Bairnsdale
| Bairnsdale Victoria | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Bridge over the Mitchell River in Bairnsdale | |||||||
  Bairnsdale | |||||||
| Coordinates | 37°50′0″S 147°37′0″E / 37.83333°S 147.61667°ECoordinates: 37°50′0″S 147°37′0″E / 37.83333°S 147.61667°E | ||||||
| Population | 11,820 (2011)[1] | ||||||
| • Density | 494.6/km2 (1,281/sq mi) | ||||||
| Postcode(s) | 3875 | ||||||
| Elevation | 49 m (161 ft) | ||||||
| Area | 23.9 km2 (9.2 sq mi)[2] (2011 Census UCL) | ||||||
| Location | |||||||
| LGA(s) | Shire of East Gippsland | ||||||
| State electorate(s) | Gippsland East | ||||||
| Federal Division(s) | Gippsland | ||||||
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Bairnsdale (/ˈbɛərnzdeɪl/, locally [ˈbeːnzdæɪl])[3] is a small city in East Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. With an urban area population at the 2011 census of 11,820, it is a major regional centre of eastern Victoria along with Traralgon and Sale.
Bairnsdale is located on the river flats of the Mitchell River, near where the Mitchell River flows into Lake King.
Bairnsdale is the commercial centre for the East Gippsland region and the seat of local government for the Shire of East Gippsland.
The origin of the city's name is uncertain. It would have almost have certainly been Bernisdale, with "Bernis-dale" originating from "Bjorn’s dale", or glen which indicates the Viking origins of the Skye Village. Legend has it that Macleod was impressed by the number of Children on the run, the children of his stockmen, that he called it Bairns-dale, or "valley of the children".[4]
Geography
Bairnsdale is sited on a bend of the Mitchell river, with the river flowing from the west along the northern edge of the town, before turning south to flow along the eastern edge, although suburbs are now found across the river to both north and east, e.g. Wy Yung, Eastwood and Lucknow. The river floods at frequent intervals to a minor level with major flooding experienced approximately every 10 years, inundating areas of the town close to the banks and closing major transport routes including the Princes Highway during significant flood events.
The Mitchell River flows into Lake King and Jones Bay at Eagle Point Bluff. Extending beyond Eagle Point Bluff are the Mitchell River silt jetties (a type of digitate River Delta), second only in length to those formed at the mouth of the Mississippi River in the United States, although now the longest in the world since Hurricane Katrina reduced the length of the Mississippi River delta.
Bairnsdale's commercial centre is laid out along the wide avenue of Main Street which is a continuance of the Princes Highway and contains the beautiful and historic Main Street Gardens and St Mary's Catholic Church.
History
The town site was surveyed in 1859, with the first blocks of land sold in 1860. Lucknow on the east bank of the river (named for the Indian city of Lucknow to which horses bred in the Bairnsdale area were sent to aid the British Crown during the Indian uprising), was already a thriving village. The Post Office opened on 2 February 1858 at Lucknow and was relocated to the township and named Bairnsdale on 3 April 1862.[5] Lucknow remains as a suburb of Bairnsdale.
Descriptions of Bairnsdale and its inhabitants in the 1920s feature prominently in The Watcher On a Cast-Iron Balcony, an autobiography by Hal Porter
Bairnsdale was proclaimed as a City on 14 July 1990.[6]
Climate
| Climate data for Bairnsdale (Bairnsdale Airport 1942-2013) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 44.0 (111.2) |
46.2 (115.2) |
40.8 (105.4) |
37.5 (99.5) |
29.4 (84.9) |
25.0 (77) |
22.4 (72.3) |
27.0 (80.6) |
32.6 (90.7) |
34.9 (94.8) |
43.5 (110.3) |
41.0 (105.8) |
46.2 (115.2) |
| Average high °C (°F) | 25.8 (78.4) |
25.4 (77.7) |
23.8 (74.8) |
20.7 (69.3) |
17.5 (63.5) |
15.0 (59) |
14.5 (58.1) |
15.7 (60.3) |
17.6 (63.7) |
19.7 (67.5) |
21.7 (71.1) |
23.5 (74.3) |
20.1 (68.2) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 12.8 (55) |
12.8 (55) |
11.1 (52) |
8.6 (47.5) |
6.7 (44.1) |
4.7 (40.5) |
3.9 (39) |
4.5 (40.1) |
5.8 (42.4) |
7.5 (45.5) |
9.6 (49.3) |
11.1 (52) |
8.3 (46.9) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 4.2 (39.6) |
3.5 (38.3) |
2.0 (35.6) |
0.5 (32.9) |
−3.0 (26.6) |
−3.2 (26.2) |
−3.5 (25.7) |
−4.5 (23.9) |
−2.2 (28) |
−1.0 (30.2) |
1.6 (34.9) |
3.1 (37.6) |
−4.5 (23.9) |
| Rainfall mm (inches) | 47.5 (1.87) |
50.6 (1.992) |
44.7 (1.76) |
55.8 (2.197) |
47.3 (1.862) |
59.7 (2.35) |
49.1 (1.933) |
36.3 (1.429) |
52.7 (2.075) |
60.0 (2.362) |
80.9 (3.185) |
59.0 (2.323) |
643.6 (25.338) |
| Avg. rainy days (≥ 0.2mm) | 8.7 | 8.4 | 9.0 | 11.1 | 13.1 | 13.4 | 14.1 | 13.2 | 13.7 | 13.5 | 12.1 | 11.0 | 141.3 |
| Source: Bureau of Meteorology[7] | |||||||||||||
Landmarks
One of the most notable landmarks of Bairnsdale is the St Mary's Roman Catholic Church in Main Street known for its distinctively tall tower and murals on its ceiling and walls. These murals were painted by out of work Italian artist Francesco Floreani during the Great Depression and remain a fascination to this day.
