Emerald, Victoria

History

The Emerald Post Office opened on 22 December 1899.

Puffing Billy and Emerald Lake

Emerald is known for the Emerald Lake (Lake Treganowan). The lake offers barbecue facilities, children's playgrounds, a pool, paddle boats, walking tracks, fishing, Environment Centre, model railway, café and a railway station for Puffing Billy.

The Puffing Billy Railway is a heritage steam operated railway opened in 1900, which runs between Belgrave and Gembrook, now recreating the heyday in the 1920s of this narrow-gauge line. It has three stations within Emerald—at Emerald, Nobelius and Lakeside, with Nobelius only being a "Stops if required" station. Also, Nobelius Siding is located between Emerald and Nobelius stations which is only stopped at for functions, or the regular "Dinner Train" at the former Nobelius Nurseries Packing Shed adjacent to the siding.

Other attractions

The areas around Emerald are excellent for finding chanterelles and other edible mushrooms, and are a popular destination for mushroom hunters each autumn. Emerald and District museum set in the beautiful Nobelius Heritage Park is well worth a visit. It adjoins Emerald Lake Park.

Emerald PAVE Festival and FunFest—formerly Emerald WinterFest

FunFest is a day-long family street party event which kicks of the PAVE (Performing And Visual arts in Emerald) Festival which runs annually for 7-10 days in April. On FunFest day there are road closures on Kilvington Drive, Puffing Billy Place and part of Heroes Avenue to prevent motor vehicle traffic entering, allowing many stalls to be established and enjoyed by the thousands of local residents and visitors that attend the event. FunFest has a great community feel with stalls, music, dance and plenty of free entertainment for all ages. The PAVE Festival includes live theatre, dance, poetry, burlesque and music events, as well as workshops and social inclusion events. The PAVE community arts festival continues to grow each year with involvement of a wide range of artists and community groups, bringing events and activities to stimulate the mind and excite your eyes and ears. Each year the festival develops local connection with place, people and environment through the program of arts activities.

Great Train Race

The Great Train Race (GTR) is an annual fun run from Belgrave to Emerald Lake in which participants attempt to beat Puffing Billy to the finish line and is organised by volunteers of the Puffing Billy Preservation Society.

The route from Belgrave to Emerald Lake which participants run is 13.2 km long, and in 2006 had 2,403 participants in the 25th Great Train Race. Participants of the GTR may win prizes; The first Male and Female runners of the 2007 GTR held on 6 May received a return flight to Antarctica as well as a unique Great Train Race trophy. For details on the Great Train Race, visit Great Train Race.

PAVE Arts Festival

The PAVE Festival is the largest festival in the Dandenong Ranges and Cardinia Shire, running over 5–6 days and incorporating all forms of the Arts. PAVE stands for "Performing And Visual arts in Emerald", which is an Annual Festival which takes place every year in Mid April. The PAVE Festival ran for its sixth year in 2011. The festival includes a number of activities taking place at different locations around Emerald over a number of days. Such activities include the Emerald Arts Society art exhibition at the Environment Centre at Emerald Lake, a burlesque dance and circus performance, the popular "Women in Song" featuring 4 female singer songwriters, live Comedy, a photography exhibition, an exhibition and demonstration of local art courses and lessons, The Emerald FunFest, Literary events such as Poet's Breakfast, Yarn Event and Golden Cow Literary night, Voice concert, classical performance by Dandenong Ranges Orchestra, Storytelling, Open Gardens, a historic tour of Emerald and top quality live music. The 2011 festival featured Joe Camilleri and the Black Sorrows, The Ska Vendors and Kerri Simpson, Lloyd Speigel, Lily and King.

Other events

For many years, Emerald had an annual Carols by Candlelight at Worrell Reserve. However, it ceased to run in 2009 due to insurance issues. It moved instead to a smaller version at St. Mark's Church.

Cardinia Reservoir

Cardinia Reservoir is situated entirely in Emerald, Victoria. It is south of the main township and the southern border of the suburb follows the Reservoir Boundary. It is the second largest reservoir in Melbourne's water supply.

