Roads & Open Space Historical Index
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CITY OF BALLARAT ROADS & OPEN SPACE HISTORICAL INDEX A Very Brief History of the City of Ballarat The City of Ballarat is mostly situated in the northern part of Wathaurung Country, which covers an area very roughly bounded by present-day Werribee, Queenscliff, Aireys Inlet, Cressy, Streatham, Beaufort, Learmonth and Bacchus Marsh. The part of the City north of Learmonth is Dja Dja Wurrung Country. The City recognises the Wathaurung and Dja Dja Wurrung peoples as the original settlers and custodians of these lands. In January 1838, Somerville and Thomas Learmonth, William Yuille, Henry Anderson and John Aitken set out from Corio to explore the area to the north-west, which included the present day City of Ballarat. By 1839, settlers had established a number of homesteads, as well as Victoria’s first inland settlement at Buninyong. The pastoral landscape was changed forever when gold was discovered near Buninyong and at Golden Point in August 1851. The rush that followed established Ballarat, which quickly became Victoria’s largest inland city. The name Ballarat is derived from the Wathawurrung word Ballaarat (also written Balla-arat) and is generally accepted to mean elbow place or resting place. Key Dates in Local Municipal History 18 December 1855 16 February 1864 Municipality of Ballaarat created (note “aa” Buninyong District Roads Board became Shire of spelling) Buninyong 7 October 1856 Grenville District Roads Board became Shire of Ballarat District Roads Board created Grenville 5 May 1857 1 October 1864 Municipality of Ballarat East created Borough of Sebastopol created 9 July 1858 1869 (exact date unknown) Buninyong District Roads Board created Municipality of Smythesdale became Borough of Smythesdale 15 April 1859 9 September 1870 Borough of Buninyong created Borough of Ballarat became City of Ballaarat 1861 (exact date unknown) (note return to “aa” spelling) Municipality of Smythesdale created 27 January 1871 12 April 1861 Bungaree District Roads Board became Shire of Ripon District Roads Board created Bungaree 24 June 1861 19 August 1872 Municipality of Ballarat East became Township of Borough of Ballarat East became Town of Ballarat Ballarat East East 27 August 1861 1 October 1915 Grenville District Roads Board created Borough of Buninyong amalgamated with Shire of Buninyong 1862 (exact date unknown) Borough of Browns and Scarsdale created Borough of Browns and Scarsdale and Borough of Smythesdale amalgamated with Shire of 16 January 1863 Grenville Bungaree District Roads Board created 25 May 1921 21 October 1863 Town of Ballarat East amalgamated with City of Municipality of Ballaarat became Borough of Ballaarat Ballarat (note change to single “a” spelling) 31 March 1930 Township of Ballarat East became Borough of Part of Shire of Bungaree (roughly bounded by Ballarat East Norman, Sherrard and Gregory Streets and 24 November 1863 Creswick Road) annexed to City of Ballaarat Ballarat District Roads Board became Shire of 6 May 1994 Ballarat City of Ballarat (note single “a” spelling) created from former City of Ballaarat, Shire of Ballarat and 18 December 1863 Borough of Sebastopol, and parts of Shires of Ripon District Roads Board became Shire of Bungaree, Buninyong, Grenville and Ripon Ripon Many smaller changes to municipal boundaries have also occurred since 1855. *Every reasonable effort has been made to ensure this index is accurate and up-to-date through regular auditing, but no guarantee can be given as to its accuracy.If you would like to contribute historical information to this index or if you notice inaccuricies please contact the City of Ballarat’s Place Names Officer via our Customer Service Centre on 53205500. Roads and features listed may not be shown on maps or exist on the ground – also please see the notes on page 2. This index is not a substitute for the City of Ballarat’s Road Registry, INCLUSION OF ANY NAME IN THIS INDEX DOES NOT NECESSARILY SIGNIFY OFFICIAL APPROVAL OF THAT NAME Revised 15th January 2016 Page 2 City of Ballarat Roads & Open Space Index Page 2 Origins of Names Where known, the origin of names and year of naming are marked $:, although many names were in use well before they became official. Conversely, names are allocated to roads in new estates well before construction. Where a road or other feature has been renamed and the former name is known, it is listed with a cross-reference to the current name and also marked under the current name. Information should be used with caution, as roads, localities, features or facilities with similar names may have different origins, and different parts of the same road or locality may have been named (or renamed) at different times. Known Aboriginal names are also shown under