The Shire of Upper Yarra was a

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 ...

centred on the upper reaches of the

Yarra Valley The Yarra Valley is a region in Victoria, Australia, centred around the Yarra River. Known for its natural beauty, agricultural significance, and as one of Australia's prominent wine-producing areas, the valley stretches from the upper reache ...

, about east of

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 ...

, the state capital of Victoria,

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 ...

, extending eastwards into Victoria's interior. The shire covered an area of , and existed from 1888 until 1994.

History

Upper Yarra was incorporated as a shire on 19 October 1888. On 30 May 1919, it annexed the Lauraville Riding of the defunct Howqua Shire (the Howqua riding itself was annexed by the

Shire of Mansfield The Shire of Mansfield is a Local government areas of Victoria, local government area in the Hume (region), Hume region of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, located in the north-east part of the state. It covers an area of and in Augus ...

), and on 4 December 1923 and 15 February 1984, it annexed parts of the

Shire of Healesville The Shire of Healesville was a local government area about northeast of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The shire covered an area of , and existed from 1887 until 1994. History Healesville was first incorporated as a shi ...

. 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 15 December 1994, the Shire of Upper Yarra was abolished, and along with the Shires of Lillydale, Healesville and parts of the Shire of Sherbrooke, was merged into the newly created

Shire of Yarra Ranges The Shire of Yarra Ranges, also known as Yarra Ranges Council, is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, located in the outer eastern and northeastern suburbs of Melbourne extending into the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges. It has ...

Wards

The Shire of Upper Yarra was divided into three ridings on 31 March 1909, each of which elected three councillors: * Centre Riding * East Riding * West Riding

Suburbs and localities

The Shire of Upper Yarra included the

district and towns along the Warburton Highway, extending east through the Yarra Ranges National Park, to a line between the Baw Baw plateau and the town of Matlock, from 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 ...

. * Beenak * Big Pats Creek * Cambarville * Don Valley * Gilderoy * Gladysdale * Hoddles Creek * Launching Place * McMahons Creek * Millgrove * Powelltown *

Reefton Reefton is a small town in the West Coast, New Zealand, West Coast region of New Zealand, approximately northeast of Greymouth, New Zealand, Greymouth, in the Inangahua River valley. Ahaura is south-west of Reefton, Inangahua Junction is to ...

* Upper Yarra Dam * Warburton * Warburton East * Wesburn * Woori Yallock * Yarra Junction* * Yellingbo * Council seat.

Population

* Estimates in 1958 and 1988 Victorian Year Books.

References

External links

*
Victorian Places - Upper Yarra Shire
{{Coord, 37, 47, S, 145, 36, E, type:adm2nd_region:AU-VIC, display=title Upper Yarra Yarra Valley Yarra Ranges Shire 1888 establishments in Australia 1994 disestablishments in Australia