Wangaratta, Victoria

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Wangaratta
Victoria

Location of Wangaratta in Victoria (red)
Population: 15,683 (2006)[1]
Time zone:

 • Summer (DST)

AEST (UTC+10)

AEST (UTC+11)

Location: 230 km (143 mi) from Melbourne
LGA: Rural City of Wangaratta
County: Moira, Delatite, Bogong
State District: Murray Valley
Federal Division: Indi

Wangaratta is a cathedral city of about 15,685 people in the northeast of Victoria, Australia, about 230 km (150 mi) from Melbourne along the Hume Highway, with Benalla 45 km (25 mi) to the southwest, and Albury-Wodonga 72 km (40 mi) to the northeast. It is located at the junction of the Ovens and King rivers which flow from the Victorian Alps. It is within the municipality of Rural City of Wangaratta.

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[edit] History

Gold was found in the surrounding area during the 1850s and this is reflected in the name of a nearby town of Eldorado where the remains of an old dredge can still be seen today.

The nearby small town of Glenrowan located some 10km away is known as the site of the final shootout that led to the capture of Australia's most famous bushranger, Ned Kelly.

[edit] Geography and landmarks

Holy Trinity Cathedral
Holy Trinity Cathedral
War memorials (Boer & WW1&2) in front of Cathedral
War memorials (Boer & WW1&2) in front of Cathedral

The geographical layout of the city is unusual in that the business district is located at the north-eastern extremity of the urban area, with outlying suburbs extending only to the south and west. The reason for this arrangement is that the area beyond the rivers, to the north and east of the business district, was until the 1990s prone to flooding and so unsuitable for building. Levees were constructed in the 1990s to alleviate the flooding, however development in this area has been slow.

Wangaratta is the closest city or town of any size to Falls Creek and Mount Hotham, two of Victoria's three major snowfields.

Notable buildings include the Holy Trinity Anglican Cathedral and its Cathedral Close, St. Patrick's Catholic Church and the eccentric art déco courthouse.

[edit] Industry

There is a considerable wine and gourmet food industry in the nearby Milawa and King Valley region.

[edit] Culture and sport

The main annual event is the Wangaratta Festival of Jazz, which has been attended by thousands each year since 1990.

There are three Australian rules football clubs in Wangaratta, the Wangaratta Football Club, the Wangaratta Rovers Football Club (both competing in the Ovens and Murray Football League), and the North Wangaratta Football Club, which competes in the Ovens and King Football League.

The city hosted several games for the 2005 Australian Football International Cup event, with several countries competing in the sport of Australian rules football. The event was played at the City Oval and Showgrounds and set the attendance records for the tournament to date.

Cricket in Wangaratta is organised by the Wangaratta & District Cricket Association Clubs in Wangaratta include Wangaratta Rovers United, Wangaratta Magpies and City Colts.[citation needed]

[edit] Education

Wangaratta has three secondary schools: Galen Catholic College (private), Cathedral College (private) and Wangaratta High School, which has 3 campuses. There is also the Goulburn Ovens Institute of TAFE.

[edit] Nomenclature

Historically, there was disagreement about whether the first syllable should be pronounced 'Wong' or 'Wang', the latter pronunciation being perceived as slightly less cultured, at least by those within the city itself. The 'Wong' pronunciation was never used by a majority of the population, and never received any wide currency outside the district. It was officially disavowed by the Wangaratta City Council's declaration in favour of the 'Wang' pronunciation in the 1980s. Some locals, particularly the elderly, continue to use the 'Wong' pronunciation.

The city's name may be informally abbreviated to "Wang", analogously to "Shep" (Shepparton) and "Yarra" (Yarrawonga).

[edit] Transport

The station is on the main railway line between Sydney and Melbourne and is served by V/Line services between Melbourne and Albury as well as a twice daily Countrylink XPT service in both directions between Melbourne and Sydney. Two railway gauges run in parallel to Melbourne and Albury; the Victorian broad gauge of 1600 mm (5' 3") and the standard gauge of 1435 mm (4' 8½").

There was a branch line commenced in 1873, running east to Beechworth, reaching the town in September 1976, but this was closed in January 1977. (Larsen, MayDay Hills Railway). Another branch line ran to Bright until its closure. This has since been converted into a cycling and walking track, known as the Murray to the Mountains Rail Trail. Another short branch line ran west to a wheat silo located on the north side of the Ovens River at Boorhaman.

A second rail branch was a narrow gauge (762 mm, 2' 6") line from Wangaratta to Whitfield constructed during the late 1890s and opened in 1899. The line operated until 1953 and was famous for its special engines imported from Baldwin Locomotive Works in the USA. Some of these 2-6-2T locomotives now operate on the Puffing Billy Railway outside Melbourne. [2] A book, Focus on Victoria's Narrow Gauge, with photos, maps along the line and of Wangaratta station with its dual track gauges was published in 2002 [3]

Wangaratta is also serviced by a small regional airport, Wangaratta Airport. A city bus service runs every half an hour during the day on weekdays and on Saturday mornings on a route covering Wangaratta's West End, the business district and Yarrunga.

[edit] Radio stations

See also: List of Australian radio stations

[edit] Famous residents and former residents

[edit] Bibliography

  • Larsen, Wal. The Mayday Hills Railway, Wal Larsen, Bright, 1976.
  • O'Callaghan, Bill and Bill Findlay (1984). "Wangaratta, 1959–1984: A Silver City", City of Wangaratta.
  • O'Brien, Antony. Shenanigans on the Ovens Goldfields: the 1859 Election, Artillery Publishing, 2005.
  • Oberg, Leon. Railways of Australia, Reed, Sydney, 1975.
  • Thompson, John E. Focus on Victoria's Narrow Gauge Whitfield Line, Puffing Billy Society, Belgrave, 2002.
  • "Wangaratta: Capital of North Eastern Victoria", (1927) Committee of the Back to Wangaratta Celebrations.
  • Whittaker, D. M. (1963). "Wangaratta: Being the History of the Township that sprang up at Ovens Crossing and grew into a modern City", Wangaratta City Council.
  • Why Wangaratta, and Moments in Jazz (books on the Wangaratta Festival of Jazz and Blues).

[edit] References

  1. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). Wangaratta (State Suburb). 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved on 2007-10-01.
  2. ^ (Oberg, pp.90-91)
  3. ^ John E. Thompson,Focus on Victoria's Narrow Gauge Whitfield Line, Puffing Billy Society, Belgrave, 2002.

Maps

  • Dept of Minerals and Energy, Wangaratta, 8125, 1:100,000 (1971)(shows the district as it was in the 1960s with railways and before major sub-division redevelopments)

[edit] External links

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Coordinates: 36.36° S 146.32° E