The Shire of Diamond Valley was a local government area about northeast of

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The shire covered an area of , and existed from 1964 until 1994.

History

The name relates to the lowlands to the west of Diamond Creek, a tributary of the

Yarra River The Yarra River or historically, the Yarra Yarra River, ( Kulin languages: ''Berrern'', ''Birr-arrung'', ''Bay-ray-rung'', ''Birarang'', ''Birrarung'', and ''Wongete'') is a perennial river in south-central Victoria, Australia. The lower ...

, which flows through nearby

Eltham Eltham ( ) is a district of South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is east-southeast of Charing Cross, and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. The thre ...

. The Diamond Valley can be defined in geographical terms as the area bounded by the

Plenty River The Plenty River is a perennial river of the Port Phillip catchment, located in the north-eastern Greater Melbourne region of the Australian state of Victoria. Course and features The Plenty River rises in the forested slopes of Mount Disapp ...

, the Yarra, the

Christmas Hills Christmas Hills may refer to: *Christmas Hills, Tasmania *Christmas Hills, Victoria Christmas Hills is a town in Victoria, Australia, 35 km north-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Shire of Nillumbik local ...

ridge to the east and the Great Dividing Range to the north. Land in the area was first incorporated as part of the Heidelberg Road District on 12 October 1860, which became a shire on 27 March 1864, and was proclaimed as the City of Heidelberg on 11 April 1934. Accessed at

State Library of Victoria State Library Victoria (SLV) is the state library of Victoria, Australia. Located in Melbourne, it was established in 1854 as the Melbourne Public Library, making it Australia's oldest public library and one of the first free libraries in th ...

, La Trobe Reading Room. On 30 September 1964, the North Ward of the City of Heidelberg was severed, and incorporated as the Shire of Diamond Valley. In 1863, the Diamond Reef was discovered by Thomas Wright Soady on Dr John Blakemore Phipps property, which stretched from Reynold's Road to the Diamond Creek. On 15 December 1994, the Shire of Diamond Valley was abolished; areas south of the Metropolitan Ring Road and the Greensborough Highway merged with the City of Heidelberg, into the newly created

City of Banyule The City of Banyule is a local government area in Victoria, Australia in the north-eastern suburbs of Melbourne. It was created under the Local Government Act 1989 and established in 1994 as an amalgamation of former councils. It has an area o ...

, while areas north were merged with parts of the

City of Whittlesea The City of Whittlesea is a local government area located in the outer northern suburbs of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The city covers an area of , and in June 2018, it had a population of 223,322. History What became ...

and the Shire of Eltham, into the newly created

Shire of Nillumbik The Shire of Nillumbik ( ) is a local government area in Victoria, Australia. It contains outer northern suburbs of Melbourne and rural localities beyond the urban area. It has an area of 432 square kilometres and at th2021 census the Shire had ...

. A small area in the shire's southwest, north of

La Trobe University La Trobe University is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Its main campus is located in the suburb of Bundoora, Victoria, Bundoora. The university was established in 196 ...

and including the Gresswell Forest Nature Reserve, was transferred to the

City of Darebin The City of Darebin is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. It has an area of and in June 2018 Darebin had a population of 161,609. Municipal offices are located at 350 High Street, Preston. Da ...

. Council met at the Diamond Valley Civic Centre, in Civic Circuit, Greensborough. The facility is still used by the Shire of Nillumbik.

Wards

The Shire of Diamond Valley was divided into four ridings, each of which elected three councillors: * South West Riding * South East Riding * Centre Riding * North Riding

Suburbs

* Briar Hill (shared with the Shire of Eltham) *

Bundoora Bundoora is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Banyule, Darebin and Whittlesea local government areas. Bundoora recorded a population of 28,068 at the ...

(shared with the Cities of

Preston Preston is a place name, surname and given name that may refer to: Places England *Preston, Lancashire, an urban settlement **The City of Preston, Lancashire, a borough and non-metropolitan district which contains the settlement **County Boro ...

and Whittlesea) * Diamond Creek *

Eltham North Eltham North is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 21 km north-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Banyule and Shire of Nillumbik local government areas. Eltham North recorded a population of 6 ...

* Greensborough* * Hurstbridge (shared with the City of Whittlesea and Shire of Eltham) * Macleod (shared with the City of Heidelberg) *

Plenty Plenty may refer to: Places * Plenty, Victoria, a town in Australia * Plenty River (Victoria), a river in the Australian state of Victoria *Plenty River (Northern Territory), a river in the Northern Territory of Australia * Plenty, Tasmania, a sma ...

St Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...

* Watsonia * Watsonia North * Wattle Glen (shared with the Shire of Eltham) * Yarrambat * Council seat.

Population

* Estimate in the 1958 Victorian Year Book.
# The Shire of Diamond Valley was created in 1964. Source of population: 1968 Victorian Year Book.

References

External links

Victorian Places - Diamond Valley Shire
{{Coord, 37, 41, S, 145, 07, E, type:adm2nd_region:AU-VIC, display=title Diamond Valley City of Banyule 1964 establishments in Australia 1994 disestablishments in Australia Shire of Nillumbik