Minimay is a small town located in

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. The town is in the

Shire of West Wimmera The Shire of West Wimmera is a local government area in the western part of the Wimmera region of Victoria, Australia, located in the western part of the state. It covers an area of and in June 2018 had a population of 3,862. It includes the to ...

from the South Australian border, about halfway between

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 ...

and

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

. At the 2016 census, Minimay and the surrounding area recorded a population of 84. A signpost outside the town lists the town's population at 9.

Geography

Farming is the main industry in Minimay and includes

sheep Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated ...

and

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...

breeding and arable crops.

Center pivot irrigation Center-pivot irrigation (sometimes called central pivot irrigation), also called water-wheel and circle irrigation, is a method of crop irrigation in which equipment rotates around a pivot and crops are watered with sprinklers. A circular area ...

is used to water crops and give

satellite images Satellite images (also Earth observation imagery, spaceborne photography, or simply satellite photo) are images of Earth collected by imaging satellites operated by governments and businesses around the world. Satellite imaging companies sell ima ...

of the area a characteristic patchwork pattern of green circles. Before agriculture, the area was quite wooded; at the time trees were cleared,

agriculture in Australia Although Australia is mostly arid, the nation is a major agricultural producer and exporter, with over 325,300 employed in agriculture, forestry and fishing as of February 2015. Agriculture and its closely related sectors earn $155 billion-a-y ...

was not advanced and initial attempts to grow crops required much manual labour, and the town consequently had a higher population.

Sporting

Sports today in Minimay is extinct with locals travelling to other sporting clubs in the district—including football and

netball Netball is a ball sport played on a court by two teams of seven players. It is among a rare number of sports which have been created exclusively for female competitors. The sport is played on indoor and outdoor netball courts and is specifical ...

clubs. Minimay originally had a golf club, basketball club, tennis club, racecourse, football club and cricket club.

Football

Border Districts Football Netball Club was originally a combined team with Minimay and Frances and today also includes Goroke. The club plays in the

Kowree-Naracoorte-Tatiara Football League The Kowree-Naracoorte-Tatiara Football League is an Australian rules football competition based in the Limestone Coast region of South Australia, Australia. It is an affiliated member of the South Australian National Football League. One unusu ...

. The football ground still exists. Border District football club won premierships in 1962, 1967, 1975, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1991, 1992 and 1996.

Cricket

The Minimay Cricket Club is one of the oldest bodies in the district. Records are poor but, an old minute book suggests that the club was formed before 1896. The Minimay Cricket Club also won premierships during the 1900s. The cricket club now has been extinct for a long time.

Tennis

Tennis was first played in Minimay on a dirt court was in 1913. The Minimay Tennis Club was first formed in 1919. Today the courts are in a different position than what they first were. 1967 they rebuilt the third court. Minimay again won many premierships in Tennis. The courts were last used in 1985 when the sport wasn't played any more.

Basketball

Minimay Basketball Club started in 1946. The Minimay Basketball team won ten premierships. Minimay Race Club started in the early 1900s. Minimay Golf Club had nine holes course which was founded in 1931 and the Golf Club lasted for only 8 years.

History

There have been two churches in Minimay; the first church was Catholic and the second dating from 1953 was the Union church. Minimay Post Office opened on 1 November 1877. In the early 1880s selectors were taking up 320-acre blocks in the Minimay area. In 1885, a new school in Minimay was designated: Minimay School No.2600. The school consisted of a small room which could hold 30 to 40 children. The school was closed in 1902 while it was painted and repaired. The school had planned to enlarge in 1906; this did not happen until 1911. A new school was built as the old school was infested by

white ants Termites are small insects that live in colonies and have distinct castes (eusocial) and feed on wood or other dead plant matter. Termites comprise the infraorder Isoptera, or alternatively the epifamily Termitoidae, within the order Blattod ...

. In 1951 the school was closed and most students went to a school in nearby Goroke. The poet John Shaw Neilson grew up in Minimay in the 1880s. The Minimay Public Hall was built in 1901 to 1975. The Hall was opened 15 February 1991. In 1975 the old Hall was removed to make way for the new Minimay Memorial Hall. For the opening of the Minimay Memorial Hall the community had a ball. Today the Hall still is used for many fund-raising and community events. The first general store in Minimay was built in the 1880s. The first owners were from Harrow and they were Mr. and Mrs. Egan. The store had three rooms and a veranda. After a few years the owners left and the store was destroyed by fire. Mr. Carracher from the general store in

Frances Frances is a French and English given name of Latin origin. In Latin the meaning of the name Frances is 'from France' or 'free one.' The male version of the name in English is Francis. The original Franciscus, meaning "Frenchman", comes from the F ...

decided to build a new one in Minimay in 1901. In 1941 the president Mrs. McIntosh purchased the store. The shop was demolished on 12 February 1976. Later a new Minimay store was built and this still runs. The store sells groceries and is a post office agency. Work commenced to construct a telephone line, connecting Minimay to Goroke, in 1908.

References

* History of Minimay and District. Published 1976 {{authority control Wimmera Towns in Victoria (Australia)