Ballaarat

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Ballaarat This community page is for promoting places and events in and around Ballarat, Victoria. Drop us a note if you would like something posted.

"Ballarat, or, more properly, Ballaarat, is a native name, signifying a camping or resting place, balla meaning elbow, or reclining on the elbow"

- William Withers' "The history of Ballarat, from the first pastoral settlement to the present time - 1887"

If you want to promote a local business, art event, market or service, drop us a line via the page "Message" function, or via email to: [email protected]

We are always happy to promote local business as they keep our community employed and thriving, but we ask that you respect our decision to not advertise chain store/multi national organisations, or businesses 50km beyond Ballarat. ADVERTISING AND SPAM
Unsolicited advertising on this page will be removed and repeat offenders blocked from contributing. Again, please contact us to discuss options, we're here to promote our community and want to help. THIS PAGE IS FOR EVERYBODY
The 'Ballarat page' is open to everybody from the ages of 13 and upwards. We prefer to keep this page family friendly and inclusive for everybody who wishes to participate. We ask that vulgar and offensive language that may offend others be kept to yourself. Repeat offenders will have their ability to post removed. We also reserve the right to remove any comments we or others may find objectionable or inappropriate without notice. POLITICAL BIAS
This page is for promoting the community of Ballarat as a whole, we do not promote politically biased content such as Political events, posts from other pages, or indeed biased commentary. NO PERSONAL ATTACKS
Comment on content, not on other contributors. Personal attacks do not help make a point; they only harm our online community and may deter users from being active or also drive them away. Comments that personally attack other contributors may be removed. Repeated personal attacks may lead to offenders being blocked from posting. POSTCODE WARS
This page shows little tolerance for 'postcode wars', also known as dumping criticism upon others from suburbs you see as being disadvantaged, or otherwise not to your liking. Repeat offenders will be blocked from contributing. We're all Ballarat, we need to ensure that everybody feels welcome by putting an end to baseless attacks upon others. SUBMITTING IMAGES FOR PUBLICATION
We are happy to receive your photographs for publication on this page and prefer them to be sent via email as an attachment. If you choose to watermark your photographs, please ensure your watermark is placed at the bottom left or right corner of the image and does not interrupt the subject of the image in any way. We do aim to credit all photographers where possible for their contributions. Please ensure you are only sending in your own work, or have the permission of the photographer. Please note that it may be some time before your image is posted due to publication backlogs. Send your photographs to: [email protected]


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All users of this page are welcome and encouraged to express thought, opinion and ideas and take full responsibility for their own textual, verbal and physical expression. No liability is accepted by page administrators. Comments posted by visitors do not necessarily reflect the thoughts and opinions of page administrators. We provide information herein as a public service and strive to achieve the highest standards in content accuracy on this page. Admin makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the absolute accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the contents of this page and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of this page. No warranty of any kind--implied, expressed or statutory, including but not limited to the warranties of non-infringement of third party rights, title, merchantability, and freedom from computer virus is given with respect to the contents of this page or its hyperlinks to other internet resources. Neither admin nor its content providers shall be liable for any damages of any kind. Errors or omissions should be reported to page administrators using the message tab on the page. Visitors to the page may see links to Internet resources outside of the Facebook website: all are provided solely for the convenience of our page visitors. By providing such links, we should not be considered as endorsing and/or being associated with any or all of the outside sites linked from our main page. Accessing this page constitutes the user’s acknowledgement of and agreement to the terms and conditions set forth above. We reserve the right to update and modify these guidelines without notice and at any time. It is your responsibility to be aware of these guidelines and we encourage you to check this page often to become familiar with community expectations and standards of behaviour. While we try to maintain this online community within the guidelines above, some breaches may slip past our attention. If there is something on our page which you feel should be brought to our attention we encourage you to email us with your concerns at:

[email protected]

Standing in the Sturt Street gardens opposite Ballarat Base Hospital, the Petersen Fountain has been part of our city's ...
20/10/2026

Standing in the Sturt Street gardens opposite Ballarat Base Hospital, the Petersen Fountain has been part of our city's streetscape since 1922.

The fountain owes its existence to Carsten Heinrich Petersen, a Danish-born Ballarat businessman. Petersen was a well-known identity in Ballarat, having owned a newsagency, a fancy store, a woodyard and had invested in real estate.

Sadly, on 9 February 1922, aged 85, he was killed while crossing Sturt Street. His bequest provided the funds for the fountain, which became a lasting memorial to him. The inscription on its base reads:

“PRESENTED BY C.H. PETERSEN — BORN IN DENMARK 2nd MARCH 1836 — DIED BALLAARAT 9 FEBRUARY 1922.”

The fountain features four marble stork figures, along with a bird perched above the upper bowl, traditionally described in the city's records as a crane. Water was designed to flow from the upper bird's outstretched beak, while the frogs provide additional outlets below.

