Diggers Rest (formerly Diggers' Rest) is a suburb in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
,
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, north-west of Melbourne's
Central Business District
A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...
, located within the Cities of
Hume and
Melton local government area
A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a State (administrative division), state, province, divi ...
s. Diggers Rest recorded a population of 5,669 at the
2021 census.
[
Diggers Rest lies on the Old Calder Highway, near the ]Calder Freeway
Calder Highway is a rural highway in Australia, linking Mildura and the Victoria/New South Wales border to Bendigo, in North Central Victoria. South of Bendigo, where the former highway has been upgraded to freeway-standard, Calder Freeway lin ...
.
History
Diggers Rest began life as a stopping place on the road to the Bendigo
Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital.
As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...
goldfields, with the Post Office opening on 18 June 1860. Caroline Chisholm
Caroline Chisholm (born Caroline Jones; 30 May 1808 – 25 March 1877) was a 19th-century English humanitarian known mostly for her support of immigrant female and family welfare in Australia. She is commemorated on 16 May in the calendar of s ...
started a women's shelter in the area. The town grew in the 1870s and 1880s and became a postal village with a general store, post office, weighbridge, mechanics' institute and a chaff mill. The Diggers Rest Hotel was built by 1854, and later enlarged, and became an important stopping place on the route to the goldfields. It was severely damaged by fire in 2012.
Diggers Rest is sometimes erroneously referred to as being famous for being the location of the first controlled powered flight of an aeroplane undertaken in Australia. The flight was performed by Harry Houdini
Harry Houdini (, born Erik Weisz; March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926) was a Hungarian-American escape artist, magic man, and stunt performer, noted for his escape acts. His pseudonym is a reference to his spiritual master, French magician ...
in 1910. This was however preceded by 2 other flights. The only café in town is named in his honour.
To the north of Diggers Rest township within the locality is the former township known as Aitken's Gap, The Gap or Buttlejorrk.
Sunbury Rock Festival
The four Sunbury Pop Festival
Sunbury Pop Festival or Sunbury Rock Festival was an annual Australian rock music festival held on a private farm between Sunbury and Diggers Rest, Victoria, which was staged on the Australia Day (26 January) long weekend from 1972 to 1975. It ...
s were held on the same 620-acre (2.5 km2) private farm along Jacksons Creek, on the southern outskirts of Sunbury, between Sunbury and Diggers Rest. The property was owned by farmer and local identity George Duncan, and the property has become known in the district over the years simply as "Duncan's farm". The entrance gates to the Sunbury Pop Festivals was off Watsons Road. Also because of its close proximity (2 km; 1.2 mi) to the smaller township of Diggers Rest, many of the attendees who traveled to Sunbury by train, actually alighted at Diggers Rest railway station
Diggers Rest railway station is located on the Sunbury line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the north-western Melbourne suburb of Diggers Rest, and it opened on 2 October 1859. , and not Sunbury.
Present day
Diggers Rest contains a general store,
primary school
and a CFA fire station, along with three large recreation reserves. Sporting groups in Diggers Rest include Diggers Rest Football Club
The Diggers Rest Football Netball Club, nicknamed the Burras, is an Australian rules football and netball club and is located 38 km north west of Melbourne in the town of Diggers Rest and is affiliated with the Riddell District Football ...
, who play in the Riddell District Football League
The Riddell District Football Netball League (RDFNL) is an Australian rules football and netball league in Victoria, Australia. The RDFNL covers towns in the Macedon Ranges and an area from Rockbank in the south to Broadford in the north.
T ...
.
Diggers Rest Primary School was first opened in 1882 and moved to its present site in 1990. Diggers Rest Primary School features excellent facilities including air conditioned and heated classrooms, computer and Internet access to all grades, modern sports and playground equipment and landscaped grounds. Diggers Rest Primary School is an integral part of the wider community and hosts annual events such as the Community Carols, Billy Cart Derby and Grandparents' Day.
Other facilities in the Diggers Rest area include the Holden Flora and Fauna Reserve, Animal Land Children's Farm and SPSK Jadran, and a Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
n social club which services nearby St Albans
St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...
and Keilor
Keilor is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Brimbank and Hume local government areas. Keilor recorded a population of 5,906 at the 2021 census.
Whi ...
.
Diggers Rest also has a Scout Group containing Cub Scouts and Scouts. They meet at the Diggers Rest Reserve behind the tennis club rooms.
Transport
Diggers Rest has a railway station
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
on the Sunbury line
The Sunbury Line (formerly known as Sunbury Subdivision) is a rail line owned and operated by Norfolk Southern Railway which in turn is owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. The line travels from Sunbury, Pennsylvania, to Binghamton, New Yo ...
, connecting the town with Melbourne's CBD.
A bus route
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for ...
connects Diggers Rest with Moonee Ponds
Moonee Ponds is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Moonee Valley local government area. Moonee Ponds recorded a population of 16,224 at the 20 ...
and nearby Sunbury, at the former Victoria University campus.Sunbury Bus Service website
Retrieved 25 November 2006
See also
*
Shire of Bulla
The Shire of Bulla was a local government area about northwest of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The shire covered an area of , and existed from 1862 until 1994.
History
The Bulla Road District was created on 16 Septemb ...
– Parts of Diggers Rest were previously within this former local government area.
*
Harry Houdini: The Aviator — Houdini's flight at Diggers Rest, Friday, 18 March 1910.
References
External links
Diggers Rest(Australian Gazetteer)
Animal Land Children's Farm
{{authority control
Towns in Victoria (Australia)
Suburbs of the City of Hume
Suburbs of the City of Melton