X-Nico

98 unusual facts about Victoria


1861 in Australia

8 July - The Geelong College is established by Reverend Alexander James Campbell in Newtown, Victoria.

1896 Carlton Football Club season

Carlton's primary home ground in 1896 was the University Cricket Ground, within the grounds of the University of Melbourne in Carlton; but, home matches were also moved to the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Jolimont, and to the Richmond City Reserve in Richmond.

1957 Night Series Cup

Games were played at the Lake Oval, Albert Park, then the home ground of South Melbourne, as it was the only ground equipped to host night games.

3NRG

The station was established to provide local news, information and community access to the township of Sunbury, in outer north west metropolitan Melbourne, as well as to the surrounding localities of Diggers Rest, The Gap, Couangult and Toolern Vale.

Alexander Robert Edgar

The family moved to Melbourne in February 1855, and about two years later his family settled at St Arnaud, then a small mining town.

Alma Park, St Kilda East

In 1859, the construction of the then Brighton railway line from St Kilda severed the park into two.

Anglesea Power Station

From 1955 test bores for coal were made at Anglesea by the Roche Brothers, who were then operating a mine at nearby Wensleydale where the coal reserves were dwindling.

Bells Beach, Victoria

The competition was first held in January 1961 and then at Easter every year since although occasionally, when conditions at Bells aren't suitable, the competition has been transferred to other breaks such as Johanna.

Bill Nicholls

On 18 June 2012, a twenty-six-year-old man was shot outside Nicholls's home in Corio.

Bruce Twamley

Bruce Richardson Twamley (born 23 May 1952 in Victoria, British Columbia) is a former Canadian international footballer.

Cardinia Reservoir

Cardinia Reservoir is a 287,000 megalitre water storage located in Emerald-Clematis-Dewhurst in south-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Australia.

Cardinia Transit

926 PakenhamWestfield Fountain Gate via Lakeside, Beaconsfield station & Berwick (Daily)

Cardinia Transit was formed in June 1996 when Grenda Corporation purchased Berwick Bus Lines and amalgamated them with Grenda's Bus Services' Pakenham depot.

Carlton B. Ardery, Jr.

Ardery, a native of Lexington, Kentucky, went directly from high school into U.S. Army Air Force flight training, graduating in 1943 as a second lieutenant at Aloe Field, Victoria, Texas.

CCGS Bartlett

The homeport of CCGS Bartlett is CCG Base Victoria in Victoria, British Columbia.

Celtic nations

Festivals celebrating the culture of the Celtic nations include the Festival Interceltique de Lorient (Brittany), the Pan Celtic Festival (Ireland), CeltFest Cuba (Havana, Cuba), the National Celtic Festival (Portarlington, Australia), the Celtic Media Festival (showcasing film and television from the Celtic nations), and the Eisteddfod (Wales).

Charles Nuttall

Nuttall, son of James Charles Nuttall, was born at Fitzroy, Victoria.

Clarice Beckett

Clarice Majoribanks Beckett (21 March 1887 – 7 July 1935) was an Australian painter born in Casterton, Victoria.

Daniel Merriweather

Daniel Paul Merriweather grew up in the Melbourne suburb of Sassafras in the Dandenong Ranges.

Daphne Pollard

Daphne Pollard (19 October 1892 in Fitzroy, Melbourne – 22 February 1978 in Los Angeles) was an Australian actress in American films, mostly short comedies.

Division of Indi

Other towns in the electorate include Rutherglen, Mansfield, Beechworth, Bethanga, Myrtleford, Corryong, Tallangatta, Euroa and a number of other small villages (notably including the ski resort of Falls Creek).

Drouin to Warragul Trail

The Drouin to Warragul Trail or Two Towns Trail is a cycling and walking path between Drouin and Warragul.

Drumcondra

Drumcondra, Victoria, Australia, a residential suburb of Geelong, overlooking Corio Bay.

Duigan pusher biplane

The aircraft was constructed by John Duigan with help from his brother, Reginald, on their family farm at Mia Mia.

