Hawthorn tram depot was built in April 1916 by the

Hawthorn Tramways Trust The Hawthorn Tramways Trust was a tram operator in Melbourne, Australia. Its assets and liabilities were transferred to the Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board on 2 February 1920. History The Hawthorn Tramways Trust (HTT) was formed pursuan ...

(HTT). It was built on the corner of Power Street and Wallen Road,

Hawthorn Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to: Plants * '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae * ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...

, a suburb of

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia. The depot was close to the junction of the HTT's two main lines. It was taken over by the

Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board The Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board (MMTB) was a government-owned authority that was responsible for the tram network in Melbourne, Australia between 1919 and 1983, when it was merged into the Metropolitan Transit Authority. It had bee ...

(MMTB) in 1920. In 1925 the depot was used as a school to teach tram drivers and tram conductors. In 1940, the building was also used to make uniforms for MMTB staff. The depot closed as a running depot on 13 February 1965, but was kept in use for training and uniform manufacture until the 1990s. In August 1998, Transport Minister Robin Cooper announced the site would be redeveloped as a residential complex by the Urban Land Corporation, with part of the depot to be retained as a museum. The museum was opened by Transport Minister

Peter Batchelor Peter John Batchelor (born 21 September 1950) is a former Australian politician who served as an Australian Labor Party member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly seat of Thomastown from 1990 until 2010. Batchelor was born in western Sydney ...

on 19 January 2003. In 1996 the depot was added to the

Victorian Heritage Register The Victorian Heritage Register (VHR) lists places deemed to be of cultural heritage significance to the State of Victoria, Australia. It has statutory weight under the Heritage Act 2017. The Minister for Planning is the responsible Minister. H ...

Friends of Hawthorn Tram Depot

The tram museum is owned by

VicTrack VicTrack, the trading name of Victorian Rail Track Corporation, is a Government of Victoria, Victorian Government state-owned enterprise which owns all railway and tram lines, associated rail lands and other rail-related infrastructure in the ...

, but the museum is staffed and run by the Friends of Hawthorn Tram Depot. This group is a volunteer, non-profit group set up to preserve the history of Melbourne's trams. The museum has 17 fully restored trams. The collection also includes one of Melbourne's original cable trams. ''The Bellcord'' is the in house publication of the Friends of Hawthorn Tram Depot. It is published quarterly.Bellcord distribution ''The Bellcord'' issue 46 June 2020 page 8

References

External links

* {{TramsAustralia Heritage-listed buildings in Melbourne Museums in Melbourne Tram depots in Melbourne Tram museums Transport infrastructure completed in 1916 1916 establishments in Australia 1965 disestablishments in Australia Buildings and structures in the City of Boroondara