The History of Power House Rowing Club
Lord Somers Camp was started at Anglesea in 1929, by Lord Somers, then the Governor of Victoria, and C. Gordon (‘Doc’) McAdam. The camp was intended to increase understanding between boys of different walks of life, and to develop leadership skills.
The Power House organisation was formed in 1931 to establish sporting clubs that would keep camp members connected to each other. The Power House organisation built the McAdam clubhouse in 1932 on the banks of Albert Park Lake, on condition that a rowing club was created. Power House Rowing Club (PHRC) was officially formed in 1933.
All Power House sporting clubs went into recess during the Second World War and the rowing club struggled to re-form afterwards. Rowing resumed in a limited form at PHRC in the late 1940s, but the rowing club did not return to any strength until season 1957/58. The McAdam clubhouse was enlarged and updated in 1965 but Albert Park Lake proved to be unsuitable for competitive rowing.
PHRC had developed a lucrative business running Sunday night dances in the McAdam clubhouse, and funds from these dances enabled PHRC to build a new clubhouse on the Yarra River at Toorak. The club moved to the Yarra River in 1970, where it still operates.
