The Stone Yard was operated by Delbridge & Thomas.
“Some of the stone for the Victorian Parliament House came from the Delbridge Stone Works.” (Fitzroy History Society Newsletter, June 2017, FHS-Newsletter-June-2017.pdf)
Edward Delbridge
Edward Delbridge was a Wesleyan Methodist. “He left England in 1852, aged seventeen and came to Victoria looking for gold. Like others, he left the diggings as surface gold petered out. Delbridge settled in Fitzroy, setting up businesses as a builder and contractor. In 1864, at the age of twenty-nine years, he was elected to the Fitzroy Council and was later the mayor of the municipality”. (Fitzroy, Melbourne’s First Suburb).
Edward was responsible for the building of a number of notable terraces in Moor, John and Kerr streets. He was a councillor for eleven years until 1875. He was mayor in 1866. (Fitzroy, Melbourne’s First Suburb).
An exciting event occurred in late 1867 with the visit of HRH Prince Albert to Victoria. The Borough of Fitzroy penned a congratulations to the Prince by John Michael, Mayor, Edward Delbridge, John Falconer, Alban Thomas Best, William Miller Scotchmere, Thomas Rowe, James McKean, Alexander Grant, George Rushall and William J Gilchrist (Town Clerk). To which he responded. For those interested, the details of the contents are contained in an Archive of the Narrative of the Visit.
The foundation stone of the Fitzroy Town Hall was laid by Mayor Edward Delbridge in 1873 and the building opened in 1874.” (Fitzroy History Society Newsletter, June 2017, FHS-Newsletter-June-2017.pdf)
Delbridge died in 1887 and the site was taken over by John Stone’s timber yard from 1900. (Fitzroy History Society Newsletter, June 2017, FHS-Newsletter-June-2017.pdf)
Delbridge Street, Fitzroy North was named after him.