It was now Thursday 30th November 2023 and almost the end of our trip to Victoria. It was time for Marija and I to leave Melbourne and head for Ararat in western Victoria, a drive of about 200 km.
Above:- Map showing the route between Melbourne and Ararat. Map c/o Google Maps.
Our first stop of the day was at the little town of Beaufort, on the Western Highway, about 445 km northwest of Ballarat. We enjoyed an early lunch at one of the local cafes.
The Beaufort area was first settled by Europeans with several prosperous pastoral runs including the Langhi Kal Kal Run in 1838 which contained current-day Beaufort. In 1854 gold was discovered just north of Beaufort at Yam Holes Creek and within a year the area was being extensively mined and was known as the Firey Creek diggings. Fiery Creek flows westwards of Beaufort and was named following a drought due to the heat-generated haze over the creek bed. (Victorian Places 2024)
Above:- Article from the Geelong Advertside, Thu 26 Jul 1855. Image c/o Trove.
Following the gold rush a hastily built town ensued and in March 1858 surveyed township blocks were sold. Beaufort was named in honour of Sir Francis Beaufort (b. 1774. d. 1857), a British Rear Admiral and hydrographer.
Beaufort is one of my favourite towns in Victoria. It is a place that Marija and I always stop at. The town contains several historic buildings including the Band Rotunda built in 1903, the Beautfort Fire Brigade established in 1874 and rebuilt in 1911, the Mechanics Institute built in 1863, and the Golden Age Hotel built in 1864. (Destination Beaufort 2024)
There is also a bust of John Wootherspoon, the first Secretary of the Ripponshire Council (1863-1866).
Whilst in Beaufort, Marija and I saw a number of hot rods towing small caravans, either returning home from, or off to some sort of a car show.
Marija and I continued west on the Western Highway and soon reached Ararat, about 85 km west of Ballarat and 198 km northwest of Melbourne.
Horatio Spencer Howe Wills (b. 1811. d. 1861) is credited with naming Mount Ararat. He overlanded with his family to the Grampians region of the Port Phillip District (now Victoria) in the late 1830s. He purchased a 125,000 acred property called Lexington near Moyston. He built a house on the property which was completed in 1845. He hired aboriginal people to work on his property as station hands and harvesters. He named Mount Ararat for ‘like the arc, we rested there’. (Aust Dict of Biography 2024) (Victorian Places 2024)
Above:- Horatio WIlls. Image c/o Wikipedia.
Horatio Wills son Thomas ‘Tom’ Wills was a talented cricketer and a founder of Australian Rules Football.
Above:- Tom Wills. Image co Wikipedia.
In 1861 Horatio Wills moved In 1861, Horatio moved north to Queensland, near Rockhampton. Just three weeks later, on the 17th day of October 1861, he along with 18 others, was murdered by aboriginal people at Cullin-la-ringo. This included women and children. Known as the ‘Cullin-la-ringo massacre’ or the ‘Wills Tragedy’, this was the largest massacre of white people by aboriginal people in Australian history. (The Wills Tragedy 1861)
Above:- The arrival of the neighbouring squatters collecting and burying the dead following the massacre. Image c/o WIkipedia.
Marija and I booked into our accommodation and offloaded some of our luggage from the 4WD.
We then visited the Gum San Chinese Heritage Centre. Marija and I have visited and driven through Ararat so many times and we have always commented ‘we must visit Gum San’ but we always seem to be short of time. This time we made a point of visiting the centre and we were not disappointed.
As the Gum San website states: “Ararat is the only town in Australia that was founded by Chinese miners that arrived in the mid-1850s chasing the riches to be found at the Victorian Goldfields.” (Gum San 2024)
The Gum San Chinese Heritage Centre tells the story of Chinese miners travelling by sea to Australia and the hardships and prejudices they had to endure as they made their way to Victoria’s rich goldfields. The staff here were incredibly welcoming, friendly and knowledgeable. We spent a number of hours walking around the centre viewing the many very interesting exhibits.
I even got to try my hand at painting our children’s and grandchildren’s names in Chinese.
Marija and I then visited Alexandra Gardens at Ararat.