Duke Trophy

They started skating at St Moritz Ice Palais in St Kilda in June 1946 and both eventually represented Victoria in interstate competition.

Empire Bay, New South Wales

The name was changed because there was already a post office named Sorrento in Victoria and Empire Bay was chosen because there was no other such name in the Commonwealth.

Eucalyptus sideroxylon

It is a very popular ornamental and street tree, Ferntree gully road in Melbourne has an avenue of Muggas planted.

Eureka Flag

Rebels swore an oath to the flag as a symbol of defiance at its first flying at Bakery Hill and 22 were killed at the Eureka Stockade defending the original flag (now held at the Museum of Australian Democracy at Eureka, on loan from the Art Gallery of Ballarat).

Fields of Omagh

Fields Of Omagh retired after his second Cox Plate win, and now resides at Living Legends, the International Home of Rest for Champion Horses located in Woodlands Historic Park, Greenvale, Victoria, Australia.

Foster Fyans

He also constructed a rock ford across the Barwon River in 1837, which gave name to the area now known as Breakwater, an eastern industrial and residential suburb of Geelong.

Frederick Azzopardi

Azzopardi was first elected in 1997 as the Deputy Mayor for Victoria, Gozo's Capital, and later in 1998 contested the General Elections when he was elected in the House of Representatives of Malta.

Frederick Illingworth

After his resignation from the Legislative Assembly in August 1907, he must have returned to Victoria, for he died at Brighton, Victoria on 8 September 1908, and was buried in Melbourne Cemetery.

George Pakos

He began work at the same time as a water-metre tecnnician for the city of Victoria, a job he continued for over 25 years.

George Stack

In 1990, he was appointed Vicar General for Clergy, a post based at Archbishop's House in Victoria, London.

Gippsland Art Gallery

The Gippsland Art Gallery is a Victorian Regional Public Gallery based in Sale, Victoria, 220 kilometres east of Melbourne.

Gippsland phantom cat

In June 2005 Kurt Engel, a deer hunter from Noble Park, shot what he claimed was a large cat in rugged terrain near the town of Sale.

Gisborne

Gisborne, Victoria, Australia, a town named after Henry Fyshe Gisborne

Glen

The designation "glen" also occurs often in place names such as Great Glen in Scotland, Glenrothes in Fife, Scotland, Glendalough in Republic of Ireland (Éire), Glengowrie in Australia, Glenn Norman in Canada, Klamath Glen in California, Glen Waverley in Australia and Glendowie in Auckland, New Zealand.

Gold nugget

Considered by most to be the biggest gold nugget ever found, the Welcome Stranger was found at Moliagul, Victoria, Australia in 1869 by John Deason and Richard Oates.

Grevillea aquifolium

In Victoria the species is found in the Grampians region and northwards to the Little Desert as well as near the south coast at Kentbruck Heath near Portland.

Heathmont, Victoria

The distant Mount Dandenong and Dandenong Ranges are visible from much of this shopping strip, offering a somewhat 'Californian' feel to the environment.

Herald Sun Tour

The first King of the Mountain and Sprint champion was Jack (John) McDonough from Coburg.

Herbert Hyland

Numerous roadways are named after Hyland, including Hyland Street, South Yarra and the Hyland Highway.

Heston Phoenix

:Sold in Australia, on 5 July 1936 it crashed in bad weather near Melton, Victoria.

History Teachers' Association of Victoria

Collingwood Football Club became a difficult venue once poker machines were installed, and after a long search a move was made to the Veneto Club in Bulleen.

Jeremiah Coffey

In 2003, Coffey removed Father John Speekman as priest of the parish of Mowell over allegations of bullying.

Julien Wiener

Wiener's father had early sporting success in table tennis, which Wiener applied to his cricket, playing for Prahran in Melbourne grade cricket.

Koolasuchus

A jawbone was found in 1978 in a fossil site known as the Punch Bowl near the town of San Remo.

Lake William Hovell

It supplies water for irrigated crops, vineyards and grazing properties along the King River from Cheshunt to Wangaratta.

Lee Troop

He became involved in athletics at the age of 11 when he joined his father's weight loss campaign by taking training runs around the Geelong suburb of Whittington.

