Historical information

Eaglehawk is a suburb within the City of Greater Bendigo and a former gold-mining town in Victoria, Australia.
Eaglehawk is situated to the north-west of Bendigo on the Loddon Valley Highway. The highway is known locally as High Street until the intersection with Sailors Gully Road (Bendigo - Pyramid Road) and as Peg Leg Road to the west. Located on this intersection is Brassey Square which is the location of the town hall. Next to the town hall is the former post office and the Mechanics' Institute. To the north of the intersection on Napier Street is Canterbury Park and Lake Neangar while the Swan Hill railway line and the local railway station are located to the south.
The original inhabitants of the area were the Dja Dja Wurrung.
Following the discovery of gold at Sandhurst (Bendigo) in October 1851, Joseph Crook discovered a gold nugget while searching for stray horses. This event sparked a gold rush in the area leading to the establishment of the township in 1852, the population quickly building up to 40,000. The Post Office opened on 1 August 1857. In 1862, the Borough of Eaglehawk was established, which included the nearby township of California Gully. After the alluvial gold was exhausted in 1893, reef mines were established, with 300 tonnes of gold extracted. Most of the mines had closed by the 1890s and by 1947 the population had decreased substantially to 4,090.
The Eaglehawk Magistrates' Court closed on 1 January 1990.
In 1994 the Borough of Eaglehawk was amalgamated by the Victorian Government with four other councils to become the city of Greater Bendigo.

Physical description

"Eaglehawk. Recollections of the Borough" by Jodie Clough, Et al. Soft cover. Sky blue cardboard cover with navy blue binding tape along spine. Title written in navy blue on front cover. Drawing of Eaglehawk Town Hall in front cover in navy blue. No page numbers. Illustrations in black ink throughout. Produced under the LEAP Program, a federally funded project for the long-term unemployed referred by the Commonwealth Employment Service. Has content page at front, but no index. Interviewees listed inside back cover with contact phone numbers.