53-621: Tarraville is a town in Gippsland , Victoria , Australia, located near the mouth of the Tarra River and 236 kilometres (147 mi) southeast of Melbourne . Tarraville was established as a village in 1841, when the land was selected as part of the Reeve's Special Survey . Its name comes from the Tarra River , which is named after Charlie Tarra , an Aboriginal who travelled with Paweł Strzelecki when he explored Gippsland. The wreckage of
106-551: A median age of 49. The highest peak in the range is Mount Bogong at an elevation of 1,986 metres (6,516 ft) AHD , which is also the highest peak in Victoria. Other prominent peaks within the region are as follows; Mount Feathertop at an elevation of 1,922 metres (6,306 ft) AHD , Mount Hotham at an elevation of 1,862 metres (6,109 ft) AHD and Mount Buffalo at an elevation of 1,723 metres (5,653 ft) AHD ,. The majority of unique flora
159-533: A name chosen by Strzelecki in honour of the New South Wales Governor , George Gipps , his sponsor. Angus McMillan led the second European expedition between 1840, naming Gunai country "Caledonia Australis". The naming of this geographical region, however, remained the name given by P. E. Strzelecki – Gippsland. The township of Bass was surveyed and colonised in the early 1860s. The intensive colonisation of south Gippsland began late in
212-519: A site called the cross, which is the highest section of sealed road in Australia; the site was a popular tourist destination with motorists in the 1920s and 1930s. The introduction of snow-sports to Victoria began in the 1910s, with the government-funded building of the Mount Buffalo chalet . The chalet is the largest wooden building in Australia and was for many years the only ski field in
265-655: A squatter agricultural settlement on the Bass River in Gippsland, the third permanent colonial settlement in Victoria (then called the Port Phillip District ). His business partner Robert Massie joined him in 1837. Both had worked for the Van Diemen's Land Company at Circular Head, Tasmania. Samuel's brothers Hugh (1808–1898) and Thomas (1814–1903) arrived at Bass shortly after, where they established
318-503: A successful farming venture. Further European colonisation followed two separate expeditions to the area. During his expedition to the South (December 1839 – May 1840) in March 1840, Polish explorer Paweł Edmund Strzelecki led an expedition across Gunai country, and gave his own names to many of their natural landmarks and places. Following these expeditions, the name "Gippsland" stuck,
371-645: A total of 485,722 visitor days. Large events such as the Peaks Challenge which sees cyclists ride 235 km through the High Plains, contribute to these numbers. The Dinner Plain Polo is another yearly event that sees a rise in tourist numbers in the area. Founded 31 years ago, the Dinner Plain Polo is the longest, and highest in altitude running polo competition in Australia. Bushwalking
424-569: Is Mount Hotham . Other Victorian ski fields include Mount Baw Baw , Mount Stirling , Lake Mountain , Falls Creek and previously Mount Buffalo . Ski touring within the Victorian Alps is also very popular with famed routes such as the Twin Valleys, Mount Bogong, Feathertop Ridge and other Mount Hotham side country routes. There are many converted cattleman's huts that litter the alpine landscape to accommodate such activities. On
477-538: Is also the source of many of Victoria's water ways, including Murray and Yarra Rivers and the Gippsland Lakes . The valleys beneath the high plains are surrounded by wineries and orchards because of this abundance of water. The region is also home to Victoria's largest national park , the Alpine National Park , which covers over 646,000 hectares (1,600,000 acres). The establishment of
530-506: Is found above the timberline at 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) AHD , the region above the forest of Eucalyptus (ADH). The unique flora includes the largest range of Tussock Grasses ( Poa spp.), Herbaceous Daisies, Eyebrights and Carexes (small sedges) in Australia. Many other small vegetation ecosystems appear on the High Plains, including but not limited to Tussock grassland, Alpine shrubby heathland, Subalpine woodland and Tall Alpine herb field. Important or notable species within
583-538: Is now the Hume region to the Bogong high plains, settling in the area because of its abundance of natural grass fields. These early settlements were often seasonal as the harsh winter made grazing and mining impractical. The communities in the Victorian Alps were disconnected from Australian civilisation, which bred a distinctive way of life epitomised in the famed poem by Banjo Patterson , " The Man from Snowy River ". After
