Youanmite is a locality in the

Shire of Moira Moira Shire Council is a Local Government Area in the Northern Victoria Region of Victoria, Australia. Located in the north-east part of the state, it covers an area of . As at June 2021 the population was 30,018. It includes the towns of Cobra ...

. It is located near the intersection of Youanmite and Katamatite roads, approximately 25 km southwest of

Yarrawonga Yarrawonga is a town in the Shire of Moira local government area in the Australian state of Victoria. The town is situated on the south bank of the Murray River, the border between Victoria and New South Wales, and is located approximately n ...

and approximately 200 km northeast 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 ...

, Australia. Youanmite was once a small town having its own schools, churches, and post office. Comprising medium to large farms the area is predominantly agricultural, focusing on grain production as well as sheep and cattle grazing.

Early years

The

traditional owners Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have rights ...

of the land are the

Yorta Yorta The Yorta Yorta, also known as Jotijota, are an Aboriginal Australian people who have traditionally inhabited the area surrounding the junction of the Goulburn and Murray Rivers in present-day north-eastern Victoria and southern New South Wales ...

people who inhabited a large area south 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 r ...

. It was not until 1824, when

Hamilton Hume Hamilton Hume (19 June 1797 – 19 April 1873) was an early explorer of the present-day Australian states of New South Wales and Victoria. In 1824, along with William Hovell, Hume participated in an expedition that first took an overland route ...

and

William Hovell William Hilton Hovell (26 April 1786 – 9 November 1875) was an English explorer of Australia. With Hamilton Hume, he made an 1824 overland expedition from Sydney to Port Phillip (near the site of present-day Melbourne), and later explored the ...

passed through the area on their expedition from

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 ...

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

in Victoria, that the land was assessed and opened for settlement.

Squatters Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there ...

soon moved in and vast

stations Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...

for wheat production and livestock grazing were quickly established. During the 1860s the Victorian Land Acts allowed for the subdivision of large holdings and a provision for Selectors to take up small allotments at minimal cost. This saw an increase in the population of the area and the need to establish more local facilities. Four schools had been established in the area prior to 1920 along with a hotel, sawmill and dairy. The now disused

Dookie ''Dookie'' is the third studio album and the major label debut by American rock band Green Day, released on February 1, 1994, by Reprise Records. The band's first collaboration with producer Rob Cavallo, it was recorded in late 1993 at Fantasy ...

Katamatite Katamatite is a town in Victoria, Australia about 46 kilometres north east of Shepparton. At the , Katamatite had a population of 433. Katamatite is located in the Murray Valley irrigation area. Township buildings were erected in 1877 and the ...

railway, classed as a tramway for the first two years of its life, opened in 1882 carrying light freight, grain and passengers. A weighbridge and grain silo, which still exist, were built next to the rail line. ''Roberts General Store'' opened in 1894 and by the turn of the century churches had been created for the Methodist, Church of England and Roman Catholic congregations.

Later years

In 1953 the railway passenger service was terminated and the line was formally closed in 1987. The line ran through the town, which had grown up around it, and the iron rails are visible where they cross Youanmite road as the line travels north. The former town hall still exists and is used occasionally by the local community. The town post office opened on 8 August 1885. It was renamed Youanmite West on 11 April 1892 due to another office opening there on the same date as 'Youanmite'. 'Youanmate West' post office closed on 1 November 1893 and the 'Youanmite' post office closed on 31 July 1971.

Places of interest

A conservation area was opened 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 ...

in 2004. Located close to the town center, it comprises over 100 hectares of land set aside to preserve the local flora and fauna.Youanmite nature conservation reserve; Management statement. Victoria, Department of Sustainability and Environment, 2005

Early years

Later years

Places of interest

References

Further reading