Misplaced Pages

#946053

68-735: The Lerderderg Gorge is in Victoria , Australia and largely within the Lerderderg State Park . The Lerderderg River which emerges from the Great Dividing Range has cut a deep gorge as it winds toward the southern plains. It is suggested that the name Lerderderg is perhaps a corruption of the Wurundjeri word "Larderdark," from 'larh' -stone house and 'dark' -peppermint gum. 37°37'35"S x 144°25'44"E to 37°23'42"S x 144°19'06"E Gorge of Lerderderg River extending from Nolan Gully south to

136-728: A child, 307 convicts, 17 convicts' wives, and seven children). They had been sent from England in HMS ; Calcutta under the command of Captain Daniel Woodriff , principally out of fear that the French, who had been exploring the area, might establish their own settlement and thereby challenge British rights to the continent. In 1826, Colonel Stewart, Captain Samuel Wright, and Lieutenant Burchell were sent in HMS  Fly (Captain Wetherall) and

204-778: A cooler, mountain climate in the centre of the state. Winters along the coast of the state, particularly around Melbourne , are relatively mild ( see chart ). The coastal plain south of the Great Dividing Range has Victoria's mildest climate. Air from the Southern Ocean helps reduce the heat of summer and the cold of winter. Melbourne and other large cities are located in this temperate region. The Mallee and upper Wimmera are Victoria's warmest regions with hot winds blowing from nearby semi-deserts. Average temperatures exceed 32 °C (90 °F) during summer and 15 °C (59 °F) in winter. Except at cool mountain elevations,

272-404: A high degree of rock outcrop on ridge crests, slopes and stream channels. Lower Ordovician sandstones and mudstones intruded by numerous small quartz veins form the dominant geology. The river descends steeply through boulders along a convoluted course with several steep-sided gooseneck meanders . In a 1994 assessment of soil erosion in the shire of Bacchus Marsh, Spinoso and Rollings used

340-460: A land area of 227,444 km (87,817 sq mi); the second-most-populated state (after New South Wales ), with a population of over 6.9 million; and the most densely populated state in Australia (30.6 per km ). Victoria's economy is the second-largest among Australian states and is highly diversified, with service sectors predominating. Victoria is bordered by New South Wales to

408-569: A new multi-member proportional representation system. The State of Victoria was divided into eight electorates with each electorate represented by five representatives elected by Single Transferable Vote . The total number of upper house members was reduced from 44 to 40 and their term of office is now the same as the lower house members—four years. Elections for the Victorian Parliament are now fixed and occur in November every four years. Prior to

476-759: A number of museums, art galleries, and theatres; in 2016 a sports marketing company named it the world's sporting capital. Victoria has 38 seats in the Australian House of Representatives and 12 seats in the Australian Senate . At state level, the Parliament of Victoria consists of the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council . The Labor Party , led by Jacinta Allan as premier , has governed Victoria since 2014. The Governor of Victoria ,

544-641: A range of grevilleas, wattles and hakeas cover the gully steeps and sometimes impede passage along the river banks and bed. Eastern Grey Kangaroos , Swamp Wallabies , and Echidnas are also about during the day, and occasionally Koalas are seen in the Manna gums . Platypus may be present but are rarely sighted. The Greater Glider , Mountain Brushtail Possum , Bent wing Bat and Powerful Owl are active at night. Tiger , Red-bellied Black and Brown snakes may be encountered, but more common are skinks , and

612-583: A rate of 8,227 per 100,000 people, up 4.4% on the previous year. While there have been some dips along the way, the rate of recorded offences have increased year on year since 2011, when the figure was 6,937.7 offences per 100,000 people. Victoria has a parliamentary form of government based on the Westminster System . Legislative power resides in the Parliament consisting of the Governor (the representative of

