Terang is a town in the

Shire of Corangamite The Shire of Corangamite is a Local Government Areas of Victoria, local government area in the Barwon South West region of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, located in the south-western part of the state. It covers an area of and in 202 ...

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 ...

. The town is located on the

Princes Highway Princes Highway is a major road in Australia, extending from Sydney via Melbourne to Adelaide through the states of New South Wales, Victoria (Australia), Victoria and South Australia. It has a length of (along Highway 1) or via the former ...

and is south west of the state's capital,

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 , Terang had a population of 2,254.

History

The semi-nomadic Kirrae Wuurong clans originally inhabited the area between Mount Emu Creek and the Hopkins River, and much of their language was recorded by a Scottish

squatter Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building (usually residential) that the squatter does not Land ownership and tenure, own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estima ...

, James Dawson. The first dwelling in the township area was built in 1840 by Donald McNicol, and consisted of a slab hut on the east bank of Lake Terang. The township was developed in the late 1850s, the post office opening on 1 March 1859. The railway though the town was opened in 1887. From 1890 it was extended as part of Victoria's south-western line. The Mortlake line once branched from the town, opened in 1893 and closed in 1978. The local railway station is served by

V/Line V/Line is a statutory authority that operates Regional rail, regional passenger rail and Intercity bus service, coach services in the Australian state of Victoria (state), Victoria. It provides passenger train services on five Commuter rail, ...

passenger services on the Warrnambool line. The Terang Magistrates' Court closed on 1 January 1983. Avenues of trees were planted in the 19th century and several of these are now under the protection of the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

. A Heritage Trail walk points out the historic trees and many of the historic buildings and sights of the town. TerangMainStreetPark

Features to see are the historic post office with its

clock tower Clock towers are a specific type of structure that house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another building ...

(1903–4), the

war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...

, the rose gardens with the band rotunda, and the town's first church (Bible Christian Church c.1863). The Thomson Memorial church is also a significant local structure.

Lake Terang

Lake Terang was a

lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

that on its shores the town was built. To the south of the town centre is a large

peat Peat is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most ...

bed unique to the region. In 1933, while dry, the peat bed began burning but became a shallow lake by the 1940s. The lake was drained in the 1960s and the dried out lake floor is now used as a recreation area, for agriculture and as part of the Terang Golf Course.

Lake Keilambete

Lake Keilambete is a maar lake 4 km north of the town. The lake is a circular body 1.8 km in diameter and an average depth of 11 m. The salinity is twice that of seawater.

Sport

The town has an

Australian Rules 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 ...

football team, Terang-Mortlake, playing in the

Hampden Football League The Hampden Football Netball League is an Australian rules football and netball league based in South-Western Victoria, with clubs located in towns along or near the Princes Highway from Camperdown to Portland. The league is a major country ...

. Terang has a horse racing club, the Terang & District Racing Club, which schedules around eight race meetings a year including the Terang Cup meeting in October. Terang

Harness Racing Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australia ...

Club conducts regular meetings at its racetrack in the town. Golfers play on the 18-hole

golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, tee box, a #Fairway and rough, fairway, the #Fairway and rough, rough and other hazard (golf), hazards, and ...

at the Terang Golf Club on High Street at the western entrance to the town.

Education

Terang College is a school, established in 1848 as Terang Primary School. It educates more than 400 students from Prep to Year 12. It has two campuses: one on the western (

Warrnambool Warrnambool (; Eastern Maar, Maar: ''Peetoop'' or ''Wheringkernitch'' or ''Warrnambool'') is a city on the south-western coast of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the Census in Australia#2021, 2021 census, Warrnambool had a populati ...

) side of the town; the other on Strong Street near Cobden Road. The western campus houses years Prep to Grade 4 while the Cobden Road Campus has Years 5 - 12.

Climate

Terang has a moderate

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 ...

(''Cfb'') with warm summers, albeit with cool nights, and chilly damp winters.

Notable citizens

* John Robertson Duigan MC, the pioneer aviator who built and flew the first Australian-made aircraft, was born in Terang in 1882. * Tom Skeyhill, Gallipoli campaign veteran and biographer of Sergeant

Alvin York Alvin Cullum York (December 13, 1887 – September 2, 1964), also known by his rank as Sergeant York, was an American soldier who was one of the most decorated United States Army soldiers of World War I. He received the Medal of Honor fo ...

WW1

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

recipient, was born in Terang in 1895. * The Australian immunologist and Nobel laureate

Frank Macfarlane Burnet Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet (3 September 1899 – 31 August 1985), usually known as Macfarlane or Mac Burnet, was an Australian virology, virologist known for his contributions to immunology. He won a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, Nobe ...

grew up in Terang, whilst his father was a bank manager. * Author, business advisor and media commentator

Bernard Salt Bernard Salt is an author, demographer, and since 2002 a regular columnist with ''The Australian'' newspaper. Between 2011 and 2019 he was an adjunct professor at Curtin University Business School, and holds a Master of Arts from Monash Univer ...

was born in Terang and attended Terang High School. * AFL footballer and Essendon premiership player Chris Heffernan. * Footscray footballer Dick Wearmouth. * Collingwood footballer and four-time grand finalist Ronnie Wearmouth. * Melbourne footballer Jordie McKenzie. * The Standardbred racehorse Gammalite, who was the first Standardbred to win A$1 million in Australia. *

Ten Eyewitness News 10 News First (set to rebrand as 10 News on 30 June 2025) is an Australian television newscast, produced by Network 10. The network's flagship news program airs at 5PM on weekday evenings covering local, national and world news, including spor ...

news presenter Candice Wyatt. * James MacKinnon, cricketer. * Adam Harvey, country music singer. * Con Chrisoulis, academic and graphic novel biographer of David Bowie and the Smiths, was born in Terang.

References

External links

Terang - Corangamite Shire
{{authority control Towns in Victoria (state) Shire of Corangamite Western District (Victoria)