Winchelsea is a town in Victoria,

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 in the

Surf Coast Shire The Surf Coast Shire is a local government area in the Barwon South West region of Victoria, Australia, located in the south-western part of the state. It covers an area of . It had a population of 32,251 in June 2018. It includes the towns o ...

local government area, the suburb or locality of Winchelsea is predominantly within

with a small section within the Colac Otway Shire. Winchelsea is located on the Barwon River 115 km south-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 ...

and close to

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...

(37 km north-east).

History

The first Europeans to reside in the area were squatters (Lomas's) who established grazing runs there c. 1837. Thomas Austin migrated from

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

and occupied the present day site of Winchelsea in 1837. The area was then called Austin's Ford. Austin built up his estate of Barwon Park to , including a mansion which still stands today. The town developed around the Barwon Inn, established in 1842 by Prosper Nicholas Trebeck and Charles Bea

The Post Office opened as Barwon on 1 July 1848 and was renamed Winchelsea in 1854. The town was the administrative centre of the Shire of Winchelsea, which was proclaimed in 1864, and which continued until 9 March 1994 when it was amalgamated with the Shire of Barrabool to become the Surf Coast Shire. The railway through the town was opened in 1876, as part of the line to the south west of the state. 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. Winchelsea Magistrates' Court closed on 1 October 1984.

Places of interest

* Barwon Hotel (1842) with a collection of historical artefacts. * Old Shire Hall *Barwon River Bridge - Opened by Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, on 3 December 1867 *Barwon Park Mansion - Built 1871 *The Globe Theatre

Heritage listed sites

Winchelsea contains a number of heritage listed sites, including: * 105 Inverleigh-Winchelsea Road, Barwon Park * Princes Highway, Barwon River Bridge * 70 Hopkins Street, Eastern Reserve Memorial Grandstand and Gates * 17-19 Willis Street,

Globe Theatre The Globe Theatre was a Theater (structure), theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 at Southwark, close to the south bank of the Thames, by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men. It was ...

* 765 Ingleby Road, Ingleby Homestead

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 competing in the Geelong & District Football League. The Winchelsea Golf Club is located between Lorne Road and Lauders Lane. The course is popular with locals and tourists alike. The Winchelsea Cricket Club, formed in 1858 is one of the oldest sporting clubs in Victoria and currently compete in the Bellarine Peninsula Cricket Association

Notable people

* Elizabeth Phillips Harding (1821 – 1910) a pioneer settler at Winchelsea who was a philanthropist noted for her endowment towards setting up The Austin Hospital in Melbourne in 1882 * Thomas Austin (1815-1871) husband of Elizabeth Phillips Harding, he introduced rabbits into Australia. * John Rout Hopkins 1828-1897 a pioneer settler at Winchelsea who served in local government and the Victorian government for many years * Marjorie Lawrence,

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...

, noted as an interpreter of

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

's operas, born at Deans Marsh, south of Winchelsea in 1907 * Denis Napthine MP (1952- ) Premier of the State of Victoria * Darcy Parish (1997- ) AFL Footballer with the Essendon Bombers * Albert Jacka VC, MC & Bar (1893 – 1932) Captain 14th Battalion AIF. First Australian to be decorated with the VC during the First World War.Victoria Cross: Lance Corporal Albert Jacka, 14 Battalion, AIF
Australian War Memorial

References

External links

The Sydney Morning Herald; Winchelsea -- Things to see
{{authority control Towns in Victoria (state) Surf Coast Shire