Lillydale Lake

Lillydale Lake (the name retaining the earliest spelling and the name of the former Lillydale Shire) is an artificial lake and wetlands area created in Lilydale, Melbourne, Australia.

Lilydale railway line

From Burnley, the line is triplicated to Box Hill then duplicated to Mooroolbark, while the final section between Mooroolbark and Lilydale is single track.

Lilydale to Warburton Rail Trail

The trail's compacted gravel surface between Lilydale and Millgrove is pram and wheelchair friendly and accommodates activities such as walking, cycling and horse riding.

Live at the Continental and the Esplanade

On 19 and 20 September, Kelly and his band performed at the Continental Hotel in Prahran, the sessions were recorded live.

Louis Matheson

When Monash opened, Matheson led and oversaw rapid development, from an empty site in Clayton, to a university recognised internationally for excellence in research and teaching.

Mary Fortune

On 25 October 1858, Mary married Percy Rollo Brett (possibly bigamously) at Dunolly, Victoria.

Mary Gaunt

Mary was the eldest daughter of William Henry Gaunt, a Victorian county court judge, and was born in Chiltern, Victoria.

Melbourne Polytechnic

The first higher education course developed and delivered by Melbourne Polytechnic is the Bachelor of Agriculture and Technology, which is taught at NMIT's Yan Yean farm and Epping campus.

Mephan Ferguson

To enable this expansion he brought the Glasgow Iron works in West Melbourne.

Michael Atchison

He was born in Sandringham, Victoria and moved to South Australia with his family in 1939.

Mornington Secondary College

Mornington Secondary College is a secondary school in Mornington, Victoria, Australia serving the communities of Somerville, Tyabb, Moorooduc, Mount Martha, and Mornington on the Mornington Peninsula and offers the Hands On Learning, The Victoria Police Youth Corp and Drum Corp, and many other extra-curricular programs to its students.

Mount Alexander Road, Melbourne

Mount Alexander Road was named as its original destination was the Gold Fields of Mount Alexander, now known as Castlemaine.

Murrayville Community College

Murrayville Community College is a State P-12 School located in the north western corner of the Mallee in Murrayville, Victoria.

Murrayville, Victoria

The area of the locality contains a number of smaller areas namely Duddo which had a post office open from 1913 until 1918, Duddo Wells with a post office from 1914 until 1950, Danyo with a post office from 1912 (when the railway arrived) until 1975, and Goongee.

Neon Jungle

In October the girls then announced they would be supporting Jessie J. On the November 12, 2013 it was announced that Neon Jungle would be a performer at the annual Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

News Weekly

News Weekly is an Australian current affairs magazine, published by the National Civic Council, with its main headquarters in Balwyn, Victoria.

No. 107 Squadron RAAF

 107 Squadron ferried its Kingfishers to the RAAF's Flying Boat Repair Depot at Lake Boga, Victoria during August 1945; the last Kingfishers departed St Georges Basin on the 29th of the month.

Olive Zakharov

Zakharov also remained involved in her local community; she used her political connections to help save her historic neighbourhood in Port Melbourne from demolition, and at one point painted "NOT FOR SALE" on her roof in order to promote the message.

Peter Ladner

He later worked at newspapers on Vancouver Island and was editor of the Victoria alternative weekly Monday Magazine from 1981 to 1986.

Phryne Fisher

Phryne was not always rich, having been born into a poor family in Richmond, Melbourne.

Pier to Pub

The Lorne Pier to Pub is an annual, 1.2-km open water swimming race held in January at Lorne, a town located on the Great Ocean Road in Victoria, Australia.

Pomaderris vacciniifolia

The only significant remaining wild population of the round-leaf pomaderris is at Toolangi, about 70 km north east of Melbourne.

Prestel

The Prestel system was implemented by Telecom Australia and renamed Viatel, with the centre of operations in Windsor, Melbourne, Australia.

Rainbow Serpent Festival

The more recent festivals have been held on farmland in the vicinity of Beaufort, Victoria.

