Swan Hill, Victoria
Encyclopedia
Swan Hill is a city in the northwest of Victoria, Australia. It is located on the Murray Valley Highway
, on the south bank of the Murray River
, downstream from the junction of the Loddon River. At the 2006 census
, Swan Hill had a population of 9,684.
Based on evidence from Coobool Creek and Kow Swamp
, it appears that Aboriginal people have lived in the area for the last 13,000 - 9,000
years. The area is inhabited by the Wemba-Wemba
and Wati-Wati people. Swan Hill was called "Matakupaat" or "place of the Platypus
" by the Wemba Wemba people.
The area was given its current name by explorer Thomas Mitchell, while camping beside a hill there on 21 June 1836.
The European community grew up around a punt
river crossing, which was established as early as 1846. This crossing serviced the growing agricultural area, and was the only river crossing for 100 km. The Post Office opened here on 1 February 1849.
In 1853 Francis Cadell
navigated the Murray river from its mouth in South Australia to Swan Hill in his paddle steamer
, Lady Augusta. He arrived on 17 September 1853, narrowly beat William Randell of Mannum, who arrived 4 hours later in the in PS Mary Ann. This demonstrated the feasibility of river traffic, which flourished until the introduction of the railway.
In 1876 Swan Hill was described in the following terms:
In 1883, the first of several red brick water towers were built to supply the growing town with water. Water was pumped out of the river and into the top of the tower by a wood-fired steam engine, and the then flowed by gravitation to surrounding businesses and private residences. Many of these towers can still be seen around town.
The railway from Bendigo was extended from Kerang to Swan Hill in May 1890, being extended to Piangil in 1915.
The punt river crossing
was replaced by a timber truss, steel lift span bridge in 1896.
In 1914, Isaburo (Jo) Takasuka produced the first commercial rice
crop in Australia. He grew Japanese (Japonica) varieties on 200 acres (80.9 ha) of flood prone land on the Murray River near Swan Hill.
Swan Hill became a city
in 1965.
to the Gulf of Carpentaria
. They made Camp XV, (their fifteenth camp out of Melbourne), in the police paddock on the banks of the Murray River in an area that is now Riverside Park. The expedition stayed in Swan Hill until Monday, 10 September while they reorganised the stores. Burke dismissed four men; Essau Khan, Brooks, Lane and John Polongeaux. He then hired Alexander McPherson, a saddler from Epsom and Charlie Gray, a former sailor from Scotland who had worked as an ostler for Cobb and Co between Bendigo and Swan Hill and who was now employed at the Lower Murray Inn in Swan Hill. The party was strengthened further by the arrival from Melbourne of journalist, William Hodgkinson, and scientist Georg Neumeyer. The local inhabitants gave the expedition a rousing farewell as they crossed into New South Wales. Folklore alleges Burke and Wills planted a Moreton Bay Fig
tree in the garden of the local doctor, Dr B W Gummow. The tree is now approximately 27 metres high and has a branch spread of approximately 44 metres and can be seen in Curlewis Street.
, St Mary's Primary School, Swan Hill Primary School, Swan Hill North Primary School, Sun Centre Christian School, Victorian P-12 College of Koorie Education - Payika Campus and Swan Hill Specialist School.
Tertiary education is delivered by Sunraysia Institute of TAFE
. Its main campus is at Tower Hill, and it runs a farm north of the city. As well as its own courses, it offers a Deakin University program.
. It is also the home to two football clubs, the Swan Hill "Swans" and the Tyntynder "Bulldogs".
Swan Hill also has the Swan Hill Junior Soccer League that consists of over 500 children. They also field 3 teams in the BASL where their Senior Men's Division 2 Team won the Knock-Out Cup in 2006. The Youth Team has come runner up in the Knock-Out Cup competition in both 2006 and 2008. The Senior Women's team came runner up in 2008.
