I noticed this chimney along the Djerring trail and have sourced it history and thought it was a good follow up cache to "Bridge."
This boiler house, brick chimney and factory at the former Australian Plaster Industires Ltd site is in Oakleigh.
The plant was built c. 1946-48 as part of a new plasterboard factory . The briquette fired water-tube boiler suppled steam for the drying plasterboard until it was made redundant by direct firing in 1970. This plant is a rare example of a large and relatively intact boiler house and chimney associated with the post-war period of Victoria's industrialization. The location of the boiler house adjacent to the Gippsland railway line is historically significant as it was specifically located next to the railway line to enable the delivery of fuel for the boiler. The boiler was fired on briquettes produced by the State Electricity Commission of Victoria (SECV) at the Latrobe Valley coal fields which were transported directly by rail to a dedicated railway siding beside the boiler house. The use of briquettes as a fuel has largely been replaced by natural gas, but the closure of the boiler house in 1970 resulted in this plant not undergoing the conversion to natural gas which has occurred at most other boiler installations. As a result of this, it is one of the few surviving examples of a large briquette fired water-tube boiler and associated brick chimney in a manufacturing context in Melbourne. It provides direct evidence of the Latrobe Valley briquette industry which underpinned Victoria's industrial development from the 1930s until the 1960s, during which time production of briquettes more than trebled. The use of SECV produced briquettes provided a cost-effective fuel for industry and reduced Victoria's reliance on black coal from NSW.
The chimney has an aesthetic significance as a tall prominent feature of the local landscape associated with the industrial use of the area. It is easily visible from the surrounding area and from the adjacent railway line. Once common, large brick chimneys associated with the industry are few in number and increasingly threatened with demolition. Many have been truncated or had their associated boiler house, kiln, or factory which used the heat or steam, demolished. ( Source Vintage Heritage Database report.)
The Chimney in Oakleigh Soon, The Chimney In Oakleigh cafe will employ young adults with an intellectual disability and will be run as a social enterprise. The chimney is currently being restored.
The cache - while you will not need to join the magpie in the picture, there is a short climb at GZ adjacent to the chimney. There is a log, a pencil. FTF went to the Bananas - Archie B1 &B2.