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Produced and published by the School of Historical & Philosophical Studies, The University of Melbourne
Published July 2008
Published July 2008
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Higson Lane is located between Russell and Exhibition streets, extending south from Flinders Lane to a dead-end. Higson Lane has predominantly been used for residential and commercial purposes. Most of the buildings lining the lane are warehouses built in the early twentieth century. The warehouses located at 2 & 3 Oliver Lane, which back onto Higson Lane, are heritage listed. These warehouses were designed and built by the engineer John Monash and builder and entrepreneur David Mitchell. Completed in 1907, they have housed a variety of different business over the years, many of which were connected to the clothing industry. Number 3 has since been converted to residential units, but the original façade of the Number 2 warehouses is still in place on both Higson and Oliver Lanes.
The busy nature of Higson Lane at times caused great clutter. About twenty clothing and fabric warehouses along Higson Lane and nearby Oliver and Hosier Lanes produced huge bundles of fabrics and machinery. These often filled the lanes, making it difficult to enter the lane for a pick-up or delivery.