My suburb survived poltergeists, Olympics and a name change – but you probably don’t know it

As I walk our family dog along the quiet streets and local parks in East Oakleigh, it is difficult not to notice how much it has changed. Where quarter-acre blocks were once the norm, it is common to see multiple units on these generous lots. They are functional. They are not particularly attractive.

My newlywed parents first moved here in the late 1950s. Back then, Oakleigh East was a patchwork of brick-veneer and weatherboard homes, sprawling paddocks, and market gardens. This was a time when childhood memories were formed and local community was important. Neighbours became our extended family. Our home was theirs, and their home was ours. Doors were never locked.

Not everyone had a phone or a television. It wasn’t unusual for a neighbour to sit comfortably in our kitchen for hours, chatting to family and friends, while life in our household went on as usual. Then there was the time that half my class crossed the school oval, and crowded into our suburban living room to watch man’s first landing on the moon, on our small black and white TV.

The backdrop to our outdoor playtime was the 40-metre chimney at the end of our street in the Oakleigh brickworks. My mother would be annoyed by the chimney soot that would fall on the freshly washed clothes drying on our backyard Hills Hoist. Washing days were planned around the chimney activity.

After operating for around 90 years, production ended at the brickworks in the 1970s. We all watched excitedly as an explosion brought that chimney down in a cloud of dust. The site eventually became a derelict rubbish tip. The dust and smell remained a constant, but while our parents complained, us neighbourhood kids were too busy being kids to notice. That tip is now the popular Reg Harris Reserve – a tranquil space, perfect for a family barbecue and a wander round the ornamental lake.

Oakleigh East is a small south-east suburb, nestled between Oakleigh, Huntingdale, Mount Waverley and Clayton, less than 20 kilometres from the CBD. My suburb is not exclusive. Our willingness to borrow from neighbouring suburbs is one of our strengths.

We might be considered the poor cousin of the more popular and better-known Oakleigh, famed as the Greek centre of Melbourne. However, we are so close that we share the same postcode and get to enjoy all that makes it popular.

We are a 10-minute walk to the thriving Huntingdale strip shopping centre and its array of fabulous eateries and cafes – Italian, Indian, Korean, Cambodian, Thai, Lebanese, Malaysian, French, Greek and Vietnamese. We are also a few minutes’ drive to Chadstone Shopping Centre and to Monash University, Monash Medical Centre and the new Heart Hospital.

The “20-minute suburb” concept rings true here. Most of Melbourne’s best attractions, from the city centre to bayside beaches and the Dandenongs, are accessible within a short drive or train journey. Transport links include an express 20-minute train ride to the city, frequent bus routes and easy access to major arterials such as the Monash Freeway and Princes Highway.

Three generations of my family attended East Oakleigh Primary School (now called Amsleigh Park Primary School) from the 1940s to the 1990s. My father went to this same primary school in the 1940s, commuting from Hughesdale, a few suburbs away. When I look back at my school photos, I count 36 children in one class. Unthinkable today, but most of us became proficient at reading, spelling and maths. Last year, the school celebrated its 150th anniversary.

We celebrated another big anniversary last year. The 70th anniversary of Oakleigh District Football Club, whose ground and clubhouse are at the Princes Highway Reserve. While I knew my father was a local football player, it was only last year I discovered his name on the wall in gold lettering as best and fairest in 1960. And it was a further surprise to find my grandfather’s name alongside as club secretary.

A landmark of Oakleigh East is the Oakleigh Motel, or more accurately, the neon heritage sign out front, alongside the Princes Highway. Inspired by the architecture of America’s roadside motels, it was Victoria’s first.

It was such a landmark that it was the official turning point (halfway mark) for the 1956 Olympic Games marathon. It didn’t matter that the hotel wasn’t completed until the next year. My neighbour, a spectator at the marathon, has told me about their memories of the race, and how as the competitors approached the motel there was a concern among many in the crowd that the race leader was a “communist”. The crowd was quiet and many had their arms crossed, but as they rounded the turn, a Frenchman took the lead – and the crowd broke out in a cheer.

My family has a personal connection to the motel – in 1959 it was where my mother and father stayed on their wedding night. When I relay this story about their proud stay in this humble motel, I usually get a chuckle. In 2010, the motel was converted into owner-occupied apartments. However, with the motel’s heritage-listed sign still proudly facing the highway, I’m sure the residents must get tired of being approached by people seeking accommodation.

Another landmark event in my suburb was the 1966 case of the East Oakleigh poltergeist at the home of the Mathrick family. The day after media reported this case of strange knocking noises at a home that couldn’t be explained by police, “1000 onlookers arrived along with numerous TV and news cameramen, radio and press reporters, who filled up the lounge room, trampled on the garden, filled the gutters with litter, and blocked the street”. Mr Mathrick was quoted as saying he was “more haunted by the spectators than by anything else”. “The whole thing has got out of hand and I only wish everyone would go home and let us get some sleep,” he said. I’ve never seen any sign of ghosts here.

I love living in East Oakleigh, now referred to as Oakleigh East. I’ve moved in and out of the area over the years – after spending the first 13 years of my life here, I returned in my 20s after buying our first family home in 1985 for $65,000. Two homes later, we are still in Oakleigh East and now retired. There is something that draws us back to the area. It is not a particularly special suburb, but its history, the long-term connections I have with friends and family, and its easy proximity to all the things that make life rich, are what keeps us here. We are not pretentious in Oakleigh East and everyone is welcome.

Liz Anderson is a long-term resident in Oakleigh East (after several attempts to live elsewhere).