Bung Bong

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Bung Bong
Victoria
Bung Bong Hall.jpg
The 1876 Temperance Hall / Church of England
Australia Victoria Central Goldfields Shire location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Bung Bong
Coordinates 37°06.203862′S143°33.679002′E / 37.103397700°S 143.561316700°E / -37.103397700; 143.561316700
Population63 (2021 census) [1]
Postcode(s) 3465
Location
LGA(s)
State electorate(s) Ripon
Federal division(s) Mallee

Bung Bong is a locality in Victoria between the towns of Avoca and Maryborough. The locality is divided, with the Western section in the Pyrenees Shire and the Eastern section in Shire of Central Goldfields. The Bet Bet Creek (which separates the two Shires) runs towards the north through the middle of the locality and then into the Loddon River. Bung Bong is located on the Pyrenees Highway.

Contents

Bung Bong is also a region.

Etymology

The name Bung Bong may derive from the Aboriginal words for "swamp" [2] or for "swamp grass". [3]

History

Bung Bong Post Office opened on 1 February 1864 and closed in 1961. [4]

The old Glenmona Bridge was built over the Bet Bet Creek in 1871 and is the third oldest of its type in Victoria, (after the Hawthorn Bridge and the Redesdale Bridge). Its location is directly south of the new bridge over the Bet Bet on the Pyrenees Highway. [5]

In 1878 the Bung Bong Farmers' Club held their first "ploughing match". There were 18 entries in the competition to plough, "virgin soil, of a rich chocolate colour". It was reported, "that although the ploughmen were new to competitive trials, they showed by the excellence of their work their fitness for their calling." [6] For the 1886 (and ninth) ploughing match there were 22 entries. It was held on the Abbott property, half a mile from the Bung Bong railway station and "the attendance was large". This time, 10 entrants used double furrow ploughs with one entrant, "exhibiting Gilsman's patent rotary harrows, which attracted great attention, and were pronounced excellent implements". [7]

Local volunteers [8] have fought major bushfires in the region in December 1880, [9] January 1881, [10] January 1985 [11] [5] and the Black Saturday bushfires in 2009. [12]

Bung Bong horse Richmond Lass won 31 races and went on to win the 1969 Inter Dominion Pacing Championship. [13] The horse was owned by Fred Miller of Richmond House. [11]

Gold has been extracted in the Bung Bong region [14] and along the Bet Bet Creek. In 2018, commercial gold exploration has resumed. [15]

Railway

The disused Bung Bong railway station Bung Bong Victoria Railway Station.jpg
The disused Bung Bong railway station

Bung Bong is on the Avoca railway line, to the north of the locality, where ballast was loaded from nearby basalt quarries. There was a Post Office at the Bung Bong station which opened in October 1877 and closed in June 1940. [4]

In 2017, there was a proposal to link Mildura to Portland with standard gauge track to carry grain and mineral sands. This upgrade would include the Maryborough to Ararat section of the line, past the site of the disused Bung Bong station. [16] [17] [18] Community action has been successful in keeping a railway level crossing on a key arterial road open, after commencement of the new rail link. [19]

The Avoca line was reopened in 2018 after being rebuilt as part of the Murray Basin Rail Project, which also extended the reach of the standard gauge network in Victoria. [20]

Schools

There was a Primary School (No. 1056) at Bung Bong which operated on the same block as the Church of England between 1872 and 1921. [21] [22]

Approximately 5 km south of Bung Bong, on the Moore's Flat Road, is the now abandoned locality of Moore's Flat. There was a Moore's Flat Primary School (No. 1575). [23] [24]

Heritage buildings

The Pyrenees Shire Council has documented a number of significant properties in the Bung Bong - Homebush region in the Avoca Heritage Study: 1864 - 1994 - Volume 3. [25] [ examples needed ]

Region

Bung Bong is also a region, which has a large range of native flora and fauna. [26] [27] South-East of the locality is the Bung Bong Nature Conservation Reserve which is used by bush walkers and bird watchers. [28] [29]

Facilities

The Bung Bong, Wareek cemetery Bung Bong Victoria Cemetery sign.jpg
The Bung Bong, Wareek cemetery

Bung Bong, Wareek Cemetery

The cemetery is located on 413 Bung Bong-Rathscar Rd, Wareek. In 2017, it is being upgraded by the community with new fences and facilities.[ citation needed ]

Information on the interments, [30] with more details and images of the headstones - here. [31] [ examples needed ]

Hall

Interior of the Church of England - Harvest Festival BungBongChurch2.jpg
Interior of the Church of England - Harvest Festival

The Bung Bong Temperance Hall was established by the Independent Order of Rechabites as 'Tent' 138. [32] [33] It is located on the Pyrenees Highway.

