saleyards. Alfred Deakin, who represented the member for Essendon and Flemington in the Victorian Legislative Assembly until 1900, moved a division in favour of the yards' closure in 1891. Economic downturn in the 1890s, however, meant that the closure was postponed and a by-law was instead passed by the Melbourne City Council making it illegal to drive livestock through streets in Flemington and Kensington between 8am and 10pm. The earliest land sales in the suburb included the Palace Hotel and a Wesleyan Church, both acquired in 1879. In 1886, the borough had a population of approximately 6,000, with approximately 20 new buildings opening each month. Low-lying land in the south of the suburb, near the present-day JJ Holland Park, was filled in around the same period, allowing for the construction of the Gillespie Mill adjacent to the railway line. A railway line to Essendon was opened by the Melbourne and Essendon Railway Company in 1860, including Kensington railway station. The railway closed in 1864, but was later reopened as far as Newmarket by the Victorian Railways in November 1867. The refurbished and extended railway line also served the Newmarket cattle sale yards, which by 1888 handled more than half a million animals every year. A railway station at South Kensington opened in March 1891. CONFUSION OF NAMES. Leopold near Geelong was known as Kensington until it was renamed in 1892. In 1876 people sending mail to this Kensington were advised to give "Kensington, near Flemington" as the address. 20th century In 1905, the Borough of Flemington and Kensington was amalgamated with the City of Melbourne. A major railway yard adjacent to Dynon Road towards the south of the suburb was opened in 1955 to relieve congestion at existing facilities near Flinders Street and Spencer Street station. Originally built during World War II as a means of increasing railway freight capacity, the yards were extended and upgraded to include the country's longest goods depot. Abattoir closure and present day In November 1984, an official announcement was made that the Newmarket Saleyards would be closed the following year. Although the closure had been discussed for almost a century, economic hardship and drought conditions, as well as the decentralisation of the livestock industry and urban development affected the viability of the yards. The yards operated until 1987, when an employment trust was formed to dismantle the yards, assisted by more than 100 long-term