Swan Hill has a horse racing club, the Swan Hill Jockey Club, which schedules around ten race meetings a year including the Swan Hill Cup meeting in June. The Swan Hill St Patricks Race Club also holds a meeting at the racecourse in October.
Golfers play at the course of the Swan Hill City Golf and Bowls Club on Gray Street, or at the course of the Murray Downs Golf Club on Moulamein Road.
, which links it to Bendigo. V/Line
operates passenger rail services on the Swan Hill line, with the local railway station being the terminus. The Swan Hill Airport
is also nearby. It also has its own buses.
(3MIL); 107.7 Mixx FM (3SHI) and AM station 1332 3SH
. Swan Hill's television stations are identical to Bendigo's: ABC
, Prime
, WIN
, Southern Cross Ten and SBS
.
out the front. The historic Pioneer Settlement is an open air museum
and major tourist attraction, as are rides on the PS Pyap.
s are predominantly irrigated from the river.
climate with hot summers and cold winters.
was born in Swan Hill. He described Swan Hill during the Great Depression
of the 1930s in his series of "St Helens" books. Some of the best known are:
Murray Valley Highway
The Murray Valley Highway is a popular tourist route, which follows the south side of the Murray River in Victoria, Australia. The route effectively acts as the northern-most highway in Victoria...
, on the south bank of the Murray River
Murray River
The Murray River is Australia's longest river. At in length, the Murray rises in the Australian Alps, draining the western side of Australia's highest mountains and, for most of its length, meanders across Australia's inland plains, forming the border between New South Wales and Victoria as it...
, downstream from the junction of the Loddon River. 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,...
, Swan Hill had a population of 9,684.
History
In the Dreamtime, Totyerguil (from the area now known as Swan Hill) ran out of spears while chasing Otchtout the cod. This chase is part of the mythology of the creation of the Murray River.Based on evidence from Coobool Creek and Kow Swamp
Kow Swamp Archaeological Site
The Kow Swamp archaeological site comprises a series of late Pleistocene burials within the lunette of the eastern rim of a former lake known as Kow Swamp. The site is located 10 km south-east of Cohuna in the central Murray Valley, in northern Victoria, at...
, it appears that Aboriginal people have lived in the area for the last 13,000 - 9,000
Upper Paleolithic
The Upper Paleolithic is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. Very broadly it dates to between 40,000 and 10,000 years ago, roughly coinciding with the appearance of behavioral modernity and before the advent of...
years. The area is inhabited by the Wemba-Wemba
Wemba-Wemba
The Wemba-Wemba are an Indigenous Australian group in north-Western Victoria and south-western New South Wales, Australia, including in the Mallee and the Riverina regions. They are also known as the Wamba-wamba....
and Wati-Wati people. Swan Hill was called "Matakupaat" or "place of the Platypus
Platypus
The platypus is a semi-aquatic mammal endemic to eastern Australia, including Tasmania. Together with the four species of echidna, it is one of the five extant species of monotremes, the only mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young...
" by the Wemba Wemba people.
The area was given its current name by explorer Thomas Mitchell, while camping beside a hill there on 21 June 1836.
- "Among the reeds on the point of ground between the two rivers was a shallow lagoon where swans and other wild fowl so abounded that, although half a mile from our camp, their noise disturbed us through the night. I therefore named this somewhat remarkable and isolated feature Swan Hill, a point which may probably be found to mark the junction of two fine streams."
The European community grew up around a punt
Punt (boat)
A punt is a flat-bottomed boat with a square-cut bow, designed for use in small rivers or other shallow water. Punting refers to boating in a punt. The punter generally propels the punt by pushing against the river bed with a pole...
river crossing, which was established as early as 1846. This crossing serviced the growing agricultural area, and was the only river crossing for 100 km. The Post Office opened here on 1 February 1849.
