Penshurst
Small rural centre adjacent Mount Rouse
Penshurst is a small village of about 500 people located 275 km west of Melbourne and 31 km south-east of Hamilton on the Hamilton Highway. It is the centre of a large dairying, agricultural and pastoral district on a lava plain near the foot of an extinct volcano named Mt Rouse after the colonial under secretary of NSW. Known as 'Collorer' by the local Aborigines it ascends to a height of 360 m above sea-level. Long mined for scoria until recently it has now been reforested with native trees and turned into a recreation area.

The land around Mt Rouse was once occupied by the Nareeb Nareeb and Kolor Aborigines who garnered plenty of food from the local environment and water from natural springs and creeks. The Kolor people took their name from the mountain which they called 'Collorrer'. They built substantial huts for their shelter in the winter, preferring the open countryside in the warmer months. Major Mitchell, who sighted Mount Rouse during his Australia Felix expedition of 1837, also encountered two of the aforementioned dwellings which he described as 'two very substantial huts'. On a rainy day he expressed a desire to 'return if possible, to pass the night there, for I began to learn that such huts, with a good fire between them, made comfortable quarters in bad weather.' From atop Mount Napier he noted: 'Smoke arose from many parts of the lower country, and showed that the inhabitants were very generally scattered over its surface. We could now look on such fires with indifference, so harmless were these natives, compared with those of the Darling, and the smoke, now ascended in equal abundance from the furthest verge of the horizon.'

Each tribe had a chief who consulted with the other elders. Those regarded as having special contact with the spirit world practiced healing and were held in some awe. Tunrap Warneen,

chief of the Kolor tribe, was one such healer whose reputation drew Aborigines from far afield was . He spoke many dialects and, at corroborees and meetings, his face was rendered in red pigment with white lines beneath the eyes. A band around his temple bore the feather of a turkey bustard or the crest of a white cockatoo. His fate was indicative of early black-white relations in that he was shot by the manager of a station near Mount Kolor, causing a tremendous sense of grief and loss to the neighbouring tribes.

As many as 20 tribes would attend meetings at a large marsh to the south-east of Penshurst in order to barter, feast, hunt and socialise. Intricate laws governing sexual relations were designed to prevent interbreeding. A local squatter remarked: 'The aborigines are everywhere divided into classes, and everyone is considered to belong to his mother's class, and cannot marry into it in any tribe, as all of the same class are considered brothers and sisters.'

The first settler to take up land at Mount Rouse was John Cox who had established a sheep station by 1840. Others held leases on land in the surrounding district. The indigenous people soon found their food sources destroyed or driven out by clearing and the introduction of European stock. When, of necessity, they turned to that stock for food they found themselves subject to retaliatory raids by white landowners. There were numerous episodes of killing and bloodshed with the Aborigines the inevitable losers.

The government's response to the rapid decline of the Aboriginal population in New South Wales (and Victoria was still, at that time, part of New South Wales) was to establish a number of reservations and Mount Rouse was chosen as a suitable site. John Cox was forced to remove his stock from the land and an Aboriginal Protectorate was opened. However, conflict continued and diseases introduced into Australia by Europeans ravaged the indigenous peoples. Thus, within a few years, the Aboriginal population was so diminished that the reserve closed. It operated either from 1840 to 1842 or 1842 to 1849, depending on which source is to be believed.

In 1858 Acheson French noted: 'The number of aborigines must have very much diminished since my arrival eighteen years ago as I seldom see any now though I used to constantly employ them formerly.' That same year Henry Gottreaux of 'The Gums' thought that there were about 150 to 200 remnants from five or six tribes in the county of Villiers.

After the Protectorate closed the government opened the area up, once again, to squatters and the Twomeys paid an unusually high sum for the license to the Mount Rouse estate.

Several Lutheran churches in the district testify to the movement of Germans from the Barossa Valley in South Australia as the Western District began to open up following the goldrushes of the 1850s.

When Penshurst was laid out it was given wide main streets to enable the turning of bullock trains. Several schools and opened in the late 1850s and a flurry of hotels. A Wesleyan Church was built in 1860. Mt Rouse Shire, with its seat in Penshurst, was created in 1864 and it was felt important to build a proper courthouse and a post office for the new municipality. The shire offices were, of course, erected the same year. A Presbyterian Church was constructed in 1865 and a Catholic Church in 1867 and the first bank appeared that same decade. It was thought that Penshurst would become a major centre but it was Hamilton that emerged as the district capital.