680-525: A semi-nomadic existence of fishing, hunting and gathering, and farming eels. At the Keilor Archaeological Site , a human hearth excavated in 1971 was radiocarbon-dated to about 31,000 years BP , making Keilor one of the earliest sites of human habitation in Australia. A cranium found at the site has been dated at between 12,000 and 14,700 years BP . Archaeological sites in Tasmania and on

748-485: A walk, make sure it hasn't rained much recently, and if walking along the river walk downstream, as the bushes on the riverbed always slope that way. From the East via Bacchus Marsh-Gisborne Road and Lerderderg Gorge Road for Mackenzie's Flat picnic area, from the south-west via Myrniong and Mt Blackwood , from the northwest via Greendale-Trentham Road and O'Brien's Road for O'Brien's Crossing; often flooded, in drought years it

SECTION 10

#1733086322947

816-882: Is also home to four of Australia's 20 largest cities : Melbourne , Geelong , Ballarat and Bendigo . Victoria is home to numerous Aboriginal groups, including the Boonwurrung , the Bratauolung , the Djadjawurrung , the Gunai , the Gunditjmara , the Taungurung , the Wathaurong , the Wurundjeri , and the Yorta Yorta . There were more than 30 Aboriginal languages spoken in the area prior to European colonisation. In 1770 James Cook claimed

884-512: Is at 39°12' S, which passes through Boundary Islet in the Bass Strait for 85 metres. Victoria contains many topographically, geologically and climatically diverse areas, ranging from the wet, temperate climate of Gippsland in the southeast to the snow-covered Victorian alpine areas which rise to almost 2,000 m (6,600 ft), with Mount Bogong the highest peak at 1,986 m (6,516 ft). There are extensive semi-arid plains to

952-399: Is divided into distinct geographic regions , most commonly for the purposes of economic development , while others for land management (agriculture or conservation) and for censusing (statistical or meteorological) or electoral purposes. The most commonly used regions are those created by the state government for the purposes of economic development . In addition to Greater Melbourne ,

1020-802: Is heavier. Rainfall is most reliable in Gippsland and the Western District , making them both leading farming areas. Victoria's highest recorded daily rainfall was 377.8 mm (14.87 in) at Tidal River in Wilsons Promontory National Park on 23 March 2011. At March 2024 Victoria had a population of 6,959,200. The Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates that the population may well reach 10.3 million by 2051. Victoria's founding Anglo-Celtic population has been supplemented by successive waves of migrants from Southern and Eastern Europe , Asia and, most recently, Africa and

1088-425: Is located 10 km (6 mi) south of Bendigo . Due to its central location and the region's historical ties to the gold rush, the town is widely regarded as the "Heart of Gold". The state's capital, Melbourne, contains about 70% of the state's population and dominates its economy, media, and culture. For other cities and towns, see list of localities (Victoria) and local government areas of Victoria . Victoria

1156-420: Is no deep sinking required, nor machinery for lifting water, as there is ample fall for drainage in every part; that, in fact, the only outlay necessary is for sluicing-boxes and mining tools. Thus equipped, a party with small capital, and a fair share of skill, patience, and perseverance, may realize a competency in a few years." In 1855 the 'Geelong Rush' began when 300 diggers arrived, soon joined by 2000 to work

1224-454: Is particularly strong in Bendigo and its environs. In 1854 at Ballarat, an armed rebellion against the government of Victoria was made by miners protesting against mining taxes (the " Eureka Stockade "). This was crushed by British troops, but the confrontation persuaded the colonial authorities to reform the administration of mining concessions (reducing the hated mining licence fees) and extend

1292-597: Is safe to use. Within the Lerderderg State Park and managed by Parks Victoria . The Lerderderg Gorge is cut by the Lerderderg River into the blocks of the Rowsley, Greendale and Coimadai Faults. Side slopes are commonly of 350 to 400 metres (1,138 to 1,300 feet) with some vertical rocky cliffs up to 60 m (195 feet) high. The topography of the area is dominated by long narrow ridges and steep secondary spurs, with