In 1853 Francis Cadell
Francis Cadell (explorer)
Francis Cadell was a European explorer of Australia, most remembered for opening the Murray River up for transport by steamship.- Early life :...
navigated the Murray river from its mouth in South Australia to Swan Hill in his paddle steamer
Paddle steamer
A paddle steamer is a steamship or riverboat, powered by a steam engine, using paddle wheels to propel it through the water. In antiquity, Paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses were wheelers driven by animals or humans...
, Lady Augusta. He arrived on 17 September 1853, narrowly beat William Randell of Mannum, who arrived 4 hours later in the in PS Mary Ann. This demonstrated the feasibility of river traffic, which flourished until the introduction of the railway.
In 1876 Swan Hill was described in the following terms:
- “Swan-hill is a small, and, notwithstanding its 20 or 25 years of existence, not very flourishing, township… The population does not exceed 100 persons, but the township can boast of a substantial post and telegraph office, which is the principal building in the place. There is a church built of brick, belonging to the Church of England, and a small wooden chapel owned by some other denomination. The hospital, for Swan-hill can also boast of a hospital, is prettily situated at the junction of the Little Murray with the main stream. The district around the town is principally pastoral. About 10 or 12 miles distant there is a salt lake, from which a coarse salt is obtained and exported to Riverina and the Upper Murray. There is a mail three times a week, and the township is already connected with the metropolis by telegraph.”
In 1883, the first of several red brick water towers were built to supply the growing town with water. Water was pumped out of the river and into the top of the tower by a wood-fired steam engine, and the then flowed by gravitation to surrounding businesses and private residences. Many of these towers can still be seen around town.
The railway from Bendigo was extended from Kerang to Swan Hill in May 1890, being extended to Piangil in 1915.
The punt river crossing
Murray River crossings
The Murray River in south-eastern Australia has been a significant barrier to land-based travel and trade. This article lists and briefly describes all of the recognised crossing points. Many of these had also developed as river ports for transport of goods along the Murray...
was replaced by a timber truss, steel lift span bridge in 1896.
In 1914, Isaburo (Jo) Takasuka produced the first commercial rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
crop in Australia. He grew Japanese (Japonica) varieties on 200 acres (80.9 ha) of flood prone land on the Murray River near Swan Hill.
Swan Hill became a city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
in 1965.
Burke and Wills
The Burke and Wills expedition reached Swan Hill on Thursday, 6 September 1860 on their journey across Australia from MelbourneMelbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
to the Gulf of Carpentaria
Gulf of Carpentaria
The Gulf of Carpentaria is a large, shallow sea enclosed on three sides by northern Australia and bounded on the north by the Arafura Sea...
. They made Camp XV, (their fifteenth camp out of Melbourne), in the police paddock on the banks of the Murray River in an area that is now Riverside Park. The expedition stayed in Swan Hill until Monday, 10 September while they reorganised the stores. Burke dismissed four men; Essau Khan, Brooks, Lane and John Polongeaux. He then hired Alexander McPherson, a saddler from Epsom and Charlie Gray, a former sailor from Scotland who had worked as an ostler for Cobb and Co between Bendigo and Swan Hill and who was now employed at the Lower Murray Inn in Swan Hill. The party was strengthened further by the arrival from Melbourne of journalist, William Hodgkinson, and scientist Georg Neumeyer. The local inhabitants gave the expedition a rousing farewell as they crossed into New South Wales. Folklore alleges Burke and Wills planted a Moreton Bay Fig
Moreton Bay Fig
Ficus macrophylla, commonly known as the Moreton Bay Fig, is a large evergreen banyan tree of the Moraceae family that is a native of most of the eastern coast of Australia, from the Atherton Tableland in the north to the Illawarra in New South Wales, and Lord Howe Island. Its common name is...
tree in the garden of the local doctor, Dr B W Gummow. The tree is now approximately 27 metres high and has a branch spread of approximately 44 metres and can be seen in Curlewis Street.