It was built in 1876 on land donated by Mr Miller and was used for community activities including meetings of the 'Farmers Club'. [34]

The building was subsequently used as the Bung Bong Church of England. [35] While the building is now unused, the site has become a popular stopping place for caravans. [36]

At the Wareek Hall there is an honour roll of those from the Bung Bong district who fought in World War I. It contains 19 names. [37]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avoca, Victoria</span> Town in Victoria, Australia

Avoca is a town in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia, 71 kilometres (44 mi) north west of Ballarat. It is one of two main towns in the Pyrenees Shire, the other being Beaufort to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homebush, Victoria</span> Town in Victoria, Australia

Homebush is a locality 10 kilometres (6 mi) from Avoca in central Victoria, Australia. It is located within the Pyrenees Shire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amphitheatre, Victoria</span> Town in Victoria, Australia

Amphitheatre is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located on the Pyrenees Highway in the Pyrenees Shire, south-west of Avoca. At the 2021 census, Amphitheatre and the surrounding area had a population of 223.

Adelaide Lead is a locality in Victoria, Australia, located on Old Avoca Road, 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) south-west of Maryborough, west of the Paddy Ranges State Park, in the Shire of Central Goldfields. Located on the northern slopes of the Central Highlands, the area is naturally characterised by Box-Ironbark forest. Remnants of Aboriginal settlement include rock wells beside Possum Gully Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lamplough, Victoria</span> Town in Victoria, Australia

Lamplough is a locality near Avoca, Victoria in Australia. It was the site of a gold rush from November 1859 and up to 16,000 people were on the site. The lead was worked for a distance of nearly 3 miles (5 km) to the point where it ran into the water and was abandoned.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pyrenees Highway, Victoria</span> Highway in western Victoria, Australia

Pyrenees Highway is a rural highway in western Victoria, Australia, linking Ararat to Elphinstone. It was named after the Pyrenees ranges, the set of low mountain ridges the road travels through.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shire of Avoca</span> Local government area in Victoria, Australia

The Shire of Avoca was a local government area about 180 kilometres (112 mi) northwest of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The shire covered an area of 1,124 square kilometres (434.0 sq mi), and existed from 1861 until 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avoca railway station</span> Former railway station in Victoria, Australia

Avoca railway station is a railway station on the Avoca line in the town of Avoca, Victoria. It was first opened on Saturday, 21 October 1876 however was closed for gauge conversion on Friday, 14 April 1995. Again the railway was opened on Sunday, 28 April 1995, then the line was booked out of service on Friday, 21 January 2005. Although no longer in use, Avoca retains a brick station building, platform and goods shed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avoca railway line</span> Railway line in Victoria, Australia

The Maryborough–Avoca–Ararat railway is a railway line in western Victoria, Australia. It is one of the few railway lines in the state to have been closed and then reopened. Today it is a standard gauge branch line connecting the Western SG with Bung Bong (ballast) and Dunolly (grain), running through Maryborough station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timor, Victoria</span> Town in Victoria, Australia

Timor (/ˈtaɪˈmɔː/), short-speak for the adjoining localities of Bowenvale and Timor, in the Central Goldfields Shire of Victoria, Australia. Their shared boundary is 8 kilometres (5 mi) north of Maryborough, Victoria and 178 kilometres (111 mi) northwest of Melbourne, the state capital.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Natte Yallock</span> Town in Victoria, Australia

Natte Yallock is a locality in the Australian state of Victoria. Natte Yallock is located in the Pyrenees Shire local government area, 200 km north-west of the state capital, Melbourne, and 90 km from the regional cities of Bendigo and Ballarat. At the 2006 census, Natte Yallock and the surrounding area had a population of 188.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homebush railway station, Victoria</span> Former railway station in Victoria, Australia

Homebush railway station is a former station on the Avoca railway line in Victoria, Australia. It served the gold-mining town of Homebush.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elmhurst railway station</span> Former railway station in Victoria, Australia

The disused Elmhurst railway station was a rail station in Elmhurst, Victoria, Australia on the Avoca railway line.

Ben Nevis railway station is an abandoned station on the Avoca railway line, a railway line running from Ararat to Avoca and onto Maryborough in the Australian state of Victoria. It also acted as the terminus of the abandoned Navarre railway line to Navarre, a community in the Wimmera region of Victoria, which was closed in 1954.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glenmona Bridge</span> Bridge in Victoria, Australia

Glenmona Bridge is a riveted wrought iron lattice-girder deck-truss road bridge on the old route between the Ararat and central goldfields over the Bet Bet Creek at Bung Bong, Victoria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moonambel</span> Town in Victoria, Australia

Moonambel is a town in the Pyrenees region of the Australian state of Victoria, situated along the Stawell-Avoca Road [about 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from the junction with the Sunraysia Highway]. The town is located in the Pyrenees Shire Local Government Area, near the heart of the Pyrenees wine region. The name 'Moonambel' is believed to be an aboriginal word meaning 'hollow in the hills'.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richmond Lass</span> Australian Standardbred racehorse

Richmond Lass won 31 races as a harness racer and went on to win the 1969 Inter Dominion Pacing Championship. The horse was owned by Fred Miller, from Richmond House, Bung Bong, Victoria and driven by "respected local horseman Jack Moore."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rathscar, Victoria</span> Town in Victoria, Australia

Rathscar is a locality in Pyrenees Shire and the Shire of Central Goldfields. The area to the east of the Avoca River known as Rathscar West was surveyed in 1899.

