St Arnaud is a substantial country town of some 3000 people. It is a service centre to a district focused on mixed farming, merino wool, grains, legumes and vineyards. A former goldmining town, St Arnaud is noted for its historic streetscape of old pubs, shops and post-supported verandahs, some with ornate cast-iron lacework.
Where Is It: at the south-eastern edge of the Mallee plains, between Donald and Avoca on the Sunraysia Highway, 235 km north-west of Melbourne and 239 metres above sea-level.
Located on the eastern boundary of the Wimmera, St Arnaud has retained the ornamental, cast-iron lace trims now exceedingly rare in rural Victoria and has one of the state's earliest brick court houses, constructed in 1866. Napier Street which has a number of old red-brick civic buildings is now classified as a conservation area. These include the Shire Hall (1902), the Courthouse (1866), the Crown Lands Office (1876), the old post office (1866), now a bed and breakfast, and in Jennings Street the police lock-up (1862). Modern facilities have been introduced to the town, but without detracting from the old world character and charm associated with its history.
Brief history: Surbveyor-General Thomas Mitchell was very positive when he first saw the district, describing it enthusiastically in his journal as country ready for the immediate reception of civilized man, before describing his breakfast of emu eggs. By 1842, the first pastoral runs were established but it was the discovery of gold in 1855 that led to the establishment of the town. The miners who made the gold discovery attempted to keep their precious find hidden but within a few months the secret of what was to be called the New Bendigo diggings was out and prospectors flocked to the area.
When the village that grew up around the diggings came to be named in 1858, the Crimean War had just ended and the name Jacques le Roy de St Arnaud (left), Commander of the French forces in the Crimean War, was adopted. A French national hero, St Arnaud lies buried with Napoleon in Paris. Although the initial gold rush was short lived, deep quartz mining was an important industry in St Arnaud from 1885 to 1926. The first mine, the Lord Nelson was closed in 1915; it is now beneath the town's swimming pool. The last cyanide plant did not close down until 1950. But St Arnaud was able to survive and thrive because it was not dependent on mining alone. In 1861 the town's streets were surveyed by WM. Wills who later tried unsuccessfully to cross the continent with fellow explorer Robert O'Hara Burke. After the Land Act of the late 1860s St Arnaud became the gateway to the newly opened agricultural land of northern Victoria and a thriving centre for wool, wheat and flour milling. These land-based pursuits, together with a large stock feed industry and a variety of light manufacturing industries from aluminium window frames to vintage car panels and eucalyptus oil to cement products have kept the attractive and historic town alive. Other more recent enterprises include eucalyptus farming, olive groves and wine growing.
Located on the eastern boundary of the Wimmera, St Arnaud has retained the ornamental, cast-iron lace trims now exceedingly rare in rural Victoria and has one of the state's earliest brick court houses, constructed in 1866. Napier Street which has a number of old red-brick civic buildings is now classified as a conservation area. These include the Shire Hall (1902), the Courthouse (1866), the Crown Lands Office (1876), the old post office (1866), now a bed and breakfast, and in Jennings Street the police lock-up (1862). Modern facilities have been introduced to the town, but without detracting from the old world character and charm associated with its history.
the secret of what was to be called the New Bendigo diggings was out and prospectors flocked to the area.
In 1861 the town's streets were surveyed by WM. Wills who later tried unsuccessfully to cross the continent with fellow explorer Robert O'Hara Burke. After the Land Act of the late 1860s St Arnaud became the gateway to the newly opened agricultural land of northern Victoria and a thriving centre for wool, wheat and flour milling. These land-based pursuits, together with a large stock feed industry and a variety of light manufacturing industries from aluminium window frames to vintage car panels and eucalyptus oil to cement products have kept the attractive and historic town alive. Other more recent enterprises include eucalyptus farming, olive groves and wine growing.
