Boolarra, Victoria
Encyclopedia
Boolarra is a small township located in the Latrobe Valley
, in central Gippsland
, Victoria
, Australia
. At the 2006 census
, Boolarra had a population of 528 (The postcode area had a population of 1119 which includes the nearby town of Yinnar). The Boolarra Folk Festival is held in the town every year in March and attracts music lovers from around Australia and the world. The town is also infamous for producing the Boolarra strain of carp (Cyprinus carpio) which, after their release into the Murray River near Mildura, spread throughout Australia.
The name Boolarra is believed to be derived from an expression in one of the local Aboriginal
languages meaning 'plentiful' or 'twenty'. The Post Office opened on 1 September 1884 prior to the railway arriving in 1885.
The town is at one end of the Grand Ridge Rail Trail
, which travels for 13 kilometres through temperate rainforest and dry sclerophyll forest in the Strzelecki Ranges
. The original railway branch line from Morwell
to Boolarra, was opened on 10 April 1885, with the last train being run on 22 June 1974. The railway was constructed through difficult hilly terrain requiring construction of massive embankments and numerous bridges.
The town has an Australian Rules football team competing in the Mid Gippsland Football League
.
The hill country south and east of the Morwell River opened up and a series of small communities, Budgeree, Gunyah, Ruyton Junction, English's Corner among them, began to flourish as goods and services flowed to and from Boolarra, which acted as the commercial and agricultural centre of the district.
Initially, the early settlers depended on timber and mixed farming for their livelihood. Blackwood for furniture and palings, cut from the surrounding forests, was freighted to Melbourne.
Butter, salted and packed on the farm, was also sent to the city. In 1905, the Danish firm Heyman set up a butter factory in Boolarra, and dairying became the main industry of the district. This was the time when Boolarra's population rivalled that of Morwell.
At its peak, Boolarra supported three general stores, three hotels and four churches along with two butchers, two bakers and three confectionery shops, which satisfied the needs of the community. Horses were harnessed and shod by two blacksmiths and the Butter Factory provided the bulk of employment for the town's youth. At one stage, a black coal and bauxite mine triggered an investment flow into the town.
Sadly, in 1937 a large fire raged through Tarwin Street, destroying many of the original shop fronts.
After WW II residents banded together to erect a Memorial Park, with the names of the town's fallen soldiers inscribed on its gates.
Boolarra, no longer a centre, has settled down to become an attractive town with a friendly rural atmosphere.
Today a large fish farm exports goldfish to the national market. Farming is still important, as is Timber, which is harvested from plantation forests in the hills. There has been an influx of new residents, retirees and young families from the city. The old railway line, closed in 1974, has become an attractive Rail ‑Trail bush walk from Boolarra to Mirboo North. The Old Boolarra Pub has been restored.
There are two general stores in Boolarra today, numerous sporting clubs use the recreational facilities of the Memorial Park, a modern school and kindergarten provide excellent educational facilities, and an historical society has converted the Old Boolarra School into a museum to preserve the local heritage.
In 2011, The Boolarra Australian Rules Football team, known as the Demons, won their first Mid-Gippsland premiership since 1997, defeating the Trafalgar Bloods.
Latrobe Valley
The Latrobe Valley is an inland geographical region and urban area of Gippsland in the state of Victoria, Australia. It is east of the City Of Melbourne and nestled between the Strzelecki Ranges to the south and the Great Dividing Range to the north – with the highest peak to the north of the...
, in central Gippsland
Gippsland
Gippsland is a large rural region in Victoria, Australia. It begins immediately east of the suburbs of Melbourne and stretches to the New South Wales border, lying between the Great Dividing Range to the north and Bass Strait to the south...
, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. At the 2006 census
Census in Australia
The Australian census is administered once every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent census was conducted on 9 August 2011; the next will be conducted in 2016. Prior to the introduction of regular censuses in 1961, they had also been run in 1901, 1911, 1921, 1933,...
, Boolarra had a population of 528 (The postcode area had a population of 1119 which includes the nearby town of Yinnar). The Boolarra Folk Festival is held in the town every year in March and attracts music lovers from around Australia and the world. The town is also infamous for producing the Boolarra strain of carp (Cyprinus carpio) which, after their release into the Murray River near Mildura, spread throughout Australia.