Real Racing 3

The game includes ten real world racetracks, plus a geographically accurate but fictional street race through Firemonkeys' home of Southbank, Melbourne.

Robert Murray Smith

Smith died at his home in Toorak, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia on 31 August 1921 predeceased by his wife and a son, survived by three daughters.

Rowan steam railmotor

Both Kitson power units were purchased by the Sanderson and Grant sawmill at Forrest in 1907.

Rushall Garden

Rushall Garden is a community garden situated on former railway land in Fitzroy North, Victoria in inner suburban Melbourne, Australia.

Sheep shearer

Henry Salter (1907–1997) MBE won the first organised shearing contest at Pyramid Hill in 1934 and in 1953 was a machine shearing champion.

Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 10th Baronet

As a result of that visit, the suburb of St Kilda was named after the ship, and Acland St, one of St Kilda's main commercial centres, was named after Acland.

St Mark's Abbey

St Mark's Abbey, Camperdown, is an Anglican Benedictine monastery situated in Victoria, Australia.

Star News Group

Star News Group is a newspaper company based in Pakenham, Victoria, with a circulation of 450,000 per week.

Stinson Model A

On the morning of 31 January 1945 Tokana was on the Essendon to Kerang leg of its regular service when the port wing separated in flight between Redesdale and Heathcote, fifty miles north of Melbourne.

Stu Harvey

Before moving to Triple J, Harvey got his start on 979fm in Melton, Victoria, hosting Mondo Bizarro, before teaming up with Nick Kocsis (aka Nick Mondo) and moving the show to 3RRR.

Sweet and Wild

The album's fourth track "What You Are" was chosen to be part of the runway-soundtrack for the 2010 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

The Deakins

Over their 10 year journey, performing live concerts and dance venues mainly in Melbourne, Geelong, through to Torquay circuits and later, appearing on television’s rock shows Kommotion and the GO!!

The Triangles

Eleanor Horsburgh, Julie Conway, Katherine Simpson (née James), Matt Gormann and Robert Simpson met as school friends in Boronia, a suburb of Melbourne.

Tuff Monks

The collaboration only ever appeared live once, at Richmond's Tiger Lounge venue doing a cover version of "Ring of Fire".

Upfield

Upfield, Victoria, an outer northern suburb of Melbourne, Australia

Val Royal

He stood from 2003 through 2006 at Oak Lodge Stud in County Kildare, Ireland and was shuttled to Eliza Park stud near Kerrie, Victoria, Australia for the Southern Hemisphere breeding seasons.

Victoria, Entre Ríos

Designated a "city" in 1851, Victoria also features an abbey (Abadía Los Monjes del Niño Dios), founded by Benedictine monks who arrived in 1899.

Victoria, Oriental Mindoro

Rachel Anne M. Bustamante, a.k.a. Shey Bustamante - Miss Oriental Mindoro 2009, First runner up in Mossimo Bikini Contest (2009), Binibining Pilipinas 2010 Contestant and a Pinoy Big Brother: Teen Clash 2010 Housemate.

Appeared in ABS-CBN Primetime Dramas and Shows, ASAP, MMK, Sabel, Angelito: Batang Ama, Nasaan Ka Elisa?

Virgil Reilly

Virgil Gavan Reilly, was born on 29 November 1892, the son of the local postmaster in Creswick, Victoria.

VK3RTV

The station's repeater is located on Mount Dandenong and is one of a number of audio and video repeaters licensed to Amateur Radio Victoria.

Walhalla Goldfields Rail Trail

The Walhalla Goldfields Rail Trail is a 7 kilometre rail trail which follows the former route of the narrow gauge Walhalla railway line between Erica and Thomson station, near Walhalla in Victoria's east.

Warburton Hospital

Warburton Hospital was a private Adventist hospital in Warburton, Victoria in Australia.

What A Nuisance

What A Nuisance was retired to Hyland's property at Clyde, near Cranbourne, Victoria.


2010 Winton V8 Supercar Event

It contained Races 11 and 12 of the series and was held on the weekend of May 15–16 at Winton Motor Raceway, near Benalla, in rural Victoria.

