Powelltown, Victoria

Powelltown is a town in Victoria, Australia, 70 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Yarra Ranges. At the 2006 Census, Powelltown had a population of 201.

It began life as a timber town in the 1890s, being named after the Powell Wood Processing Company which harvested mountain ash in the Upper Yarra Valley. The logs were transported from the forests to the sawmills by tramway and from there to the railheads at Yarra Junction and Warburton. The Post Office opened around 1904 as Blake's, and was renamed Powelltown in 1912.^[2]

The Powelltown Tramway provided a passenger and goods service to Yarra Junction between 1913 and 1945.

Today, many of the trails constructed to transport timber have been opened up as walking trails and driving routes for tourists.

The town has an Australian Rules football team competing in the Yarra Valley Mountain District Football League. Despite its small population, Powelltown has produced a number of famous AFL former players including, Melbourne Demons forward Sean Charles and Western Bulldogs and Fremantle forward Daniel Hargraves. A relative of Charles, former West Coast Eagles defender David Wirrpanda also played junior foorball with the Powelltown Demons.

References

• Stamford, F.E.; Stuckey, E.G., and Maynard, G.L. (1984). Powelltown, a history of its timber mills and tramways. Melbourne: Light Railway Research Society of Australia. ISBN 0-909340-21-8.  (151 pages)

External links

• Powelltown, Victoria is at coordinates
• Powelltown (SMH Travel)