
Dear Monument Australia visitors, we are a self-funded, non-profit organisation, dedicated to recording monuments throughout Australia. Over time the costs of maintaining this website have risen substantially (in fact they are probably larger than those of many companies who exist for profit). In the past we have borne all the costs associated with maintaining the website but we are now having difficulties in paying the monthly expenses.
If Monument Australia is useful to you, please make a donation to keep this historical and educational resource available. Your help would be greatly appreciated.
Memorial ArboretumPrint Page 
The Arboretum is a memorial to the men who lost their lives in a helicopter crash near Wandiligong in 1978,
The Bright Memorial Arboretum is situated in Mountbatten Avenue, Bright. This area, originally a Forests Commission Victoria Pine Nursery, was converted into a Seed Garden in 1973 with the aim of supplying seed for the Forests Commission Victoria nurseries at Macedon and Creswick. A wide variety of trees were planted, not all were successful.
A helicopter carrying out a fuel-reduction burning operation crashed near Wandiligong on 19 April 1978, and two Forest Officers, Peter Collier and Stan Gillett and the pilot, John Byrnes, lost their lives. It was decided to develop the former Seed Garden into a Memorial Arboretum in memory of those killed.
The Memorial Arboretum was officially opened on 14 December 1984. Shortly afterwards the Forests Commission Victoria was reorganised and, with changing personnel, the Memorial Arboretum only received minimal maintenance.
In May 2002, a Friends of the Bright Memorial Arboretum was formed and now has over 40 members. The Friends Group is an advisory body to the Department of of Sustainability & Environment, which is very supportive. It is planned that regular maintenance will be carried out and further development will take place as funds become available.
Location
Address: | Mountbatten Avenue, Bright, 3741 |
---|---|
State: | VIC |
Area: | AUS |
GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -36.726951 Long: 146.971185 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
Monument Type: | Park |
---|---|
Monument Theme: | Disaster |
Sub-Theme: | Fire |
Actual Event Start Date: | 19-April-1978 |
Actual Event End Date: | 19-April-1978 |
Dedication
Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Friday 14th December, 1984 |
---|
Memorial
Arboretum