Wonga Park is a locality on the edge of

Greater Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung/ or ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second most-populous city in Australia, after Sydney. The city's name generally refers to a metropolitan area also known ...

, beyond the Melbourne Metropolitan Urban Growth Boundary area, north-east from Melbourne's

Central Business District A central business district (CBD) is the Commerce, commercial and business center of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides wit ...

, located within the Cities of Manningham and Maroondah and the

Shire of Yarra Ranges The Shire of Yarra Ranges, also known as Yarra Ranges Council, is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the outer eastern and northeastern suburbs of Melbourne extending into the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges. It has ...

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...

s. Wonga Park recorded a population of 3,843 at the . Wonga Park is bounded in the west by Jumping Creek, in the north by the

Yarra River The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, (Kulin languages: ''Berrern'', ''Birr-arrung'', ''Bay-ray-rung'', ''Birarang'', ''Birrarung'', and ''Wongete'') is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia. The lower st ...

, in the east by Brushy Park and Old Homestead Roads and in the south by Holloway Road. The name comes from the Wonga Park grazing property, which itself derives from

Simon Wonga Simon Wonga (c. 1824–1874), ngurungaeta and son of Billibellary, was an elder of the Wurundjeri people, who lived in the Melbourne area of Australia before European settlement. He was resolute that his people would survive the "onslaught" of ...

, elder of the

Wurundjeri The Wurundjeri people are an Aboriginal peoples, Aboriginal people of the Woiwurrung language, Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin nation. They are the traditional owners of the Yarra River Valley, covering much of the present location of ...

indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology) In biogeography, a native species is indigenous to a given region or ecosystem if its presence in that region is the result of only local natural evolution (though often populari ...

people of Melbourne. The area was part of Mooroolbark until the 1890s.

History

Eight Hour Pioneer Settlement Post Office opened in 1902, was renamed Wonga Park around 1907 and closed in 1989. It reopened in its current location in 1994. One of the grazing properties, Yarra Brae, was acquired by the Lord Clifford in 1942. He made part of it available for Australia's first Pan Pacific Scout Jamboree in 1948. Clifford Park hosted another Jamboree in 1955 and is now a major Scout campsite, available for use by non-Scouting organisations as well. In 1972, Yarra Brae was the site of a proposed Lower Yarra River Reservoir, but residents of the nearby Bend of Isles bushland estate persuaded the Victorian Government to abandon the proposal. The residential development of Wonga Park came after the subdivisions in

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

and Mooroolbark, which were on the

Maroondah Highway Maroondah Highway (also known as Whitehorse Road from Deepdene to Surrey Hills) is a major east–west thoroughfare in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, and a highway connecting the north-eastern fringes of Melbourne to Mansfield, at the lowe ...

and a

railway line Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to road ...

. Residential living is most concentrated around the old village settlement where the church, hall, sports facilities, fire station and local shops are found. The northern boundary of Wonga Park, where land was acquired for the Yarra Brae storage, is a linear riverside part of the Warrandyte State Park. Wonga Park is also home to the largest residential block of land within metropolitan Melbourne, with many of the residential blocks being large in size, creating a private sanctuary for many of its residents.

John Farnham John Peter Farnham (born 1 July 1949) is a British-born Australian singer. Farnham was a teen pop idol from 1967 until the mid-1970s, billed as Johnny Farnham. He has since forged a career as an adult contemporary singer.McFarlane (1999). Enc ...

resides in Wonga Park, as does

V8 Supercar The Supercars Championship, also known as the Repco Supercars Championship under sponsorship and historically as V8 Supercars, is a touring car racing category in Australia and New Zealand, running as an International Series under Fédération I ...

driver

Garth Tander Garth Dirk Tander (born 31 March 1977) is a multiple-championship winning Australian motor racing driver competing in the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship's Enduro Cup, co-driving for Grove Racing. He was the 2007 series champion for th ...

Local Services and Shopping Village

Wonga Park shopping village used to have a number of shops including a newsagent, bakery, supermarket, hairdresser and fish & chip takeaway. As at September 2021, the shopping village is being refurbished and is expected to open in late 2022. An IGA supermarket and Saam Saii Thai restaurant are located on Jumping Creek Rd, Wonga Park. A general store with fuel and a post office are located in Wonga Park South. Wonga Park is served by Country Fire Authority (CFA) volunteers.

Activities

Wonga Park is a scenic town with bushland and farm views. Bushwalking and river activities are available. Wonga Park has a tennis club, a cricket club, a golf course, a soccer club
Wonga Wizards FC
and numerous horse riding clubs. With the Yarra River being so close, canoeing is also a popular activity. The Clifford Park Scout Camp is also located in Wonga Park. Wonga Park hosts a

farmers' market A farmers' market (or farmers market according to the AP stylebook, also farmer's market in the Cambridge Dictionary) is a physical retail marketplace intended to sell foods directly by farmers to consumers. Farmers' markets may be indoors or ...

on the fourth Saturday of the month. It offers local foods and produce, craft, plants, music and children’s activities. The market is held at the Wonga Park Primary School. The Kellybrook Winery is an established

Yarra Valley The Yarra Valley is a region in Victoria, Australia, centred around the Yarra River. Known for its natural beauty, agricultural significance, and as one of Australia's prominent wine-producing areas, the valley stretches from the upper reache ...

winery located on Fulford Rd Wonga Park. It has a cellar door for wine tastings, occasional live music and an annual

cider Cider ( ) is an alcoholic beverage made from the Fermented drink, fermented Apple juice, juice of apples. Cider is widely available in the United Kingdom (particularly in the West Country) and Ireland. The United Kingdom has the world's highest ...

festival in autumn.

References

{{authority control Suburbs of Melbourne Suburbs of the City of Manningham Suburbs of the City of Maroondah Yarra Ranges Shire

History

Local Services and Shopping Village

Activities

See also

References