Meredith is a town in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

, Australia, located on the Midland Highway between

Ballarat Ballarat ( ) () is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Ballarat had a population of 111,973, making it the third-largest urban inland city in Australia and the third-largest city in Victoria. Within mo ...

and

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...

, in the local government area of the

Golden Plains Shire The Golden Plains Shire is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the central-western part of the state. It covers an area of and in June 2018, had a population of 23,120. It includes the towns of Bannockburn, Inverleigh, L ...

. At the , Meredith had a population of 821, an increase from the 788 at the

History

The town was surveyed in 1851–52. The town is believed to be named in honour of Captain Charles Meredith. Meredith Post Office opened on 1 November 1854 and the railway came to the town with the opening of the Geelong-Ballarat line in 1862, with the local railway station opened soon after. Now only grain and freight trains use the line. Darra, a house and stone cottage at 490 Slate Quarry Road, is listed on the

Victorian Heritage Register The Victorian Heritage Register (VHR) lists places deemed to be of cultural heritage significance to the State of Victoria, Australia. It has statutory weight under the Heritage Act 2017. The Minister for Planning is the responsible Minister. ...

Governance

The Meredith Road District (an early form of local government in Victoria) was established on 30 June 1863, and was redesignated as a shire on 28 April 1871. It absorbed Steiglitz Borough in 1881, and in turn was absorbed by Bannockburn Shire on 15 September 1915. On 18 May 1993 part of Bannockburn Shire (including Meredith) was amalgamated with part of Barrabool Shire, and with Bellarine Rural City, Corio Shire, Geelong City, Geelong West City, Newtown City & South Barwon City, to form the local government area of Greater Geelong City.

Present day

Meredith has been host to the

Meredith Music Festival Meredith Music Festival (otherwise known simply as Meredith or MMF) is a three-day outdoor music festival held every December at the Meredith Supernatural Amphitheatre, a natural amphitheatre located on private farmland near the town of Mered ...

since 1991, and is also the closest locale to the

Golden Plains Festival The Golden Plains Festival is held over three days during the Victorian Labour Day long-weekend on private farmland in Victoria, Australia. The nearest rural town is Meredith, which is between the regional cities of Geelong and Ballarat. The ...

. Golfers play at the course of the Meredith Golf Club on the Midland Highway. Established in 1911, the Meredith Rural Fire Brigade (MRFB) has served to protect Meredith and surrounding areas from fires and other emergencies for over 100 years. The brigade consists entirely of volunteers. The MRFB's newest appliance is a 3.4C Heavy Tanker, which was bought through fundraising by CFA members and the

Victorian Government The Victoria State Government, also referred to as the Victorian Government, is the executive government of the Australian state of Victoria. As a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, the State Government was first formed in 1851 when Vic ...

References

External links

* {{Authority control Towns in Victoria (state) 1854 establishments in Australia