The gardens were established with plant material supplied by Baron Ferdinand Von Muller from the Melbourne Botanical Gardens. The site was gazetted as a botanical garden in 1862 and was established according to a plan provided by Dr. Muller. (Goldfields Guide 2024)
Marija and I enjoyed some afternoon tea in the gardens.
We then headed out to undertake a park activation at the Ararat Bushland Reserve VKFF-4300.
Above:- Map showing the location of the Ararat Bushland Reserve. Map c/o Google Maps.
The reserve is located on the corner of Railway Road and Common Road.
Above:- An aerial view of the reserve showing its boundaries. Image c/o Google Earth.
The reserve is about 12 hectares in size and was established on the 22nd day of November 1983. (CAPAD 2022)
Marija worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-
- VK3PF
- VK3KAI
- VK2USH
- VK3SG
- Vk1AO
- VK2MET
- VK3BEL
- VK5HS
- VK4MUD/p (Boat Mountain Conservation Park VKFF-1480)
Marija worked the following stations on 40m AM:-
- VK3PF
- VK3KAI
- VK3BEL
- VK3RM
- VK3BWS
Marija worked the following station on 20m SSB:-
- VK4MUD/p (Boat Mountain Conservation Park VKFF-1480)
I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-
- VK3PF
- VK3KAI
- VK2USH
- VK3SG
- VK1AO
- VK2MET
- VK3BEL
- VK5HS
- VK3UAO
- VK3GB
- VK3JG/p
- VK4MUD/p (Boat Mountain Conservation Park VKFF-1480)
- VK3BWS
- VK3KMA
- VK5FANA
- VK3HBG
- VK3PWG
- VK3KTT
- VK3MEG
- VK2DWP
- VK4HMI
- VK3YV
- VK3TNL
- VK3SQ
- VK2BD
- VK3BBB
- VK2CCP
- VK7MAT
I worked the following stations on 40m AM:-
- VK3PF
- VK3KAI
- VK3BEL
- VK3RM
- VK3BWS
- VK3YV
- VK3TNL
- VK3SQ
- VK2BD
I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-
- VK4JT
- VK4XCS
- VK6NTE
- VK4MUD/p (Boat Mountain Conservation Park VKFF-1480)
- VK1AO
- VK2MET
- F1BLL
- ZL3MW
- IW2BNA
- VK4HAT
- VK4EMP
- VK4TI
- VK4OZI
- KG5CIK
I worked the following station on 15m SSB:-
- VK4MUD/p (Boat Mountain Conservation Park VKFF-1480)
References.
- Dcceew.gov.au. (2023). Collaborative Australian Protected Areas Database (CAPAD) 2022 – DCCEEW. [online] Available at: https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/land/nrs/science/capad/2022 [Accessed 1st May 2024].
- Destination Beaufort – Your Grampians Gateway. (2023). Beaufort Historical Walk – Destination Beaufort. [online] Available at: https://destinationbeaufort.com.au/listings/beaufort-historical-walk/ [Accessed 2 May 2024].
- GUM SAN CHINESE HERITAGE CENTRE. (n.d.). GUM SAN CHINESE HERITAGE CENTRE. [online] Available at: https://www.gumsan.com.au/ [Accessed 1 May 2024].
- https. (n.d.). Alexandra Gardens. [online] Available at: https://www.goldfieldsguide.com.au/explore-location/210/alexandra-gardens/ [Accessed 1 May 2024].
- Sayers, C.E. (n.d.). Horatio Spencer Howe Wills (1811–1861). [online] Australian Dictionary of Biography. Available at: https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/wills-horatio-spencer-howe-2799 [Accessed 2 May 2024].
- THE WILLS’ TRAGEDY. (1861). Sydney Morning Herald. [online] 16 Nov. Available at: https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/13062373 [Accessed 2 May 2024].
- http://www.victorianplaces.com.au. (n.d.). Beaufort | Victorian Places. [online] Available at: https://www.victorianplaces.com.au/beaufort [Accessed 1 May 2024].
- http://www.victorianplaces.com.au. (n.d.). Ararat | Victorian Places. [online] Available at: https://www.victorianplaces.com.au/ararat. [Accessed 2 May 2024].
VK5PAS 