Today
Schooling
In Swan Hill there are four primary schools, two secondary schools and three schools which run both primary and secondary syllabuses. These are Swan Hill College, MacKillop CollegeMacKillop College, Swan Hill
MacKillop College is a Catholic co-educational secondary school in Swan Hill, Victoria, Australia. The school is located in the Swan Hill Parish. Moves to open a secondary school to service the Swan Hill, Kerang and Quambatook Parishes began in 1981; prior to this Catholic education was only...
, St Mary's Primary School, Swan Hill Primary School, Swan Hill North Primary School, Sun Centre Christian School, Victorian P-12 College of Koorie Education - Payika Campus and Swan Hill Specialist School.
Tertiary education is delivered by Sunraysia Institute of TAFE
Sunraysia Institute of TAFE
The Sunraysia Institute of TAFE is the TAFE institute servicing Mildura, Victoria since 1979.About the InstituteSunraysia Institute of TAFE is the largest provider of vocational education and training services in North West Victoria, Australia...
. Its main campus is at Tower Hill, and it runs a farm north of the city. As well as its own courses, it offers a Deakin University program.
Retail
A range of retailers operate in Swan Hill including home, garden, general produce and several supermarkets. There are also a number of stores in the region where locals and tourists can purchase locally grown produce.Night-life
Swan Hill boasts night-life activities, with active pubs, hotels, clubs and nightclubsSport
Swan Hill is the heart of the Central Murray Football LeagueCentral Murray Football League
The Central Murray Football League is a major country Australian rules football competition based in northern Victoria, Australia and southwest New South Wales, Australia.-History:...
. It is also the home to two football clubs, the Swan Hill "Swans" and the Tyntynder "Bulldogs".
Swan Hill also has the Swan Hill Junior Soccer League that consists of over 500 children. They also field 3 teams in the BASL where their Senior Men's Division 2 Team won the Knock-Out Cup in 2006. The Youth Team has come runner up in the Knock-Out Cup competition in both 2006 and 2008. The Senior Women's team came runner up in 2008.
Swan Hill has a horse racing club, the Swan Hill Jockey Club, which schedules around ten race meetings a year including the Swan Hill Cup meeting in June. The Swan Hill St Patricks Race Club also holds a meeting at the racecourse in October.
Golfers play at the course of the Swan Hill City Golf and Bowls Club on Gray Street, or at the course of the Murray Downs Golf Club on Moulamein Road.
Transport
The city is located on the Murray Valley HighwayMurray Valley Highway
The Murray Valley Highway is a popular tourist route, which follows the south side of the Murray River in Victoria, Australia. The route effectively acts as the northern-most highway in Victoria...
, which links it to Bendigo. V/Line
V/Line
V/Line is a not for profit regional passenger train and coach service in Victoria, Australia. It was created after the split-up of VicRail in 1983. V/Line is owned by the V/Line Corporation which is a Victorian State Government statutory authority...
operates passenger rail services on the Swan Hill line, with the local railway station being the terminus. The Swan Hill Airport
Swan Hill Airport
Swan Hill Airport is located at Swan Hill, Victoria, Australia....
is also nearby. It also has its own buses.
Media
Swan Hill has one locally produced newspaper in The Swan Hill Guardian, which has been circulating Swan Hill and surrounding regions for almost 120 years. In addition to this, there are four local radio stations: 99.1 Smart FM (3SFM); ABC Mildura Swan HillABC Mildura Swan Hill
ABC Mildura Swan Hill is an ABC Local Radio station based in Mildura, Victoria. The station, opened in 1990, covers northwest Victoria and southwest New South Wales, including Mildura, Swan Hill, Kerang, and Ouyen....
(3MIL); 107.7 Mixx FM (3SHI) and AM station 1332 3SH
3SH
3SH is a commercial radio station in Swan Hill, Victoria, Australia broadcasting on the medium wave band on a frequency of 1332kHz. It was opened in August 1931.It is owned by Ace Radio....
