page_title: Frankston, Victoria
section_title: Post-war
hierarchical_section_title: Frankston, Victoria / History / 20th century / Post-war
caption_attribution_description: English: St. Francis Xavier Roman Catholic Church in Frankston, Victoria, Australia
context_page_description: Frankston is a suburb of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia, in the local government area of the City of Frankston. It is located 41 km south-east of the Melbourne city centre, north of the Mornington Peninsula. Due to its geographic location, it is often referred to as "the gateway to the Mornington Peninsula".
  European settlement of Frankston began around the same time as the foundation of Melbourne in 1835—initially as an unofficial fishing village serving the early Melbourne township. Prior to its settlement, the Frankston area was primarily inhabited by the Mayone-bulluk clan from the Bunurong tribe of the Kulin nation. The official village of Frankston was established in 1854, with its first land sales taking place on 29 May. It has subsequently given its name to the broader Frankston local government area since 1893, and serves as both its activity and administrative centre.
  Situated on the eastern shoreline of Port Phillip, Frankston has been a popular seaside destination of Melbourne since the 1880s. Frankston Beach is still one of the most frequented in Victoria, and is recognised as one of the cleanest in Australia.
context_section_description: The population of the broader Frankston area boomed during and after World War II increasing from 12,000 in 1947 to 82,000 by 1982 (according to the former 1893 Shire of Frankston and Hastings borders). This was in part due to the establishment of government housing estates in the area to house the families of Australian Military Force personnel stationed at the Langwarrin Military Camp in the City of Frankston suburb of Langwarrin as well as at the Balcombe Army School in Mount Martha and the Flinders Naval Depot near Hastings. The plastics manufacturer Nylex also established its operations in Frankston in 1947, and became one of the largest employers in the area for 50 years, until its operations were downgraded in the mid-2000s.
  During the early 1950s, Frankston was briefly home to the Hartnett Motor Company. Following his resignation as managing director of General Motors-Holden (GMH) in 1948, Laurence Hartnett was approached by then Prime Minister of Australia the Rt. Hon. Ben Chifley to establish an Australian-owned car company to compete with American-owned GMH in Australia. At GMH, Hartnett was "the father of the Holden"—the first Australian-made car. 70 acres between Seaford and Frankston was selected for the site of the factory with the support of the Victorian state government in 1949. The Hartnett Tasman was a front-wheel drive two door sedan based on a design by Jean Grégoire. The company planned to produce 100 cars a month at its Frankston factory. However, due to the delayed delivery of parts from the Australian federal government's Commonwealth Engineering Company, production was also severely delayed. The first Hartnett Tasman was dispatched from the factory in March 1952. 125 Tasmans and its convertible version, the Hartnett Pacific, were dispatched before the company went into receivership due to its delays in September 1952. The rare Frankston-made cars are now collector's items.
  On 7 October 1954, a new 600-seat St. Francis Xavier's Roman Catholic Church was officially opened by Archbishop Daniel Mannix. It was designed in a Post-War Modern style by architect Alan G Robertson and was constructed of smooth-faced brick. Its Modernist style was designed to emphasise its two stained glass windows created by artist Alan Sumner. The main north window was reputed to be the largest in the Southern Hemisphere at the time of its installation. The 1927 George Fincham & Sons pipe organ was refurbished in 1977. The old church was used as classrooms for St. Francis Xavier's school until it was demolished in the 1970s.
  On 26 October 1957, St. Paul's Church of England was extensively damaged by fire, leaving only its sanctuary intact. Designs for the re-building of the damaged sections of the church was again completed by its original architect Louis Williams. However, he decided to use a more restrained Gothic Arts and Crafts style for the rebuild. The transepts, chancel, sanctuary, vestries and chapel from the 1933 design were retained, but the 1887 nave was beyond repair and was demolished. The new designs included a nave with multiple gabled bay windows with stained glass designed by mural artist Christian Waller (wife of Napier Waller) and a restrained version of the tower from the 1933 design. The foundation stone for the rebuilt church was again laid by Archbishop Frederick Head, and it was constructed of clinker brick in 1959.
  In the summer of 1959, On the Beach, one of the first major Hollywood films to be made in Australia, was partly filmed in Frankston. The film was adapted from the best-selling novel of the same name, by popular author Nevil Shute (who lived in the City of Frankston suburb of Langwarrin). The name "Falmouth" is used to describe Frankston in the novel, but its actual name is used in the film. Scenes with lead actors Gregory Peck and Ava Gardner were filmed at Frankston railway station and on Young Street in the Frankston CBD, and at Frankston Beach with main supporting actors Fred Astaire (in his first dramatic film role), Anthony Perkins, and Donna Anderson. Famously, when asked to "giv
caption: The main stained glass window of St Francis Xavier's Catholic Church was reputed to be the largest in the Southern Hemisphere in 1954.
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