1360-469: Is still possible to walk all day and not see anybody. The most popular areas to start a walk are from Mackenzies Flat Picnic Area and O'Briens Crossing. The best walk from Mackenzies Flat is one which goes up one side of the gorge and back along the other. It goes right up to the Lerderderg Weir. From O'Briens Crossing you can either walk up or down the river. Walking up takes you to The Tunnel. If planning

1428-463: The Australian Bureau of Statistics as being a population cluster of 1,000 or more people. The below figures broadly represent the populations of the contiguous built-up areas of each city: Victoria has a varied climate that ranges from semi-arid temperate with hot summers in the north-west, to temperate and cool along the coast. Victoria's main land feature, the Great Dividing Range, produces

SECTION 20

#1733086322947

1496-577: The Bass Strait Islands have been dated to between 20,000 to 35,000 years ago when sea levels were 130 metres below present level allowing First Nations Peoples to move across the region of southern Victoria and onto the land bridge of the Bassian plain to Tasmania by at least 35,000 years ago. During the Ice Age about 20,000 years BP , the area now the bay of Port Phillip would have been dry land, and

1564-583: The Middle East . Victoria's population is ageing in proportion with the average of the remainder of the Australian population. About 72% of Victorians are Australian-born. This figure falls to around 66% in Melbourne but rises to higher than 95% in some rural areas in the north west of the state. Less than 1% of Victorians identify themselves as Aboriginal . More than 75% of Victorians live in Melbourne, located in

1632-468: The Sulphur-crested Cockatoo which nests in the gorge and feeds in surrounding grasslands. Wedge-tailed Eagles inhabit tall trees in the steep gulleys. The Lerderderg Gorge is one of the major river valleys of Victoria Victoria, Australia Victoria , commonly abbreviated as Vic , is a state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state (after Tasmania ), with

1700-592: The Victoria State Government has divided Victoria into five regions covering all parts of the state. The five regional Victoria divisions are: The Australian Bureau of Meteorology defines regions for its own purposes, some of which share names with the economic regions, even though the exact boundaries may not correlate. As of November 2014, they are: This is a list of places in the Australian state of Victoria by population. Urban centres are defined by

1768-573: The Victorian Alps in the northeast and the semi-arid northwest. The majority of the Victorian population is concentrated in the central-south area surrounding Port Phillip , and in particular within the metropolitan area of Greater Melbourne , Victoria's state capital and largest city and also Australia's second-largest city , where over three-quarters of the culturally diverse population live (35.1% of inhabitants being immigrants ). The state

1836-554: The Wada wurrung , Woiwurrung and Bun wurrung languages describe the flooding of the bay. Hobsons Bay was once a kangaroo hunting ground. Creation stories describe how Bunjil was responsible for the formation of the bay, or the bay was flooded when the Yarra River was created. Victoria, like Queensland , was named after Queen Victoria , who had been on the British throne for 14 years when

1904-566: The Yarra and Werribee rivers would have joined to flow through the heads then south and south west through the Bassian plain before meeting the ocean to the west. Tasmania and the Bass Strait islands became separated from mainland Australia around 12,000 BP, when the sea level was approximately 50m below present levels. Port Phillip was flooded by post-glacial rising sea levels between 8,000 and 6,000 years ago. Oral history and creation stories from

1972-657: The electoral franchise . The following year, the Imperial Parliament granted Victoria responsible government with the passage of the Colony of Victoria Act 1855. Some of the leaders of the Eureka rebellion went on to become members of the Victorian Parliament. In 1857, reflecting the growing presence of Irish Catholic immigrants, John O'Shanassy became the colony's second Premier with the former Young Irelander , Charles Gavan Duffy as his deputy. Melbourne's Protestant establishment

2040-500: The pink heath (state flower), Leadbeater's possum (state animal) and the helmeted honeyeater (state bird). Ecological communities include Victorian Volcanic Plain grasslands , Northern Plains Grassland and Gippsland Plains Grassy Woodland , all of which are critically endangered. According to Geoscience Australia , the geographic centre of Victoria is located in Mandurang at 36° 51' 15"S, 144° 16' 52" E. The small rural locality

