Our story

The Trafalgar Park Community Hub has a long and proud history of providing a place for people to come together, participate in activities and enjoy the company of others.

  • 1960s
    The Trafalgar Park Bowls Club is founded on land donated by the Cook family, as an alcohol-free club
  • 2018
    A croquet club starts at the facility
  • May 2025
    After more than six decades of bowls, the club disbands
  • 2026
    The facility becomes the Trafalgar Park Community Hub

How it began

The story began in the 1960s, when the Trafalgar Park Bowls Club was established on land generously donated by the Cook family. The land was originally provided for a group of local ladies who played bowls at the Trafalgar Bowls Club, a separate club, but who were unhappy that alcohol was served there.

They wanted a place where they could enjoy their sport in an alcohol-free environment, and the Trafalgar Park Bowls Club was born.

  • An old photograph of bowlers dressed in white on the green, with the cream-brick clubhouse and its flagpoles behind
    Bowls on the green, in front of the clubhouse.
  • A timber sign fixed to the fence at the Hub reading 'Cook Family Green', with the green and the Gippsland hills behind
    The green still carries the Cook family’s name.

Six decades of bowls

Over the following decades, the club became a very successful and competitive bowls club, with both men’s and women’s teams enjoying considerable success. The facility hosted Gippsland Bowling League tournaments and other competitions, attracting bowlers from across the region. Both outdoor and indoor bowls were played at the club over the years, making it an important part of the local and regional bowling community.

Sometime after 2000, the club transitioned to become an indoor bowls-only facility. It continued to be a popular and highly competitive club, with members travelling from around the region to play and the facility continuing to host numerous tournaments.

Like many community sporting organisations, however, the club faced challenges during and following the COVID-19 pandemic. An ageing membership and a dwindling number of players eventually made it unsustainable to continue. In May 2025, after more than six decades of bowls at the site, the Trafalgar Park Bowls Club disbanded.

The club’s honour boards, which record its long and successful history, have been preserved and are now housed at the Trafalgar Historical Society.

  • An old photograph of a game of bowls, players in white hats standing on the green with bowls lying on the grass
    A game under way on the green.
  • An old photograph of a bowler in a striped shirt and white hat, seen from behind, crouched low and watching a bowl run along the green
    Watching the bowl run.
  • A glass-fronted In Memoriam case from the Trafalgar Park Bowling Centre, holding engraved name bars arranged in five circles
    The bowling centre’s In Memoriam case.

The honour boards

The club’s honour boards are now kept by the Trafalgar Historical Society. Here are all five, from 1960–61 to 2017–18. Tap a board to open it full size and read the names.

  • The T.P.L.B.C. honour board, lettered in gold on dark timber, listing the presidents, secretaries and champions from 1960–61 to 1979–80
    T.P.L.B.C., 1960–61 to 1979–80.
  • The T.P.L.B.C. honour board, lettered in gold on dark timber, listing the presidents, secretaries and champions from 1980–81 to 2006–07
    T.P.L.B.C., 1980–81 to 2006–07.
  • The T.P.M.B.C. honour board, lettered in gold on dark timber, listing the presidents, secretaries and champions from 1962–63 to 1979–80
    T.P.M.B.C., 1962–63 to 1979–80.
  • The T.P.M.B.C. honour board, lettered in gold on dark timber, listing the presidents, secretaries and champions from 1980–81 to 2006–07
    T.P.M.B.C., 1980–81 to 2006–07.
  • The T.P.B.C. Inc. honour board, lettered in gold on dark timber, listing the presidents, secretaries and treasurers from 1987–88 to 2017–18
    T.P.B.C. Inc., 1987–88 to 2017–18.

A new chapter

While the bowls club came to an end, the community spirit that had kept the facility going for so many years continued.

A croquet club was established at the facility in 2018. Members of the croquet club became involved in helping Peter and Jean Farmer, who worked hard to keep the club and grounds operating. When the Trafalgar Farmers Market later relocated to the precinct, some of those involved with the market also became committee members, bringing new energy and ideas to the facility.

In 2026, the facility officially changed its name to Trafalgar Park Community Hub, reflecting its new role as a place for a much wider range of community activities and groups.

  • The green at the Hub, freshly mown in stripes, with houses and the Gippsland hills beyond
  • Market day at the Hub from directly above, stall canopies lining two sides of the green with shoppers between them
  • The Hub building seen from across the green, low from the air, with hills behind

The Hub today

Today, the Hub is run by a small group of dedicated volunteers who are committed to keeping the facility available for the Trafalgar community and surrounding areas. It has become a home for a diverse range of regular users, including a dog school, two dance schools, Probus, Health Links active over-65 classes, croquet and yoga.

The Hub is also regularly used for private and community functions, including birthdays, Christmas parties, anniversaries, community meetings and other gatherings. Its affordable hire rates, made possible by the work of volunteers, make it an accessible venue for local people to celebrate and come together.

Behind the scenes, the committee has worked tirelessly to restore and maintain the grounds and keep the facility looking welcoming and cared for. Volunteers have spent many hours applying for grants, organising working bees, carrying out maintenance and improvements, and finding ways to ensure the Hub continues to have a future.

See who uses the Hub, and when →

Hire rates and conditions →

  • Children meeting sheep from a visiting animal farm on the grass at the Hub, with families sitting nearby
  • The hall dressed for a party, with a silver and purple balloon arch, fairy lights and a long table of food
  • The hall set up for a children's party, with a fenced soft-play area and a ball pit
  • Plates of food and rows of glasses set out along the kitchen servery for a function

More than a hall

From its beginnings as an alcohol-free bowls club established by a group of determined local women, through decades of successful men’s and women’s bowls, to its new life as a community hub, the facility has always been about more than the activities taking place there. It has been a place where people meet, friendships are formed, groups can thrive and the community can come together.

The Trafalgar Park Community Hub is proud of its history and grateful to all the volunteers, players, members and community groups who have contributed to its story over the decades.

Have old photos or memories of the club? We would love to see them.

Tell us what you remember →

Our supporters

Volunteers run the Hub, and these local businesses and organisations have helped it along the way. Thank you.

  • Community Bank Trafalgar & District

    Several grants for the Hub.

  • Fowlers

    More than 30 tonnes of stone for the carpark.

  • Baw Baw Shire Council

    The grant for this website and our marketing, and more support over the years.

Get involved

The next chapter is now being written by a new generation of volunteers and community groups.

New members and volunteers are always welcome. Anyone interested in helping to shape the future of the Trafalgar Park Community Hub is welcome to come along to a committee meeting or get involved.

Get in touch

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