Hamilton, Victoria
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| Hamilton Victoria |
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| Population: • Density: |
9,200 (2002) 400.4/km² |
| Area: | 22.8 km² |
| LGA: | Southern Grampians Shire |
| Federal Division: | Wannon |
Hamilton is a city in the Southern Grampians Shire of Victoria, Australia. It is located at the intersection of the Glenelg Highway (from Ballarat to Mount Gambier) and the Henty Highway (from Portland to Horsham). The Hamilton Highway connects it to Geelong. It has an approximate population of 9,200 at 30 June 2002.
Hamilton is in the federal Division of Wannon.
Self described as the "Wool Capital of the World", it boasts the Big Wool Bales as a significant tourist attraction. Also Hamilton is known for The Sir Reginald Ansett Transport Museum.
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[edit] Local Government
Since the restructure of Victorian Local Government in the early 1990s, Hamilton has been served by the Southern Grampians Shire Council. There are currently 7 councillors serving the 6652 sq km shire, which includes the main population centre of Hamilton as well as surrounding localities. Voting is by proportional representation and Local government elections are held once every four years. Along with all other Victorian councils, the next elections will be held in the last Saturday in November, 2008.
[edit] Industry and Employment
Sheep grazing and agriculture are the primary industries in the surrounding shire, the area producing as much as 15% of Australia’s total wool clip [1]. Inside the city of Hamilton the majority of employment is provided by the retail industry (20%) and the Health and Community Services sector (14.5%). The unemployment rate at the 2001 Census was put at 6.1%, with a workforce participation rate of 58.9% [2].
[edit] Media
Newspaper: The Hamilton Spectator
Hamilton and the surrounding area is served by The Hamilton Spectator, a tri-weekly local newspaper published by the Spectator-Observer newspaper group. Established in 1859 as the Hamilton Courier, it became the Hamilton Spectator and Grange District Advertiser in 1860, and later The Hamilton Spectator.
Radio Station: Mixx FM
Mixx FM was a radio station which began in 2002.
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[edit] Attractions and Events
From 1881 William Guilfoyle, the director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne was employed to design the Hamilton Botanic Gardens. Set in four acres (16,000 m²), the gardens are distinguished by rare botanic species, a superbly restored rotunda, a small zoo and playground and the ornate Thomson Fountain. The National Trust of Australia classified the gardens in 1990 with eight tree species listed on the Register of Significant Trees in Victoria.
Sheepvention, a wool-related trade-show and exhibition is held in the Hamilton Show-grounds in the first Monday & Tuesday of August each year, and attracts up to 20,000 visitors. It has a similar feel to an Agricultural show but is focused on wool and sheep. The Hamilton Agricultural Show is normally held in November.
Following on with the sheep related theme of the town, the "Big Wool Bales" is five linked structures which exactly resemble five gigantic woolbales - a tribute to the importance of the local wool industry. Together they form a building within which are wool-related displays such as historical memorabilia, including farming and shearing equipment, wool scales, old horse harnesses, wool presses and weaving looms, along with wool samples and rural clothing.
The Keeping Place is a small museum and living history centre run by local indigenous people.
The most famous attraction in Hamilton would be The Sir Reginald Ansett Transport Museum located by Lake Hamilton. Hamilton was the location where Ansett Australia was founded and various items from the early days of Ansett can be found at the museum.
[edit] Sport
There are many sporting clubs and leagues in the Hamilton area. The town is served by its two Australian rules football teams; Hamilton Magpies and Hamilton Imperials. Both teams compete in the Western Border Football League. Netball, field hockey, basketball and cricket are other popular sports in the town. Hamilton opened a large Indoor Sports and Aquatic Centre in March 2006, which contains four basketball courts, a twenty-metre indoor swimming pool, and a large gym. Hamilton also has an extensive rowing program, with three clubs; Hamilton Rowing Club (HRC), Hamilton College Rowing Club (HCRC), and Monivae College Rowing Club.
[edit] Wildlife and Parks
The Eastern Barred Bandicoot is native to the area, and a reserve has been built to protect the endangered species. Mount Napier the highest point on the Western District Plains is found 15kms south of Hamilton.
[edit] History
[edit] Early history
Hamilton was built near the border of three traditional indigenous tribal territories: the Gunditjmara land that stretches south to the coast, the Tjapwurong land to the north east and the Bunganditj territory to the west. People who lived in these areas tended to be settled rather than nomadic. The region was (and is) fertile and well-watered, leading to an abundance of wildlife, and no need to travel far for food. Physical remains such as the weirs and fish traps found in Lake Condah to the south of Hamilton , as well as accounts of early white settlers support local indigenous oral histories of well established settlements in the area.
[edit] White settlement and conflict
On September 12, 1836, the explorer, Major Thomas Mitchell was the first European to travel through the area where Hamilton later developed. His reports of the fertility and abundance of ‘Australia Felix’ (as he called this region of Western Victoria) encouraged pastoralists to move to the area and establish large sheep runs. By 1839 there were a number of settlers in the area including the Wedge family whose property ‘The Grange' was located within the present town site.
Conflict between the pastoralists and the indigenous population soon arose. The local people mounted a strong guerrilla resistance to the invasion of their traditional tribal lands. They stole and killed sheep for food and out of retaliation for their mistreatment and the theft of their land. Although exact numbers in the Hamilton area are not known, it seems apparent that many Aborigines of the Western district were murdered in this period. (Clark, 1995)
When Governor La Trobe visited The Grange in 1841 he noted the extent of interracial violence and appointed Acheson French as police magistrate to the area. A constable and a detachment of mounted police, to be based at The Grange, were also appointed and convicts from Portland erected a hut for the magistrate and barracks for the troopers on the site of the present courthouse and police station on Martin and Thompson Streets.
Another result of the conflict was the establishment of an Aboriginal reserve, intended for the protection of the indigenous people. This further angered the pastoralists who regarded the reserve and its administration as hostile to their interests. Violence and brutality appear to have continued unchecked until Governor La Trobe ordered the Portland Commissioner, all his border police and a contingent of ‘native police’ to the Grange in September 1842. This, along with the devastating effects of dislocation, European diseases, and killings marked the end of large-scale indigenous resistance in the area.
[edit] Birth of the town
The proximity of The Grange to other properties and to important tracks between Portland and New South Wales led to the gradual emergence of a small town. This included an inn, blacksmith, a small store and some shanties and businesses nearby. The site was a small social centre for surrounding pastoral properties, with horse races being held along the Grange Burn flat.
The desire for a school prompted a town survey that commenced in 1849. The township of Hamilton was formally declared in 1851 [3]. It was probably named after Hamilton near Glasgow in Scotland, due to the number of Scottish settlers.
[edit] Prominent Hamiltonians
- Former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was the member for Wannon, and lived at ‘Nareen’ a station near Hamilton.
- Sir Reginald Ansett, founder of Ansett Airways, started his first air service here in 1936.
- David Hawker - current speaker for the Australian Parliament is the member for Wannon
[edit] References
- Ian Clark, Scars in the Landscape: A Register of Massacre Sites in Western Victoria, 1803-1859 (Canberra: AIATSIS, 1995).
[edit] External links
- The Department for Victorian Communities - Southern Grampians Shire Council Page
- The Department of Sustainability and the Environment - Hamilton Statistics
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Cities of Victoria |
|---|---|
| Capital: | |
| Cities: |
Ararat | Ballarat | Benalla | Bendigo | Geelong | Hamilton | Horsham | Moe | Morwell | Mildura | Portland | Sale | Shepparton | Swan Hill | Traralgon | Wangaratta | Warrnambool | Wodonga |