2108-541: The population growth peak of 1969–72. In 2017, Victoria recorded a TFR of 1.724. The "average Victorian" according to the demographic statistics may be described as follows: In the year ending September 2020, the statistics were skewed by the introduction of six new public safety offences relating to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia . Total offences numbered 551,710, with 32,713 of these being breaches of Chief Health Officer Directions. The total offences occurred at

Lerderderg Gorge - Misplaced Pages Continue

2176-497: The 1850s and 1860s significantly increased Victoria's population and wealth. By the time of Australian Federation in 1901, Melbourne had become the largest city in Australasia , and was the seat of Federal government until Canberra became the national capital in 1927. The state continued to grow strongly through various periods of the 20th and 21st centuries due to high levels of international and interstate migration. Melbourne hosts

2244-541: The 2006 election, the Legislative Council consisted of 44 members elected to eight-year terms from 22 two-member electorates. Lerderderg River diversion tunnel The Lerderderg River diversion tunnel , known as The Tunnel , is located on the Lerderderg River approximately 25 km north-west of Bacchus Marsh , Victoria , Australia . The river flows around a spur in a horseshoe bend. The tunnel

2312-410: The 2016 census, 72.2% of Victorians speak English at home. Speakers of other languages include Mandarin (3.2%), Italian (1.9%), Greek (1.9%), Vietnamese (1.7%), and Arabic (1.3%). In the 2016 Census, 47.9% of Victorians described themselves as Christian , 10.6% stated that they followed other religions and 32.1% stated that they had no religion or held secular or other spiritual beliefs. In

2380-440: The 2016 census, the most commonly nominated ancestries were: 0.8% of the population, or 47,788 people, identified as Indigenous Australians ( Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders ) in 2016. At the 2016 census, 64.9% of residents were born in Australia. The other most common countries of birth were England (2.9%), India (2.9%), Mainland China (2.7%), New Zealand (1.6%) and Vietnam (1.4%). As of

2448-637: The King), the executive (the Government), and two legislative chambers. The Parliament of Victoria consists of the lower house Legislative Assembly , the upper house Legislative Council and the monarch . Eighty-eight members of the Legislative Assembly are elected to four-year terms from single-member electorates. In November 2006, the Victorian Legislative Council elections were held under

2516-552: The Lerderderg ford. Lerderderg State Park and the surrounding Wombat State Forest are north of Bacchus Marsh , around one hour's drive (90 km) (56 miles) from Melbourne on the Western Highway. Its myriad tracks, gullies creeks and ridges form a wild, rugged environment enjoyed by bushwalkers, horse riders and mountain bikers. The striking feature of this area is the 300-metre (975 feet) deep gorge that stretches south to

2584-626: The Universal Soil Loss Equation to confirm identification in 1973 and 1985 by the Land Conservation Council of Victoria of "an appreciable erosion hazard on steep slopes increas[ing] in intensity in the low rainfall areas in the south east. Particularly high hazards exist in the Lerderderg Gorge...associated with steep slopes and erodible soils." Gold is reputed to have been found in the Lerderderg River early in 1851 and

2652-431: The alluvial deposits of the Lerderderg River known as Adelaide Flat, Nuggetty Gully, Ballan Flat, Frenchman's Gully, Long Gully and Yankee Gully. By September around 13,000 diggers and associated trades were on the goldfield. Gold mining continued, conducted by individuals and small companies who panned the creek, dug shafts and diverted the waters to wash gold took place in the Lerderderg Gorge. Their most notable engineering

2720-414: The brigs Dragon and Amity , took a number of convicts and a small force composed of detachments of the 3rd and 93rd regiments. The expedition landed at Settlement Point (now Corinella ), on the eastern side of Western Port Bay, which was the headquarters until the abandonment of Western Port at the insistence of Governor Darling about 12 months afterwards. Victoria's next settlement was at Portland , on

