History
Frankston central business district viewed from Olivers Hill
Prior to European discovery, the Frankston area was populated by Indigenous Australians known as the Kulin people. Specifically, inhabitants in the Frankston area were from the Bunurong language group, of the Mayone-bulluk clan. Europeans first set foot in Frankston as early as 30 January 1803, thirty two years before the founding of Melbourne (the first major European settlement in the then Port Phillip District). A commemorative plaque near the mouth of Kananook Creek marks the location of where Captain Charles Grimes and his party went ashore searching for fresh water, and met with around 30 local inhabitants.
- Gregory Peck in front of the former Frankston railway station building, in the film On the Beach
After the settlement of Melbourne in 1835, James Davey took up a large land holding in 1846, which extended from Olivers Hill to (what is now his namesake) Daveys Bay. Olivers Hill was named after local fisherman, James Oliver, who built a cottage atop the hill from where he kept an eye out for fish in the waters below. The first official land sales in the area were held in 1853, and Frank Liardet (the eldest son of prominent settler, hotelier and descendant of French nobility, Wilburham Liardet), established the “Ballam Ballam” estate in 1854. The estate was the earliest officially recorded settlement in Frankston, and was located to the east of Port Phillip Bay, in what is now known as the locality of Karingal. Liardet’s original homestead “Ballam Park” remains today, and is now heritage-listed.
Frankston’s early development was hampered by poor soils, distance from the Melbourne city centre, and the existence of a major swamp occupying much of the area between Mordialloc and Seaford. Thomas McComb, who arrived in Frankston in 1852, also purchased much land in the area (over what is now the Frankston central business district) and did much to develop the local fishing industry. A pier was completed in 1857 and, between the 1850s and the arrival of the Melbourne railway in 1880s, the area developed as a small fishing community.
The former historical jamboree grandstand at Frankston Park football oval
An Anglican church and school were built in 1855, with the first Frankston post office opening on 1 September 1857 and a pottery established in 1859. During the 1860s, there were estimated to be around 30 people living in Frankston, with about 200 others living in the surrounding area. In 1874, a state school was built in Frankston as well as a Mechanics’ Institute and free library in 1880. The first savings bank opened in 1881, and two brickworks factories and a cordial manufacturer were operating by the 1880s.
The Melbourne railway came on 1 August 1882, which saw Frankston develop into a seaside resort. Its lure as a holiday destination increased particularly after the electrification of the railway service on 27 August 1922, which reduced average journey times from 90 to 62 minutes. Between these years, the area developed into a regional centre for the Mornington Peninsula and a playground for Melbourne’s affluent.
Frankston was the site of the first Australian Scout Jamboree in 1935. It was the only jamboree in Australia to be attended by the founder of the Scouting movement, Sir Robert Baden-Powell. Several streets in the locality of Frankston South are named after the event (Baden Powell Drive being the most prominent). The original grandstand used for the jamboree remained a historic landmark at Frankston Park for 72 years, until it was destroyed by fire on 12 February 2008.
The population of Frankston boomed during and after World War II, increasing from 12,000 in 1947 to 82,000 by 1982 (referring to the old town zoning system when Frankston and its surrounds were all part of the former “Shire of Frankston and Hastings”). This was due to the establishment of small government housing estates in the area, to house the families of Australian Defence Force personnel stationed at the nearby Balcombe Army Camp in Mount Martha and the Flinders Naval Depot near Hastings.
In 1959, the Hollywood film, On the Beach, starring Gregory Peck and Ava Gardner, was partly filmed in Frankston, at its railway station and in the surrounding area. The original novel of On the Beach was written by novelist Nevil Shute, who lived in Frankston’s south-east, in what is now the Frankston suburb of Langwarrin.
On 2 September 2004, Frankston was nominated for the Bursary Award in the Livcom International Awards for Livable Communities. In October 2004, it received a Bronze Award for “management of environment and enhancement of quality of life”. It won this award for “C Category Cities” (cities with populations between 75,001 – 200,000).
On 24 March 2007, Frankston won two awards in the Keep Australia Beautiful Victoria’s clean beach challenge. It won the award for “Friendliest Beach in Victoria”, and also the “Natural Heritage Award” for the maintenance of Frankston Beach and the provision of facilities. On 2 June 2008, Frankston was named Victoria’s most sustainable city in the Keep Australia Beautiful Victoria’s Sustainable Cities Awards.
Geography
View of Olivers Hill from the Frankston Boardwalk
The suburb of Frankston (not to be confused with the multi-suburb government area known as the City of Frankston of which the suburb of Frankston is a part) covers a wide geographic area in comparison with other suburbs of Melbourne. It also encompasses localities (not to be confused with being independent suburbs) which include: Karingal, Olivers Hill, Frankston Heights, Frankston East, Mount Erin and Long Island.
The suburb is bounded to the west by Port Phillip Bay; the north by Skye Road and Overton Road (bordering the City of Frankston suburbs of Frankston North and Seaford); the east by McClelland Drive and the Moorooduc Highway (bordering the City of Frankston suburb of Langwarrin); and the south by Humphries Road, Robinsons Road and Golflinks Road (bordering the Shire of Mornington Peninsula suburbs of Mount Eliza and Baxter).
Topography
Frankston Beach in summer
Frankston is at the southern end of a stretch of beaches that run from Beaumaris south to near Olivers Hill, unbroken except by Patterson River, Mordialloc Creek and Kananook Creek. Kananook Creek also runs close to the shores of Port Phillip Bay, creating a long “island” effect (though the area is not technically an island, as the creek does not flow into the bay at any point, other than near Frankston Beach).
