Population 1,693 (2011 census) LGA(s) Shire of Buloke Mean max temp Mean min temp Postal code 3480 Federal division Division of Mallee | Postcode(s) 3480 State electorate(s) Ripon Elevation 114 m Local time Friday 5:23 PM | |
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Location 282 km (175 mi) from Melbourne
144 km (89 mi) from Bendigo
90 km (56 mi) from Horsham Weather 34°C, Wind SW at 11 km/h, 14% Humidity | ||
Donald is a town in Victoria, Australia, located on the Richardson River, at the junction of Sunraysia Highway and Borung Highway, in the Shire of Buloke. At the 2011 Census it had a population of 1,693.
Contents
Map of Donald VIC 3480, Australia
History
The town is named after William Donald, a Scottish pastoralist who was the first settler in the area in 1844. At the 2011 census, Donald had a population of 1,693. The earliest township was known as Richardson Bridge until surveyed as Donald in 1866. The Donald Post Office opened on 1 August 1870 replacing that of nearby Mount Jeffcott which had operated since 1860.
The town grew steadily boosted by the closer settlement of the surrounding countryside and the arrival of the railway in 1882.
Sir Albert Dunstan, Premier of Victoria 1935-43, was born in Donald in July 1882.
On 26 September 2006, Donald was the scene of the Borung Highway collision in which seven people died.
Donald has been a victim of several floods in recent years, with the most severe in January 2011. Major floods also occurred in August 1909, 1918, 1956, 1975 and 1992. Contrarily, the area suffered a major drought period in the 1990s and 2000s, significantly impacting the community which primarily relies on crop farming to survive.
Sports and activities
Donald has a local newspaper called the Buloke Times which is published each Tuesday and Friday, focusing on local events in the Buloke area, with an emphasis on sporting achievements.
The town hosts a 3-day lawn tennis championship on Labour Day weekend. It has an annual show on the Friday and Saturday of the 2nd week of October, and hosts Off Road Racing Australia's annual event the Donald 500 in April.
Donald has a field hockey club, an Australian Rules Football club called the Donald Royal Blues and a netball club named the Donald Netball Club, all competing in the North Central Football League, the region's major sport league. The horse racing club, the Wimmera Racing Club, schedules around six race meetings a year at Donald including the Donald Cup meeting in November.
Golfers play at the Donald Golf Club on Golf Links Road.
Attractions
Recently the township bid on one of three faux fish used in the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth games ceremony, and was successful.
An attraction in the township is the Bullock's Head Tree, a tree which has a growth on it in the shape of a head of a bullock. Though this was badly damaged in a storm, with the top of the tree falling down, it was re-erected using a metal pole and concrete. Waterskiing and camping facilities are available at the nearby Lake Batyo Catyo.
Transport
The Mildura railway line passes through Donald, but only freight services run on it. Donald railway station was closed in 1993, one hundred years after it opened. Buses run through Donald daily from major centres such as Ballarat and Melbourne.