Mia Mia is a locality of Central

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, north 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 ...

and south of

Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is an Australian city in north-central Victoria. The city is located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2022, Bendigo has a popula ...

. It is largely an area of broadacre farms raising cattle and sheep. It is a part of the Heathcote wine region Wine District and a number of vineyards have been established in the area, most notably producing Shiraz grapes. Its local government areas are the

City of Greater Bendigo The City of Greater Bendigo is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the central part of the state. It covers an area of and, in August 2021, had a population of 121,470. It includes the city of Bendigo and the towns of A ...

and

Shire of Mitchell Mitchell Shire is a local government area in the Hume region of Victoria, Australia, located North of Melbourne. It covers an area of and, in April 2024, had a projected population of 61,362. Larger towns include Beveridge, Broadford, Kilm ...

, Mia Mia is part of the Federal Electorates of Bendigo and McEwen and it is in the state electorate of Euroa. In 2011, it had a population of 265.

History

Commemoration of first Australian-built aeroplane

Plaque commemorating first Australian-built aeroplane

The name is derived from a

Taungurung The Taungurung people, also spelled ''Daung Wurrung'', are Aboriginal people who are one of the Kulin nations in present-day Victoria, Australia. They consist of nine clans whose traditional language is the Taungurung language. Their Country ...

word meaning "camp" or "dwelling". The Post Office opened on 22 November 1861, closing in 1970. Mia Mia is notable for being the home of

John Duigan John Duigan (born 19 June 1949) is an Australian film director and screenwriter. He is mostly known for his two autobiographical fiction, autobiographical films ''The Year My Voice Broke'' and ''Flirting (film), Flirting'', and the 1994 film ' ...

and brother Reginald Duigan who built and flew the first Australian made aeroplane in 1910 on their property named Spring Plains. A monument to their endeavours was constructed out of local bluestone and unveiled in 1960. Mia Mia’s western boundary is on the

Campaspe River The Campaspe River, an inland intermittent river of the northcentral catchment, part of the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the lower Riverina bioregion and Central Highlands and Wimmera regions of the Australian state of Victoria. The ...

which is crossed by an iron bridge near

Redesdale Redesdale is a valley in western Northumberland, England. It is formed by the River Rede, which rises in the Cheviots and flows down to join the North Tyne at Redesmouth. Redesdale is traversed by the A68 trunk road, which enters Scotland ...

that is unusual in design and is quite memorable for those passing through.

Gold Escort Robbery

Mia Mia was the location of a violent gold escort robbery in 1853. A gang of at least six robbers and possibly as large as twelve bailed up a gold escort on the way to Kyneton. The robbers opened fire on the six escorts in which four were wounded. The other two fled to Heathcote to raise the alarm. When help arrived they found that the robbers and the gold was gone. Later John Francis gave crown evidence against the others and three of the villains were hanged.

Burke and Wills

The

Burke and Wills The Burke and Wills expedition (originally called the Victorian Exploring Expedition) was an exploration expedition organised by the Royal Society of Victoria (RSV) in Australia in 1860–61. The exploration party initially consisted of nine ...

expedition passed through Mia Mia in 1860 on their journey across Australia from Melbourne to the Gulf of Carpentaria. They arrived on Saturday, 25 August 1860 and made Camp VI, (their sixth camp since leaving Melbourne). Sunday was taken as a rest day when the men caught up on chores and they left on Monday morning. The road from

Lancefield Lancefield is a town in the Shire of Macedon Ranges local government area in Victoria, Australia north of the state capital, Melbourne, 33.6km south of Puckapunyal and had a population of at least 2,743 at the 2021 census. History The are ...

to Mia Mia via Ben Loch and the

Great Dividing Range The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills. It runs roughl ...

is now called 'The Burke and Wills Track'. In 2010 the town erected a small monument to the expedition to mark the sesquicentenary of their visit.

References

External links

Burke & Wills Web
A comprehensive website containing many of the historical documents relating to the Burke & Wills Expedition.
The Burke & Wills Historical Society
The Burke & Wills Historical Society. {{authority control Towns in Victoria (state) Shire of Mitchell Suburbs of Bendigo

History

Gold Escort Robbery

Burke and Wills

See also

References

External links