Bacchus Marsh and Shire

Bacchus Marsh, midway between Melbourne and Ballarat, flourished in the 1850s, after the discovery of gold, but grew more quickly once the rail link between Melbourne and Ballarat opened in the late 1880s. An ambitious irrigation scheme laid the basis for dairying, market gardening and orchards. Its most notable feature is an Avenue of Honour, 281 trees on the western highway approach, planted after World War I. Bypassed in 1972, the Avenue remains an elegant entry to the city centre.