Elmhurst

Directions to your second story point. Continue along the Pyrenees Highway to Elmhurst for 14 kilometres. The Avoca River stays with you on the left. In Elmhurst, look for the restored Mechanics Institute building on the right side of the road. Park the car upon arriving in Elmhurst. Pause this video and enjoy the scenery. Play the video to learn more about historic timber milling in the area. Farm selections began in the 1860s, along with timber harvesting. Sawmills proliferated to eight by the 1880s, supplying timbers for gold mines and railway sleepers. The village of Elmhurst, Staffordshire, England, probably inspired the name, as lands fronting the Glenpatrick Creek and Wimmera River were attractive and meadow-like. Elmhurst once boasted a hotel, a post office and two sawmills. As settlers, prospectors and traders, the area was a great place to live.

In the late 1860s, a large number of traders swelled the Avoca region. The demand for timber grew rapidly. Red gums were plentiful along the Avoca River. Similarly, the slopes of Mount Lonarch and Mount Cole provided an abundant variety of timber for building, mine shafts, shoring, railway sleepers, furniture and more. Hickman's Creek sawmill, Harvey Flat Road, Mount Cole (due south from Elmhurst) was one of the several large mills. Henry McKee, a prominent timber miller in the region, was described in 1895 as the father of Victorian sawmilling. Today, pine plantations have replaced native trees, and the timber industry continues to be important.