Heywood ( ) is a town on the Fitzroy River in the Australian state of Victoria. It is situated at an elevation of 27 metres amidst rolling green hills in an agricultural, pastoral and timbercutting district. Heywood is west 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 ...

at the intersection of the

Princes A prince is a Monarch, male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary title, hereditary, in some ...

and Henty Highways and north of

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

. It is on the railway line to Portland, at the junction of the presently-unused branch to

Mount Gambier, South Australia Mount Gambier is the second most populated city in South Australia, with a population of 25,591 as of the 2021 census. The city is located on the slopes of Mount Gambier (volcano), Mount Gambier, a volcano in the south east of the state, about ...

. The winner of several past "Tidy Town" awards, it is often referred to as the "Jewel of the Southwest".

History

Prior to European settlement the area was occupied by the

Gunditjmara The Gunditjmara or Gunditjamara, also known as Dhauwurd Wurrung, are an Aboriginal people of southwestern Victoria in Australia. They are the Traditional Owners of the areas now encompassing Warrnambool, Port Fairy, Woolsthorpe and Portland. ...

Aborigines.MINISTER FOR ABORIGINAL AFFAIRS - "NEW ABORIGINAL GROUP TO ADVISE ON CULTURAL HERITAGE" - Friday, 6 October 2006
/ref> David Edgar built the Bush Tavern on the townsite in 1842 and a settlement emerged. Formerly known as Fitzroy Crossing it became known as Edgar's. The township was surveyed in 1852 by Lindsay Clarke who named it after Heywood, Lancashire in England. The first town allotments were sold in 1854 and a Post Office opened on 8 August 1857. Heywood has won many Tidy Town awards.

Traditional ownership

The formally recognised

traditional owners Native title is the set of rights, recognised by Australian law, held by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups or individuals to land that derive from their maintenance of their traditional laws and customs. These Aboriginal title rig ...

for the area in which Heywood sits are the Gunditjmara People who are represented by the Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation.

Demographics

At the 2021 census, Heywood had a population of 1,815.

Sport

The town has an

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...

team, the Heywood Lions, which until 2011 competed in the

Western Border Football League The Limestone Coast Football Netball League is an Australian rules football competition based in the Limestone Coast, Lower South East region of South Australia, and south-western border region of Victoria (Australia), Victoria. It is an affili ...

. In 2012 it transferred to the lower grade South West District Football League.

Essendon Essendon may refer to: Australia *Essendon, Victoria **Essendon railway station **Essendon Airport *Essendon Football Club, in the Australian Football League *Electoral district of Essendon *Electoral district of Essendon and Flemington United Kin ...

midfielder Nathan Lovett-Murray, played for the Lions in his junior career. Golfers play at the course of the Heywood Golf Club on Golf Club Road.

Climate

Heywood has a

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

influenced

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

with mildly warm, dry summers and cool, very wet winters.

References

* Learmonth, Noel F. (1970). ''Four Towns and a Survey.'' Hawthorn Press: Melbourne

External links

Towns in Victoria (state) Western District (Victoria) {{BarwonSouthWest-geo-stub