Site 69 Cast Iron Foundry

5 Mill Street

Return to walk homepage

Herman “Cast Iron” Heinrich started a foundry at his property on the Warracknabeal Road to meet the needs of local farmers, blacksmiths and tradesmen. In 1926 John “Jack” Penver, a retired farmer, purchased the business and relocated it to Mill Street where he paid £100 each for three allotments.

He only owned it for a short time, until 1929, and the foundry was then taken over by Vern Pengilly who ran it until 1937. The foundry ceased operation due to the ready availability of modern mass produced farming implements which negated the viability of locally cast products.

The site, which by then was also an Atlantic Oils agency, was sold to Bill Kelsey in 1940. The Apex club used the building for meetings and paper recycling from the 1960s until the 1980s. 

Disclaimer: All information contained on these pages has been prepared over years of research from a small local volunteer group. The information is correct to the best of our knowledge. We always welcome suggestions for corrections or further information to add to the heritage sites. Please forward any comments to info@hindmarsh.vic.gov.au.