Berkshire Valley Farm

Statement of Significance

2.1 HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE Clinch's mills was one of the earliest flour mills constructed in the Victoria Plains district. Although many other horse mills were constructed in the district, only two have survived. Clinch was one of the earliest to settle in the district, moving up from Toodyay before permission had been granted by the authorities in Perth. 2.2 DEMONSTRATION OF A WAY OF LIFE The mill is an important legacy of past farming practises and demonstrates the self-sufficiency of farming settlers of this period. 2.3 ARCHAEOLOGICAL/SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE It is possible that the building, and the immediate environ, may have retained evidence of how the mill machinery operated and generally how the building functioned. Level of Significance a) Local .....:.:: b) National Trust List ... FURTHER LEVELS OF SIGNIFICANCE RECOMMENDED TO BE CONSIDERED BY THE RELEVANT BODY:- c) Heritage Council of Western Australia ....{..(State Register) d) Australian Heritage Commission ......

Physical Description

Various forms of construction used by early settlers; walls of uncut stone, handmade bricks; adobe; clay reinforced with straw. The group of buildings comprises the Homestead, stables, shearing shed, stone barn and Manager's cottage, including a bridge over a creek. They were built at various dates between 1847 and 1884 and are all still in use, in good condition. Constructional materials include uncut stone, handmade bricks; adobe; clay reinforced with straw. The Clinch family, who started the property were important pioneer settlers in the Victoria Plains The two storey building is constructed with adobe blocks and random rubble stone walling. The east, west and south walls have been coated with plaster. During restoration work these walls were found to have a waterproof coating of pitch. The original shingle roof has been covered with corrugated galvanized iron. Tie rods have been inserted into the east and west walls to help stabilise the building. A small loading platform is located on the first floor on the southern side of the building . The roof line has been extended out at this point to form a small gable, providing minimal protection to the loading platform. The timber beam that formerly held the pulley system is still in position. The platform is currently propped from below for additional support. The majority of the interior structural timbers are pitsawn. Only two original windows remain; these are located on the southern side of the building on the ground floor. Inthe interior the original wheat bins have been retained in the upper section. The building currently displays machinery and objects that were once used in flour milling. There is no immediate evidence of how the original machinery operated in the mill.

History

Assessment 1973 Construction: Homestead 1847 (modernised 1952); Great Stables 1867; Shearing Shed 1865; Stone barn 1884; Manager's Cottage 1856 Builder: James Clinch and small group of settlers This assessment has been developed from a study carried out by PalassisArchitects in 1994. The study divided the flour milling areas of Western Australia into seven regions and this particular mill falls into the Victoria Plains District of that study. The Victoria Plains district was first settled in the 1840s, by settlers moving north from Toodyay. Flour milling never developed into a major concern in this district, possibly due to the lack of available markets and competition from Greenough and Geraldton. At least 14 mills were established in the district at Dandaragan, Gingin on the Moore River and at New Norcia. Walter Padbury at Dandaragan constructed the earliest mill, in c.1848. This mill was initially water powered; nothing remains of this mill. James Clinch's horse powered mill at Berkshire Valley appears to have been constructed early in the 1850s,making it one of the earliest mills constructed in the region. The Benedictine monks at New Norcia built their own mill around the same time, or possibly slighter later. The only mills to survive intact in the district are the two mills constructed at New Norcia and Clinch's mill at Berkshire Valley. James Clinch arrived in the colony in 1840. In 1842 he began staking claims around "Bebano", acquiring 4,000 acres, where he constructed his first house, a single room dwelling made of rammed earth. Gradually other buildings were added to the property, ( Clinch also acquired more land until eventually he owned 186,00 acres) such as a shearing shed, gatehouse, mill house, pig sty, single men's quarters and stables. It is not clear as to when Clinch constructed a flour mill on his property. Lang (p.125) considers that the mill was constructed in 1847. However in 1847, both Clinch and the monks of New Norcia brought in the first wheat harvest for the district. Lefroy recorded that Clinch took his grain down to Toodyay for gristing that year. (Erickson, p18)) If Clinch had a mill at this time then he would not have needed to go to Toodyay to get it ground. Given that a large proportion of Clinch's farm buildings were completed in 1855, (Erickson, p29) it seems reasonable to date the mill to the early 1850s. The mill machinery was operated by horses and large storage bins, lined with zinc, were located in the upper section of the mill. These bins were apparently used to hold the district's grain harvest. The sacks of grain were hauled up to the upper storey by a winch and pulley system. The grain was then emptied into the bins. When required for milling, the grain was emptied into a hopper where it was first screened before being ground by the stones. The zinc lining the bins was removed during World War II as it was required for the war effort. In1968, the Meckering earthquake caused considerable damage to the building. The building was carefully restored by Messers M. Larkin and F. Hamilton and is currently on loan to the Moora Historical Society for use as a local history museum. The farming complex of Berkshire Valley was Classified by the National Trust in 1973,however there appears to be some ambiguity between the assessment document and the buildings actually listed as Classified. The assessment document does not specifically mention the flour mill as being included in the group, while the actual listing does include the mill.

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