Springhurst

Springhurst is a rural township in north-eastern Victoria, situated on the Hume Freeway at its junction with the road to Wahgunyah. It was also the junction of the railway lines from Melbourne to Albury and Wahgunyah until the service to Wahgunyah was suspended in 1995.

The township is situated in open, flat country 23 km north-east of Wangaratta. To its east there is hilly, forested country.

First known as The Springs, the village became a service centre for transport from the Wahgunyah, the Riverina region and the Sydney to Melbourne road. The opening of the railway line from Melbourne to Wodonga in 1873 strengthened the township's service role. The change of name to Springhurst coincided with the opening of the railway station.

Two years later the Bontharambo Hill pastoral run was subdivided for selection, and farms were developed for cereals, dairying and grazing. A sawmill cut local timber for mines, fencing and building. A primary school was opened in 1875 and a Catholic church was opened in 1880.

In 1903 the Australian handbook described Springhurst:

The butter factory was established in 1893, and expanded and functioned until 1967. In 1896 local residents acquired 28 hectares of land near the township, and developed it for ovals, a tennis court, a golf course and a children's playground. A public hall was built alongside. A wheat silo was built beside the railway station in 1959 and an oat silo in 1963. A town water supply dam was constructed in 1962-63.

Springhurst has a primary school (24 pupils, 2014), the recreational area and local industry including a quarry. The butter factory has been refurbished for holiday accommodation. Springhurst’s census populations have been:

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At the 2011 census, farming accounted for 9.3% employment.