Montrose 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 ...

, 33 km east 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

Shire of Yarra Ranges The Shire of Yarra Ranges, also known as Yarra Ranges Council, is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the outer eastern and northeastern suburbs of Melbourne extending into the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges. It has an ...

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 ...

. Montrose recorded a population of 6,900 at the . Montrose varies in altitude from about 91 m to 324 m above sea level. Montrose covers an area of . Montrose is situated at the picturesque foothills of

Mount Dandenong Mount Dandenong is a small township/suburb of Greater Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east from Melbourne's central business district, located within the Shire of Yarra Ranges local government area. Mount Dandenong recorded a population of 1,2 ...

. Close to the

Yarra Ranges The Shire of Yarra Ranges, also known as Yarra Ranges Council, is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the outer eastern and northeastern suburbs of Melbourne extending into the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges. It has an ...

, the

Dandenong Ranges The Dandenong Ranges (commonly just The Dandenongs) are a set of low mountain ranges, rising to 633 metres at Mount Dandenong, approximately east of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The ranges consist mostly of rolling hills, steeply weathere ...

and the wineries of the

Yarra Valley The Yarra Valley is the region surrounding the Yarra River in Victoria, Australia. The river originates approximately east of the Melbourne central business district and flows towards it and out into Port Phillip Bay. The name Yarra Valley ...

, it is a gateway to many

tourist destination A tourist attraction is a place of interest that Tourism, tourists visit, typically for its inherent or an exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement. Types Places of ...

s, offering a variety of bed and breakfast accommodation for visitors. Montrose also offers a range of fine dining options and a selection of tea houses including a large fine chocolate shop. Local sporting clubs, churches and schools surround the town centre, which hosts a craft market. Th
Montrose Market
is held monthly.

History

European settlers initially referred to the area of Montrose as South Mooroolbark, and used the land for farming during the late 1800s. The town was also informally called ''Double Pitts'' after the double-handed

saw pit A saw pit or sawpit is a pit over which timber is positioned to be sawed with a long two-handled saw, usually a whipsaw, by two people, one standing above the timber and the other below. It was used for producing sawn planks from tree trunks, whi ...

method used in the local timber industry. The settlement was renamed to Montrose in 1892 by local landowner James Walker, whose son had a store on Colchester Road,

Kilsyth Kilsyth (; Scottish Gaelic ''Cill Saidhe'') is a town and civil parish in North Lanarkshire, roughly halfway between Glasgow and Stirling in Scotland. The estimated population is 9,860. The town is famous for the Battle of Kilsyth and the relig ...

named Rose Mont. A post office was opened in December 1898, and closed in July 1994. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, Montrose was used extensively for orchards, partly due to its high rainfall. In 1911 the population of Montrose was only 133, however residential development increased in the 1920s providing accommodation for tourists and permanent residents. The Montrose Public Hall was funded by the local community and opened in July 1914, on the eve of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. A monument for World War I was constructed in 1921, which also became a memorial for

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

in 1947. The population of Montrose boomed after World War II, resulting in many more young families. An infant health centre was opened in 1949. A bushfire in 1961 destroyed 23 houses. By the 1970s Montrose had become part of the sprawl of suburbs extending into the Dandenongs.

Education

Montrose incorporates two government primary schools:
Montrose Primary School
located on Leith Road and established in 1880 (previously called Mooroolbark South Primary School and Double Pitts School)
Billanook Primary School
located on Sheffield Road and established in 1980

Recreation

Montrose Recreation Reserve

The Montrose Recreation Reserve is home to several sporting clubs and a scout group, and provides a range of facilities including a playground and barbecues. The reserve is a popular destination for families and features a playground largely made from a recycled plastic as well as some artwork by local artists.

Sporting clubs

Montrose also has a range of sporting clubs:
Montrose Tennis Club
adjacent to Montrose Recreation Reserve
Montrose Netball Club
located next to the Montrose Football Club
Montrose Social Soccer Club
based at Keith Hume Fraser Reserve
Montrose Football Club
home to the Montrose Demons which compete in the Eastern Football League
Montrose Cricket Club
based at Montrose Recreation Reserve and home to the Montrose Wolves *Montrose Calisthenics Club

Community groups

Montrose Coterie Group
* Montrose & District Lions Club * Montrose Senior Citizens
Montrose CFA

Montrose Environmental Group

Transport

The closest railway station is

Mooroolbark railway station Mooroolbark railway station is located on the Lilydale line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the eastern Melbourne suburb of Mooroolbark, and opened on 10 October 1887. History Mooroolbark station opened on 10 October 1887 and, like the sub ...

on the Lilydale line, approximately 5.7 km from Montrose.

Telebus A Telebus, Dial-a-bus, or Dial-a-ride service is a bus service that operates in a mode partway between a normal scheduled bus service and a taxi; it is a form of demand responsive transport. Telebuses typically have a scheduled route, but passeng ...

services operate in the area, where passengers can request to be picked up or dropped off from home.

Churches

Church of Christ Montrose

Montrose Spiritualist Church

Montrose Uniting Church

Notable people

Kevin Heinze Kevin Carl Heinze (1 April 1928 – 1 September 2008) was a pioneering presenter of gardening on television in Australia. He hosted a gardening program for ABC Television entitled ''Sow What'', which was mostly shot on location at his one-hecta ...

was a pioneering presenter of gardening on television in Australia. He hosted a gardening program for

ABC Television ABC Television most commonly refers to: *ABC Television Network of the American Broadcasting Company, United States, or *ABC Television (Australian TV network), a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia ABC Television or ABC ...

titled ''Sow What'', which was mostly shot on location at his one-hectare home garden in Montrose, from 1967 to 1988. Heinze died on 1 September 2008, aged 80. In 2005 the garden was donated to the local shire council for public use. Montrose was home to the museum of the Australian author

May Gibbs Cecilia May Gibbs MBE (17 January 1877 – 27 November 1969) was an Australian children's author, illustrator, and cartoonist. She is best known for her gumnut babies (also known as "bush babies" or "bush fairies"), and the book ''Snugglepot a ...

who created the Gumnut Babies series. Montrose was also home to documentary filmmaker Rohan Spong who directed the films ''Winter at Westbeth'' (2015) and ''All The Way Through Evening'' (2012).

References

{{Shire of Yarra Ranges suburbs Suburbs of Melbourne Suburbs of Yarra Ranges