History Of the Grainstore
The Mirboo North Grainstore, situated at 55 Ridgway, was originally built in approximately 1904-1905. The land was originally railway land and it was leased to The Mirboo North Dairy Company who built and used it as a produce store with Livery Stables at the rear for horses.
By March 1907 it had changed hands and was operated by Martin Dyke & Sons as a Grain Store (corn), Bait and Livery Stables (with horses for hire) and Agent for Dalgety and Co. Martin Dyke already owned a butcher shop next door and he leased the Grainstore from the Mirboo North Dairy Company.
The next reference to the building is when the leasehold of the Grainstore was sold by the Mirboo and Morwell Valley Farmers Co-Operative (Butter Factory) to Walter J. Tuck on 28th October 1927. It was still being leased from Victorian Railways (allotment 17, Section 2 in the township of Mirboo North). Walter J Tuck operated as a Tinsmith and Plumber from these premises.
The next major change for the building came in 1974, when the widening of Ridgway occurred. Many of the buildings on the northern side of Main Street lost their verandas off the front. Walter Tuck continued in his plumbing business in the building, without its veranda, until his retirement by 1976.
After a period of being empty and looking neglected, this building was then used as the Mirboo North Waterworks Trust office from 1976 until the trust was taken over by the Morwell Water Board, now Gippsland Water, and it moved to the Latrobe Valley (1993).
After another period of not being used, the Grainstore, owned by the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA), was given back to the people of Mirboo North to be managed by a local Committee of Management appointed by DEECA.
The building’s original use gave inspiration to the Committee of Management in re-naming this building as “The Grainstore” in 1993, and a number of renovations and improvements to the building followed.
In 2003 it underwent another renovation with an upgraded new kitchen and installation of a veranda, in line with the original design.
Since 2009 it has been used as a community building for groups and events. It has been used on market days, for youth groups, meetings, church services, and an all-round venue for community use.
Compiled by the Mirboo and District Historical Society Inc (August 2023)
