Happy Valley, Victoria (Golden Plains Shire) Explained

Type:town
Happy Valley
State:vic
Use Lga Map:yes
Coordinates:-37.72°N 143.6056°W
Pushpin Label Position:right
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in Golden Plains Shire
Lga:Golden Plains Shire
Postcode:3360
Pop:85
Stategov:Eureka
Stategov2:Ripon
Fedgov:Wannon
Near-Nw:Linton
Near-N:Snake Valley
Near-Ne:Scarsdale
Near-W:Skipton
Near-E:Piggoreet
Near-Sw:Mannibadar
Near-S:Cape Clear
Near-Se:Springdallah

Happy Valley is a locality in the Local Government Area of the Golden Plains Shire. It shares the same name with Happy Valley in Northern Victoria.[1]

Happy Valley is a former gold mining town south-west of Ballarat that is now only a rural locality.

History

Gold was discovered in the area, originally called "Wardy Yallock" (thought to have meant "winding yellow river" of Aboriginal origins) in 1849 as part of the Australian gold rushes, with intensive mining beginning in 1853.[2] The Aboriginal name is also given as Molong ghip.[3] Mining Continued until the 1900s. The naming comes from the amount of gold found in the area.[4]

Demographics

Year Population
1871 512
1891 239
1911 135
1933 69
1954 25
201685

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Archived copy . 18 May 2016 . 6 June 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120606201838/http://www.vec.vic.gov.au/Files/LocalityFinder.pdf . dead .
  2. http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/806766 Bailliere’s Victorian gazetteer (1865)
  3. Web site: Native names of hills, rivers, lakes, and other natural features in Victoria . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20170205170746/http://aiatsis.gov.au/sites/default/files/docs/digitised_collections/collectors_of_words/smyth/m0053739_a.pdf . 5 February 2017 . 14 May 2020.
  4. Web site: Happy Valley | Victorian Places.