Digby is a town in the
Western District of
Victoria, Australia. The town is in the
Shire of Glenelg, west of the state capital,
Melbourne, on the
Stokes River
The Stokes River, a perennial river of the Glenelg Hopkins catchment, is located in the Western District of Victoria, Australia.
Course and features
The Stokes River rises northeast of , and flows generally west by south, joined by six minor t ...
, a tributary of the
Glenelg. At the
2006 census, Digby and the surrounding area had a population of 369.
The town is believed to be named either after
Digby, Lincolnshire
Digby is a small village and civil parish in the district of North Kesteven, Lincolnshire, England. The village is in the vale of the Digby Beck watercourse, north from the town of Sleaford and south from the city and county town of Lincoln. ...
, in
England, or in honour of a legendary early rural Australian identity, "Digby" McCabe.
The
Henty Brothers established the first European settlement in the Digby area in 1837. In 1843, the Woolpack Inn was established near modern Digby; it burnt down in 1887. By 1847 the town consisted of the inn, a
blacksmith and a series of huts. The town was officially surveyed in 1852.
On 1 June 1858, Digby Post Office opened.
In 1857, a second inn—the Digby Hotel—was established. It still exists today, although it was rebuilt after a fire in 1935.
The Digby
Mechanics Institute was built in 1868 and has continually operated since. The first sitting of the
Supreme Court of Victoria
The Supreme Court of Victoria is the highest court in the Australian state of Victoria. Founded in 1852, it is a superior court of common law and equity, with unlimited and inherent jurisdiction within the state.
The Supreme Court comprises ...
outside Melbourne was in Digby in 1869.
By 1874 the town had a post office, two hotels, four shops and a school.
Traditional ownership
The formally recognised
traditional owners for the area in which Digby sits are the
Gunditjmara People
who are represented by the
Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation.
References
Towns in Victoria (Australia)
{{VictoriaAU-geo-stub