Outtrim is a locality 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 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 ...

. It is located south of

Korumburra Korumburra is a town in the Australian state of Victoria. It is located on the South Gippsland Highway, south-east of Melbourne, in the South Gippsland Shire local government area. At the Korumburra had an urban population of 3,639. Surroun ...

off the Korumburra to Wonthaggi Road and is southeast of

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 ...

History

The original European settlers in the mid-19th century used the area for farming, but coal was discovered south of what would become Outtrim railway station in 1892. The Outtrim and Jumbunna coal fields developed in the mid-1890s, with access to the markets for the coal being established via the Outtrim railway line. The township grew up by the mine and was named after the Honourable

Alfred Richard Outtrim Alfred Richard Outtrim (1845 – 1925) was a long-serving Victorian politician who gained a reputation as a competent government minister and a promoter of women's suffrage and regional development. Before Federation, he was a liberal Minist ...

, MLA, Minister of Mines in the

Victorian Government The Victoria State Government, also referred to as just the Victorian Government, is the state-level authority for Victoria, Australia. Like all state governments, it is formed by three independent branches: the executive, the judicial, and th ...

at the time. Outtrim Primary School opened in January 1890 and closed in 1993. When the coal mines were at their peak more than 200 children attended the four-roomed school. The school was relocated to a different site in 1976, with the remaining original buildings demolished at that time. Outtrim Baptist Church opened in 1897 but was later destroyed by fire. By 1901, the town had "a large commercial area, with hotels, shops and several churches." The Outtrim mine was one of the locations for a major coal strike in 1903. A Masonic Lodge opened in 1908. It met in

from 1919 after its own premises were destroyed by fire. When coal production declined and then ceased with the closing of the mines in 1914, the population dwindled very quickly, with many moving to

Wonthaggi Wonthaggi is a seaside town located south east of Melbourne via the South Gippsland and Bass Highways, in the Bass Coast Shire of Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. Known originally for its coal mining, it is now the largest town in South Gippsl ...

where a large mine opened in 1909. Successive fires in 1912 and 1913 destroyed much of the town. Outtrim Post Office opened on 10 May 1894 and closed in 1957. By the 1940s, only a small number of companies remained working the mines in the area. By the 1980s, the township of Outtrim had virtually disappeared, with only a few buildings remaining in the town area and the land returned to farming. The land around Outtrim is largely cleared of native vegetation and is used for agriculture, including dairying.

Cemetery

Outtrim Cemetery, established circa 1894, is set in woodland one kilometre east of Outtrim Recreation Reserve on the Leongatha South Road. The cemetery has fifteen marked graves, with the earliest dating from 1902. It is believed that there are a total of 220 burials in the cemetery, with last burial being in 1946. The cemetery is listed on the

Victorian Heritage Inventory The Victorian Heritage Inventory, commonly known as the Heritage Inventory, is a list of all known historical archaeology sites in Victoria, Australia. It is maintained by Heritage Victoria , the Victorian State Government’s principal cultural ( ...

. The entire cemetery reserve is now reserved permanently for nature conservation purposes and is managed by

Parks Victoria Parks Victoria is a government agency of the state of Victoria, Australia. Parks Victoria was established in December 1996 as a statutory authority, reporting to the Victorian Minister for Environment and Climate Change. The ''Parks Victoria Ac ...

References

Mining towns in Victoria (Australia) Towns in Victoria (Australia) Towns in South Gippsland Shire of South Gippsland {{Gippsland-geo-stub