The decorative bird was stolen and never recovered, and a replacement made by Ballarat craftsman Lloyd Lusk was installed in 1989. Another bird was stolen in August 1983, and further repairs followed in 1993.

In 2025, The City of Ballarat undertook conservation work to clean the stone, reduce iron staining, repair deteriorating surfaces and protect the metalwork.
Unfortunately, it was identified that ongoing repairs will be required to restore the fountain’s hydraulic system at a later date.

The fountain will remain as just a memorial until funding can be found to get the water flowing again.

19/10/2026

Quasimodo's Dream
- turn up the volume

There’s something special about the way sunlight sweeps across Ballarat’s historic streets, picking out every arch, colu...
19/10/2026

There’s something special about the way sunlight sweeps across Ballarat’s historic streets, picking out every arch, column, cornice and intricate detail carved into these beautiful old buildings.

I'd much rather be reading about this than rich kids building cars that can fly. Get behind our local talent.
16/10/2026

I'd much rather be reading about this than rich kids building cars that can fly.

Get behind our local talent.

Friday is coming at you faster than a seagull after a chip.The weekend is looking magnificent for a visit to Ballaarat!I...
15/10/2026

Friday is coming at you faster than a seagull after a chip.
The weekend is looking magnificent for a visit to Ballaarat!

I'm not sure why, but yes, this chap caught the bird trying to steal a chip. He let it go again.

Grass Trees are bursting into flower in the forests around Ballaarat.Why not take a walk in our very own "Grass-tree Nat...
14/10/2026

Grass Trees are bursting into flower in the forests around Ballaarat.

Why not take a walk in our very own "Grass-tree Nature Trail" in the Woowookarung Regional Park.

Grass trees mostly thrive from bushfires, especially the smaller traditional 'cool' fires. They don't flower every year, but definitely do in spring if they have been burnt.

Known for thousands of years as "baggup" by Wadawurrung, they were used for food, fibre, medicine, and tools, and referred to culturally as a "Wiyn (fire) tree".

The flowering spikes were soaked in water to produce a sweet drink. The soft, white leaf bases were eaten as well as the growing point of the stem. The flower spike exudes a resin which could be used as an adhesive in the manufacture of tools and the stem used for the lower portion of a spear. Stems were also used to make a base for a fire-drill to start a fire.

Woowookarung Regional Park is only 5km from the city centre!

Spring is in full flight in the Natural world too ! Yesterday we went on a bird tour and came across some Yellow Tailed ...
11/10/2026

Spring is in full flight in the Natural world too !

Yesterday we went on a bird tour and came across some Yellow Tailed Black Cockatoos, a pair of Striated Pardalotes nesting in the bank of a gully and last on the list was a large "waddling" of Black Ducks with just one adult !

Striated Pardalotes nest in tunnels created by anything, tree roots etc but usually dig themselves. They also nest in tree hollows which highlights the importance of leaving tree hollows right where they are.
The beautiful, and tiny, Striated Pardalote has a body not much bigger than a 50 cent piece and apparently weighing the same as a 20 cent piece.. They are fast and agile. ❤️

What an afternoons entertainment was had and nice to be able to share with our followers.




Illegal rubbish dumping is not funny.Report it using Snap, Send, Solve
11/10/2026

Illegal rubbish dumping is not funny.
Report it using Snap, Send, Solve

Eastern Oval Grandstand built 1904 Federation/Edwardian Architecture.211-221 PEEL STREET NORTH, BALLARAT EAST, BALLARAT ...
06/10/2026

Eastern Oval Grandstand built 1904
Federation/Edwardian Architecture.
211-221 PEEL STREET NORTH, BALLARAT EAST, BALLARAT CITY
Humffray Street Heritage Precinct
(from the Victorian Heritage Database)
https://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/120783
I was there this morning before the clouds and rain to see this truly rare Ballarat heritage treasure.

While there I was just thinking what dignitaries the grand stand had hosted and some of the games that this grandstand has been privy to.
Another notable later addition is the "Langley Ballarat" loudspeaker sitting prominently in the middle of the grandstand.
Later this week I'll post another oval grandstand.





Visiting Ballaarat, or a proud resident? Why not send someone special a postcard and wish they were here? Click through ...
04/10/2026

Visiting Ballaarat, or a proud resident?

Why not send someone special a postcard and wish they were here? Click through into our photo albulm and share one of these 50 cards from the State Library of Victoria.

Or view even more at the Shirley Jones Collection of Victorian postcards:
https://find.slv.vic.gov.au/discovery/collectionDiscovery?vid=61SLV_INST:SLV&inst=61SLV_INST&collectionId=81272547680007636

50 Coloured Postcards from the State Library of Victoria Catalogue - predominately from 1905-10

Address

Cnr Lydiard & Sturt St
Ballarat, VIC
3350

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