The central and northern areas of the suburb are generally flat, but the suburb rises gradually towards the east, then rises sharply at Olivers Hill in the south of the suburb. Also at Olivers Hill, where Sweetwater Creek meets Port Phillip Bay, the beaches give way to weathered bluffs of sandstone and siltstone, with the odd sandy cove at Daveys Bay and again at Canadian Bay.
The southern uplands are at the northern end of an uplift area in a Horst-Graben structure that extends down the Mornington Peninsula. Similar plutonic intrusive uplifts occur on the Mornington Peninsula at Mount Martha and Arthurs Seat. The fault zones are currently inactive, though minor tremors have historically been experienced.
Environment
Granite rock formation in the Sweetwater Creek Nature Reserve
Frankston is generally a leafy suburb, with some natural heritage elements. A number of large informal nature reserves exist in the suburb including: Bunarong Park, Casuarina Reserve, Paratea Flora and Fauna Reserve and Sweetwater Creek Nature Reserve. All reserves have formal walking paths and contain a broad range of Australian native flora and fauna, with hundreds of species indigenous to the Frankston area, including over 20 species of orchid. Large formally-designed parks in the area include: Beauty Park (converted from a swamp in the early 20th century) and the George Pentland Botanical Gardens (converted from a golf course in the mid 20th Century).
- Kananook Creek
The Frankston foreshore area has also retained much of its natural element. Consecutive Frankston City Council’s have sought to protect the native flora and sand dunes along the beaches. An extensive raised timber walking path called the “Frankston Boardwalk” winds through this section of the foreshore in order to protect the area, whilst also allowing it to be enjoyed by visitors. Only a small section of the foreshore remains developed, near the mouth of Kananook Creek and the 500 m Frankston Pier, called “Frankston Waterfront”. The waterfront features extensive landscaping, a themed playground, car parking, a restaurant with bay views and a million dollar Visitor Information Centre
Climate
Beauty Park was converted from a swamp in the early 20th Century
Frankston has a temperate climate similar to that of Melbourne, however, is usually around 2 °C cooler than the Melbourne city centre. In many cases, Frankston is one of the first areas of the greater Melbourne area to feel the effect of the cool change weather effect that occurs during the summer season.
At one of the widest points of Port Phillip Bay, Frankston’s seaside residents have an unobstructed view of oncoming westerly weather patterns. On rare days of severe storms with galeforce westerly winds, Frankston briefly becomes one of the few places on the Port Phillip Bay with wave swell of size that allows surfing.
Landmarks
Landmark Bridge over Kananook Creek at the Frankston Waterfront
Frankston Pier is considered the iconic landmark. It was originally built in 1857 so fishermen could ship their catches to Melbourne. It has been extended and repaired over the decades. It is popular with fisherman and boaters, and summer weekends will find children diving off the pier in contravention of local by-laws. The highly visible 12-storey Peninsula Centre is Frankston’s tallest building, and the tallest building south of the Melbourne inner suburbs. A prominent landmark, it was once described by actor Barry Humphries as “the worst building in Australia”. Built in the 1980′s, a succession of short-term and failed commercial developments plagued the building. 2009, Frankston Council announced the Peninsular Centre is set to become an $80 million, five-star hotel, consisting of 140 rooms and 3000 square metres of retail space.
Community initiatives
Local environmentalists at a community festival in 2009.
The “Frankston 2025 Community Vision” is community initiative where Frankston residents were asked where they envision the City of Frankston to be by the year 2025. Public meetings, workshops and statistical surveys were staged over 12 months from September 2006, and the initiative was officially endorsed by the Frankston City Council in October 2007. The then mayor, Cr Glenn Aitkin, officially adopted the vision on 24 November 2007.
A not-for-profit community supermarket was established by the Bayside Dream Centre to provide groceries and other essential items to disadvantaged people within the community at affordable prices. The service is available to all people, not only concession card holders.
I0n 2008 ‘Vada Cafe’ [13] was opened in Frankston central. This came as a development from the Gateway Children’s Fund, which is a fund developed between the partnership of Compassion Australia and Gateway Church. The aim of the cafe is to raise funds for community development and to create awareness of the poverty in Papua New Guinea – particularly the ‘Vada Vada’ slum in Port Moresby. The cafe also has Fairtrade Certification by the Fair Trade Association of Australia and New Zealand.
Transport
Frankston Railway Station on Young Street
As Frankston is the southern-most suburb of the greater Melbourne area and also the “gateway to the peninsula”, it is well serviced by both road and rail. The suburb is connected to the rest of Melbourne and the Mornington Peninsula by the Nepean Highway and Moorooduc Highway / Frankston Freeway (the latter which connects to the EastLink Tollway). The suburb is also connected directly to the Melbourne city centre via the Frankston railway line.
Metropolitan bus services run throughout Frankston’s suburbs and also connect it to the neighbouring cities of Dandenong and Casey. Regional bus services connect the south-west Mornington Peninsula, and the south-east is connected via the Stony Point railway line. The main transport terminus for the suburb is Young Street, on the edge of the Frankston central business district.
Eastlink is a $2.5 billion tollway that opened on 29 June 2008, and connects Frankston with its north-east neighbours of Dandenong, Ringwood and Nunawading. Prior to and after its opening, residents believed that EastLink would create further traffic congestion on the already congested Frankston Freeway (where EastLink terminates), and the intersection of the Frankston Freeway, McMahons Road and Cranbourne Road. Calls by Frankston City Council and local Federal MP, Bruce Billson, have been made for the State to construct the Frankston Bypass in order to ease traffic congestion.
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