Rushworth

The original gold-mining and timber town of the Waranga or Goulburn Diggings where gold was first discovered in 1853, developed as a bustling, thriving centre, known as the ‘dry diggings’ and as the gold petered out, an equally busy Box Ironbark Timber industry borne out of the largest stand of Box Ironbark Forest in the world, continued on into the 1990’s.

Rushworth, one of only two Victorian National Trust classified historic precincts retains its original character, charm, authentic buildings, streetscape and historic “Old Lead” railway reserve, all of which remains uniquely surrounded by State Forest.  Less obvious to the eye are hundreds of acres of historic alluvial and reef goldmining sites, where European and Chinese pioneer settlers toiled to extract the forest’s “treasure” which bears testament to the town’s beginnings.
 
Centrally located in Waranga region, Rushworth offers historic township walks, local food & wine, historic museum, gallery, antiques, monthly market, historic cemeteries, the last remaining gold Stamper Battery, and Steam Traction engine to cart timber from the forest; climb Growler’s Hill lookout tower to take in commanding 360° views; the forest’s native flora and fauna, short drive to Waranga Basin caravan park and camping facilities and easy access to surrounding small towns and other attractions.

Whroo

Whroo’s first gold discovery is reported in 1853, with earliest settlement commencing at Whroo Village. Hopeful prospectors drawn to the region, know as the “wet diggings,” swelled the population following the 1854 reef discovery at Balaclava Hill, and settlement moved north and eastwards around the base of Balaclava Mine, leading to proclamation of Whroo Township in 1861.

Balaclava Mine became the largest open cut gold mine in Victoria, producing enormous wealth, but today, it remains like a volcanic crater in the forested landscape, with a stairway down to the former tramway tunnel that exits on the south side of the hill, while a myriad of other tunnels and shafts remain inaccessible and hidden from view.  The once bustling, thriving and settled Whroo township is now deserted with the less obvious relics of its past glory scattered throughout hundreds of acres of alluvial and reef goldmining sites in the surrounding State Forest.

Sites to see are the location of the former township, reconstructed “puddling” machine, evocative Whroo Cemetery which portrays the harshness of life on the goldfields, the Aboriginal Watering Hole, thought to be the source of the town’s name, “wooroo”, aboriginal for waterhole, while the Miners Retreat information centre is located near the  open-cut mine. Forest walks are to be enjoyed with picnic facilities and camp sites available.