A dusty wooden sign labelled “Germanton Skating Rink” is one of few reminders of Holbrook’s former name – but that could soon change.
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Residents Laurel and Roy Willis have proposed the new Albury Street bridge be named Germanton Bridge upon completion.
The couple are committee members for the Woolpack Inn Museum – where the old skating rink sign hangs.
Mrs Willis said it was her involvement with the museum and reading John Lynch’s Paths of The Pioneers that really opened her eyes to Holbrook’s German roots.
“During the period from 1858 to 1915, the town was officially known as Germanton,” she said.
“This name came about as the area surrounding the Pabst home was commonly referred as ‘The Germans’.
“According to the Government Gazette, in 1852 the Pabst family were granted 640 acres in the middle of Ten Mile Creek station, and that’s where Holbrook is today.”
The Wiradjuri people called Ten Mile Creek “Thug-wug-minnia-binnis” and some of the first white settlers referred to the area as Ten Mile Creek, before the township of Germanton was gazetted in 1876.
Mrs Willis, who does not have German heritage, is well aware of why the town’s name was changed during World War I, but believed it to be a part of history that should be recognised.
“John Lynch’s book talks about a councillor McLaurin who, in discussing the name change at the council meeting, said ‘I don’t care what the name is, as long as it’s not a German one’,” she said.
“The feeling was pretty strong.
“The community voted years ago to change the name of the town … we’re wanting to rekindle that story from the past because it’s been forgotten.
“The bridge also connects Holbrook’s more recent history with the heritage precinct of town.”
The idea was tabled at last month's Greater Hume Council meeting.
Council decided a draft policy for naming of bridges must first be developed – as bridges are largely known by the creeks they run over – before a decision is made on whether the Ten Mile Creek bridge can be named after Germanton.
The idea has the support of fellow museum volunteer Wendy Swan, who often answers questions from tourists about the town’s history.
“Many people ask why we have the submarine in the middle of town,” she said.
“You start to explain the connection with Commander Holbrook and how Holbrook’s name changed, and then they start to realise the significance of it.”