Robinvale Plains
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Robinvale is a town on the south bank of the
Murray River The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest ...
in north western
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. It is
connected Connected may refer to: Film and television * ''Connected'' (2008 film), a Hong Kong remake of the American movie ''Cellular'' * '' Connected: An Autoblogography About Love, Death & Technology'', a 2011 documentary film * ''Connected'' (2015 TV ...
by a bridge to Euston on the other side of the river in New South Wales. At the , Robinvale had a population of 3,313, however a population study conducted by the Rural City of Swan Hill that was undertaken in 2019 identified Robinvale had an estimated population of between 7,000 in November and 8,800 in March each year.


History

The Robinvale region is home to at least five indigenous groups with traditional ownership belonging to people from the Latji Latji and Dadi Dadi people. The region, particularly Bumbang Island houses a large number of culturally significant sites and heritage items. The town is named in memory of Lieutenant George Robin Cuttle, who was killed in action during air combat over France in 1918. The Post Office opened in 1924 as Bumbang, but was renamed Robinvale in August of that year. Robinvale was connected to the rest of the Victorian railway network when the line from
Manangatang Manangatang ( ) is a town in north-west Victoria, Australia. At the , Manangatang had a population of 309. It is sometimes noted for its unusual name, from an Aboriginal term - "manang" meaning ''land'' and "kaaiti" meaning ''water''. Transpor ...
was opened in 1924. Work began in the 1920s on a extension of the line across the Murray River to Lette in
New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...
. It was never completed, and work was officially abandoned in 1943. The combined rail-road bridge across the river at Robinvale, which was constructed as part of the project, continued to be used until 2006, when a new road bridge was opened. The lifting span of the former rail-road bridge has been placed in a nearby park, as a permanent historical display.
Lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...
15 on the Murray River is just downstream of the town providing a pool of irrigation water and ensuring that the river near Robinvale is permanently available for water activities such as
water skiing Water skiing (also waterskiing or water-skiing) is a surface water sport in which an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation over a body of water, skimming the surface on two skis or one ski. The sport requires suffic ...
. The weir and lock were completed in 1937, the last one built on the Murray (Locks 12–14 and 16–25 were never built). The town, fictionalised as "Sunray", was the setting of the 1996 Australian feature film '' Love Serenade'', directed by
Shirley Barrett Shirley Barrett (1961 – 3 August 2022) was an Australian film director, screenwriter, and novelist. Her first film ''Love Serenade'' won the Caméra d'Or at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival. She wrote and directed two other feature films '' Walk ...
, which won the
Caméra d'Or The Caméra d'Or ("''Golden Camera''") is an award of the Cannes Film Festival for the best first feature film presented in one of the Cannes' selections (Official Selection, Directors' Fortnight The Directors' Fortnight (french: Quinzaine des ...
award at the
1996 Cannes Film Festival The 49th Cannes Film Festival was held from 9 to 20 May 1996 in film, 1996. The Palme d'Or went to ''Secrets & Lies (film), Secrets & Lies'' by Mike Leigh. The festival opened with ''Ridicule (film), Ridicule'', directed by Patrice Leconte and cl ...
.


Today

Robinvale is known for production of grapes, olives, carrots and almonds. There are many attractions in Robinvale, such as the original home of Robin Cuttle, an antique museum, park, and a caravan park overlooking the Murray River. The river is home to a great array of native birds and fish such as the pelican, swan, perch and the murray cod. Robinvale is a popular camping area on the Murray. Robinvale has a
rail line Rail terminology is a form of technical terminology. The difference between the American term ''railroad'' and the international term ''railway'' (used by the International Union of Railways and English-speaking countries outside the United Sta ...
that is used seasonally by
Pacific National Pacific National is one of Australia's largest rail freight businesses. History In February 2002, National Rail's freight operations and rollingstock (owned by the Federal, New South Wales and Victorian Governments) were combined with Freig ...
freight trains.
V/Line V/Line is a statutory authority that operates regional passenger train and coach services in Victoria, Australia. It provides passenger train services on five commuter lines and eight long-distance routes from its major hub at Southern Cros ...
runs coach services to
Swan Hill Swan Hill is a city in the northwest of Victoria, Australia on the Murray Valley Highway and on the south bank of the Murray River, downstream from the junction of the Loddon River. At , Swan Hill had a population of 11,508. Indigenous Peo ...
and Mildura, Victoria, connecting with train services to Melbourne at Swan Hill railway station.
Robinvale Airport Robinvale Airport is an airport located south of Robinvale, Victoria, Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmani ...
serves the town. Robinvale and its twin town, Euston is home to an
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population from the southern region of Calabria in
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
. It also has immigrant populations of
Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...
ns and
Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overse ...
and a significant Aboriginal community, with Aboriginal people making up 8.1% of the population as of 2016 . Robinvale also had an irrigation project funded by Lower Murray Water, completed in late 2010.


Sister city

Robinvale is a sister city with the town of
Villers-Bretonneux Villers-Bretonneux () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Villers-Bretonneux is situated some 19 km due east of Amiens, on the D1029 road and the A29 motorway. Villers-Bretonneux bord ...
in the Somme department in Picardy in northern
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
.


Sport

Robinvale hosts numerous sporting events, a tennis Easter tournament, football, cricket and the annual Robinvale Ski Race. The town has an Australian Rules football team the Robinvale Eagles competing in the
Sunraysia Football League The Sunraysia Football and Netball League, also known simply as the SFNL is an Australian rules league in the Sunraysia district of north-west Victoria and south-west New South Wales. Nine clubs – Mildura, South Mildura, Imperials, Irymple, Re ...
. AFL players who've played for the club include Brownlow Medalist John James, Kevin Curran, Ivan Smith, Dick Vandenberg, Des McKenzie, Pat Curran and Phil Egan, along with cricketer Jamie Siddons. Rugby League is also played with local club Robinvale Storm participating in the Sunraysia Rugby League competition. Golfers play at the course of the Robinvale Golf Club on the Murray Valley Highway.


References


External links

Local information on Robinvale, Victoria can be found at: https://www.visitrobinvale.com.au/
Euston Weir (Lock 15)
{{authority control Towns in Victoria (Australia) Towns in Mallee Rural City of Swan Hill