Avoca & District Historical Society Inc

Avoca & District Historical Society Inc Making the World aware of the local history of the Town of Avoca in Central Victoria, Australia

This month I am going to be writing about courts and the police. I starting off with the former court house, now the hea...
03/08/2026

This month I am going to be writing about courts and the police. I starting off with the former court house, now the headquarters of the Avoca and District Historical Society

The former Avoca Court House, now the headquarters of the Avoca and District Historical Society, is one of the town’s public buildings. Designed in the Renaissance Revival style by the Public…

There was mining at Hogg's Reef near Avoca from the 1850s to the 1940s
31/07/2026

There was mining at Hogg's Reef near Avoca from the 1850s to the 1940s

One of the earliest quartz reefs worked at Avoca was Hogg’s Reef, discovered in 1856 by a shoemaker named James Hogg. Also known as Township Reef or No. 1 Reef, it lies on a low ridge east o…

Another mining accident. Fortunately they were not too common.
17/07/2026

Another mining accident. Fortunately they were not too common.

On 7 May 1885, twenty-two-year-old miner John Young was killed by a fall of earth while working in the Golden Stream mine near Avoca. Newspaper reports over the following weeks recorded not only th…

An exhibition that might be of interest to members: reinstating Caroline Chisholm into her rightful place in the goldfie...
09/07/2026

An exhibition that might be of interest to members: reinstating Caroline Chisholm into her rightful place in the goldfield’s history

In this exhibition Flossie Peitsch uses mixed media textile artistry as the medium for imaginatively reinstating Caroline Chisholm into her rightful place in the goldfield’s history. Pillowcases, placemats, saris, blankets, floor rugs, embroideries and weavings, paper parcel tags and buttons as fi...

A mining accident at Homebush in 1884
09/07/2026

A mining accident at Homebush in 1884

Gold mining including at the Homebush mines was never without danger. Cave-ins, flooding, and unstable ground were constant hazards, and every descent into a shaft carried an element of risk. In Ja…

Continuing my series of posts about mining in the district
08/07/2026

Continuing my series of posts about mining in the district

Four Mile Flat, later known as Homebush, was first settled in 1854 following a rush to a rich claim nearby. Mount Alexander Mail (Vic.), Saturday 24 June 1854, page 5 NEW DIGGINGS. — The Four-mile…

A brief description of life during the Lamplough rush of 1860
06/07/2026

A brief description of life during the Lamplough rush of 1860

In 1860 Lamplough was more than a gold rush: it was a town that appeared almost overnight. In December 1859 thousands of people arrived within weeks, bringing with them not only picks and cradles b…

A look at deaths during the Lamplough gold rush. There were relatively few mining accidents.
03/07/2026

A look at deaths during the Lamplough gold rush. There were relatively few mining accidents.

On 3 December 1859 Hugh Ross Barclay, the Inspector of Police at Avoca, estimated the population of Lamplough to be 10-12,000. In mid-December, the District Surveyor, Richard English, thought it wa…

I think the link for post from earlier this morning is not working. Here it is again
01/07/2026

I think the link for post from earlier this morning is not working. Here it is again

In 1987 Denis Strangman, a member of the Avoca and District Historical Society, published an article in the Familia Ulster Genealogical Review about a goldrush to Lamplough near Avoca in 1859-1860.…

30/06/2026

A reminder the courthouse will be open for research today

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85 High Street
Avoca, VIC
3467

Telephone

03 5465 3118

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