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#1732797229797636-493: Is on the endangered species list due to the severe fires in the region over the past decades. The Baw Baw frog is critically endangered with estimated number being below 1,000, the major threat to this species is a disease from the fungus Amphibian Chytrid called Chytridiomycosis. Mountain streams are also populated by species of small fish such as the Mountain Galaxia . There is very limited fauna diversity within
689-461: Is required for agriculture or pastoral development. Despite this, parts of Gippsland have become highly productive dairying and vegetable-growing regions: the region supplies Melbourne with most of its needs in these commodities. A few alluvial soils (chiefly near the Snowy) have much better native fertility, and these have always been intensively cultivated. In the extreme northeast is a small section of
742-542: Is temperate and generally humid, except in the central region around Sale , where annual rainfall averages around 600 millimetres (24 in). In the Strzelecki Ranges annual rainfall can be as high as 1,500 millimetres (59 in), while on the high mountains of East Gippsland it probably reaches similar levels – much of it falling as snow . In lower levels east of the Snowy River , mean annual rainfall
795-730: Is typically about 900–950 millimetres (35–37 in) and less variable than in the coastal districts of New South Wales. Mean maximum temperatures in lower areas range from 24 °C (75 °F) in January to 15 °C (59 °F) in July. In the highlands of the Baw Baw Plateau and the remote Errinundra Plateau , temperatures range from a maximum of 18 °C (64 °F) to a minimum of 8 °C (46 °F). However, in winter, mean minima in these areas can be as low as −4 °C (25 °F), leading to heavy snowfalls that often isolate
848-418: The 2016 Australian census , Gippsland had a population of 271,266, with the principal centres Traralgon , Warragul , Drouin , Bairnsdale , Moe , Sale , Morwell , Wonthaggi , Leongatha , and Phillip Island . Gippsland is known for mining, power generation and farming as well as its tourist destinations — Phillip Island , Wilsons Promontory , the Gippsland Lakes , Walhalla , the Baw Baw Plateau , and
901-612: The Alfred National Park , Baw Baw National Park , Coopracambra National Park , Croajingolong National Park , Errinundra National Park , Gippsland Lakes Coastal Park , Lind National Park , Mitchell River National Park , Morwell National Park , Snowy River National Park , Tarra-Bulga National Park , The Lakes National Park , and Wilsons Promontory National Park . There are also large areas of State forest that contribute towards conservation objectives. Victorian Alps The Victorian Alps , also known locally as
954-795: The Bogong High Plains , Bowen Range, Cathedral Range , Cobberas Range , and numerous other smaller ranges, the Victorian Alps include the Alpine Shire , parts of the East Gippsland Shire , and some parts of the Mansfield Shire local government areas . The Alps are sometimes called the High Plains or High Country. The 2016 Australian Bureau of Statistics census showed that the Alpine Shire had 12,337 permanent residents with 49.2% male and 50.8% female, and
1007-552: The Gippsland and Hume regions. The Victorian Alps were a significant meeting place for multiple Indigenous tribes from all-over South-east Australia. Seasonally Indigenous peoples from many tribes would meet at the highest peaks for trade, settling of disputes, marriage and initiation ceremonies. Whilst on the high plains the tribes would feast upon the Bogong moth , a moth that migrates from breeding grounds in Queensland to
1060-587: The Great Dividing Range ). It covers an elongated area of 41,556 km (16,045 sq mi) east of the Shire of Cardinia ( Melbourne 's outermost southeastern suburbs ) between Dandenong Ranges and Mornington Peninsula , and is bounded to the north by the mountain ranges and plateaus / highlands of the High Country (which separate it from Hume region in Victoria's northeast), to
1113-591: The High Country , is a large mountain system in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria . Occupying the majority of eastern Victoria, it is the southwestern half of the Australian Alps (the other half being the Snowy Mountains ), the tallest portion of the Great Dividing Range . The Yarra and Dandenong Ranges , both sources of rivers and drinking waters for Melbourne (Victoria's capital , largest city and home to three quarters of
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#17327972297971166-471: The Monaro Tableland used for grazing beef cattle . Gippsland possesses very few deposits of metallic minerals ( gold rushes in the nineteenth century around Foster , Buchan petered out quickly). However, the deep underground gold mines operated at Walhalla for a fifty-year period between 1863 and 1913. Gippsland has no deposits of major industrial nonmetallic minerals, but it does feature
