MANSFIELD
(includes Mount Buller, Mount Stirling and Sheepyard Flat)
(www.northeastvictoria.online)
The Taungurung People were the first adventurers to explore what is now the Mansfield, and the Mount Buller-Stirling areas. Bush tucker was abundant, the alpine streams provided fish, and the floodplains were home to other food sources, such as kangaroos and emus.
The Mansfield area was first settled by pastoralists, such as the Hunter and Watson Families in the late 1830s, and the township of Mansfield was first surveyed in 1851. Typical of many communities of the day, the main street (High Street) was made extra wide, so that bullock teams could make that all important u-turn.
The township, and surrounding communities, expanded rapidly during the gold rush days. Mansfield became a major stopping off point for gold miners in the Upper Goulburn and Jamieson River Valleys, and the wealth in the area soon attracted the notice of bushrangers.
The Blue Range, and rocky outlooks of Mount Samaria provided refuge for some of Victoria’s most notorious bushrangers; Ned Kelly and his gang in particular were attracted to the densely forested foothills around Tolmie, and Mansfield’s history is closely linked to the activities of the Kelly Gang.
A memorial to the three police officers slain at Stringybark Creek is in the middle of the first roundabout, as you enter town from the Yea - Alexandra direction); and the Kelly Tree, standing near a camping area at Stringybark Creek also marks this chapter of history. See the Bushranger section on the Homepage for more details of this rough and tumble era.
During, and after, the gold rush, mountain cattleman started using the high country, droving cattle up to Buller-Stirling for the summer grazing season.
Many of these cattle droving families built huts in the high country, and following the style of this tradition, the first chalet was built at Mount Buller in 1929.
In the late 1940s the modern day resort of Mount Buller began to take shape, with the construction of alpine style buildings, and several ski lifts.
Present day Mansfield hangs its Akubra as much on tourism as anything else, and it is a great place to visit. The town has a full range of shopping and services, as well as some great eateries, and a range of accommodation options.
The Visitor Information Centre is on the left (at the former railway station) as you drive in on the Maroondah Highway, and useful websites include, www.mansfieldonline.com.au and www.mansfield-mtbuller.com.au (see links below).
As well as enjoying the amenity of the town itself, there are plenty of great things to do in the area, such as . . .
MOUNT BULLER
MOUNT STIRLING
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COPYRIGHT © 1995-2024, Chris McLaughlin.