Clifton Quarry

Statement of Significance

Hilton Quarry is an historical site on which no buildings remain. The place has retained evidence of quarrying activity and has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons^ The place was once a major industry in Parkerville and was ultimately responsible for the development of the township; ^The place is a cultural environment with considerable aesthetic appeal due to changes caused by quarrying. The regrowth of native vegetation has meant that the site has become an important buffer between close settlement and the rural environment; The place was once a major source of blue metal for the Perth City Council and was used on the roads which were being laid in the city during the first part of the; nineteenth century; The place has considerable social significance to the residents of ParkerviIle who have the place is a potential archaeological site which could reveal considerable information about early quarrying practises and life at a quarry; and, the place has associations with the early development of the Australian Workers Union in Western Australia,

Physical Description

The place is located on the eastern side of Kintore Road and the southern side of Riley Road. It lies to the east of what was formerly the eastern edge of the ‘old village’ of Parkerville. The age of the houses in this section range in date from the turn of the century to the 1980s. On the northern side of Riley Road is a Heritage Trail which was formerly the Eastern Railway line. On the eastern side of the quarry are large rural blocks while to the south is Reserve 45159- which was formerly used as a campsite for the quarry workers and is presently bushland. Clifton Quarry.is a former quarry site which was once operated by the Perth City Council from 1898 to 1925. The site contains evidence of quarrying activity; such as high, vertical granite faces associated tailings dumps, the quarry floor, the remains of the spur line foundation and foundations for the steam engine which was once used to power the crushing equipment. No buildings remain on the site:

History

Assessment 2002 Construction: opened 1897 Alteration/addition: 1902 The early development of Parkerville was directly linked with the construction of the Eastern Railway deviation which was completed in 1896.The rail deviation passed through the fertile valley of the Jane Brook and whilst the line was under construction, the potential of the area for "settlement' was realised. The area was surveyed and named Parkerville in 1895. The Darling Range area had large deposits of clay and gravel and in April 1897, the Perth City Council applied to lease lots 27 and 28 in Parkerville as a quarry site. A spur line was run in from the Eastern Railway, equipment was set up on site and quarrying commenced. 'Gravel production declined in 1901 due to equipment failure and the quarry was briefly closed while the Plant was upgraded. The quarry was officially re-opened in September 1902. Gravel output again declined during the late 1910s as the over-burden began to increase and it became more difficult to extract the gravel. The Perth City Council purchased Strathams Quarry (Gooseberry Hill) in 1920 and operated both quarries until 1925 when it relinquished the lease on the Parkerville Quarry: Clifton Quarry was worked spasmodically over the years by various individuals. By 1946 the quarry site had been vested with the Mundaring Roads Board for camping purposes-(at this stage it was referred to as Reserve 4144). Reserve 4144 reverted to the Crown in 1988 and Reserve 4144 was cancelled and became Lot 408. The southern lot (Reserve 9478) was vested with the Shire of Mundaring in 1996-and renamed Reserve 45159.

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Historic Themes

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