Woodend () is a town in Victoria, Australia. The town is in the

Shire of Macedon Ranges The Shire of Macedon Ranges is a region in Central Victoria, Australia, best known for its native forests, geographical attraction Hanging Rock, and artisan food and wine industries. The region covers an area of . It is located in between the c ...

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 ...

and is bypassed to the east and north by the Calder Freeway (M79), located about halfway between

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

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 ...

. At the , Woodend had a population of 6,732.

History

Woodend was first surveyed in 1836 by Major Thomas Mitchell, who opened it up for settlement. When

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

was discovered in the area (towards Bendigo and

Ballarat Ballarat ( ) () is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Ballarat had a population of 111,973, making it the third-largest urban inland city in Australia and the third-largest city in Victoria. Within mo ...

), Woodend became the main thoroughfare through the Black Forest, and accommodated many gold-diggers and their families. Woodend Post Office opened on 20 July 1854; however, it closed shortly after, only to be reopened in one of the citizens' homes. The Woodend Magistrates' Court closed on 1 January 1983.

Tourism and attractions

Woodend is close to such attractions as

Mount Macedon Mount Macedon ( ; or ) is a dormant volcano that is part of the Macedon Ranges of the Great Dividing Range, located in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands region of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The mountain has a ...

and Hanging Rock located at nearby

Newham The London Borough of Newham () is a London boroughs, London borough created in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. It covers an area previously administered by the Essex county boroughs of County Borough of West Ham, West Ham and County ...

, and numerous waterfalls. The area supports a large horse-racing community. Woodend's location in the foothills of 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 ...

means that, unlike most of Australia, snowfalls are not uncommon. The Woodend Winter Arts Festival, held on the King's Birthday Weekend in June, features music performances, talks, exhibitions, literary events and educational programs. The annual

Melbourne Autumn Day 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 as ...

(MAD) ride is held in Woodend by the Melbourne Bicycle Touring Club. Woodend Children's Park in the centre of the town provides a meeting place for young and old, locals and visitors: A park to explore, to enjoy, to play. Woodend Children's Park opened behind the service station in October 2009. The largest sporting group in the town is the Woodend Junior Football Club which incorporates 190 players, from 130 families, playing in eight junior teams ranging from Under-9s to Under-16s. There are several

mountain bike A mountain bike (MTB) or mountain bicycle is a bicycle designed for off-road cycling (''mountain biking''). Mountain bikes share some similarities with other bicycles, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in r ...

tracks near Woodend, in the

Wombat State Forest The Wombat State Forest (locally: Bullarook) is located west of Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, between Woodend, Victoria, Woodend and Daylesford, Victoria, Daylesford, at the Great Dividing Range. The forest is approximat ...

and also on

. The local Wombat MTB Club maintains the tracks in the area and arrange events and bike tours. Golfers play at the course of the Woodend Golf Club on Davy Street. The Woodend tennis club on Earnshaw St has six plexipave courts and its vibrant, progressive and rapidly growing membership has become a social hub for the local community. The oldest church in Woodend is the Anglican Church of St Mary's, a

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, a Germanic people **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Gothic alphabet, an alphabet used to write the Gothic language ** Gothic ( ...

bluestone Bluestone is a cultural or commercial name for a number of natural dimension stone, dimension or building stone varieties, including: * basalt in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, and in New Zealand * diabase, dolerites in Tasmania, ...

building constructed in 1864. The church's

stained glass Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

windows were produced by William Montgomery (1850–1927), former president of the

Victorian Artists Society The Victorian Artists Society, which can trace its establishment to 1856 in Melbourne, promotes artistic education, art classes and Art museum, gallery hire art gallery, exhibition in Australia. It was formed in March 1888 when the Victorian Acad ...

. The events and news of the town are published in the town's community newsletter, ''The New Woodend Star'', which publishes free archival copies of the newsletter online for reference. A local Woodend information website is also available called Woodend Village News, this also has a local weather page, showing historical weather information. Including UV intensity, wind speed and direction, amount of rain, the maximum and minimum temperatures, along with wind chill and barometric pressure.

References

External links

Woodend
– Official tourism site {{authority control Towns in Victoria (state) Shire of Macedon Ranges

History

Tourism and attractions

See also

References

External links