Yarrawonga

Geography

The town is located approximately 264 km north-east of the state capital, Melbourne, situated on the south bank of the Murray River, the border between Victoria and New South Wales.

Yarrawonga's twin town of Mulwala is on the other side of the Murray River.

History

Yarrawonga is Aboriginal, meaning 'cormorant’s nesting place,' 'where the cormorant builds' or 'yarra' meaning 'waterfalls,' and 'wonga' meaning 'pigeon.' It is believed the Mulla Walla people occupied the area before the first white settlers arrived in 1842.

Yarrawonga was founded as a village in 1868, with a Post Office being opened on 28 November 1874, and a courthouse the very same year. It was connected by rail to Melbourne in 1886.

Yarrawonga was proclaimed a shire in 1891, It was renamed from 'North Yarrawonga Shire' (1891) to 'Yarrawonga Shire' in 1893.

Yarrawonga Weir and Lake Mulwala were constructed in the late 1930s as part of the Murray-Darling Irrigation Scheme.

Historically, one of the major industries in the Yarrawonga/Mulwala area has been the explosives factory, which was constructed in Mulwala over 1942–43. It is now operated by French company Thales but remains an Australian Department of Defence asset.

The Yarrawonga Magistrates' Court closed on 1 January 1990.

Demographics

In the 2016 census, Yarrawonga recorded a population of 7,930, 51.1% female and 48.9% male. The median age of the Yarrawonga population was 50 years, 12 years above the national median of 38. 81.9% of people living in Yarrawonga were born in Australia. The other top responses for country of birth were England 2.4%, Scotland 0.7%, New Zealand 0.5%, India 0.4% and the Philippines 0.4%. 88.4% of people spoke only English at home; the next most common languages were 0.2% Italian, 0.2% Gujarati, 0.2% Punjabi, 0.2% French and 0.1% German.

In the 2021 census, Yarrawonga recorded a population of 8,661 people, 51.5% female and 48.5% male. The median age of the Yarrawonga population was 52 years, 14 years above the national median of 38. 84.8% of people living in Yarrawonga were born in Australia. The other top responses for country of birth were England 2.2%, New Zealand 0.7%, the Philippines 0.6%, Scotland 0.6%, and Germany 0.5%. 90.6% of people spoke only English at home; the next most common languages were 0.3% Filipino, 0.3% Italian, 0.3% Punjabi, 0.3% Cantonese, and 0.2% Urdu.

Sport

The Yarrawonga Football Club (the 'Mighty Pigeons') participates in the Ovens and Murray Football League in the sport of Australian rules football, which has produced Barry Mitchell, Joel Smith, Ben Dixon, and Tom Lonergan as well as Caleb Mitchell.

Transport

Yarrawonga is served by a standard gauge branch railway, which branches off the Melbourne-Sydney line at Benalla and terminates at Oaklands in New South Wales.

Attractions

Yarrawonga's main attraction is Lake Mulwala, formed by the damming of the Murray River. The lake is a popular location for activities such as boating, kayaking and fishing. There are two crossings of the Murray between Yarrawonga and Mulwala; across the weir (Walking path only); and a bridge over Lake Mulwala. This bridge contains an unusual bend and dip in the middle, a result of miscommunication between the two state governments.

Climate

Yarrawonga has a humid subtropical climate (Cfa) with hot, dry summers and cool, cloudy winters. The weather radar at Yarrawonga has proven a useful tool in monitoring important weather systems as far south as Marysville, west to Bendigo and north to Griffith, meeting its eastern limit at the Snowy Mountains and is thus a reliable monitor of snowfall systems approaching from the west.

|Jan record high C = 46.0 |Feb record high C = 46.0 |Mar record high C = 39.9 |Apr record high C = 36.7 |May record high C = 28.9 |Jun record high C = 23.0 |Jul record high C = 21.0 |Aug record high C = 25.7 |Sep record high C = 34.0 |Oct record high C = 36.4 |Nov record high C = 42.4 |Dec record high C = 44.3 |year record high C = 46.0 |Jan record low C = 4.4 |Feb record low C = 4.7 |Mar record low C = 3.3 |Apr record low C = -0.5 |May record low C = -1.9 |Jun record low C = -5.3 |Jul record low C = -4.4 |Aug record low C = -6.0 |Sep record low C = -3.4 |Oct record low C = -1.4 |Nov record low C = 0.6 |Dec record low C = 2.2 |year record low C = -6.0

Popular culture

• Neil McBeath wrote the song "I'm Going Back To Yarrawonga", published in 1919 and later recorded by Ella Shields and Leonard Hubbard in 1992 and 1996 respectively.
• Yarrawonga is also home to Australia's Tallest Man, Kewal Shiels, measuring 7 ft.

Gallery

File:YarrawongaTownHall.JPG|Yarrawonga Town Hall File:ForeshoreYarrawonga.JPG|Foreshore of Lake Mulwala at Yarrawonga File:Victoria Police checkpoint at Yarrawonga on January 12th 2021.jpg|COVID-19 Victorian Border Checkpoint at Yarrawonga in January 2021

Notable people

• Anne Curtis, actress, TV host personality

References

References

1. "2016 Census QuickStats Yarrawonga". Australian Bureau of Statistics.
2. ''[[Macquarie Dictionary. Macquarie Dictionary, Fourth Edition]]'' (2005). Melbourne, The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd. {{ISBN. 1-876429-14-3
3. Boon, Robert. (1991). "The Concise Encyclopedia of Australia and New Zealand". Horwitz Grahame Pty Limited.
4. "Yarrawonga {{!}} Murray River, Lakes, Fishing {{!}} Britannica".
5. (1984). "Yarrawonga". Helen Benton.
6. (2008-11-27). "Yarrawonga - Culture and History".
7. "Post Office List".
8. "Redevelopment of Propellant Manufacturing and Other Specified Capabilities at Mulwala".
9. "Defence Home - Thales Group".
10. (May 2001). "Review of Legal Services in Rural and Regional Victoria". Parliament of Victoria Law Reform Committee.
11. {{Census 2016 AUS
12. {{Census 2021 AUS
13. "Early Transport & Bridges of Yarrawonga Mulwala". Yarrawonga Mulwala Tourism Inc.
14. "Yarrawonga Radar".
15. {{BoM Aust stats. (April 2022)
16. Marshall, Konrad. (2019-02-15). "It's all smiles as Australia’s tallest man takes life in his stride".