168
11.5 Understanding and Define Place
Understanding and defining place records the heritage, cultural, economic, geographic, demographic,
climatic and ecological characteristics of the town. These aspects are part of the place’s settings specific to location, and are interconnected with centres that have been influenced by dynamics of
time (std).
2
11.5.1 Brief History of Anglesea
Before European settlement, early explorers noted the Wadawurrung people occupied the land in the
area close to the river (Richards, 1998; Clark, 1990; PIRG, 1977). The remoteness of Anglesea
restricted any settlement or development, and growth of the town only started in the late 1800s. The
earliest European settler of the region was John Airey who moved to Roadknight and Aireys Inlet
south of Anglesea in 1839. The first land in Anglesea (known then as Swampy Creek) was occupied
and settled by Michael Fallon in 1845. In 1884, the then shire of Barrabool gazetted Anglesea as a
town and between 1894 and 1890 blocks of land were sold (Weber & Weber, 2010). To cross the
River, the Anglesea Bridge was built in 1968 and allowed for the further growth of Anglesea, mostly
due to its tourism attraction, activities on the river, and beach. Today, Anglesea is predominantly a
tourist town. The recently closed Alcoa open cut coal mine was for many years a provider of employment for a small portion of local residents.
11.5.2 Natural Attributes
Anglesea is set within the Otway Ranges, located at the edge of the Great Otway National Park. The
Great Otway National Park and the reserve – The Anglesea Heath
3
– surround the town. Various
creeks and the Anglesea River carve through the landscape and coastal bush, with its inlet expanding
through the beach and into the ocean, with long stretches of sections of sandy beaches on both sides.
High limestone cliffs embrace the sandy beaches, and in various areas rock formations protrude into
the sea. The hilly forests result in the dramatic landscape scenery of the town. Similar to other small
settlements on this coast, the vegetation of Anglesea is a mixture of introduced and local native
species.
11.5.3 Built Attributes
Various homes are simple in form and reflect the ‘beach shack’ and ‘fisherman’s cottage’ style of
buildings. Buildings predominantly sit within or below the tree canopy, and are single-storey mixed
with double-storey in certain areas. In the commercial precinct of the town buildings are predomi2 This aligns with the (std) component of the ‘notion of regenerative-adaptive patterns’ equation: ‘The specific place
settings and time dynamics’.
3 The Anglesea Heath is a 7000 hectares parcel of land that nearly surrounds the whole of the town. This name was given
to the title of the land, but it is not a typical heathland, open with low shrubs. Bush and trees with a diversified ecosystem
cover the Anglesea Heath. The EVC classification of this area includes woodland, mixed lowland forest, swampy riparian woodland, sedgy wetland and shallow fresh water marshland (McKellar, 2009).
11 Case Study: Application of the Regenerative-Adaptive Pattern Language
11.5 Understanding and Define Place
Understanding and defining place records the heritage, cultural, economic, geographic, demographic,
climatic and ecological characteristics of the town. These aspects are part of the place’s settings specific to location, and are interconnected with centres that have been influenced by dynamics of
time (std).
2
11.5.1 Brief History of Anglesea
Before European settlement, early explorers noted the Wadawurrung people occupied the land in the
area close to the river (Richards, 1998; Clark, 1990; PIRG, 1977). The remoteness of Anglesea
restricted any settlement or development, and growth of the town only started in the late 1800s. The
earliest European settler of the region was John Airey who moved to Roadknight and Aireys Inlet
south of Anglesea in 1839. The first land in Anglesea (known then as Swampy Creek) was occupied
and settled by Michael Fallon in 1845. In 1884, the then shire of Barrabool gazetted Anglesea as a
town and between 1894 and 1890 blocks of land were sold (Weber & Weber, 2010). To cross the
River, the Anglesea Bridge was built in 1968 and allowed for the further growth of Anglesea, mostly
due to its tourism attraction, activities on the river, and beach. Today, Anglesea is predominantly a
tourist town. The recently closed Alcoa open cut coal mine was for many years a provider of employment for a small portion of local residents.
11.5.2 Natural Attributes
Anglesea is set within the Otway Ranges, located at the edge of the Great Otway National Park. The
Great Otway National Park and the reserve – The Anglesea Heath
3
– surround the town. Various
creeks and the Anglesea River carve through the landscape and coastal bush, with its inlet expanding
through the beach and into the ocean, with long stretches of sections of sandy beaches on both sides.
High limestone cliffs embrace the sandy beaches, and in various areas rock formations protrude into
the sea. The hilly forests result in the dramatic landscape scenery of the town. Similar to other small
settlements on this coast, the vegetation of Anglesea is a mixture of introduced and local native
species.
11.5.3 Built Attributes
Various homes are simple in form and reflect the ‘beach shack’ and ‘fisherman’s cottage’ style of
buildings. Buildings predominantly sit within or below the tree canopy, and are single-storey mixed
with double-storey in certain areas. In the commercial precinct of the town buildings are predomi2 This aligns with the (std) component of the ‘notion of regenerative-adaptive patterns’ equation: ‘The specific place
settings and time dynamics’.
3 The Anglesea Heath is a 7000 hectares parcel of land that nearly surrounds the whole of the town. This name was given
to the title of the land, but it is not a typical heathland, open with low shrubs. Bush and trees with a diversified ecosystem
cover the Anglesea Heath. The EVC classification of this area includes woodland, mixed lowland forest, swampy riparian woodland, sedgy wetland and shallow fresh water marshland (McKellar, 2009).
11 Case Study: Application of the Regenerative-Adaptive Pattern Language