Thorpdale, Victoria
Encyclopedia
Thorpdale is a small country town in the Gippsland
area of eastern Victoria
, Australia
, less than 20 km south of Trafalgar
. Famous for its potato
es, it is located amongst the rich farmland of the Latrobe Valley
. Thorpdale spuds are eaten around the country and also exported overseas. The name "Thorpdale" means "village in a valley". The soil in the area is particularly rich as the town is located in a former volcanic crater. It is administered by the Shire of Baw Baw. At the 2006 census
, Thorpdale and the surrounding area had a population of 447.
The Thorpdale district, known at first as the Narracan district, was settled in the 1870s.
The first settlers arrived from the old Melbourne – Sale Road via McDonalds Track – a former stock route that had been surveyed in 1862 through the hills from Lang Lang to Morwell Bridge, but which shortly became disused and very much overgrown. Land selection began at Narracan (near the eastern end of the track) in 1873. The main selection front progressed steadily along the track, reaching Narracan West in 1876. The Post Office opened on 1 October 1879 as Narracan West and was renamed Thorpdale in 1884 and Thorpdale South in 1888 closing in 1968. A new Thorpdale Post Office opened in 1888 near the railway station.
The present town of Thorpdale (situated about 2 km north of the old town) was founded in 1888 following construction of a branch railway line from Moe. At the height of its time it was a business centre for all the farming activity that surrounded it.
Much of the old town was destroyed during the large Red Tuesday
(20 January 1898) bushfire that ravaged Gippsland and the Otway Ranges.
. The national decline in consumption of potatoes is making even farming difficult in the small town.
The town has an Australian rules football
team competing in the Mid Gippsland Football League
.
) had been found among its crops. The disease is not harmful to humans but can significantly reduce crop yields. Thorpdale farms were quarantined and banned from exporting potatoes interstate and overseas. Interstate trade has since resumed.
holiday in March but as the insurance cost is too great for the small community to bear, it has not been run since 2002. The festival features potato sack race
s. The lush farming surrounds give the town a peaceful rural atmosphere and there are several scenic sights nearby, including the Narracan Falls, Trafalgar South Lookout and Henderson's Gully.
) at Thorpdale South once held the record for the tallest tree in the world. The tree was measured as being over 114 m (375 feet) tall by a certified surveyor using a theodolite. The tree was later felled in 1880 and re-measured along the ground, confirming the initial measurement. In 1976 the tree's location was marked by a plaque and a pole one-tenth the height of the tree.
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...
area of eastern 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...
, less than 20 km south of Trafalgar
Trafalgar, Victoria
Trafalgar is a town in the West Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia. The town lies on the Princes Highway and main Gippsland railway line about west of Moe. The town backs onto the foothills of the Strzelecki Ranges to the south...
. Famous for its potato
Potato
The potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae family . The word potato may refer to the plant itself as well as the edible tuber. In the region of the Andes, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species...
es, it is located amongst the rich farmland of the Latrobe Valley
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...
. Thorpdale spuds are eaten around the country and also exported overseas. The name "Thorpdale" means "village in a valley". The soil in the area is particularly rich as the town is located in a former volcanic crater. It is administered by the Shire of Baw Baw. 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,...
, Thorpdale and the surrounding area had a population of 447.
History
The first settlers arrived from the old Melbourne – Sale Road via McDonalds Track – a former stock route that had been surveyed in 1862 through the hills from Lang Lang to Morwell Bridge, but which shortly became disused and very much overgrown. Land selection began at Narracan (near the eastern end of the track) in 1873. The main selection front progressed steadily along the track, reaching Narracan West in 1876. The Post Office opened on 1 October 1879 as Narracan West and was renamed Thorpdale in 1884 and Thorpdale South in 1888 closing in 1968. A new Thorpdale Post Office opened in 1888 near the railway station.
The present town of Thorpdale (situated about 2 km north of the old town) was founded in 1888 following construction of a branch railway line from Moe. At the height of its time it was a business centre for all the farming activity that surrounded it.
Much of the old town was destroyed during the large Red Tuesday
Red Tuesday
The Red Tuesday bushfires took place on February 1, 1898 in South Gippsland, Victoria. The bushfires claimed 12 lives, destroyed over 2,000 buildings and affected about 15,000 people, leaving 2,500 homeless.-External links:...
(20 January 1898) bushfire that ravaged Gippsland and the Otway Ranges.
The Town today
Today, the Thorpdale township is becoming smaller and smaller as more farming families opt to live in larger townships such as TrafalgarTrafalgar, Victoria
Trafalgar is a town in the West Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia. The town lies on the Princes Highway and main Gippsland railway line about west of Moe. The town backs onto the foothills of the Strzelecki Ranges to the south...
. The national decline in consumption of potatoes is making even farming difficult in the small town.
The town has an Australian rules football
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
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...
.
Potato farming
In late 2008, the town was hit by the news that a potato disease (potato cyst nematodePotato cyst nematode
Potato root nematodes or potato cyst nematodes are 1-mm long roundworms belonging to the genus Globodera, which comprises around 12 species. They live on the roots of plants of the Solanaceae family, such as potatoes and tomatoes. PCN cause growth retardation and, at very high population...
) had been found among its crops. The disease is not harmful to humans but can significantly reduce crop yields. Thorpdale farms were quarantined and banned from exporting potatoes interstate and overseas. Interstate trade has since resumed.
Attractions
The township holds the Thorpdale Potato Festival each year on the Victorian Labour DayLabour Day
Labour Day or Labor Day is an annual holiday to celebrate the economic and social achievements of workers. Labour Day has its origins in the labour union movement, specifically the eight-hour day movement, which advocated eight hours for work, eight hours for recreation, and eight hours for...
holiday in March but as the insurance cost is too great for the small community to bear, it has not been run since 2002. The festival features potato sack race
Sack race
The sack race or gunny sack race is a competitive game in which participants place both of their legs inside a sack or pillow case that reaches their waist or neck and jump forward from a starting point toward a finish line. The first person to cross the finish line is the winner of the race.Sack...
s. The lush farming surrounds give the town a peaceful rural atmosphere and there are several scenic sights nearby, including the Narracan Falls, Trafalgar South Lookout and Henderson's Gully.
Tallest tree
A mountain ash gum tree (Eucalyptus regnansEucalyptus regnans
Eucalyptus regnans, known variously by the common names Mountain Ash, Victorian Ash, Swamp Gum, Tasmanian Oak or Stringy Gum, is a species of Eucalyptus native to southeastern Australia, in Tasmania and Victoria...
) at Thorpdale South once held the record for the tallest tree in the world. The tree was measured as being over 114 m (375 feet) tall by a certified surveyor using a theodolite. The tree was later felled in 1880 and re-measured along the ground, confirming the initial measurement. In 1976 the tree's location was marked by a plaque and a pole one-tenth the height of the tree.