By Anna Donne
Sunshine and District Historical Society
When we think about Australia’s contribution to wartime efforts, sheep and wool may not be the first things that come to mind. Yet wool played an important role in keeping servicemen and women warm and safe.
Woollen clothing was worn on the front lines; knitted socks were packed into parcels and sent to soldiers overseas, and sheepskin vests provided warmth in cold war zones. Back home, fire-resistant wool uniforms were worn by workers in explosives factories. In fact, between the Crimean War of the 1850s and the Korean War of the 1950s, Australia and New Zealand together supplied more wool to the world than any other country.
But here in Deer Park, a small mob of sheep had a rather different wartime role.
During the 1940s, the Imperial Chemical Industries of Australia and New Zealand (ICIANZ) explosives factory on Ballarat Road was involved in the manufacture of chemicals and explosives for the mining industry. It became one of Australia’s largest explosives, chemical, and plastics manufacturers and contributed to wartime production, including ammunition and initiators. The site was also involved in the development of synthetic ammonia and the construction of defence explosives during the Second World War.
The factory was carefully designed with its buildings spread well apart. This was an important safety measure: if an explosion occurred in one building, the distance between buildings would help prevent the blast from affecting the rest of the site.
There was however, a problem. The large spaces between the buildings meant there were extensive areas of grass that needed to be kept under control.
At an explosives factory, fire was a constant concern. Using petrol-powered lawnmowers, with the possibility of sparks being produced, was clearly not ideal in an environment surrounded by highly combustible materials.
The solution? Sheep.
During the 1940s, a small mob was brought onto the factory site to keep the grass short and reduce the fire risk. They did their job well, however keeping sheep comes with its own requirements.
The sheep needed to be shorn, so a shearing shed was built. A shearer or shepherd was then required, so a shepherd was employed. And because the factory covered such a large area, the shepherd needed a horse to get around.
Enter Whitey.
According to local stories, Whitey was not the friendliest of horses. He was apparently bad-tempered with everyone except the shepherd. One night someone broke into the factory and stole him.
Then, two nights later, the horse thieves returned. And brought Whitey back.
Whitey’s reputation had clearly preceded him!
And there, in the middle of a factory producing some of the most dangerous explosives of the time, was this remarkably ordinary little scene; sheep grazing quietly, a shepherd tending them, and Whitey the horse making his way around the site.
It is a wonderful reminder that wartime history is not only about battles, factories and weapons. Sometimes, it is also about the small, everyday solutions that help keep people safe.
For a time, a little mob of sheep played its part in Deer Park’s wartime story — quietly keeping the grass down and, in their own way, helping protect the people who worked at the factory.