AirSea Lines

On 7 November 2006 an AirSea Lines Twin Otter seaplane landed at Royal Victoria Docks on the River Thames, London, at the end of a proving flight testing the feasibility of seaplane operations from the river.

Alexander Malcolm Jacob

He is best known for having sold the Jacob Diamond, which is the seventh largest diamond known in the world (previously known as the Victoria Diamond, Imperial Diamond, or Great White Diamond).

Antares

The Wotjobaluk Koori people of Victoria, Australia, knew Antares as Djuit, son of Marpean-kurrk (Arcturus); the stars on each side represented his wives.

Archibald White

Archie Cecil Thomas White (1890–1971), English recipient of the Victoria Cross

Arthur Cross

Arthur Henry Cross (1884–1965), British recipient of the Victoria Cross

Arthur Knight

Arthur George Knight (1886–1918), Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross

Blue Ensign

Yachts belonging to members of certain long-established Canadian yacht clubs, such as, the Royal Cape Breton Yacht Club, Champlain Yacht Club, Montreal Yacht Club, Royal Canadian Yacht Club, Royal Kennebaccasis Yacht Club, Royal Lake of the Woods Yacht Club, Royal Newfoundland Yacht Club, Royal St. Lawrence Yacht Club, Royal Vancouver Yacht Club, and Royal Victoria Yacht Club.

Brad Green

Braddon Green (born 1959), first-class cricketer for Victoria and Devon

Constitution Hill, London

It was the scene of three assassination attempts against Queen Victoria—in 1840 (by Edward Oxford), 1842 (by John Francis) and 1849 (by William Hamilton).

Distant Waves

It is there that it is proven that the twins, Amelie and Emma, have their mother's gift of being able to speak to the dead after having Queen Victoria speak to Conan Doyle.

East African Railways and Harbours Corporation

Also in 1961 EAR&H introduced the new Lake Victoria ferry RMS Victoria.

Edward Donald Bellew

Edward Bellew's Victoria Cross is believed to have been stolen from the Royal Canadian Military Institute, Toronto, between January 1975 and 22 July 1977.

Edwin St Hill

Against Tasmania he had first-innings figures of four for 57 and against Victoria he took six wickets in the game.

Electoral district of Bass

It is covers a diverse range of terrority, from outer suburban Pakenham to the rural towns of Lang Lang and Nar Nar Goon to the coastal tourist centres of Phillip Island and Inverloch.

Environmental planning

The Environment Effects Act 1978 was the first environmental planning control in Victoria, and it assessed the environmental impact of significant developments via an Environmental Effects Statement (EES).

Evan Durbin

Durbin became Labour MP for Edmonton, 1945–1948, and was amongst those invited to Hugh Dalton's "Young Victors Dinner" held at St Ermin's Hotel, off Victoria Street SW1.

Frankston High School

The names for each of the houses come from early explorers of Victoria and the Port Phillip region - George Bass, William Collins, Matthew Flinders, and John Murray.

Geoff Watt

Geoff Watt (died 1969) was a local distance runner from Warragul, Victoria of some international note who died from exposure in 1969 while training on Mount Erica in Baw Baw National Park.

Green Party of Canada

Sonya Chandler was elected municipally to Victoria City Council in Victoria BC in 2005, and re-elected with her co-candidate Philippe Lucas in 2010 - both under the Green Party banner (noted on the ballot)

Harold Andrews

Harold Marcus Ervine-Andrews (1911–1995), Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross

Henry Douglas

Henry Edward Manning Douglas (1875–1939), British soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross

Henry Robson

Henry Howey Robson (1894–1964), English recipient of the Victoria Cross

Humphrey Lloyd

Mount Humphrey Lloyd, a mountain in Victoria Land, Antarctica, named for the provost of Trinity College

James A. Smith

James Alexander Smith (1881–1968), British soldier, recipient of the Victoria Cross

Jon Hume

In May 2012 Hume was featured on the Hook N Sling song "Surrender," which he co-wrote from his studio in rural Victoria (The Stables Recording Studio).

