Early businesses

Dairy - Cows

Part of Lane Cove Public School is now where a dairy used to be! This photo is Burns Bay Road - the cows had a habit of escaping and were often found wandering the streets of the village. Kennedy's Dairy started in 1901 and they started deliveries with a milk cart around 1915.

Source Lane Cove Library

Factories

A Cornflour Factory was opened on the Lane Cove River near Stringybark Creek in 1894, to be followed by a Paper Mill in 1912. The Mill almost completely burnt down in a fire in 1928.

Image Source

Orchards

Loggers and timber cutters had cleared a lot of land in this area during the early 1800s. Orchards were then planted in Lane Cove and produced fruit for markets.

Another popular crop was strawberries.

Image: An Australian orange orchard, Lane Cove River 1884, by JR Ashton

Soap and candlesticks

Rupert Kirk used to be a captain and was given land. He started a soap and candle-making factory in the 1830s. When the Great Depression happened, he had to sell much of his land.

Image Source; Information Source

Tannery

A tannery is where the skins and hides of animals are treated to produce leather. Leather was used in clothing, furniture, shoes, bags, cases, belts and much more before man made materials and plastics were invented. The first one in Lane Cove was in 1858.

Source Lane Cove Library

Pottery

Before plastic was invented, crockery and pottery were important for the storage and serving of liquids and food. The clay found in the Lane Cove area was good for pottery and pottery companies began in the late 1800s They supplied much of the everyday pottery - including toilets and sinks for Sydney and were known for 'Toby' or character mugs, teapots, money boxes. Pottery Green Reserve in Lane Cove is named after this industry.

Image Source

Lane Cove Goat Dairy

Emmy Roos took in stray and injured animals and was given her first goat in 1941. Over time she developed the herd and had a stable built for breeding and housing them.

She sold the milk to sick children and people who were intolerant to cows milk. The quality of the herd was very good and she won many awards at the Royal Easter Show during the early 1950s.
Source: Lane Cove Council

Bakery

The photo on the left is Thompson Brothers Bakery, 1907, Greenwich. The photo below shows delivery carts lining up to deliver bakery goods.

Source Lane Cove Library

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