Seven people were killed and another ten wounded in a horrendous railway accident which occurred in 1890 when a train hit a stray bullock about 3 km from Penshurst during the construction of the railway to Koroit.

Penshurst was one of the earliest towns to develop a creamery to supply the Hamilton Butter Factory Company. Since that time dairying has continued to be an important industry.

Like many rural centres Penshurst now has a declining population and, like many rural centres, it has, of late, seen its banks, hotels and churches gradually close and its services withdrawn. However, a good civic spirit remains and locals are currently engaged in a town beautification project and in the restoration of old buildings and the upgrading of tourism facilities. Penshurst retains a hospital, two primary schools, a computer centre, a large community hall, a senior citizens centre, an hotel, a restaurant, a caravan park and other accommodation and a variety of rural and domestic trades and services. The district around the township retains some lovely old homesteads, such as 'The Gums', the 'Gazette' estate and Mount Napier Homestead.

Penshurst is known for its Easter and Boxing Day horse races an annual rodeo and campdraft, a country-and-western weekend in February, the Agricultural Show on the first Saturday in December, and the Christmas party.

Things to see:  

Historic Buildings
A brochure outlining a walk of the town's historic buildings is available from the post office and also from the information centre (see below). You can start your investigation at the corner of Bell St and Martin St. Here you will find the former courthouse (1864) and the post office which was built in 1878 with the clock added in 1888.

Walk west along Bell St. Within the same block, to the right, is the former Victoria Hotel (1863). Opposite is the Rouse restaurant built c.1890 by Chinese greengrocers. Return along Bell St. Opposite the post office (on the south-western corner) is Madigan's Store (c.1860s).

Information Centre and Museum Display
Turn right into Martin St. To the right are the former Mt Rouse Shire offices which were built in two stages. The front section, constructed of rock-faced basalt, dates from 1864. The Shire chambers were added in 1877 and the extensions to the rear were built in 1962. The shire was amalgamated in 1994 and the building is now used as a visitors' information centre which is usually open weekends, tel: (03) 5576 7233. One room has an historical display and local arts and crafts are for sale. The local historical society can be contacted on (03) 5576 5366.

Historic Buildings Continued
Turn right into Watton St. To the right, about halfway along the block, is the former Prince of Wales Hotel (1861) which once had a ballroom. It was badly damaged by fire in 1972 and is now a private residence.

Cross over Watton St and return to Martin St. By the south-western corner is St Joseph's Catholic Church (1867) which was constructed of bluestone in 1867 with the sacristy, transcepts and a new sanctuary added in 1897. The adjacent presbytery dates from 1925.

Proceed along Martin St and turn right into Cobb St, heading west. At the corner of Cobb and Burchett Sts is the Anglican Church (1898).

Return along Cobb St and turn right back into Martin St. To the right is the former Presbyterian (now Uniting) Church (1865). The adjacent manse dates from 1867 (it is now privately owned).

Return along Martin St and turn right into Cobb St, heading east. The private residence at no.77 dates from 1890 when it started as a doctor's surgery.

Continue along Cobb St and turn left into French St. On the Watton St corner is the former Penshurst State School (1858) which is now a private residence. On the other side of French St is the former Catholic convent, built in the 1880s.

A short distance west along Watton St, to the left, is the former Temperance Hall (1872) which was later used as a Masonic Lodge. On the other side of the road, at no.86, is one of the town's first two primary schools which was built in the 1850s (now a private residence).

Turn right into Martin St then take the first right into Bell St. To the right is the former National Bank (c.1868). The bluestone building at 83B Bell St is an early National School (1858). The former Wesleyan Church dates from 1860. It is now a private residence.

Return along Bell St. By the south-eastern corner of Bell St and Martin St is the Penshurst Hotel. The current building was erected in 1895 to replace the 1861 original which was destroyed by fire.

Continue north along Martin St to Cox St. On the south-eastern corner is the former Bank of Victoria (1876) which is now a private residence. To the rear is a weatherboard house dating from c.1860.

Continue along the main road as it veers to the north-west (towards Hamilton) past the Botanical Gardens. To the right is the former Cricketer's Arms Hotel (1871) which is now privately owned.

Botanical Garden and Water Gardens
On the north-eastern corner of Cox St and the main thoroughfare are the Penshurst Botanical Gardens. There is a walking track through the newly developed Penshurst Water Gardens. These are based around a natural spring that used to be the town's water supply. There are picnic, barbecue, toilet and playground facilities.