Jubilee clock

In 1897 the village of Thornford decided to commemorate Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee by erecting a Jubilee tower clock and incorporating a water tap at its base.

Kevin Lincoln

In 1990, a survey exhibition of his paintings and drawings was mounted by the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, Launceston, which toured Tasmania and Victoria.

Linking and intrusive R

Other recognizable examples are the Beatles singing: "I saw-r-a film today, oh boy" in the song "A Day in the Life", from their 1967 Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album, at the Sanctus in the Catholic Mass: "Hosanna-r-in the highest" and in the phrases, "Law-r-and order" and "Victoria-r-and Albert Museum".

Lucy Meacock

She then moved to Australia, where she attended the independent Morongo Girls College in Geelong, Victoria.

Macaduma toxophora

It is found along the eastern coast of Australia from southern Queensland to Victoria.

Mad Bomber Society

Mad Bomber Society has played at major music events across Canada including the 2003 Stage 13 in Camrose, North County Fair in Alberta, and Folk on the Rocks Festival in Yellowknife, which was broadcast by CBC Radio North; the 2002 Salmon Arm Roots'n'Blues Fest; and the 2001 Victoria Ska Fest and North County Fair.

Maratha titles

Knight Grand Commander (GCIE): It is a title created by the British and is a part of The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire, an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1878.

Michael Perrin

Born 13 September 1905 in Victoria, British Columbia he moved to England in 1911 with his British parents, who sent him to Twyford School and Winchester College, and from there to study chemistry at New College, Oxford and the University of Toronto.

Moondarra Rail Trail

The Moondarra Rail Trail is a little-maintained, 7  km section of the former Walhalla Railway in Gippsland, Victoria.

Murphy's Romance

Sally Field and director Martin Ritt had to fight Columbia Pictures in order to cast Garner, who was viewed at that point as primarily a television actor despite having enjoyed a flourishing film career in the 1960s (and more recently having co-starred in the box office hit Victor/Victoria opposite Julie Andrews two years earlier).

Nancy Cato

Cato's other books include: Green Grows The Vine, Brown Sugar and Mister Maloga, which tells the story of Daniel Matthews and his Maloga Mission to Aboriginal people on the Murray River in Victoria.

Newmarket railway station

Newmarket railway station, Melbourne, a station serving Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

ODL

Ordnance Datum Liverpool, an ordnance datum recorded at Victoria Dock in Liverpool, England

Old Gippstown

It is currently used by a number of local groups, and is one of the newest Masonic Lodges in Victoria.

One Special Night

This was Garner's and Andrews' third film pairing as romantic leads, after Paddy Chayevsky's The Americanization of Emily (1964) and Victor/Victoria (1982).

Pantages Theatre

the McPherson Playhouse in Victoria, BC was originally opened as a Pantages Theatre in 1914

Patrick Arena

The Cougars transferred to the Western Hockey League (WHL) in 1952 and left Victoria for Los Angeles in 1961.

Phresh Out the Runway

Rihanna performed "Phresh Out the Runway" for the first time at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show alongside "Diamonds", on November 7, 2012.

Prince of Denmark's March

The march is used as the background music during the hourly performance of the Royal Clock in the Queen Victoria Building, Sydney, Australia.

South Australian wine

Located in south central Australia, South Australia is bordered by the four other mainland states, (Western Australia to the west, Queensland to the north east, New South Wales to the east, Victoria to the south east), the Northern Territory to the north, and the Great Australian Bight forms the region's southern coastline.

Southgate River

Its namesake was Captain James Johnson Southgate, a retired ship-master, who came to Victoria in 1859 via San Francisco and launched a commission and general mercantile business, largely in connection with the Pacific Station of the Royal Navy at Esquimalt, operating as J.J. Southgate & Co.

Victoria Park, Cardiff

The park was created as a municipal recreation ground by Cardiff City Council through a city charter between 1897 and 1898 to celebrate Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee marking her record sixty years on the throne.

Wunghnu railway station

Wunghnu is a closed railway station on the Goulburn Valley railway in the township of Wunghnu, Victoria, Australia.