2788-479: The centre of Victoria. Average temperatures are less than 9 °C (48 °F) in winter and below 0 °C (32 °F) in the highest parts of the ranges. The state's lowest minimum temperature of −11.7 °C (10.9 °F) was recorded at Omeo on 15 June 1965, and again at Falls Creek on 3 July 1970. Temperature extremes for the state are listed in the table below: Rainfall in Victoria increases from south to

Lerderderg Gorge - Misplaced Pages Continue

2856-677: The colony was established in 1851. After the founding of the colony of New South Wales in 1788, Australia was divided into an eastern half named New South Wales and a western half named New Holland , under the administration of the colonial government in Sydney. The first British settlement in the area later known as Victoria was established in October 1803 under Lieutenant-Governor David Collins at Sullivan Bay on Port Phillip. It consisted of 402 people (five government officials, nine officers of marines, two drummers, and 39 privates, five soldiers' wives and

2924-584: The country's first federal capital. Victoria's northern border follows a straight line from Cape Howe to the start of the Murray River and then follows the Murray River as the remainder of the northern border. On the Murray River, the border is the southern bank of the river. This precise definition was not established until 1980, when a ruling by Justice Ninian Stephen of the High Court of Australia settled

2992-650: The district, 158 species in total, including birds now declining, threatened or rare; the Gang-gang Cockatoo , Regent Honeyeater , and Letter-winged kite ; and other birds found in the Gorge including the White-naped Honeyeater , White-throated Treecreeper , Crimson Rosella , Square-tailed kite , Rainbow lorikeet , Spangled drongo , Cicadabird , Hooded Robin . Black-faced Monarch , White-browed and Grey-crowned Babbler and Dollarbird . Frequently seen are

3060-482: The dry eucalypt forests of stringybark and box near the mouth of the gorge, and box-ironbark along ridges, progressing to taller, damper Messmate ( Eucalyptus obliqua ) and Peppermint Gum ( Eucalyptus radiata and Eucalyptus dives ) forests at the north. By the riverbank are Eucalyptus ignorabilis and Manna Gums , while in the understorey Gahnia microstachya , Lepidosperma tortuosum and Persoonia juniperina are uncommon elsewhere in western Victoria, and

3128-570: The east coast of the Australian continent for the Kingdom of Great Britain . The first European settlement in the area occurred in 1803 at Sullivan Bay . Much of Victoria was included in 1836 in the Port Phillip District of New South Wales. Named in honour of Queen Victoria , Victoria was separated from New South Wales and established as a separate Crown colony in 1851, achieving responsible government in 1855. The Victorian gold rush in

3196-524: The fast-moving Jacky Dragons ( Amphibolurus muricatus) and Mountain Dragons ( Rankinia diemensis). Fish species include the tiny Mountain Galaxias , River Blackfish , whose scarcity was noted as early as 1906, and Estuary perch that all survive regular droughts and low summer flows in waterholes. Introduced European perch and Common carp are well established. The Gorge and the nearby Brisbane Ranges are

3264-487: The inland monthly temperatures are 2–7 °C (4–13 °F) warmer than around Melbourne (see chart). Victoria's highest maximum temperature of 48.8 °C (119.8 °F) was recorded in Hopetoun on 7 February 2009, during the 2009 southeastern Australia heat wave . The Victorian Alps in the northeast are the coldest part of Victoria. The Alps are part of the Great Dividing Range mountain system extending east–west through

3332-607: The most westerly range of the Rocky River Frog . Birdwatching is a rewarding activity; between 1893 and 1899 the Brittlebank brothers observed birds west of Melbourne, recording many from the Lerderderg Gorge, their greatest contribution to local ornithological knowledge being a paper on the birds of Myniong published in The Victorian Naturalist which listed every bird species which Charles and Thomas had recorded in

