Byaduk

Town in Victoria, Australia

37°57′S 141°58′E / 37.950°S 141.967°E / -37.950; 141.967Population129 (SAL 2021)^[1]Postcode(s)3301Location

308 km (191 mi) W of Melbourne
28 km (17 mi) S of Hamilton

LGA(s)Shire of Southern Grampians State electorate(s)Lowan Federal division(s)Wannon

Byaduk is a township in the Shire of Southern Grampians in the Western District of Victoria, Australia. European settlement began around 1853 by Wendish or Sorbian Lutheran immigrants who gave it the name Neukirch after the town in Saxony.^[2]

The township was settled in the early 1860s, and named Byaduk, an aboriginal word apparently meaning "stone tomahawk". The Post Office opened on 1 August 1863.^[3]

Tourism

The Byaduk Caves, lava tubes from the volcanic eruption of Mount Napier, are nearby. You can also see extensive views of the lava flow at Harmans Valley and the tumuli lava blisters off Old Crushers Road.

Famous residents

Sergeant Simon Fraser, 57th Battalion, (a farmer from Byaduk) is honoured by a 1998 sculpture by Peter Corlett in the Australian Memorial Park in Fromelles, France^[4] and a 2008 replica at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne^[5] depicting him rescuing a wounded compatriot from no man's land after the Battle of Fromelles in 1916.

References

^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Byaduk (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
^ Andy Falkenberg, Byaduk, archived from the original on 6 August 2009, retrieved 23 May 2008
^ Phoenix Auctions History, Post Office List, retrieved 11 February 2021
^ Department of Veteran's Affairs and Board of Studies NSW – Fromelles Archived 11 November 2009 at the Wayback Machine
^ McMullin, Ross (16 July 2007). "After 92 years, cobbers stand tall at the Shrine". The Age. Retrieved 17 July 2007.