MT. STANLEY


Lat / Long GDA -36.451396, 146.802904
Department FCV...etc...DEECA
Work Depot Ovens
Region North East
Grading Primary
Elevation (ASL) 1050m
Height 14m (original)
? (current)
Construction Steel
Cabin size ?
Public access to site Yes
In use since 1932 - 1991 (original)
199? - current
CFA Region 24 - North Eastern

In the Forest Commission's Annual Report from 1928-29 is the following entry:
Negotiations are in hand for the establishment of a lookout station, viz: Mt. Stanley
By arrangement with the Beechworth Progress Association, that body is paying a small proportion of the cost of the tower and is undertaking its erection.

Mt. Stanley was opened in 1932 after constructed through working bees. The material for the tower was donated by the Forest Commission. The tower, approximately 13m high, has 3inch (75mm) angle iron legs braced with 2inch (50mm) angle iron.
It's prime use was fire detection, but it was also used as a scenic viewing platform. A cabin was added in 1948 and was replaced twice (1968 & 1984). This tower was last used in 1991. The cabin was removed in 1995 and relocated to the Mt. Granya tower.
Fire detection from Mt. Stanley is now carried out in the adjoining telecommunication tower which was built in 199?.

The main photo and above information was supplied by the Historical Section of the NRE and came from a rapport by David Bannear.

 Please click on thumbnails for enlargements
Graeme Swinton on duty
in new tower in 1994
Note cabin on
old tower in window 		New Mt. Stanley in 1994 Mt. Stanley in 1996 with
more dishes & aerials 		Mt. Stanley, the old
& the new

First 3 Thumbnail photos supplied by Graeme Swinton.
The 4th thumbnail photo was supplied by Jim Browning, ex FLO on Mt. Stanley.

Inside cabin temperature
on 30-01-2009 		Mt. Stanley on 11-02-2009
4 days after Black Saturday 		Mt. Stanley in May 2009

The 1st thumbnail photo was supplied by Jim Browning, FLO at the time.
The 2nd thumbnail photo was supplied by North East Newspaper and used with permission.
The 3rd thumbnail photo was supplied by Andre Belterman

The tower operation had a Prohibitation Notice issued due to a few Worksafe concerns in Feb 2012. The concerns were in relation to the ladder, radiation from the nearby TV and Radio transmitters and asbestos in the cabin floor. All issues were resolved.

Mt. Stanley in April 2016, photos supplied by Steve.

In Dec 2016 the Hume Region (NE) recognised a few of their FLOs for their long and dedicated service. Jim Browning, the Mt. Stanley FLO, was one of them with 15 years service; well done Jim.
A copy of the article can be found here

In August 2022, Mark A Webster posted his recollections of the Ash Wednesdays fires (16 February 1983) on Facebook. Mark was the FLO on Mt. Stanley on that day.
For a copy of his post on FB, incl. the comments, please click here.

This photo was supplied in May 2023 by Jim Browning, ex Mt. Stanley FLO.
It's believed that the photo was taken in the 1940s

The originals of the above photos are held at the Stanley Athenaeum.  Electronic copies were supplied by the Stanley Athenaeum and are used with their permission. 1st, 2nd and 4th photos are from the Geoff Craig collection and the 3rd and 5th photos are from the George Peach collection. Read the blurb on the photos for explanation and dates taken.

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