1219-514: The PS Clonmel was an influence on the founding of Tarraville. Because Tarraville was founded on a path to Port Albert , it grew quickly, containing about 50 buildings at the end of 1844. In 1851, it became a government township, after having been a private township since 1843. In the 1850s, when people travelled from Port Albert to fields in Omeo when gold had been discovered there, Tarraville
1272-689: The Strzelecki Ranges . It also includes around a hundred islands, mostly between the mainland and Tasmania. The traditional owners are Indigenous Australians of the Gunai nation and in part of West Gippsland the Bunurong nation. Before permanent European colonisation, the area was visited by sealers and wattle bark gatherers who did not settle . Samuel Anderson (1803–1863), a Scottish immigrant from Kirkcudbright , agriculturist and explorer, arrived in Hobart, Tasmania , in 1830, and in 1835 established
1325-481: The 1870s. A story of that process is told in, The land of the Lyre Bird (1920). Before the cancellation of the 2026 Commonwealth Games , Gippsland was set to serve as one of its hosts in regional Victoria. Gippsland is traditionally subdivided into four or five main sub–regions or districts: Gippsland Plains Grassy Woodland is an endangered vegetation community within the region. The climate of Gippsland
1378-469: The 2016 census, the total population was 80, and 53.2% of people were male and 46.8% female. There were about 20 families, an average of 0.4 children per family, and a median age of 51. Households were 66, with an average of 1.8 people per household. Tarraville contains an Anglican church, built by J. H. W. Pettit and George Hastings in 1856. Constructed of wood, the church has been painted blue and cream. It has attracted attention from visitors, due to being
1431-571: The Alpine National Park has meant that economic activities such as mining , logging and agriculture are limited, to preserve the natural ecosystem for visitors. Tourism within the region centres around snow sports in winter and various outdoor activities during the summer months. The Australian Alps is an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia sub- bioregion of approximately 519,866 hectares (1,284,620 acres), and an administrative sub-region of Victoria bordering
1484-715: The Errinundra Plateau between June and October. Gippsland is home to many species of flora and fauna. Animals that live there include the swamp wallaby , koala , echidna and wombat . Native plants and trees include grass trees ( Xanthorrhoea australis ), which provide a valuable food source of nectar, pollen, larvae and seeds for birds, insects and mammals. The soils in Gippsland are generally very infertile, being profoundly deficient in nitrogen , phosphorus , potassium and calcium . Apart from frequently flooded areas, they are classed as Spodosols , Psamments and Ultisols . Consequently, heavy fertilisation
1537-631: The Nationals. For elections for the Victorian Legislative Assembly , the electoral districts of Bass , Narracan , Morwell , Gippsland South and Gippsland East lay entirely or partly in the Gippsland region. Bass is held by Labor, Narracan is held by the Liberals, while Gippsland East, Gippsland South and Morwell are held by the Nationals. Gippsland contains six local government areas : The Gippsland region contains
1590-732: The Second World War a growing population increased the demand for timber from the Victorian Alps. This added growth to the economy of the area with the building of a series of roads, train-lines and bridges, the most prominent of these being the Great Alpine Road , a 308 km fully paved mountain pass that connects Bairnsdale in East Gippsland, to Wangaratta in Central Victoria. The road reaches an altitude of 1,845 metres (6,053 ft) AHD at
1643-423: The Victorian Alps during the summer months. Baron Ferdinand von Mueller , Angus McMillan and Alfred Howitt were some of the first Victorian settlers to explore the Victorian Alps in the early 1850s. Gold was found in the region in 1852 and brought thousands to the high plains. In search of grazing pastures men such as John Mitchell, George Gray, James Brown and John Wells travelled from central Victoria in what
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1696-413: The Victorian Alps originated through continental splitting; secondly the Victorian Alps were never tall enough to develop large glaciers, and it is the erosion from ice that produces jagged peaks. The Victorian Alps are still being influenced by plate tectonics today, as continental collision with New Zealand drives the range up each year. This contradicts earlier theories about the range, which assumed