3400-647: The north and South Australia to the west and is bounded by the Bass Strait to the south (with the exception of a small land border with Tasmania located along Boundary Islet ), the Great Australian Bight portion of the Southern Ocean to the southwest, and the Tasman Sea (a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean ) to the southeast. The state encompasses a range of climates and geographical features from its temperate coastal and central regions to

3468-564: The northeast, with higher averages in areas of high altitude. Mean annual rainfall exceeds 1,800 millimetres (71 inches) in some parts of the northeast but is less than 280 mm (11 in) in the Mallee. Rain is heaviest in the Otway Ranges and Gippsland in southern Victoria and in the mountainous northeast. Snow generally falls only in the mountains and hills in the centre of the state. Rain falls most frequently in winter, but summer precipitation

SECTION 50

#1733086322947

3536-400: The plains of Bacchus Marsh. Parts of the Wombat State Forest are still actively logged, and some areas are designated for domestic firewood collection with a permit. Many roads in the Lerderderg State Park are closed between June and the beginning of November as the park is within a water catchment area. The park has been popular for bushwalking since the 1880s. It covers such an area that it

3604-490: The question as to which state had jurisdiction in the unlawful death of a man on an island in the middle of the river. The ruling clarified that no part of the watercourse is in Victoria. The border also rests at the southern end of the Great Dividing Range , which stretches along the east coast and terminates west of Ballarat. It is bordered by South Australia to the west and shares Australia's shortest land border with Tasmania . The official border between Victoria and Tasmania

3672-481: The representative of the monarch in the state, is currently Margaret Gardner . Victoria is divided into 79 local government areas , as well as several unincorporated areas which the state administers directly. The state of Victoria was home to many Aboriginal Australian nations that had occupied the land for tens of thousands of years before European settlement . According to Gary Presland , Aboriginal people have lived in Victoria for about 40,000 years, living

3740-487: The south west coast of what is now Victoria. Edward Henty settled Portland Bay in 1834. Melbourne was founded in 1835 by John Batman , who set up a base in Indented Head , and John Pascoe Fawkner . From settlement, the region around Melbourne was known as the Port Phillip District, a separately administered part of New South Wales. Shortly after, the site now known as Geelong was surveyed by Assistant Surveyor W. H. Smythe, three weeks after Melbourne. And in 1838, Geelong

3808-603: The state's south. The greater Melbourne metropolitan area is home to an estimated 5,207,145 people. Urban centres outside Melbourne include Geelong , Ballarat , Bendigo , Shepparton , Mildura , Warrnambool , Wodonga and the Latrobe Valley . Victoria is Australia's most urbanised state: nearly 90% of residents living in cities and towns. State Government efforts to decentralise population have included an official campaign run since 2003 to encourage Victorians to settle in regional areas, however Melbourne continues to rapidly outpace these areas in terms of population growth. At

3876-523: The survey, 31.7% of Victorians stated they had no religion, Roman Catholics were 23.2%, 9.4% did not answer the question, 9% were Anglican and 3.5% were Eastern Orthodox . In 2017 the proportion of couples marrying in a civil ceremony in Victoria was 77.3%; the other 22.7% were married in a religious ceremony. The government predicts that nearly a quarter of Victorians will be aged over 60 by 2021. The 2016 census revealed that Australian median age has crept upward from 35 to 37 since 2001, which reflects

3944-455: The treaty is unknown, although it is believed to have been by the Merri Creek . According to historian Meyer Eidelson, it is generally believed to have occurred on the Merri near modern-day Rushall Station. On 1 July 1851, writs were issued for the election of the first Victorian Legislative Council, and the absolute independence of Victoria from New South Wales was established proclaiming a new Colony of Victoria. Days later, still in 1851 gold