Cardinia Reservoir Park

On the Southern side of the Reservoir there is a large park run by Parks Victoria. Facilities include barbecues and toilets and is open every day of the year. The park is home to many species of wildlife including Kangaroos, Wombats and Possums. It is even possible to walk across one of the dam walls at the park. Despite being predominately located in the suburb of Emerald, the entrance to the park is approximately 10 minutes drive out of Emerald in Narre Warren East.

Cardina Reservoir is the designated place to hold water when the Desalination plant is operating. There is a pipe running between Wongthaggi and Cardina Reservoir to make this possible.

Education

Emerald has a Kindergarten and a Pre School, Emerald Primary School (with roughly 400 students) which serves the local area and a secondary school, Emerald Secondary College which serves the Southern Dandenong Ranges region. Emerald has its own library at Worrell Reserve as part of the Casey Cardinia Library Corporation.

The Emerald Community House runs adult education, pre-accredited ACFE training courses and hobby courses. There are also childcare programs, out of school hours care and children's extension programs and disability services. The University of the Third Age (U3A) is located in U3A House, 402 Main Street.

Emergency services

Emerald has a part-time Police Station, a full-time Ambulance Station as well as a volunteer CFA Brigade and SES Unit. The Emerald Fire Brigade is located on Emerald-Monbulk Road near the roundabout of Belgrave-Gembrook Road, and attends approximately 190 Emergency Incidents per year. The Brigade trains on Wednesday evenings and Sunday mornings and new members are always welcome.

The Emerald Volunteer State Emergency Service Unit is located on Old Gembrook Road near the Corner of Sherriff Road. It attends several hundred storm and wind damage incidents every year and also attends 20–30 road accidents a year for rescue purposes using such tools as the jaws of life. The Unit trains on Monday evenings and new members are very welcome to join.

Demographics

Emerald's population as of the 2006 Census was 6,135 (a decrease of 9 from the 2001 census), (3,050 male, 3,085 female), 4,662 people were aged 15 years and over (2,280 male, 2,382 female) and 460 were aged 65 years and over (200 male, 260 female).

According to the 2001 Census, 17 people identified themselves as indigenous persons (comprises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander).

5,461 are Australian Citizens, while 4,770 people were identified as having been born in Australia. 1,365 were born overseas. 5,608 people speak English alone.

Sport and recreation

The town has an Australian Rules football team competing in the Yarra Valley Mountain District Football League and a basketball team competing in the Knox Amateur Basketball Association.

Golfers play at the course of the Emerald Golf and Country Resort on Lakeside Drive.

Emerald is also home to an All Star Cheerleading and Dance School where the local children compete statewide and nationally.

'Emerald City School of Dance' have dance classes for children and adults. Classes are held at the Emerald Community House.

Retailers in Emerald

Emerald has many retailers consisting of many small specialty shops as well as a Ritchies IGA supermarket and Woolworths supermarket.

Local media

Emerald receives standard Melbourne Television and radio broadcasts. However Emerald also has its own local radio station 3MDR, located in the Emerald Hall. 3MDR broadcasts are aimed at the Dandenong Ranges region with Volunteer staff and announcers.

The two local newspapers are the Ranges Trader Mail and the Free Press Leader. However neither paper is actually published in Emerald.

The monthly Signpost magazine is also published in Emerald.

Television dramas set in Emerald

Solo One was a TV series screened in 1976 set in Emerald, about a local (fictional) policeman dealing with crime in Emerald.

Filming of A Country Practice in the fictional town of Wandin Valley was moved to Emerald when the show moved to Network Ten for one series in 1994.

Filming for the ABC children's drama Come Midnight Monday was effected in and around Emerald, Belgrave & Cockatoo, depicting the fictional country town of Widgery.

Notable people

Emerald is the hometown of Vanessa Amorosi.

Current AFL players, Kade Simpson, who plays for the Carlton Football Club and Matthew Lobbe, who plays for the Port Adelaide Football Club, grew up in Emerald.

Red Symons was a resident of Emerald and attended Emerald Primary School.

Alfred Gregory, the mountaineer, explorer and professional photographer, who was a member of the successful British team that made the first ascent of Mount Everest in 1953, lived his last 15 years in Emerald, dying on 9 February 2010.

Round-the-world solo teenage sailor Jesse Martin grew up in Emerald.