Kyneton

Major Thomas Mitchell, New South Wales Surveyor General crossed and named the Campaspe River near present-day Kyneton on his 1836 expedition.[5] Charles Ebden was the first European occupier of the region that included the Kyneton townsite. He set up a head station for his sheep run at Carlsruhe, Victoria 6 km South of Kyneton on the 26th May 1837.[6]

In 1837 Thomas Walker, a Sydney businessman, walked from Sydney to Melbourne, following much of the route taken by Thomas Mitchell the year before, and recorded the trip in a journal “A month in the Bush of Australia” which is now in the British Library. Walker met Ebden in May 1837 on the journey south.

In June 1838 the Waterloo Plains massacre of 8 - 23 Djadjawurrung people occurred on the newly established Barford sheep run north of Kyneton.

Unlike a majority of towns in the area, Kyneton predates the Separation of the Port Phillip District from the Colony of New South Wales and the Victorian gold rushes,[7] having been established in 1850, whereas the gold rushes started the year after. Construction of Kyneton’s oldest surviving stone building, the Church of England Rectory, located at 61 Ebden Street, commenced in 1850 and is a rare surviving example of a pre-gold rush and pre-separation dwelling.

At this time, Kyneton was a growing rural centre, and served as a major stop for those heading to the gold rushes at Mount Alexander and Bendigo. The post office opened on 1 July 1843 as Mount Macedon and was renamed Kyneton on 1 January 1854.[8]

Joseph Furphy (aka Tom Collins) attended Kyneton primary school in the mid-1850s.[9]

In November 1857, the humanitarian Caroline Chisholm moved her family to Kyneton, where her husband Archibald sat on the magistrates' bench and their two elder sons ran a store.

Kyneton Mounted Rifle Corps was formed in 1859, as one of the volunteer brigades set up when Britain was involved in wars in Afghanistan, Crimea and India. The Kyneton Mounted Rifle Corps was among the earliest in the colony of Victoria. The corps was later amalgamated in the 1880s to form the Victorian Mounted Rifles. Although the individual volunteer units had been disbanded by Federation (1901), many members became part of the 4th and 12th regiments of Light Horse at the Battle of Beersheba (1917) against Turkish troops of the Ottoman Empire.[10]

Henry Gregory (politician) (1860-1940), Western Australian State and Federal politician, was born and educated in Kyneton.

Sir Stanley Argyle, Premier of Victoria 1932–35, was born in Kyneton in 1867 and the family lived at Rock House, a double fronted double story bluestone house that still stands to the west of the town on the banks of the Campaspe River.

Lieutenant-Colonel Geoffrey Hurry (1868-1951), Commander of the 38th Battalion AIF in France in 1918, was born and died in Kyneton. He was the Member for Bendigo in the Commonwealth Parliament from 1922 until 1929.[11]

The Kyneton Courthouse tried Ned Kelly in 1870[12] for robbery under arms. This courthouse has since continued to function, although only as a magistrates' court on Mondays.

In the 2016 Census, there were 6,951 people in Kyneton. 78.6% of people were born in Australia. The next most common country of birth was England at 3.7%. 88.3% of people spoke only English at home. The most common responses for religion were No Religion 35.7%, Catholic 25.2% and Anglican 11.9%.[1]

Kyneton's main locally produced newspaper is the Midland Express, which also serves the surrounding region. The town receives television from Mount Alexander, and is served by a community radio station, 100.7 Highlands FM, based in Woodend.

Autumn in the Kyneton Botanical Gardens.

Kyneton offers tourists several points of interest locally including the Botanic Gardens (established in the mid-1800s[13]) and several walks along the Campaspe River.

Various Farmers Markets and festivals throughout the year make the town popular as a day trip destination. The township also serves as a starting point for many nearby destinations, such as Trentham Falls and Hanging Rock in Newham.

Kyneton Museum, located in the old Bank of New South Wales building (built in 1856[14]), houses an extensive collection of local historical items.

Being located well away from any heavily populated areas and their inherent light pollution, Kyneton is also a destination for astronomers seeking a clear view of the Southern Hemisphere night skies due to relatively low light pollution levels as opposed to Australian cities. The Cobaw Plateau is host to a 500-hectare facility for astronomical observation.

The Macedon Ranges is home to the most artists per capita in Victoria. Kyneton, with the beauty in the changing seasons and enthusiastic cafe culture, is a hub for artists and crafts people.

Kyneton is where the annual Lost Trades Fair and the Daffodil Festival were founded.

It is home to many galleries and artist studios, including but not limited to:

Stockroom, The Old Auction house, The Golden Dog Gallery, Art on Piper, Lauriston Press, John Lloyd Gallery and Colours of White to name a few.

The Macedon Ranges holds two art specific events, The Dayesford and Macedon Ranges open studios and the Macedon Ranges Arts Trail.

It is also home to quaint bookstores and many excellent cafes.

Kyneton Mechanics Hall

Kyneton is centrally located among several outlying towns and serves as an educational hub for primary and secondary students. The following educational institutions are located in the main township:

• Kyneton Primary School
• Our Lady of the Rosary, Kyneton
• Kyneton Secondary College
• Sacred Heart College, Kyneton
• Bendigo Regional Institute of TAFE (BRIT), Kyneton Campus
• Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE (NMIT), NMIT Kyneton Park Training Centre (Kyneton Racecourse)

The town has an Australian rules football team, Kyneton Football Club, competing in the Bendigo Football League .It is here where, Kyneton legend, Laurie Raines started his football career.[15]

Kyneton has a horse racing club, the Kyneton District Racing Club, which schedules around sixteen race meetings a year including the Kyneton Cup meeting in November (always the day after the Melbourne Cup).[16] In 2009 the Kyneton District Racing Club partnered with the Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE to use the facilities of the racecourse and its extensive grounds as an educational training facility.[17][18]

Golfers play at the course of the Kyneton Golf Club on Black Hill Road.[19]

Kyneton has a football team "The Rangers" which compete in the Melbourne Division 3 under the FFV banner.[20]

Kyneton contains a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

Media related to Kyneton at Wikimedia Commons

• Kyneton District Business and Tourism Association