1749-605: The Victorian Alps. In the decades following skiing in the Alps grew slowly, predominantly centred around ski clubs such as the University Ski club which was founded in 1929 under the name Melbourne University Ski Club. In the early 1960s skiing began to evolve as ski fields started to install tow ropes and Austrian immigrants like Hans Grimus at Mount Buller and Peter Zirknisker at Mount Hotham , opened ski rental businesses and lodges at their respected mountains. Comprising
1802-519: The Victorian alps include: The Victorian alps is home to a variety of small marsupials and mammals , many of which are found nowhere else on earth. The Mountain pygmy possum is a prime example of this as it can only be found within the alpine regions of Victoria and NSW . Thought to be extinct until they were rediscovered in the 1960s at Mount Hotham , the Mountain pygmy possum is now on
1855-498: The Victorian alps, due to the climate, and exposed conditions. Introduced species are considerably dangerous to the delicate ecosystem that is the Victorian Alps. Red foxes are the fourth most common species found in the area due to the abundance of other introduced species such as rabbit and hare. Brumbies/wild Australian horses are also a major pest in the Victorian High Plains. The horse's hard hooves trample
1908-634: The closed school. The town in the present era has been described by The Sydney Morning Herald as a "sleepy town" and "little of importance". According to a book by the United States Government Publishing Office in 1920, one could travel from the town to Port Albert using a coach and to Melbourne using a railway. The census of 1851 revealed the population of the town to be 219. It increased to 227 in 1871, but decreased to 150 in 1911. The population dropped further to 105 in 1947 and grew slightly to 125 in 1961. In
1961-485: The critically endangered species list due to introduced predators like the fox, reduction in habitat and lowering number of the Bogong moth . The region is also home to echidna, common wombat , wallaby, kangaroo and bush rat. Other vertebrates found within the region include common native woodland bird species such as Robins, Sparrows, Rosellas, Fantails, Currawongs and Honeyeaters ; as well as six species of frog and several variants of skink. The Alpine she oak Skink
2014-476: The cull. Other introduced species within the region include Deer, pigs, goats, cats, trout and dogs. The Victorian Government's response to these pests in the national park involves extensive trapping and baiting programs ran by the Parks managers. As well as wild pests, production animals such as Cattle and sheep were previously also found in the Victorian Alps. Cattle grazing can cause major disturbances to
2067-514: The fishing of abalone , whose shells could fetch very high prices because of their use for pearls and pearl inlays. For Australian federal elections for the House of Representatives , the electoral divisions of Flinders , Monash , and Gippsland lay entirely or partly in the Gippsland region. Flinders and McMillan are currently held by the Liberal Party, while Gippsland is held by
2120-468: The late 1870s, after a railway was built going from Melbourne to Sale . Few buildings were left in Tarraville by the early 1900s. In 1903, most of the edges of the town were sea and the only public buildings left were a hotel, a school, three churches, a library, and a mechanics' institute. The school closed in 1988. Currently, Tarraville's Anglican Church is the only remaining public building aside from
2173-618: The local flora, because of this the Victorian Government has extended efforts to cull the wild horses from the national park. However, Initiatives to block the culling of Brumbies claiming they are “national icons” gained traction in May 2020, seeing the 2020 seasonal cull being put on hold. A supreme court injunction led by Phillip Maguire has caused this halting of the cull, as petitions on " Change.org ", led by OCEAN LEGAL have gathered over 100,000 signatures in support of preventing
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2226-539: The mountains size was due to years of erosion, in fact it is now believed that the Australian Alps are a relatively young range, forming their current peaks in the last 10 million years. The Victorian Alps receive some of the most rainfall in Victoria with locations such as Falls Creek elevation 1,765 metres (5,791 ft) AHD receiving an average of 12,273 millimetres (40.266 ft) annually from 1990 to 2020. The high volumes of water that fall within
