Flagstaff Gardens
 The central city location makes Flagstaff Gardens a favourite spot for local city workers, who can take time out of their day to relax over lunch, while the historic monuments, art installations and proximity to Queen Victoria Markets make the gardens a popular point on the tourist trail.
The colonial history of this garden is linked to the hill, the vantage point that dominates the site, where a 'flag staff' or 'flag pole' was erected in 1840. A range of message flags informed residents of the early settlement when a ship came in to the port, and whether it was under steam or sail, a merchant ship or a man of war. The early settlers eagerly awaited the arrival of ships from England bringing much needed supplies and news of 'home'.
The Flagstaff Gardens Master Plan, adopted by the City of Melbourne in December 2000, guides its future development.
Full-screen picture of Flagstaff Gardens
Map of park - Click here
Toilet - Yes
Playground - Yes
Sports court - Yes
Barbecue - Yes
Melway Ref - 2F A2
Size - 7.1693ha
Dog off-leash area - No
Running/bike track - No
Things you can see include:
- a caretaker's cottage;
- the Pioneers' Memorial;
- the Separation Monument;
- one piece of the ‘Another View’ art installation;
- ‘The Court Favourite’ statue;
- a sundial and a bronze sculpture;
- a performance stage; and
- a great view through to Docklands.
Things to do - you can:
- visit the children's playground;
- walk to the hilltop 'lookout' site for a wider view;
- phone 9663 5888 for a booking for the tennis/netball/handball volleyball court;
- if you're interested in lawn bowls contact the Flagstaff Gardens Bowling Club on (03) 9328 3462; and
- walk or jog around the gardens' perimeter of La Trobe, William, King and Dudley streets (it's 1.2kms)
The character of Flagstaff Gardens is principally created by large mature trees set in open lawns. The southern end of the Gardens is dominated by deciduous trees while the northern end contains many eucalypts.
Two significant avenues of trees (predominantly elms) define the edges of the site and two remnant boundary rows of trees are visible. The gardens contain many fine Moreton Bay fig trees, and a variety of eucalypts, including spotted and sugar gums. The site contains at least one river red gum and a large, mature Gingko biloba (Japanese maidenhair tree).
This oasis in the middle of the Central Business District also has a rose bed and a scented garden that provides a wonderful sensory experience.
Access and mobility
The gardens slope steeply up from King Street then down towards William and La Trobe streets. Steps and steep paths form the entry points from King Street with a steep grade on the corner of King and La Trobe streets. Best entry is from William or Dudley streets.
Settlement and the early history of the site
Before 1840 the area was known as Burial Hill as it was the final resting place for the city’s earliest colonial residents. A space was officially reserved, in 1838, for the first public cemetery on the site of part of the present-day Queen Victoria market.
The flagstaff erected in 1840 was one of several within the Port Phillip District used for communicating with Sandridge (Port Melbourne) and ships on the Bay. The Signalling station was also equipped with a ‘Time Ball’, dropped at noon every day and a notice board where written messages advised the public of daily shipping movements.
A small cannon was also fired when ships came into port and a building that once stood close to the flagstaff contained telescopes and the full range of flags to indicate the type of ship that had entered the port.
The 'flagstaff hill' became a popular place to receive the daily news of arriving ships. On Sundays people made up picnic parties to go up the hill and listen to the music of regimental bands or study lists of ships in port, or with telescopes try to recognise vessels coming up the bay.
Flagstaff Hill was also a prominent site for public gatherings, including the announcement in November 1850 of Victoria’s Separation from the Colony of New South Wales. When official news of this new status arrived from London, about 5 000 townspeople gathered here around a huge bonfire and danced in celebration.
In 1857 a cutting was excavated through the hill to ease the gradient of King Street, which created the high bank, with its bluestone retaining wall, which still forms the present western boundary. A memorial to Melbourne’s pioneers was erected on Flagstaff Hill in 1871.
By the 1860s, the electric telegraph had superseded signalling flags as a means of communication and the hill lost its attraction as a meeting place. A magnetic observatory and a weather station was established on the hilltop for a short time, but the site proved unsatisfactory because of interference from nearby iron buildings and the observatory was relocated to the Domain in 1863.
The establishment of the gardens
In 1862 West Melbourne residents became unhappy with the derelict condition of Flagstaff Hill and petitioned the government to turn it into public gardens and/or recreation reserve. Clement Hodgkinson, the Deputy Surveyor-General in charge of the entire city’s parks at the time, prepared a plan and directed its implementation. He also designed the Fitzroy and Treasury Gardens. In 1873 the gardens were permanently reserved and in 1880 were laid out with trees, a pathway network, lawns, and low flowerbeds.
With many features of historic and horticultural interest, the Gardens are covered by a Heritage Overlay Control under the Melbourne Planning Scheme. It has been classified by the National Trust of Australia (Victoria) and is listed by the Australian Heritage Commission.
The 20th century
On October 9, 1917, the City of Melbourne was appointed Committee of Management for the Flagstaff Gardens. This was followed by the opening of a children’s playground, which was opened in 1918, one of the first in Melbourne City Council’s park system. Unlike playgrounds today it was designed in two quite separate sections, the 'boys' playground' and the 'girls' playground'.
The 7.2 hectares of the Flagstaff Gardens is Crown Land vested jointly in the City of Melbourne and the State Government, and is permanently reserved as a public park.
The gardens today
The city has grown up around the gardens and tall buildings now obscure the panoramic views of the bay once enjoyed from the crown of the hill. Stately trees, some of them more than 100 years old, frame glimpses of St James Old Cathedral in King Street, one of Melbourne oldest links with its early settlers.
Tennis courts adjacent to William Street have been adapted for volleyball, handball and netball as well as tennis. Adjacent barbecues contribute to the relaxed environment in which residents, city workers and visitors can enjoy themselves.
The Pioneers Memorial
The Pioneers Memorial was erected in 1871 in memory of the early colonists buried on Burial Hill between 1839 and 1840, (before it became Flag Staff hill). It was constructed from sandstone by Samuel Craven to a design produced by the Victorian Public Works Department.
The Separation Monument
Various stones including Castlemaine slate, sandstone, granite and marble were used in this in layered brick-like structure, which is located in the same area as the original flag staff. It was produced in 1950 to commemorate the centenary of the proclamation of the government of Victoria and the Port Phillip Colony's separation from New South Wales.
The 'Another View' Installation (site 4)
This installation, consisting of three glass-topped sculptural boxes recessed in the ground, is one of 17 different artistic installations around central Melbourne which aim to provide a sense of the City's Aboriginal history. Made by artists Meg Evans and Ray Thomas in 1995, these three boxes are a symbolic representation of the relationship between the early pioneers and the local Aborigines. Miniature replica paintings of early settlers are taken from photographs of the artists' ancestors. The red ribbons are symbolic of the sinews and veins of all people connected with the land. The text on the glass is taken from Liam Davison's book ‘The White Woman’. One description of the 'Another View' installations included the following information: "This gingin buller (hill) was once an Aboriginal burial site and a lookout point from which the Aborigines first observed the white settlers sailing up Port Phillip Bay in 1835".
The Court Favourite
Sculpted by Paul R. Montford, this bronze and granite sculpture was unveiled in February 1930 and is positioned by the William Street entrance path, near a sundial that has been in the Gardens since the 19th century.
Getting there by public transport
Starting point: Federation Square (Melbourne)
Take tram (48, 70, 75, City Circle) from Flinders Street to La Trobe Street and then tram (55) from La Trobe Street or take a train to Flagstaff Station on the city loop.
| 
