Creswick 4.89

Creswick is a town in west-central Victoria, Australia 18 kilometres north of Ballarat and 129 km northwest of Melbourne, in the Shire of Hepburn. It is 430 metres above sea level. At the 2016 census, Creswick had a population of 3,170. Creswick was named after the Creswick family, the pioneer settlers of the region.HistoryThe area was inhabited by the Dja Dja Wurrung people before white settlement. The pioneer white settlers were Henry, Charles and John Creswick, three brothers who started a large sheep station in 1842.Creswick is a former gold-mining town, established during the Victorian gold rushes in the 1850s. The Post Office opened on 1 September 1854 but was named Creswick's Creek until around 1857. The population reached a peak of 25,000 during the gold rush. Today, local industries include forestry, grazing and agriculture.Creswick was the site of the New Australasian Gold Mine disaster on 12 December 1882, Australia's worst mining disaster in which 22 men drowned.The town todayThe original School of Forestry was established in 1910 by the Department of Forestry. It was the first institution set up in Victoria to train and accredit young foresters. Now the campus is part of The University of Melbourne. The campus is situated in Water Street and houses the School of Forest & Ecosystem Science, a highly regarded research and teaching institution.