Galleries and Antiques
The Bisquolm Gallery is located at 24 Martin St, tel: (03) 5576 5302. The Rouse, in Bell St, sells antiques and bric-a-brac, tel: (03) 5576 5520.

Mt Rouse Park
Mt Rouse is an attractive and readily accessible extinct volcano which emerged around 300 000 to 400 000 years ago. It produced the longest single lava flow in the Newer Volcanic Province of Victoria and has long been quarried for scoria (solidified lava). It is now a recreation area with a fine lookout and other attractions. Although much of the local flora and fauna was destroyed by a fire in the 1970s much replanting has occurred. Tussock grasses, kangaroo apple, sheoak, sweet banksia, manna gum, black wattle and tree violet now grow on the mountain but it isn't clear whether this vegetation was here when Europeans first arrived as timber was already being cut from the slopes by 1841. Black wallabies, grey kangaroos, echidnas and eagles, which nest in the old quarries, are returning.

To access the site head south from the town centre along the Penshurst-Warrnambool for 2.5 km then turn right into Surkitts Lane (aka Tourist Road). It leads past an old scoria quarry then through the park entrance. Next is a carpark on the left-hand side of the road with a 12-minute walking track to the volcanic crater which is now a deep lake.

Further along is a larger carpark nearer the main peak with barbecue facilities and toilets. A walking track leads to a scoria pit. A side track off this path leads to a lookout.

Further along Surkitts Lane is another walking track and parking area. The track leads to a fire observation tower at the summit (270 metres above the surrounding plains) from whence there are excellent views of the Grampians and the district. On a clear day it is also possible to look southwards to the coast 60 km away.

Kolor and Woolshed
The Kolor estate, just south of town on the Penshurst-Warrnambool Rd, features an outstanding and highly picturesque single-storey bluestone Classical Revival mansion (1868) which is noted for its exceptional masonry. The dominant feature is a tower with a bellcast roof.

Another feature of interest is the hexagonal basalt woolshed which was built about the same time as the mansion. It was constructed of local squared basalt blocks. The interior timber framework and joinery were prefabricated and highly detailed. It has since become part of a different estate my means of subdivision. These buildings can be seen from the lookout atop Mt Rouse or from the Penshurst-Warrnambool Road. Mr Belcher, tel: (03) 5573 4517.

Burger Museum
The Burgers were one of 400 families of Wends who migrated to Australia in the 19th century. The Wends, also known as Sorbs, were a Slavic people from Saxony and adjoining parts of Prussia. They spoke Wendish at home and German in the community with English encroaching by way of business dealings. The Burgers established a property on stony ground at Mount Rouse c.1853 called 'Gnadenthal', meaning 'Valley of Grace'.

The original cottage (1853) was built from split upright timber plastered with wattle and daub. It now houses the Burger Museum which contains material dating back to the mid-19th century. Visits are by appointment only and a small donation is appreciated, tel: (03) 5576 5236.

Lake Linlithgow
10 km north-west of Penshurst (follow the Hamilton road to the signposted turnoff on the right) is Lake Linlithgow which is ideal for water sports, fishing, picnicking and bird-watching. There are picnic, barbecue, toilet and parking facilities and a boat ramp. The site is open during daylight hours.

Tabor
There are two historic Lutheran Churches at Tabor, approximately 10 km west of Penshurst. The original dates from 1884 and the later church (still in use) dates from.

Green Hills Gardens
'Green Hills' is a display garden located at Minhamite, 14 km south of Penshurst. Roses are a specialty and there are garden rooms, three acres of lawn and perennial borders featuring a large variety of trees and shrubs. The garden, on Caramut Rd, is open by appointment from 10.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m., October to April. Lunches and teas are by arrangement and coach groups are welcome. The cost is $3 per person, tel: (03) 5576 6252.

	Hotels
	Penshurst Hotel Bell St Penshurst VIC 3289 Telephone: (03) 5576 5252
	Bed & Breakfast/Guesthouses
	Burnbrae Bed & Breakfast RMB 5740 Hamilton Hwy Penshurst VIC 3289 Telephone: (03) 5576 5499 Rating: ***
	Caravan Parks
	Penshurst Caravan Park Cox St Penshurst VIC 3289 Telephone: (03) 5576 5212 Rating: **