The name Boolarra is believed to be derived from an expression in one of the local Aboriginal
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
languages meaning 'plentiful' or 'twenty'. The Post Office opened on 1 September 1884 prior to the railway arriving in 1885.
The town is at one end of the Grand Ridge Rail Trail
Grand Ridge Rail Trail
The Grand Ridge Rail Trail or Mirboo North to Boolarra Rail Trail is a 13 kilometre rail trail in the Strzelecki Ranges of west central Gippsland, connecting the towns of Mirboo North and Boolarra...
, which travels for 13 kilometres through temperate rainforest and dry sclerophyll forest in the Strzelecki Ranges
Strzelecki Ranges
Strzelecki Ranges, also known as Strzelecki Hills is a low mountain range in the Gippsland region of south-eastern Australia between the Latrobe Valley to the north and Bass Strait to the south...
. The original railway branch line from Morwell
Morwell, Victoria
-Transport:The main form of transport in Morwell is the automobile. The Princes Freeway now bypasses the town to the south while the old Princes Highway which once passed through east-west through its centre is now Princes Drive and Commercial Road. The highway connects Morwell with other...
to Boolarra, was opened on 10 April 1885, with the last train being run on 22 June 1974. The railway was constructed through difficult hilly terrain requiring construction of massive embankments and numerous bridges.
The town has an Australian Rules football team competing in the Mid Gippsland Football League
Mid Gippsland Football League
The Mid Gippsland Football League is an Australian rules football league in the Latrobe Valley region of Victoria, Australia.-History:The league was founded in 1935.The original clubs were:*Boolarra*Morwell Seconds*Brown Coal Mine*Morwell Bridge...
.
History
The first settler, W.H. Penaluna, arrived around 1878 taking up land along the Morwell River and erecting the Settlers' Arms Hotel. Land was quickly taken up, when a railway line was built in 1884‑5, connecting Mirboo North, Boolarra and Yinnar to Morwell, on the main Melbourne‑Sale line.The hill country south and east of the Morwell River opened up and a series of small communities, Budgeree, Gunyah, Ruyton Junction, English's Corner among them, began to flourish as goods and services flowed to and from Boolarra, which acted as the commercial and agricultural centre of the district.
Initially, the early settlers depended on timber and mixed farming for their livelihood. Blackwood for furniture and palings, cut from the surrounding forests, was freighted to Melbourne.
Butter, salted and packed on the farm, was also sent to the city. In 1905, the Danish firm Heyman set up a butter factory in Boolarra, and dairying became the main industry of the district. This was the time when Boolarra's population rivalled that of Morwell.
At its peak, Boolarra supported three general stores, three hotels and four churches along with two butchers, two bakers and three confectionery shops, which satisfied the needs of the community. Horses were harnessed and shod by two blacksmiths and the Butter Factory provided the bulk of employment for the town's youth. At one stage, a black coal and bauxite mine triggered an investment flow into the town.
Sadly, in 1937 a large fire raged through Tarwin Street, destroying many of the original shop fronts.
After WW II residents banded together to erect a Memorial Park, with the names of the town's fallen soldiers inscribed on its gates.
Today
Modernisation of farming and improved transport links have brought changes to many small rural towns, with car travel to the larger commercial centres in the Latrobe Valley increasing.Boolarra, no longer a centre, has settled down to become an attractive town with a friendly rural atmosphere.
Today a large fish farm exports goldfish to the national market. Farming is still important, as is Timber, which is harvested from plantation forests in the hills. There has been an influx of new residents, retirees and young families from the city. The old railway line, closed in 1974, has become an attractive Rail ‑Trail bush walk from Boolarra to Mirboo North. The Old Boolarra Pub has been restored.
There are two general stores in Boolarra today, numerous sporting clubs use the recreational facilities of the Memorial Park, a modern school and kindergarten provide excellent educational facilities, and an historical society has converted the Old Boolarra School into a museum to preserve the local heritage.
In 2011, The Boolarra Australian Rules Football team, known as the Demons, won their first Mid-Gippsland premiership since 1997, defeating the Trafalgar Bloods.