4012-469: The west and northwest. There is an extensive series of river systems in Victoria. Most notable is the Murray River system. Other rivers include: Ovens River , Goulburn River , Patterson River , King River , Campaspe River , Loddon River , Wimmera River , Elgin River, Barwon River , Thomson River , Snowy River , Latrobe River , Yarra River , Maribyrnong River , Mitta River , Hopkins River , Merri River and Kiewa River . The state symbols include

4080-428: The world" and the largest gold nugget . In the decade 1851–1860 Victoria produced 20 million ounces of gold, one-third of the world's output. In 1855 the Geological Survey collected and determined the major ion chemistry for groundwater in Victoria. Immigrants arrived from all over the world to search for gold, especially from Ireland and China. By 1857, 26,000 Chinese miners worked in Victoria, and their legacy

4148-437: Was briefly Premier. In 1893 widespread bank failures brought to an end a sustained period of prosperity and of increasingly wild speculation in land and construction. Melbourne nonetheless retained, as the legacy of the gold rush, its status as Australia's primary financial centre and largest city. In 1901, Victoria became a state in the Commonwealth of Australia . While Canberra was being built, Melbourne served until 1927 as

SECTION 60

#1733086322947

4216-419: Was declared void as Batman did not have permission from the Crown to establish Melbourne. Today, the meaning and interpretation of this treaty is contested. Some argue it was a pretence for taking Aboriginal land in exchange for trinkets, while others argue it was significant in that it sought to recognise Aboriginal land rights . The exact location of the meeting between Batman and the Kulin men with whom he made

4284-434: Was discovered near Ballarat , and subsequently at Bendigo . Later discoveries occurred at many sites across Victoria. This triggered one of the largest gold rushes the world has ever seen. The colony grew rapidly in both population and economic power. In 10 years, the population of Victoria increased sevenfold from 76,000 to 540,000. All sorts of gold records were produced, including the "richest shallow alluvial goldfield in

4352-569: Was driven through the spur diverting the river and allowing the exposed river bed to be sluiced for alluvial gold. The tunnel was dug during the Victorian gold rush , most likely between 1855 and 1870, and is one of around thirteen river diversions surviving from that era. The site is within the Lerderderg State Park . It is a 3.0 km walk along Byers Track upstream from the O'Briens Crossing Picnic Area. 37°29′24″S 144°20′52″E  /  37.49000°S 144.34778°E  / -37.49000; 144.34778 This article about

4420-464: Was ill-prepared "to countenance so startling a novelty". In 1858–59, Melbourne Punch cartoons linked Duffy and O'Shanassy to the terrors of the French Revolution . In 1862 Duffy's Land Act attempted, but failed, through a system of extended pastoral licences, to break the land-holding monopoly of the so-called "squatter" class . In 1871, having led, on behalf of small farmers, opposition to Premier Sir James McCulloch 's land tax , Duffy, himself,

4488-432: Was mined in November and December that year near Blackwood. In his 1869 report Smythe noted the Blackwood goldfields "on the upper tributaries of the River Lerderderg which have cut deeply into the schists, exposing in some places high cliffs," and quoted from contemporary Mining Surveyors' Reports that; "The formation of the Blackwood goldfield is peculiarly favorable for allnvial miners with limited capital, inasmuch as there

4556-529: Was officially declared a town, despite earlier European settlements dating back to 1826. On 6 June 1835, just under two years before Melbourne was officially recognised as a settlement, John Batman, the leader of the Port Phillip Association presented Wurundjeri Elders with a land use agreement. This document, now referred to as the Batman treaty , was later given to the British government to claim that local Aboriginal people had given Batman access to their land in exchange for goods and rations. The treaty itself

4624-428: Was the diversion of the Lerderderg River at Tunnel Bend, cut 25 m through solid rock, in order to extract alluvial gold in the large meander of the original river bed. Chinese miners reworked ground others had left and cleaned the river to bedrock. Remains of water races, stone walls and mining spoils can also still be seen. The vegetation of the Gorge follows the pattern of increasing rainfall from south to north, with

#946053