Ballarat is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. Ballarat has a population of 119,096 as of March 2024 making it the third-largest urban inland city in Australia and the third-largest city in Victoria.
The Victorian gold rush was a period in the history of Victoria, Australia, approximately between 1851 and the late 1860s. It led to a period of extreme prosperity for the Australian colony and an influx of population growth and financial capital for Melbourne, which was dubbed "Marvellous Melbourne" as a result of the procurement of wealth.
Ararat is a town in the Central Highlands region in Victoria, Australia, about 198 kilometres (120 mi) west of Melbourne, on the Western Highway on the eastern slopes of the Ararat Hills and Cemetery Creek valley between Victoria's Western District and the Wimmera. Its urban population according to 2021 census is 8,500 and services the region of 11,880 residents across the Rural City's boundaries. It is also the home of the 2018/19 GMGA Golf Championship Final.
Spencer Street is a major street and thoroughfare in the Melbourne central business district, Victoria, Australia. The street was gazetted in 1837 as the westernmost boundary of the Hoddle Grid.
Maldon is a town in Victoria, Australia, in the Shire of Mount Alexander local government area. It has been designated "Australia's first notable town" and is notable for its 19th-century appearance, maintained since gold-rush days. At the 2016 census, Maldon had a population of 1,513.
Walhalla is a town in Victoria, Australia, founded as a gold-mining community in late 1862, and at its peak, home to around 4,000 residents. As of 2023, the town has a population of 20 permanent residents, though it has a large proportion of houses owned as holiday properties. It attracts large numbers of tourists and is a major focus of the regional tourism industry. The town's name is taken from an early gold mine in the area, named for the German hall of fame, the Walhalla temple.
Ballarat East is a suburb of Ballarat in Victoria, Australia. From 1857 until 1921 the suburb had its own council. The suburb covers a large area east of the city centre. It is the oldest urban area in Ballarat and was the site of many goldmines, as well as of the Eureka Rebellion.
Talbot is a town in Victoria, Australia. At the 2016 census, Talbot had a population of 442.
The earliest trams in Australia operated in the latter decades of the 19th century, hauled by horses or "steam tram motors". At the turn of the 20th century, propulsion almost universally turned to electrification, although cable trams lingered in Melbourne. In cities and towns that had trams, they were a major part of public transport assets.
The Ballarat–Skipton Rail Trail in western Victoria, Australia, runs 53 kilometres along the old Skipton railway line from western Ballarat, southwest through Haddon, Smythesdale and Pittong to Skipton. The trail was in poor condition for many years before being upgraded and resurfaced in 2008, at a cost of $700,000, funded in roughly equal measure by local, state and federal government. The new surface is "compacted granitic sand". The total length of the trail is 53km including an 8km section from Ballarat railway station to the trailhead.
The Goldfields region of Victoria is a region commonly used but typically defined in both historical geography and tourism geography. The region is also known as the Victorian Golden Triangle.
Canadian is a residential suburb in Ballarat, Victoria, located 3km south-east of Ballarat Central. At the 2021 census, Canadian had a population of 4,098.
Soldiers Hill is a suburb of Ballarat, Victoria, Australia located directly north of the Central Business District. At the 2021 census, Soldiers Hill had a population of 2,813.
Trams in Ballarat were first used for public transport in 1887. They ceased to operate as a means of public transport in 1971, but a section continues to be operated today as a tourist attraction.
The Welcome Nugget was a large gold nugget, weighing 2,217 troy ounces 16 pennyweight. (68.98 kg), that was discovered by a group of twenty-two Cornish miners at the Red Hill Mining Company site at Bakery Hill in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia, on 9 June 1858. It was located in the roof of a tunnel 55 metres underground. Shaped roughly like a horse's head, it measured around 49 cm (19 in) long by 15 cm (5.9 in) wide and 15 cm (5.9 in) high, and had a roughly indented surface. It was assayed by William Birkmyre of the Port Phillip Gold Company and given its name by finder Richard Jeffery. Eclipsed by the discovery of the larger Welcome Stranger eleven years later in 1869, it remains the second largest gold nugget ever found.
Bakery Hill is an inner city suburb of Ballarat in Victoria, Australia. It is the smallest suburb in the city of Ballarat in terms of both area and population, which at the 2021 census was just 180 people. The area is a mix of residential and commercial, as it has been since it came into existence at the beginning of the gold rush. In the present time it is mainly known for its restaurants and pubs, as well as fast food. The suburb boundaries are that of Mair, East, Barkly, Steinfield and Peel Streets.
Golden Point is a suburb of Ballarat, Victoria, Australia located south-east of the CBD. It is the oldest settlement in Greater Ballarat. Gold was discovered at Poverty Point on 21 August 1851 by John Dunlop and James Regan, sparking the Ballarat gold rush. Golden Point was the site of what was known as the Ballarat diggings, and for at least a decade the focal point of the original Ballarat township was Main Street. At the 2021 census, Golden Point had a population of 2,217.
Mount Pleasant is the oldest residential suburb of Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. It is located on the southern extremity of the city between the Yarrowee Creek and the White Horse Range. Physically it is largely cut off from the rest of Ballarat which contributes to a sense of a suburb apart. The traditional Wathaurung country was first settled in 1836 when the Yuille brothers established a sheep run that included the sheltered corner under the escarpment later named Mount Pleasant. In those days, before there was a town at Ballarat, Buninyong was the nearest township. When the gold rush of 1851 brought thousands of diggers to nearby Golden Point, Mount Pleasant was left alone as no gold was initially found there. Its peacefulness made it attractive to a number of Cornish miners and their families who had come to Australia to settle permanently. These Wesleyans were the founders of the community. As devout and sober church people they sought a place to live away from the drunken mayhem of the diggings around Main Road.
Shantytown Heritage Park, usually known as Shantytown, is a tourist attraction in the West Coast Region of the South Island of New Zealand. Located 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) south of Greymouth, the Heritage Park opened in 1971 and consists of 30 re-created historic buildings making up a 19th-century gold-mining town. The town is surrounded by native forest, and is one of the region's most popular attractions.
Bunkers Hill is a locality on the southern rural fringe of the City of Ballarat in Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Bunkers Hill had a population of 270.
