The brickwork on chimneys can give us a reliable clue to the age of some of Diamond Creek’s early houses, because while the shape and appearance of a house may change over the years, chimneys seldom change.

An Some of the most interesting chimneys are those constructed by a builder named Drinkwater who built from the period 1885 to 1905. The fifth row of bricks from the top of the chimney are laid at 45 degrees, giving a zigzag   appearance. We don’t know whether Drinkwater built these chimneys himself, or had his favourite bricklayer do the job. However, despite observing chimneys on old buildings elsewhere, we have not yet found any similar chimney tops – they may be unique to this district.

An example of this construction can be seen on the 1895 Ryan’s Butcher Shop on the corner of Hyde and Main Streets. The beautifully restored home at 24 Collins Street built for headmaster Edwin Leach in 1900, the Huntley home at 24 Broad Gully Road, the 1886 Kidd home at 12 Inglis Street and a farmhouse at 56 Grassy Flat Road are other examples.

Which raises the question – why are there so few solid old homes still standing in Diamond Creek? The answer lies in the soil.

This district lacked the rich productive soil of the Western District, or access to stone suitable for building elaborate family mansions. In fact, our first settlers were struggling subsistence farmers. Gold mining provided an income from 1862 to 1915; however, employment in gold mines was seldom reliable, so that miners frequently had to return to the soil for their income. When the main Diamond Creek Gold Mine was burnt out in 1915, fruit growing took over, but this required hard work, and provided a limited income, so that our early residents seldom had the time or the money to build large mansions.

In any case, cheaper weatherboard homes deteriorated very quickly or were burnt down, so that today only a few well-preserved weatherboard homes survive.

The Shire Council has established an Historic Overlay on historic buildings, in an attempt to retain the few treasures of the past which still stand. It is encouraging that some owners are taking steps to restore those buildings with links to Diamond Creek’s past history.