Historical information

Gabriel Louis Marie Huon de Kerilleau was born to a French aristocratic family in 1769. He escaped to England during the French Revolution and enlisted in the New South Wales Corps. He married in Parramatta to Louisa Emmanuel Le Sage. They had five children who took the name of Huon – Elizabeth, Paul, Jean Francois, Aime Augustus and Charles. Paul and Charles were to become the “founders’ of the Wodonga District.

In 1824 Hamilton Hume and William Hovell discovered the Hume River, later renamed to the Murray River and the rich land surrounding it. By 1835, squatters began arriving at the Hume River. During the following year, Paul Huon arrived at the Hume (Murray) River, then "taking up" 40,000 acres on the south side of the river bank. To this property he gave the name WOODONGA RUN. Charles Huon, younger brother of Paul, was sent to manage the "Run" until Paul's son, William, became old enough to take over management.

Charles Huon built a mud brick home on the eastern side of a rise south of the now Wodonga Creek. Thus was Charles the first permanent settler in the district. He was a great admirer of the English Lord Belvoir hence "Belvoir" was the name Charles Huon gave to the first permanent home on Woodonga Run. By the 1857, residents numbered fifty, and the Government had surveyed a township area, proclaiming it "Belvoir" in the new State of Victoria. However, the residents wanted their own choice of a name for the town.
A battle lasting thirteen years followed over the name of the town until the residents won in 1874 when the Victorian Government dropped the name "Belvoir" and proclaimed the town's name as "Wodonga." A local government Shire formed two years later became the Shire of Wodonga. The Huon name features in the town today including Huon Hill, Huon Creek, Huon Street and the former township and railway siding at Huon. The name "Belvoir" is used today by organisations and locations in Wodonga including Belvoir Park formerly known as Huon’s Lagoon.

On 3rd October 1986 the Wodonga community celebrated the 150th anniversary of the first settlement by Charles Huon of the district that was to become Wodonga. These drawings were completed by Desmond Martin as part of a booklet produced to record the event. Stonleigh in Wodonga was once owned by Paul Huon.

Physical description

Part of a set of original sketches by Des Martin for "A Record of the 150th Anniversary" Celebrations of the Rural City of Wodonga held on 30th October 1986.