Wareek is a locality which in Pyrenees Shire and the Shire of Central Goldfields.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bet Bet Creek</span> River

Bet Bet Creek in west Victoria starts below Ben Major, Victoria at an elevation of 479m and ends at an elevation of 165m flowing into the Loddon River at the Laanecoorie Reservoir. The Bet Bet Creek drops around 314m over its 87.8 km length and ultimately contributes to the Murray River system. The six creeks flowing into the Bet Bet Creek are: Moina Creek, Doctors Creek, Caralulup Creek, Timor Creek, Carmanuel Creek and the Burnt Creek.

References

  1. ↑ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Bung Bong (Suburb and Locality)". 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 4 August 2024. OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  2. ↑ Saxton, John George (1907). Victoria Place-Names and their origins. Cliffton Hills: Saxton and Buckie. Archived from the original on 26 April 2019.
  3. ↑ Healy, Chris (27 March 1997). From the Ruins of Colonialism: History as Social Memory. Melbourne, Victoria: Cambridge University Press. ISBN   9780521562782.
  4. 1 2 "Post Office List". Phoenix Auctions History. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  5. 1 2 "Bet Bet Creek Road Bridge (Place ID 16055)". Australian Heritage Database . Australian Government.
  6. ↑ "Ploughing Matches: Bung Bong". The Australasian - cited from the Maryborough Standard. 13 July 1878. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  7. ↑ "Ploughing Matches: The Bung Bong Match". The Argus . 7 August 1886. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  8. ↑ "Faces of CFA: Ken Calder". 3 May 2017. Archived from the original on 24 August 2017. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
  9. ↑ "A disastrous bush fire". 20 December 1880.
  10. ↑ "News scraps". Kyneton Guardian. 1 January 1881.
  11. 1 2 "Can Girl match the feats of Lass?". Harness News. 11 June 2016. Archived from the original on 30 July 2017. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  12. ↑ "Generous donation for Wareek & Bung Bong Fire Brigade". 3 October 2016. Archived from the original on 24 August 2017. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
  13. ↑ Harness Racing,Wayville (S.A) 01/03/1969 Inter-Dominion Grand Final (Richmond Lass-K.Brook). 22 August 2014. Archived from the original on 29 April 2020. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  14. ↑ "Mystic Peak Reef". The Argus . 2 December 1937. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  15. ↑ "ECR Minerals completes Bung Bong gold drilling". Proactive Investors. 3 May 2018. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  16. ↑ "Murray Basin Rail Project". Public Transport Victoria. 2013. Archived from the original on 4 August 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  17. ↑ Hunt, Peter (26 May 2017). "Rail freight Victoria: Works to cause more delays for grain". The Weekly Times. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  18. ↑ "Murray Basin rail project". Archived from the original on 8 March 2019. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  19. ↑ Steed, Lachy (14 July 2017). "Relief at decision to keep key road open". Maryborough Advertiser. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  20. ↑ Martinich, Rex (30 January 2018). "Ararat rail freight is back after 13 years sitting idle". The Courier. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  21. ↑ "Bung Bong Primary School". Public Records Office Victoria. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  22. ↑ "Bung Bong People's Liberal Party". Maryborough and Dunolly Advertiser. 20 March 1914. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  23. ↑ "Moore's Flat Primary School". Public Record Office. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  24. ↑ "Moore's Flat Primary School". Maryborough and Dunolly Advertiser. 29 June 1914. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  25. ↑ "Avoca Heritage Study: 1864 - 1994, Volume 3". Pyrenees Shire Council . February 1995. pp. 148–171. Archived from the original on 18 March 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
  26. ↑ "Flora" (PDF). Data From: Atlas of Victorian Wildlife, Biodiversity and Natural Resources. May 2005. Archived from the original on 19 October 2009. Retrieved 22 June 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  27. ↑ "Fauna" (PDF). Data From: Atlas of Victorian Wildlife, Biodiversity and Natural Resources. May 2005. Archived from the original on 19 October 2009. Retrieved 22 June 2017.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  28. ↑ "Bung Bong Nature Conservation Reserve". Parks Victoria. 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  29. ↑ "Bung Bong Nature Conservation Reserve., Victoria, AU". Cornell Lab of Ornithology. 13 November 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  30. ↑ "Wareek Bung Bong Cemetery". February 2009. Archived from the original on 15 April 2018.
  31. ↑ "Bung Bong & Wareek Cemetery". 2006. Archived from the original on 1 November 2022.
  32. ↑ "The opening of the "On to Victory (138)" tent of I. O. R." The Avoca Mail. 25 November 1870.
  33. ↑ Stout, Robert. "Victorian Tent Register". New Zealand Electronic text collection. p. 70. Archived from the original on 25 September 2016.
  34. ↑ "The Bung Bong Farmers Club". Avoca Mail. 16 August 1878.
  35. ↑ "Bung Bong Anglican Church - Former". Churches Australia. 30 July 2018. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  36. ↑ "Bung Bong Rest Area". Caravan on Tour. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
  37. ↑ "Bung Bong District roll of honour". Monument Australia.

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