Also of note are the gardens maintained on the median strip of Main Street. This very wide median strip stretches from the Mitchell River to the western edge of town, a distance of about 4 kilometres (2 mi). The main garden section runs for over 500 metres (550 yd) through the central commercial district and features beds of flowering annuals and perennials, numerous mature deciduous and evergreen trees, war memorials and a restored historic band rotunda. The rotunda was constructed in 1910 and restored to its present condition in 1993.
Education
Educational facilities in Bairnsdale include two high schools, Bairnsdale Secondary College which has approx 1600 students (Government) and Nagle College which has about 1000 students (Catholic Private), a number of primary schools and kindergartens, and limited tertiary education facilities mainly consisting of the East Gippsland Institute of TAFE.
Transport
Bairnsdale's main form of transport is the automobile. The city is near the junction of the Princes Highway and the Great Alpine Road. Bairnsdale is 285 kilometres (177 mi), or approximately three hours drive, east of the state capital Melbourne.
Rail transport is facilitated by the major railway station in Bairnsdale railway station which is the terminus of the Bairnsdale railway line. V/Line provides rail services.
Bairnsdale Cabs provides a local taxi service around the city.
Bus service is facilitated by Gillicks Bus Lines, Dysons Bus Lines (V/Line) and Goodalls Bus Lines as well as a number of others in Bairnsdale and surrounding areas.
The East Gippsland Rail Trail begins in Bairnsdale. Almost 100 kilometres (60 mi) in length, the multi-use trail permits walking, cycling and horseriding as it follows the alignment of the former railway line to Orbost.
Bairnsdale also has a small regional airport.
Media
Newspapers
Bairnsdale's local newspapers are the Bairnsdale Advertiser for sale on Mondays and Fridays and East Gippsland news delivered free on Wednesday every week. Both publications along with several others are owned and published by East Gippsland Newspapers.[8]
Television
Commercial television networks Prime7, WIN and Southern Cross Ten all broadcast into Bairnsdale from the Latrobe Valley transmitter at Mt Tassie as well as local relay transmitters located at Mount Taylor approximately 12–13 km NNW from Bairnsdale. All the commercial stations are based in Traralgon and have local commercials placed on their broadcasts. WIN TV also broadcasts a local news bulletin from Monday to Friday at 6.30pm. Both national public broadcasters, ABC (ABC1) and SBS (SBS ONE) are broadcast into Bairnsdale as well, relayed from Melbourne via Mount Tassie.
New channels broadcast by all the networks in addition to the ones listed above are available on the digital service called Freeview (Australia) to viewers in Bairnsdale and the Gippsland \ Latrobe Valley region. These channels include ABC2, ABC3, ABC News 24, SBS Two, One HD, Eleven, 7Two, 7mate, GEM and GO!.
Radio
Local commercial radio services TRFM 99.9, 99.5 and Gold 1242 are operated by Ace Radio and broadcast to Bairnsdale and most listeners in the Gippsland as far east as the town of Orbost. The Gold 1242 AM 1242 kHz transmitter is located in Myrtlebank between Maffra and Sale. ABC stations Triple J and ABC Classic FM are broadcast from Mount Tassie. ABC Radio National and ABC News Radio are rebroadcast locally from Mount Taylor. ABC Gippsland radio station 3GI broadcasts into Bairnsdale on 828 AM from Longford, near Sale.
