Howqua Shire

Howqua shire was proclaimed on 24 December 1874, taking in the mining townships of Gaffneys Creek and Jamieson on the upper reaches of the Goulburn River. The neighbouring shire was Mansfield, to the north.

The shire was named after the Howqua River, which was the site of a goldfield (1866) and of a small mining village also of the same name. It is thought that the name was derived from a popular brand of Chinese tea.