Blackburn North (formerly North Blackburn) is a suburb of

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Victoria,

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, 17 km east of Melbourne's

Central Business District A central business district (CBD) is the Commerce, commercial and business center 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 wit ...

, located within the City of Whitehorse

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 federated state, state, province, division (politica ...

. Blackburn North recorded a population of 7,627 at the 2021 census. Blackburn North is a predominantly residential suburb, with wide green and leafy streets and houses on quarter acre blocks. The suburb had its start in the early 1960s, much of it being built on land formerly used as an apple orchard. North Blackburn Shopping Centre was originally known as Old Orchard Shopping Centre for this reason, as is Old Orchard Primary School today. North Blackburn Post Office opened on 2 May 1955 and was renamed Blackburn North around 1990. Prior to the formation of the City of Whitehorse in 1994, Blackburn North was a part of the now defunct City of Nunawading.

Industry

A small light industrial area is located in the north-east corner of the suburb, along Joseph Street. A former clay pipe factory on Springfield Road has been closed and replaced by housing.

Shopping

No major shopping centre exists in Blackburn North. While it is well served by North Blackburn Square Shopping Centre on Springfield Road, it is in fact located in

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the River Ribble, Ribble Valley, east of Preston ...

. The large Westfield Doncaster is located in nearby

Doncaster Doncaster ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don, it is the administrative centre of the City of Doncaster metropolitan borough, and is the second largest se ...

. Box Hill Central, can also be found in Box Hill. It can be accessed through several buses, notably bus routes 270/271, which can also be taken in the opposite direction to Eastland Shopping Centre and other shopping locations. Small strip shopping areas exist in Raymond Street, Katrina Street and Diana Drive.

Transport

No railway station serves Blackburn North. However bus routes service the area. These routes run through the suburb to the nearby public transport hub at Box Hill, where a bus terminus, tram terminus and Box Hill railway station can be found. Other nearby train stations are Laburnum and

. Blackburn Station can be reached by bus from Blackburn North. On its northern boundary is the Eastern Freeway, along which also runs a bicycle track, the Koonung Creek Trail. The northern boundary is also marked by Koonung Creek, which flows into the

Yarra River The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, (Kulin languages: ''Berrern'', ''Birr-arrung'', ''Bay-ray-rung'', ''Birarang'', ''Birrarung'', and ''Wongete'') is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia. The lower st ...

further downstream. Exit the Freeway at Middleborough Road or Blackburn Road to best reach Blackburn North.

Schools

There are two public primary schools in Blackburn North, Old Orchard Primary School and St. Philips (Catholic) on Junction Road. Whitehorse Primary school, which although is next door to St. Philips, is actually in neighbouring Nunawading. Middlefield Primary School, formerly located on Verbena street, has now been torn down and replaced with housing. Its soccer pitch survives as part of Koonung Reserve. It amalgamated with Blackburn North Primary School in 1992 to form Old Orchard Primary School. Once located on Springfield Road, it has now also been replaced by housing on the new street of Kurrajong Way. There is one secondary school located in Blackburn North. Blackburn High School can be found in across the road from North Blackburn Square, and was established in 1956. The former Blackburn Technical School has closed down, and since 1995, Old Orchard Primary School has used a portion of that site.

Sport and recreation

The area is well serviced by Koonung Reserve, located on Springfield Road. It has cricket nets, a cricket/football oval, a tennis club and a soccer field. It is the sporting home of several cricket and football teams, including the Eastern Football League's Nunawading Football Club. Also situated in Blackburn North is Slater Reserve, home of the Blackburn Vikings Basketball Association competing in the VJBL for juniors and BigV for seniors.

Notable residents

Ronnie Biggs Ronald Arthur Biggs (8 August 1929 – 18 December 2013) was an English criminal who helped plan and carry out the Great Train Robbery of 1963. He subsequently became notorious for his escape from prison in 1965, living as a fugitive for 36 y ...

- In 1970, English fugitive Ronnie Biggs arrived in Australia while on the run from the UK authorities for his part in the Great Train Robbery of 1963. After a stint in

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

, he and his family settled in 52 Hibiscus Road, Blackburn North, under the assumed name of Cook. There the family briefly lived a normal life, before Biggs fled alone to

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

the day before police raided his house. His subsequently ex-wife, Charmian, and children remained as lifelong Melbourne residents, albeit not in Blackburn North. Charmian Brent died in December 2014 in Melbourne. * Dee Ryall - politician * Ben Simmons -

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player for the

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

References

External links

Australian Places - Blackburn North
{{City of Whitehorse suburbs Suburbs of Melbourne Suburbs of the City of Whitehorse