. Swan Hill's television stations are identical to Bendigo's: ABC
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
, Prime
Prime Television
PRIME7 is an Australian television network owned by Prime Media Group Limited. Prime Television launched on 17 March 1962 as CBN/CWN in Orange and Dubbo, New South Wales, and has since expanded to cover regional New South Wales, Victoria and the Australian Capital Territory as a Seven Network...
, WIN
WIN Television
WIN Television is an Australian television network owned by the WIN Corporation that is based in Wollongong, New South Wales. WIN commenced transmissions on 18 March 1962 as a single Wollongong-only station, and has since expanded to 24 owned-and-operated stations with transmissions covering a...
, Southern Cross Ten and SBS
SBS TV
SBS One is a national public television channel in Australia. Launched on 24 October 1980, it is the responsibility of SBS's television division, and is available nationally...
.
Attractions
The local train station has a giant Murray CodMurray Cod
The Murray cod is a large Australian predatory freshwater fish of the Maccullochella genus and the Percichthyidae family. Although the species is a called cod in the vernacular, it is not related to the northern hemisphere marine cod species...
out the front. The historic Pioneer Settlement is an open air museum
Open air museum
An open-air museum is a distinct type of museum exhibiting its collections out-of-doors. The first open-air museums were established in Scandinavia towards the end of the nineteenth century, and the concept soon spread throughout Europe and North America. Open-air museums are variously known as...
and major tourist attraction, as are rides on the PS Pyap.
Viticulture
Swan Hill gives its name to a wine region straddling the Murray River. The vineVine
A vine in the narrowest sense is the grapevine , but more generally it can refer to any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent, that is to say climbing, stems or runners...
s are predominantly irrigated from the river.
Climate
Swan Hill has a semi-aridSemi-arid
A semi-arid climate or steppe climate describes climatic regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not extremely...
climate with hot summers and cold winters.
Cultural diversity
Around 88% of the people living in Swan Hill were born in Australia. Migrants account for around 12 per cent, these include Italy (1.4%); England (1.0%); New Zealand (0.4%); Scotland (0.3%) and Afghanistan (0.3%). 3.2% of the population are Indigenous.Literature
Author James AldridgeJames Aldridge
Harold Edward James Aldridge was a multi-award–winning Australian author and journalist whose World War II despatches were published worldwide and formed the basis of several of his novels, including the prize-winning The Sea Eagle about Australian troops in Crete.Aldridge was born in White Hills,...
was born in Swan Hill. He described Swan Hill during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
of the 1930s in his series of "St Helens" books. Some of the best known are:
- A Sporting Proposition (adapted for the screen by The Walt Disney CompanyThe Walt Disney CompanyThe Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
as "Ride A Wild Pony"). - My Brother Tom (made into a TV series).
- The True Story of Spit MacPhee (Winner: 1986 New South Wales Premier's Literary Award; winner: 1987 Guardian AwardGuardian AwardThe Guardian Children's Fiction Prize or Guardian Award is a prominent award for works of children's literature by British or Commonwealth authors, published in the United Kingdom during the preceding year. The award has been given annually since 1967, and is decided by a panel of authors and the...
; adapted for television). - The True Story of Lilli Stubeck (1985 CBCA Book of the Year).
Trivia
Swan Hill currently holds the Guinness World Record for Biggest Fruit Salad. Made predominantly from local stonefruit, the salad was 5.7 tonnes, smashing the old record of 4.1 tonnes. The Fruit Salad was made on the 25th January 2008, and eaten the following day, Australia Day.External links
- Swan Hill Rural City Council
- Swan Hill Online
- Burke & Wills Web A comprehensive website containing many of the historical documents relating to the Burke & Wills Expedition.
- The History of the Australian Rice Industry, by SunRice.
- The Burke & Wills Historical Society The Burke & Wills Historical Society.
- Smart FM
- Swan Hill Regional Art Gallery Artabase page