19-726: Jells Park is a public park in Wheelers Hill , a southeastern suburb of Melbourne , Victoria , Australia . The park opened on 30 April 1976 and is named after Joseph Jell, a cattle grazier who worked in the area in the mid-late 1800s. The park attracts in excess of 900,000 visitors a year. Located on the western bank of the Dandenong Creek , the park covers around 127 hectares (310 acres) and contains 9 km (5.6 mi) of paths for cycling and walking, including Scotchmans Creek Trail , EastLink Trail , and Dandenong Creek Trail which connects to Blind Creek Trail . Whilst
38-661: A botanist . Dandenong Creek has its headwaters in the Dandenong Ranges near Olinda , sourced by a series of springs and small runoff streams within the Dandenong Ranges National Park . The creek can be roughly separated into three sections: The series of open space reserves along the Dandenong Creek and its tributaries provide important habitat for many urban wildlife in the outer eastern/southeastern suburbs. The creek
57-444: A significant part of Jells Park has been cleared and revegetated, its biodiversity is still significant, forming part of the Dandenong Creek wildlife corridor . Under the ecological vegetation class system, it is predominantly swampy woodland and swampy riparian woodland. The park is home to the man-made Jells Lake, with two jetties where recreational fishing is a popular activity. European carp are present in large numbers in
76-513: Is a suburb in Melbourne , Victoria , Australia , 23 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District , located within the City of Monash local government area . Wheelers Hill recorded a population of 20,652 at the 2021 census . At 152m above sea level it includes one of the highest points in metropolitan Melbourne. Wheelers Hill was almost certainly named after James Wheeler, who
95-430: Is accessible from this path. Most trails through the park are paved but some are firm gravel. Paths are generally well signposted and suitable for prams. Dogs are permitted on-lead in much of the park, except for the areas of remnant bushland where they are prohibited. The park is popular for picnics and barbecues, with playgrounds at Yabby Hill. In late 2018, the remaining wood-burning barbecues were removed in favour of
114-728: Is also the home of one of the largest remaining populations of Yarra Gum , and a series of linear parks , nature reserves and wetlands are located along it. A bike path known as the Dandenong Creek Trail runs alongside for a significant distance. The health of the creek in these urban areas ranges from moderate to very poor and has been the focus of a number of clean-up campaigns in recent years. An industrial wastewater stream known as Old Joes Creek flows into Dandenong Creek, with its confluence in Bayswater . This drain runs underground for much of its course, running in
133-616: The Eumemmerring Creek to form the Patterson River (of which it can be considered the de facto main stem ) and eventually draining into the Beaumaris Bay . Together with its distributary Mordialloc Creek and the culvert -linked Kananook Creek and Elster Creek, the so-called "Dandenong Catchment" has an overall catchment of approximately 882 km (341 sq mi). The traditional custodians of
152-582: The Wheelers Hill branch of the Monash Public Library Service [2] are co-located in a building at the corner of Jells Road and Ferntree Gully Road, Wheelers Hill. The architect of the original 1990 Gallery was Harry Seidler . Even though Seidler had designed a further whole cultural precinct beyond the gallery, Seidler's designs for a complete cultural centre were never implemented. Later architects Cox Sanderson Ness designed
171-474: The adjoining library which has a bay of windows facing a small lake. The Gallery contains a nationally significant collection of Australian photography, of which its permanent collection comprises over 1500 works illustrating the development and evolution of the photographic medium in Australia. There are nine bus services that run in or through the vicinity of Wheelers Hill. Two SmartBus services run through
190-609: The boundaries of the suburb. ^ = territory divided with another LGA Dandenong Creek The Dandenong Creek (Aboriginal Bunwurrung : Narra Narrawong or Dandinnong ) is an urban creek of the Port Phillip catchment, located in the eastern and south-eastern Greater Melbourne region of the Australian east coast state of Victoria . The creek descends approximately 550 metres (1,800 ft) over its course of 53 kilometres (33 mi) before joining
209-491: The land in 1854 and moved to Woodend . The Wheelers Hill Hotel was a post office and stopping point for farmers before a 6 to 8-hour drive to the city by horse to sell their goods. The Wheelers Mansion was destroyed by a fire in the late 1920s. The house was located somewhere to the south of the Wheelers Hill Library. The Post Office opened on 1 January 1869 but was called Mulgrave until 1888. Wheelers Hill
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#1732790786489228-477: The land surrounding what is now known as the Dandenong Creek were the indigenous Bunurong people of the Kulin nation who referred to the creek as Narra Narrawong ; while others gave the creek the name Dandenong, sometimes spelled as Dand-y-non or Tanjenong by early settlers, believed to mean "high" or "lofty". The first European to see the creek near its source was in 1839 and is believed to be Daniel Bunce,
247-418: The newer gas ones, leaving eight gas barbecues remaining. The park incorporates the following picnic areas: There is a visitor centre in the north west of the park which is run by Parks Victoria and incorporates a cafe and toilet block. Two ovals in the south of the park are frequently used for sporting activities and are open for public access at other times. Wheelers Hill, Victoria Wheelers Hill
266-505: The park. Scotchmans Creek Trail also runs through the park from the west, connecting with Dandenong Creek Trail in the south east corner. EastLink Trail skirts the southern edge of the park. A little further north of the park, the Blind Creek Trail comes in from the east and also terminates at the Dandenong Creek Trail . The Conservation Trail follows the eastern side of the lake past billabongs and wetlands. The bird hide
285-559: The wetland and have become a significant concern for its biodiversity. The lake is abutted by a grassed picnic area on the northwest, whilst an area of remnant bush surrounds the rest of the lake. This bush also contains a bird hide which can be used to spot a variety of native bird species such as Australasian swamphens , pelicans , Eurasian coots , dusky moorhens , and several species of ducks. Jells Park contains an extensive network of shared use paths for cycling, walking, and running. The Dandenong Creek Trail runs north—south through
304-515: Was a solid brick home reportedly built for W.D. Robertson, a retired Melbourne baker. It had a tower which gave a commanding view of the Dandenong Ranges. During World War II , the building was in use as a home for children with infantile paralysis , then known as "spastic" babies. When the mothers were needed to work on the farms left idle by the men who had gone to war, their special-needs babies were cared for at Columbia Park. The house
323-550: Was an early settler in the Dandenong area. James came out from Kilbride townland, Cavan , Ireland . James married Ellen Reilly née Glynn in 1848 after the death of her husband, Bernard. There was a five-room house on a creek that went down to the Dandenong Creek not far down the road from the Post Office. James had a disagreement with Joseph Jell about the cutting of trees which led to the lands being surveyed. James sold
342-496: Was occupied by a family named Jungwirth post-war and was in ruins by the time V.F.L Park was built nearby. Wheelers Hill is home to Jells Park , a major recreational facility of over 127 hectares. It contains 9 km of cycle paths and walking tracks which surround a large lake. Wheelers Hill is known for its trees. Parklands make up 31% of the total area of Wheelers Hill. Secondary Schools Primary Schools Private Schools The Museum of Australian Photography [1] and
361-575: Was the last suburb of the now Monash City Council to be linked up to the electricity grid. This is because, at the time, there was a dispute between the Shire of Mulgrave and the Council of Waverley on whose suburb it was. The main roads in Wheelers Hill were named after landowners and run along the boundaries of old orchards and farms. In Columbia Park on Jells Road, there are steps and a brick outline indicating where "Bellenden" homestead once stood. This
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