Social events, Wangaratta Woollen Mills

These photographs feature the Christmas parties, sports days and other social events held at the Wangaratta Woollen Mills. They are taken from an album created by Gordon Williams, a former worker at the mills, and therefore the dates of the events have not been recorded.

Work at the mills was very social, a reflection of the era where many people stayed in the same workplace for many years, creating a sense of "family" at work.

Wangaratta Woollen Mills Limited began in 1919 with a share float by local businessmen to create employment and attract workers and their families to the town. One of the men, William Callander, comes up with a bold plan to promote the project. His two daughters Alma and Lena take to the skies in an open biplane, seated on kerosene tins, to scatter leaflets across the region.

By 1922 the Wangaratta Woollen Mills was operational, and its powerhouse supplied all the electricity to the town of Wangaratta.

The Woollen Mills were famous for the quality of their woollen yarns, and in the 1950s became involved with synthetic yarns. Well known as a factory with a family atmosphere, and often employing many members of the same family, the Mill had many sporting and social clubs. The Mills became Australian Country Spinners (ACS) in 1991.