2279-480: The natural flora and rare grass species found above the tree line 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) AHD . The effect the cattle have on the environment is amplified through the short growing season for alpine flora, which means that once they are disturbed it can take a long time to recover. Because of the severity of damage subdued to the Alpine national park flora the Victorian government banned cattle grazing in
2332-499: The park in 2015 as a part of the National Parks Amendment (Prohibiting Cattle Grazing) Bill 2015 . Cobungra station however continues the heritage of alpine cattle grazing, without damaging the flora above the tree line as it nestled between 1500m and 1000m in the foothills below Mount Hotham . Cobungra station is a significant staple of the Victorian alpine region as it boasts the largest wagyu station in
2385-517: The region, feed waterways such as the Yarra river, and Gippsland lakes. The Murray River is also fed by the Victorian Alps, and although the region only accounts for 1% of the Murray's catchment area it is estimated to provide over 29% to the annual flow. This is due to the high amounts of snow, and the unique alpine vegetation which has the ability to hold water and regulate its release throughout
2438-570: The second oldest timber building in Victoria and the oldest church in Gippsland. As of 2011, the church only provides limited services, but traditionally holds the Good Friday service for the region. Gippsland Gippsland ( / ˈ ɡ ɪ p s l æ n d / ) is a rural region in the southeastern part of Victoria , Australia , mostly comprising the coastal plains south of the Victorian Alps (the southernmost section of
2491-756: The southwest by the Western Port Bay , to the south and east by the Bass Strait and the Tasman Sea , and to the east and northeast by the Black–Allan Line (the easternmost section of the Victoria/ New South Wales state border). Gippsland is divided by the Strzelecki Ranges and tributaries of the Gippsland Lakes into West Gippsland , South Gippsland , Latrobe Valley , Central Gippsland and East Gippsland . At
2544-570: The state's population), are branches of the Victorian Alps. The promise of gold in the mid-1800s, during the Victorian Gold rush led to the European settlement of the area. The region's rich natural resources brought a second wave of agricultural settlers; the foothills around the Victorian Alps today has a large agrarian sector, with significant cattle stations being sold recently for over thirty million dollars. The Victorian Alps
2597-419: The state. In the Victorian Alps, bedrock is exposed along the entire range. Because of the exposed bedrock, Geologists have been able to determine that the rock types at surface of the range today were formed in an ancient ocean, between 530 and 400 million years ago. The Mountains in the range are flat and round when compared other prominent ranges around the world, this is due to two main factors. Firstly
2650-416: The whole the snow-sports industry brought over $ 911 million of gross state profit to the Victorian economy in the 2016/2017 financial year. Over the same period the region saw over 762,981 visitors across ski season which produced almost 1.4 million visitor nights. Summer recreation brings in lower annual visitor numbers as seen over the summer months in 2016/2017, when the region received 348,366 tourist for
2703-401: The world's largest brown coal deposits and, around Sale and offshore in the Bass Strait , some of the largest deposits of oil and natural gas in Australia. Like the rest of Australia, the seas around Gippsland are of very low productivity as there is no upwelling due to the warm currents in the Tasman Sea . Nonetheless, towns such as Marlo and Mallacoota depended for a long time on
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#17327972297972756-600: The year. Water from the Victorian Alps is also used for power generation at the Kiewa Hydroelectric scheme , although not as extensive as the Snowy Mountains Scheme , the Kiewa scheme still provides Victoria with 241MW. In the winter the main attraction in the Victorian Alps is the ski fields, the largest of which by number of lifts is Mount Buller and the largest of which by skiable terrain
2809-421: Was used as a stopping point. At this time, it was the largest town in Gippsland, containing many buildings, including multiple businesses and seven hotels. In 1850, a private school opened in the town, but closed in 1852. In 1856, a public school opened, and in 1859, a mechanics' institute hall was built. A tollgate was built at the entrance to Tarraville in 1860. Tarraville's population and activity decreased in
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