last, he formally accepted, on behalf of the settlers, a Sifer Torah, lent the settlers by Mr. Louis Morris.....The Sifer Torah was handed over to Rabbi Brodie by Mr. Morris at the entrance to the settlement, and the settlers, with the visitors, then formed in procession behind the Rabbi, as the Torah was conveyed to the residence of Mr. Hyatt, Senior. There, thanks to the generosity of Mr. Morris, an Ark had been erected, in which the Sifer was to be housed. As Rabbi Brodie entered the dwelling, Mr. A. Kozminsky opened the Ark, and the Sifer was placed in it, whilst “Uv’nucho Yomar” was said. Mincha service was then conducted.
A Hebrew School for the children was conducted on Sundays at the Hallam Valley settlement - The Jewish Weekly News had this report - Rabbi Brodie went out to the Berwick Settlement on Sunday to examine the children attending the Hebrew classes. The United Jewish Education Board sends a teacher out there every Sunday. There are about twelve children in the classes but what they lack in numbers they make up for in keenness. I don’t think I have ever come across a keener lot of kiddies (19).
The Education Department established the Hallam Valley State School, No. 4407 for the settlers of the Estate. I looked at the Hallam Valley State School file at the Public Records Office of Victoria and came across this list of potential students for the School which opened November 10, 1929. The list (see below) was drawn up a Mr R. Taylor in March 1928. Of the Jewish Land Settlement families, the Eizenberg family had one child aged below 4½, one child aged 4½ to six years old and one child aged between six and fourteen. The Mishaloff family had one child aged between 4½ to six. The Rovkin family had one child aged below 4½, and one child aged between 4½ to six years old.
The other interesting thing I found in the Hallam Valley School file was this memo dated February 23, 1929 - it reads
Hallam Valley Estate
New School to be erected
Management of Settlement called and asked if possible - Nathan Rothfield - who is now in the Teachers' College be appointed to the school when ready. The settlement is composed of mostly foreigners who desire to learn English and Civics. Nathan Rothfield knows several languages and would be of great assistance to the settlers if an evening school could be established.
The positive reports of the success of the Berwick settlement continued into 1929. In fact, so successful was the Settlement that a meeting was held at the Maccabean Hall in Sydney in January 1929 to discuss the formation of a Land Settlement Trust along the lines of the Victorian Trust. This meeting was reported in the Hebrew Standard of Australasia and Berwick was mentioned in positive terms. A telegram was sent from Dr Albert Jones, chairman of the Victorian Land Settlement Trust - Berwick Settlement today unqualified success. After fourteen weeks settled farmers earning ten to fifteen pounds weekly. (23).
In June 1931, it was reported that there were 24 families, numbering about 100 souls at Berwick (25). However, the Shire of Berwick Rate Books show that most of the Jewish settlers had left the area by 1934/1935. For some settlers if may have been the absence of Jewish communal life, however the Depression had a significant impact on the settlers, coupled with a bad season in late 1929, early 1930 - The season through which we have passed has been a particularly bad one. Potatoes which at sowing time could not be bought for £24 per ton, can be obtained to-day at £3 per ton (26). So, clearly commodity prices were one issue, however the situation at Berwick was considered to be no worse that other settlements - In the opinion of the officers of the Victorian State Rivers and Water Commission, the authority controlling the Berwick settlement, the situation at Berwick is no more serious than that facing every agricultural settlement throughout Australia. The complete collapse in the prices of primary products and the problem of financing the farmers through the present depression have created a most difficult position (27).
Some people actually blamed the failure of some of the Hallam Valley settlers on incompetence of the State Rivers and Water Supply Commission. Cr MacGregor at a Shire of Berwick meeting held in October 1929 was reported as saying that he believed that the land was sold to the settlers at an inflated price and 'the manner in which they were treated constituted a scandal of the 'gravest nature' - Almost ruined by the inflated prices they paid to the State Rivers and Water Supply Commission for the blocks, residents in the Hallam Valley settlement are faced with acute distress, stated Cr MacGregor at the meeting of the Berwick Shire Council, last Friday, when a protest was received from settlers against the revaluation of their properties. Cr MacGregor claimed that the manner in which they were treated constituted a scandal of the gravest nature, and fully warranted a public enquiry. Settlers paid £70 an acre for their land and now found that it was impossible to make even a living on their holdings. Incompetence in the Commission's administration, Cr MacGregor contended, was one of the reasons for the hopelessness of the settlers. When the land was being prepared for settlement there was a glaring waste of money in the methods employed to do the work. Where two practical men could have done all that was necessary in weeks, it, took eight of the Commission’s staff months (28).
Before we leave the Berwick Settlement, there was an interesting report in the Australian Jewish Herald in November 1928 about Ahron Halevy, a talented artist. He was born in Ukraine and then moved to Palestine where he trained as an artist. He later spent time working on farms and as a fisherman on the Jordan River. Immediately after the war he commenced working for the Scientific Department of the Museum at Jerusalem, which was founded by the Zionist Organisation and which has since been absorbed by the Hebrew University. His work was to depict the flora and fauna of Palestine, and his entire collection now hangs up on the University walls (29). Around 1928 he came to Australia where he was elected as member of the Victorian Artists Society, but also joined the settlement at Berwick. He not only continued with producing his paintings, wood-cuts, water-colors, and pen and ink sketches at Berwick but also grew strawberries - Mr. Halevy, who was a strawberry expert in Palestine, is specialising in the same fruit, at Berwick, and, though he has only been a short time on his plot, and has not been graced by too favorable a season, has nevertheless succeeded in making conserves which have astounded all the Governmental experts, who, attracted by glowing reports, asked him to come to Melbourne with some samples (30). Mr Halevy did not stay at Berwick very long, in fact I can't find him listed in the Rate Books at all, and returned to Melbourne. Mr Halevy held an exhibition at David Jones Department store in Sydney in October 1929 and the catalogue is on-line at the National Library of Australia, view it here.
As we said before most of the Jewish settlers had left the area by 1935 but Adolph Sneid, was at Berwick for the longest period, until 1939/1940 and so with the departure of Mr Sneid the Jewish Land Settlement Trust community at Berwick came to an end.
Acknowledgement
I have created a list of newspaper articles about the Jewish Land Settlement Trust at Hallam Valley on Trove, click here to access the list.
(1) Turnbull, Jeffrey John From Ghettoes to Gardens published in Fabrications: The Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand, June 1995, pp 39-56.
(2) The Age, November 8, 1924, see here.
(3) The Age, November 8, 1924, see here.
(4) The Weekly Times, January 30, 1926, see here.
(5) The Argus, August 18, 1927, see here.
(6) Turnbull, op. cit, p. 51.
(25) Australian Jewish Herald June 11, 1931, see here.
(26) Australian Jewish Herald, February 20, 1930, see here.
(27) Australian Jewish Herald, April 30, 1931, see here.
(28) Dandenong Journal October 29, 1929, see here.
