Old Gippstown, Gippsland Heritage Park
Another important industrial town in the Latrobe valley that has developed on the back of industry centred around the brown coal fields. Industry in the town includes dairy products, milled timber, concrete pipes, furniture, spinning mills foodstuffs and gloves.
Location: 134 km east of Melbourne on the Princes Highway. Map
Origin of name: the area was originally known as 'The Moe' or the 'Mowie' swamp, derived from an Aboriginal word which supposedly relating to the marshy nature of the territory.
Brief history: in the 1850s Moe became a base for rural selectors moving south into the hill country and for miners headed for the Walhalla goldfields to the north. A small gold discovery was made in the immediate area in 1852. The township of Moe was originally situated 3 km to the north of its present site. It was moved when the railway arrived in the late 1870s. Moe experienced huge growth after World War II centred around the controversial low cost housing estates built by the State Electricity Commission in the 1950s.
Natural features: Thompson River; Baw Baw National Park; Mt Erica; Strzeleki Ranges; Lake Narracan (swimming; water-skiing); Moondarra State Park; Tyers Park; Edward Hunter Heritage Bush Reserve.
Built features: Gippsland Heritage Park, a living museum of 30 authentic heritage buildings including the McMillan Homestead
Heritage features: McMillan Homestead; 'Loren', Moe Museum (c.1853-54).