Gymbowen is a locality in the

Shire of West Wimmera The Shire of West Wimmera is a local government area in the western part of the Wimmera region of Victoria, Australia, located in the western part of the state. It covers an area of and in June 2018 had a population of 3,862. It includes the to ...

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 ...

. Gymbowen recorded a population of 52 at the .

History

The date and establishment of Gymbowen is unknown, however the local

school A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the Educational architecture, building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most co ...

was opened in 1891 and the local

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

possibly earlier. The

Post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

was opened in 1882 and the 1891-92 post office directory lists the following residents: Gymbowen served as a coach changing stage and as the

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

reached there by 1894 until it closed in 1986. The Gymbowen hotel was a widely patronized place of refreshment, and it is said that many stories should have been preserved for posterity. Gymbowen was the second post office in the district and the oldest survivor having opened on 1 June 1882 under the management of Mr. J. Houston. The annual postal allowance was 6 pounds ( A$13.9). William H. Knight conducted the office in conjunction with the general store for many years; Leo Knight was appointed assistant on 11 December 1922 and postmaster on 1 December 1938. The post office was transferred to Arthur Henry on 21 November 1946 and following his death on 13 December 1965, to Mrs. Margaret Fish.

School

The Gymbowen School first on 27 March 1881. The school started with 8 boys and 10 girls. The school closed on August 31, 1951, with the students transferred to Goroke Consolidated School or as it now known Goroke P-12 College These are some of the teachers that taught at this school: Young, Clancy, Carter, Clarke, Glenning, Beardsley, Hogan, Canty, Meehan, Trelfel, E Sharpe, J Hedigan, Brown, M Davies, K Makie, M Dudt, Lanrigan, L Wurfell, N Belcher, M Murphy, N tink, J Scott, Betts, Bryant, K Jellett, Messer, J Houston, J Clark, R greening, Claringbold, R Williams, Skidmore, L Pascoe, P Bright, L Prime, J Gleesner, J Lynch, W Passmore, F Duffy, J Roberts, M Dankett, Elmore and Jefferies.

Sports

In 1940 Gymbowen, Goroke and Minimay combined to enter Tatiara League. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

social matches were played between Edenhope, Goroke, Apsley, and Minimay with proceeds to

patriotic funds World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting took place mainly in Europe and the ...

References

*Back To Goroke *Centenary of Education 1885-1985 Goroke & District Towns in Victoria (state) {{VictoriaAU-geo-stub