Single Men's Huts

Parent Place or Precinct

25014 Pemberton Mill & Chimney Complex

Values

• Single Men’s Huts is significant as a distinct and fundamental type of timber workers’ accommodation for single men, a recognisable element within typical timber townships established by the State Saw Mills and other private timber enterprises of the late nineteenth and twentieth century.

• Single Men’s Huts contributes to the picturesque Pemberton Timber Mill Worker’s Precinct (RHP) whose characteristic timber weatherboard structures are set on the side of a hill rising above the mill. Viewed from the western approach to the town, the structures add to the collective aesthetic identity as a timber milling town.

• Single Men’s Huts contributes to the community's sense of place as an integral part of the mill town around which the town of Pemberton has developed.

Physical Description

The place is comprised of a row of three weatherboard-clad huts located at the southern side of P25014 Pemberton Mill & Chimney Complex, which overlook the mill site from an elevated position on the hillside. Each hut is comprised of two sections, a single-roomed structure with a gabled, corrugated iron roof, and an extended lean-to shelter with a flat corrugated iron roof extending from the south of the building. The gabled roof side of the hut has been raised on timber stumps in response to the slope of the land. These stumps are all concealed behind a skirt of spaced timber battens, which creates an attractive screen. The walls and roof of the eastern hut have been painted red, the roof of the central hut has been painted green and the western hut has not been painted at all, and has been left with plain timber walls and iron roof. The timber battens on the bottom of the huts have been painted white on the central and left-facing houses. Each hut includes a timber framed window on the right-facing wall. There are two small hut structures located within the curtilage of the place, a site visit is required to determine the purpose and characteristics of these structures.

History

Single Men’s Huts, within the wider Pemberton Mill & Chimney Complex, is located on the fertile lands of Bibbulmum Noongar country. The Bibbulmum Noongar people occupied the land in this area for over 40,000 years and the place’s importance as a watering place is signified through the original Noongar name for the area, Wandergarup, meaning ‘plenty of water’. The prevalence of water and valleyed nature of the land was a major factor in the choice of Wandergarup as one of the sites for the first series of State owned and operated timber mills in Western Australia. Felled trees were easily rolled down into the valley where the mill was located, and the abundance of water efficiently powered the steam saw mill, allowing the whole process to run smoothly. In 1912, the Government Trading Concerns Act was passed, which allowed the State to establish and operate businesses. It was not long before the State established a variety of businesses, including a brickworks, shipping line, a series of hotels as well as a timber saw mill. Already in the South West, private timber companies had been successfully saw-milling for some time and with the recent railway line extension from Bridgetown to Manjimup, it was logical that the Manjimup area was chosen as a location for the State Saw Mills. Their first contract was to supply 1.4 million karri sleepers for the Transcontinental Railway, and so work immediately began to construct the first mill, Deanmill (No.1) at Manjimup and then twin mills (No.2 and No.3) at Big Brook, Pemberton, the later name for the Wandergarup area. By July 1913, land had been cleared for No. 2 Mill and a spot mill was established on site to supply most of the timber for its construction. The first workers at this time lived in temporary camps in the surrounding bushland until they were able to construct more permanent housing from the timber that was milled on site. By June 1914, a small town was established adjacent to the mill site, which included 26 ordinary cottages and 27 single men’s huts. Most of the single men’s huts were built in two rows on sloped ground immediately south of the mill. They were described as small single roomed huts, measuring 10ft. x 9ft., of similar timber construction to the larger mill houses and all with an iron roof. The structures were large enough to only fit a bed and chair inside, and a washtub outside on a bench. The men had to travel to the communal toilets and showers, which were located down the slope near the mill’s boiler room, for more thorough washroom facilities. By 1915, No. 3 Mill at Pemberton began operation and by this point the small housing community that surrounded both mills had developed to include an orchard and vegetable garden, as well as a small recreational oval. As the mill grew in size, so too did the need for worker’s accommodation. This is indicated by the 1920 Rate Book for Pemberton, which records an increase of 10 single men’s huts to 37 in total. By the early 1920s the mill town was well established and the first school was opened in 1922. As part of the economic recovery from World War One there was a surge of activity in industries around the state, including the timber industry. With the development of the industry at Pemberton there was further development of the accommodation, and by 1924 the accommodation had increased to 41 single men’s huts as well as a slight increase in the larger mill houses. In October 1925, the Townsite of Pemberton was officially gazetted and shortly after, the number of single accommodation increased again to 61 single men’s huts, as indicated by the 1926 Shire of Manjimup’s Rate Book for Pemberton. 52 of these men’s huts were located on the sloped area behind the mill and railway line, as indicated by a ‘Pemberton Mills Housing Plan’ dating around 1926. This is in the vicinity, slightly north, of the existing Single Men’s Huts structures. In 1928, a downturn occurred in the construction industry and timber exports declined in response to the Great Depression. However, the mid 1930s saw the timber industry gain momentum again when changes to milling methods occurred and locomotives were used more often in the transportation of logs to the mill, which streamlined the milling process. Changes to accommodation also occurred, and by 1937, while the standard family mill accommodation had increased in number, the number of single men’s huts had decreased to 33. During World War Two, due to a shortage of labour and material, Western Australian timber production fell to its lowest point in a decade and only began to rise in the late 1940s when servicemen returned back from the war into the workforce. With their return the State Saw Mills slowly increased production, but it was not until the early 1950s when the Western Australian timber industry entered a significant period of expansion. The post-war period saw a lift on hardwood export restrictions and there was an increase in the use of mechanised labour. At this time, the mill at Pemberton was the largest of the State Saw Mills’ operations, employing 379 people, most of whom were accommodated in mill housing. The Pemberton Mill came into private ownership when Hawker Siddeley Building Supplies Pty Ltd purchased the State Saw Mills in 1961. At that time, 297 men were employed, many who were single and living in the single men’s huts. However, after the privatisation of the mill and resulting change in management the number of employees was reduced to 60. With less accommodation needed many of the larger and later cottages were moved to nearby areas, or onto private land. It is possible that some of the single men’s huts may have been moved at this time also. In 1970, Hawker Siddeley Building Supplies Pty. Ltd. merged with Bunnings Timber Holdings Ltd. The company, which later changed their name to Sotico Pty Ltd in 2000, managed the mill and the surrounding mill townsite up until 2002 when Auswest Timbers Pty Ltd purchased the Pemberton Mill. Shortly after, P11381 Pemberton Timber Mill Cottages Precinct was assessed and entered on the State Register of Heritage Places. Single Men’s Huts were referenced in the assessment, however the huts were not included within the registered curtilage of the place. In 2016, Auswest Timbers, consolidated operations of the Pemberton Mill and mill in Manjimup, which they also owned, at a single site in Greenbushes. As a result, the Mill at Pemberton was officially closed after 103 years of operation. Reports suggest that the Single Men’s Huts are currently used for accommodation purposes.

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