Bluestone arch bridge over the Barwon River
A typical rural service centre for the surrounding pastoral district. The National Trust homestead, Barwon Park, at Winchelsea, is the site where rabbits were first introduced to Australia.
Location: 37 km west of Geelong on the Princes Highway at the junction of the Cape Otway road leading to Deans Marsh and Lorne on the Great Ocean Road.
Origin of name: was first named Austin's Ford, then The Barwon and finally was officially named Winchelsea after Winchelsea, one of the Cinque Ports on the south-east coast of England. It later became the sister city of Winchelsea in Victoria.
Brief history: situated on the Barwon River it developed as a popular watering place for coaches travelling between Geelong and Colac. The first Europeans to reside in the area were squatters who established grazing runs here in 1837. The town developed around the Barwon Hotel and a general store, both of which were established in 1842 on the coaching route between Geelong and Warrnambool.
Natural features: Barwon River; Lake Murdeduke; Mount Hesse; Mount Gellibrand; Lough Calvert; Lake Weering
Built features: Barwon Bridge (1867); Old Shire Hall; Barwon Hotel (1842)
Heritage features: Barwon Park homestead; Bluestone arch bridge