Leitchville is a town in northern

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 ...

. The town is in the

Shire of Gannawarra The Shire of Gannawarra is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the northern part of the state. It covers an area of and, in June 2018 had a population of 10,547. It includes the towns of Cohuna, Kerang, Koondrook, Leitch ...

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 ...

, 262 kilometres from the state capital,

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 ...

. At the , Leitchville had a population of 558.

History

The district was named after the manager of Gunbower station, Duncan Leitch, following his death in 1887, and the Post Office opened on 1 October 1887. The township was gazetted in 1929. Many locals have now been pushing the council for the new name of Margaritaville to entice more tourism for business.

The town today

The major industry in Leitchville is dairy production; a

Murray Goulburn Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American manufacturer of low-cost bicycles * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trust * D. & W. Murray Limited, an Australian who ...

cheese factory was located in the town, but closed in February 2010, with the loss of 80 jobs.

Kow Swamp The Kow Swamp, a freshwater lake and wetland, was formerly a swamp, that is now used for water storage. The lake is located in the Mallee region in north-central Victoria, Australia. Description Kow Swamp lies in the Murray River valley, abo ...

, the site of a major

palaeontological Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (geology), epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes t ...

find providing insight into the origins of

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...

is located nearby. The town in conjunction with neighbouring township Gunbower has an

Australian Rules Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

football team competing in the

Heathcote District Football League The Heathcote District Football League (HDFL) is an Australian rules football league based in the Heathcote region and major Bendigo area with clubs based in the regions of City of Greater Bendigo, Shire of Campaspe, and Shire of Gannawarra ...

. Leitchville has a well-used Travellers Rest. It is not unusual to see several caravans or motor homes taking an overnight stop. There are public toilets nearby at the swimming pool and the Lions Club recently paid for the installation of a Dump Site at the local Recreation Reserve which is only a stone's throw from the Rest Stop. The Dump-Ezy was supplied by the CMCA.Gannawarra Shire, Leitchville Lions Club & Leitchville & District Progress Association

References

{{authority control Towns in Victoria (Australia)