Sport
The town has three Australian rules football clubs, with Bairnsdale Football Club (the Redlegs) competing in the Gippsland Football League and Lucknow and Wy Yung competing in the local East Gippsland Football League.[9]
Bairnsdale has a horse racing club, the Bairnsdale Racing Club, which schedules around eight race meetings a year including the Bairnsdale Cup meeting usually held on the first Sunday in January.[10]
The town has two field hockey clubs in the East Gippsland Hockey Association. The Bairnsdale Hockey Club is based at the WORLD fields, while the Nagle Hockey Club is based at Nagle College, just out of town to the west.
Golfers play at the Bairnsdale Golf Club on Paynesville Road, Eagle Point [11] or at the course of the Goose Gully Golf Greens on Balfours Road.[11]
With its close proximity to the Gippsland Lakes and Ninety Mile Beach, along with easy access to the Mitchell, Nicholson and Tambo Rivers; Bairnsdale proves to be a popular destination for recreational anglers and good catches are reported regularly. Bait and tackle supplies, along with the required angling licenses are readily available in Bairnsdale.
Bairnsdale is also home to the Bairnsdale aquatic and recreation centre (BARC) which is the largest indoor sports complex in country Victoria and contains 2 swimming pools, 3 basketball courts, several Gym rooms and the Forge theare.
The Riviera triathlon club, based in Bairnsdale, run events all year round including the popular "mini tri's" on Wednesday nights at the BARC between October and March.
Bairnsdale Cycling Club run road races most weekends throughout the year taking in the scenic terrain around the Gippsland lakes and foothills of the great dividing range, the club is home to talent such as Daniel McConnell a 2 time Olympian and mountain bike world cup winner. The Gippsland Mountain bike club holds many events around the area. Bairnsdale is an excellent mountain biking destination with Mt Taylor downhill and cross country trails only 10 minutes drive North, Colqhoun park 15 minutes East and Mt Nowa Nowa only a 35 minute drive.
Manufacturing
Curtis Australia is a pen manufacturing business that originated in, and is based and operated in Bairnsdale.
Notable people
- Alfred William Howitt, Australian anthropologist, explorer and naturalist
- Callum Chambers, West Coast Eagles and Carlton AFL footballer
- Cameron White, Australian cricketer
- Charlotte McShane, Scottish born Australian professional triathlete and the 2013 U23 ITU World Triathlon Champion
- David Williamson, playwright
- Edward Jones, The World's first celebrity stalker [12][13]
- Hal Porter, author
- Henry Goodenough, Bairnsdale Sergeant of police and Eureka Rebellion spy[14] [15] [16]
- Jonathon Kendall, Win news presenter, List of Australian TV news presenters year by year
- Kat Stewart, actress
- Leigh Hobbs, children's author and illustrator
- Tom Alvin, Carlton AFL footballer
- Terry Bourke, Film maker, Director, Writer[17]
- Will Tomlinson, Professional Boxer and undefeated IBO Super-featherweight World Champion[18]
References
- ↑ Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Bairnsdale (Urban Centre / Locality)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
- ↑ http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/census_services/getproduct/census/2011/communityprofile/UCL213002
- ↑ Australian pronunciations: Macquarie Dictionary, Fourth Edition (2005). Melbourne, The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd. ISBN 1-876429-14-3
- ↑ History Shire of Bairnsdale, Path Among the Years (1987). The Aborigines and the Pastoralists 1842-1860. Bairnsdale: Bairnsdale Shire Council. p. 19. ISBN 0731605527.
- ↑ Premier Postal History, Post Office List, retrieved 2008-04-11
- ↑ Victorian Municipal Directory, Brunswick: Arnall & Jackson, 1992, p. 292 Accessed at State Library of Victoria, La Trobe Reading Room.
- ↑ "BAIRNSDALE AIRPORT". Climate statistics for Australian locations. Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
- ↑ eastvicmedia.com.au
- ↑ Full Points Footy, Bairnsdale, retrieved 2008-07-25
- ↑ Country Racing Victoria, Bairnsdale Racing Club, retrieved 2009-05-07
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Golf Select, Bairnsdale, retrieved 2009-05-11
- ↑ "The strange tale of the first royal stalker". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
- ↑ Mail, Daily. "The world's first celebrity stalker unmasked: The 14-year-old boy who broke into Buckingham Palace and stole Queen Victoria's knickers". Mail Online. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
- ↑ "Henry Goodenough". http://eurekapedia.org/. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
- ↑ "List of Men at Eureka". archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
- ↑ 's_testimony "Eureka Stockade:Goodenough's testimony". wiki.prov.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
- ↑ "Terry Bourke 1940-2002". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
- ↑ Rec, Box. "Will Tomlinson Global ID: 460117". BoxRec. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
- Gardner, P.D. (1997) Names of the Great Alpine Road Between Bairnsdale and Omeo. Ensay: Ngarak Press.
- Land.vic Vicnames
External links
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Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Bairnsdale. |
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bairnsdale. |
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Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Bairnsdale. |
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