the current European name. These have been obtained from the Database of Aboriginal Placenames of Victoria (Ian D Clark & Toby Heydon, Victorian Aboriginal Corporation for Languages, 2002). The Aboriginal language is shown where possible, but if it is unknown or uncertain, it is simply shown as Aboriginal. Note that different names may apply to different parts of the same feature, even within the same language. Also, different spellings exist for many Aboriginal words, including language, tribal and clan groups: this index uses the spellings shown in the Database. A note about Commemorative naming Commemorative naming has become increasingly popular and historically many places are named after persons of local or greater significance. In recent times guidelines regarding commemorative naming have been changed. This change has come about to ensure fairness when assigning names of persons to roads and places. New Guidelines now discourage the use of the names of living individuals for roads and places. Exemptions may apply to these guidelines but only at the discretion of the Registrar of Victoria. This is because history has revealed that community attitudes towards individuals may change over time. To aid future research, Council naming proposal (NP-) and Vicnames (Land Victoria) file (GPN-) numbers (where applicable) are shown after source details for roads and other features named or renamed by the City since commencement of the Geographic Place Names Act in December 1998. If known, Victoria Government Gazette references (year and page, eg: Gaz.1935 p.3302) are shown for names assigned before that date. Details come from written and oral records of varying reliability. Verified information is identified by a naming proposal file number or the @ symbol, while a question mark indicates a known uncertainty. (An @ beside a name itself indicates that the spelling of the name has been verified.) Please contact Council staff if you can add, verify or correct details. While such information is always appreciated, it is not practicable to credit specific sources in this index. Anyone seeking more information than is given in this index should contact local historical societies or the Australiana Research Room, Ballarat Library, 178 Doveton Street North, Ballarat Central 3350 (phone 5331 1211). The library’s collection includes a wide range of historical records, including early rates books, and staff can provide help with research. Historical Property (House) Numbers Council often receives enquiries from people trying to identify properties occupied by forebears. Block renumbering of Ballarat’s urban roads is believed to have begun around the early 1900s and is known to have continued into the 1970s. In some places, a second renumbering occurred when large properties were subdivided. Council’s records don’t show the relationship between original and present-day numbers, although it’s sometimes possible to identify properties that were renumbered towards the end of the process (but not the date when renumbering occurred.) The Ballarat Library has microfilm copies of early rates books, listing properties (with ratepayers’ names and sometimes occupations) in order along each road. Intersecting roads are usually noted, so it is often possible to locate a particular property by counting the number of properties from the intersection, making allowance for any development that has occurred in the intervening years. (It is a good idea to count from both ends of the block if possible, to minimise the risk of error resulting from more recent development.) While this won’t guarantee that the correct property will be found, it will at least usually narrow it down to a few properties. Some roads have never been block numbered and, with a few exceptions here and there, the original numbers are still in use. Road Names in Subdivisions and Unit Developments Names of all roads in new subdivisions and common property driveways in unit developments require Council approval. Council must adhere to the principles set forth in the current Guidelines for Geographic Names. Developers are encouraged to discuss road names for proposed subdivisions at an early stage. Approved names are added to this index, to ensure they are “reserved” for that development, and to minimise the risk of inadvertently approving the same or a similar name for another subdivision. These names are marked prop and, if the location is unclear the name is marked TBA. Estate names used for promotional purposes don’t require Council approval, but must not imply that they are (or may become) the suburb name. Ideally, all such names should include the word Estate. Roads in Adjoining Municipalities New road names must not duplicate or be similar to names of existing roads and must be checked for duplication