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Lalor

(3075, 17 km N, Whittlesea City)

This residential suburb, established after World War II, was named after Peter Lalor, the leader of the miners' rebellion at the Eureka Stockade. It was founded by a group of ex-servicemen, many of whom had links with the labour movement and who in 1946 formed the Peter Lalor Home-Building Co-operative Society to provide cheap homes for working men and women. They established the Peter Lalor Building Stockade to try to overcome the problem of supplying home builders with construction materials during a period of high demand, rising costs and supply shortages, before engaging town planner, Saxil Tuxen, to design a garden suburb on land east of the railway. Many of the streets were named after Victoria Cross winners. Although the Co-operative succeeded in beginning a program of house building, under-capitalisation resulted in the venture being taken over by the War Service Homes Commission. Lalor, however, has expanded well beyond the Co-operative's initial land area. A primary school opened in 1954 and reached an enrolment of 1000 in 1971; three more primary schools along with Lalor Secondary College and Peter Lalor Secondary College have also been established.

Peter Christiansen