Edithvale is a beachside suburb in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, 28 km south-east of Melbourne's

Central Business District A central business district (CBD) is the Commerce, commercial and business center of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides wit ...

, located within the

City of Kingston The City of Kingston is a local government area in Victoria, Australia in the south-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, its northern boundary lying approximately 15 km from the Melbourne city centre along the north-eastern shorelines of Port P ...

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...

. Edithvale recorded a population of 6,276 at the .

History

Edithvale Post Office opened on 20 April 1923.

Public transport

Edithvale railway station on the

Frankston line The Frankston line is a commuter railway line in the city of Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Operated by Metro Trains Melbourne, it is the city's third-longest metropolitan railway line, at . The line runs from Flinders St ...

services the area. Edithvale is also on the Route 902 SmartBus orbital between Airport West and Chelsea. It is also served by the occasional Route 706 to Mordialloc. In 2021 the Edithvale Train Station was rebuilt as part of the

Victoria State Government The Victoria State Government, also referred to as the Victorian Government, is the executive government of the Australian state of Victoria. As a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, the State Government was first formed in 1851 when Vic ...

's removal of Edithvale Road level crossing.

Edithvale Primary School

Edithvale Primary School has a long history, originally being a wooden building which was burnt down in 1930 and took over 40 fireman to get ride of the huge fire. And is now rebuilt in red brick as it is today. During the 1960s it was the largest school in the area with over 1000 students. Notable students include Victorian State MP Louise Asher and Federal MP

Greg Wilton Gregory Stuart Wilton (6 November 195514 June 2000) was an Australian politician. He was a member of the Australian House of Representatives, representing the Division of Isaacs, from 1996 until his suicide at the age of 44. He is the only serv ...

Edithvale Beach

Edithvale is best known for its long beach of pure white sand and historic bathing boxes. Residents groups have set up the Kingston Boatshed Association to protect these historic treasures, originally constructed by their owners for family activities such as swimming and fishing. The waters of Port Phillip Bay provide an excellent reflection as the sun sets directly facing the shore. Today large houses are being built on the absolute beach frontages which are highly sought after. Pre-war this area was popular with

city residents who caught the train down on a hot Sunday and swam at Edithvale lifesaving club with its pier. Commonly caught fish in the area include Flathead and Garfish, as well as Flounder which can be taken with a hand spear. Dolphins have been seen swimming 100 metres from shore and small fish fingerlings breed in the shallows. The beach, which was originally ultra pure fine white sand has been degraded by coarser sand washed ashore during attempts to reclaim the beach further north at Aspendale in the late 1970s. This reclamation involved pumping sand onto the eroding beach from far offshore. Unfortunately this off shore sand was much coarser and yellower being harder and grittier. It's clear today to see the progressive spread of this course sand now 3 km south of its original location. Other changes to the beach include the installation of sewerage to beach front properties in the 1960s when the entire dune was bulldozed, removing all native vegetation and razing what was once a protective mound. Introduced grasses were planted to hold the sand together and this eventually spread down to near the waters edge, producing what is seen today as a creeping sand dune covering the original beach with grass. Edithvale beach is also famous as the home of John Bertrand, skipper of the Americas Cup winning Yacht Australia II, he learnt his seamanship skills at Chelsea Yacht Club sailing on the unpredictable Port Phillip Bay.

Sport

The town in conjunction with neighbouring suburb Aspendale has an

Australian Rules Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...

football Edithvale-Aspendale team competing in the

Mornington Peninsula Nepean Football League The Mornington Peninsula Football Netball League (MPFNL), formerly known as the Mornington Peninsula Nepean Football League (MPNFL), is an Australian rules football competition, governed by the AFL South East. The MPFNL contains teams near the ...

. Golfers play at the Australasian Golf Club's Chelsea Public Golf Course on Fraser Avenue.

Environment

Edithvale is particularly well known for its long white sand beach which is a popular tourist attraction during summer. The beach is part of

Port Phillip Bay Port Phillip ( Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, narrow channel known as The Rip, and is comple ...

. Part of the Edithvale-Seaford Wetlands Ramsar Site lies within Edithvale, providing opportunities for

birdwatching Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device such as binoculars or a telescop ...

and

environmental education Environmental education (EE) refers to organized efforts to teach how natural environments function, and particularly, how human beings can manage behavior and ecosystems to live sustainably. It is a multi-disciplinary field integrating discipli ...

as well as walking and bicycle tracks.

References

{{City of Kingston suburbs Suburbs of Melbourne Suburbs of the City of Kingston (Victoria) Port Phillip