| Deer Park Melbourne, Victoria |
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 Kororoit Creek |
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| Population: | 12,152 (2006)[1] | ||||||||||||
| Established: | 1870's | ||||||||||||
| Postcode: | 3023 | ||||||||||||
| Area: | 9.3 km² (3.6 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Property Value: | AUD $215,000 [2] | ||||||||||||
| Location: | 18 km (11 mi) from Melbourne | ||||||||||||
| LGA: | City of Brimbank | ||||||||||||
| State District: | Kororoit, Derrimut | ||||||||||||
| Federal Division: | Gorton | ||||||||||||
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Deer Park was established in the 1870's. It is a suburb 18km west from Melbourne CBD. Its Local Government Area is the City of Brimbank.
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History
The suburb was originally named Kororoit Creek, after the creek running through the suburb but was renamed after the Melbourne Hunt Club used the area to house their stock of game deer. The original Hunt Club building still stands on the Western Highway, next to the Deer Park sports oval and is now a community centre. Following the discovery of gold in Ballarat and Bendigo, to the west, there became a great demand for explosives. Deer Park was chosen as the site of Melbourne's first explosives factory, the Albion Explosives Factory, in the 1870s. The site was chosen for its isolation, as it was several miles from the outskirts of Melbourne. The availability of water in Kororoit Creek was also a factor. In the 1920s suburban sprawl threatened the isolation of the factory but before a move was necessary, the sprawl was halted by the depression of the 1930s. A fatal accident at the factory in 1923 led to production of Black powder being stopped. In 1928, Imperial Chemical Industries of Australia and New Zealand (ICI) took control of the factory. A new Black Powder factory was built in Deer Park in 1936 and enlarged during World War II. Charcoal from Australian timbers also began to be manufactured. With labour shortages and a large demand for products during the post-war boom, ICI commenced housing development in Deer Park to attract workers to the area and many of the surrounding streets are named for localities in the UK, where ICI had operations.
Transport
The suburb is serviced by a railway station on the Melton greater-metropolitan line. The main road through Deer Park is the Western Highway, which carries traffic between Melbourne and Ballarat, Victoria's third largest city. Station Road intersects North-South with the Western Highway and is a major local route. Due to be completed in 2009, the Deer Park Bypass will allow motorists to avoid the suburban streets of Deer Park on their journey from Melbourne to Caroline Springs, Ballarat and beyond.
Education
Currently Deer Park has one secondary college which is Deer Park Secondary College. It has three primary schools which are Deer Park North, Deer Park and Deer Park West.
Flora and Fauna
Kororoit Creek is located on the northern boundary of the suburb. This area (particularly in the West) has been home to large healthy populations of native reptiles for thousands of years, including Tiger snake, Eastern Blue-tongued Lizard, Stump-tailed skink and Eastern brown snake. Unfortunately due to development these species are now rarely seen in the area. Due to more recent development of the Cairnlea estate and improved vegetation on the banks of Kororoit Creek, native species of frogs have taken advantage and have taken up residents in the new wetlands and lakes. The Common Eastern Froglet and even the now endangered Growling Grass Frog have been seen and heard in the new wetlands and around Kororoit Creek.
Modern Deer Park
On the southern outskirts of the suburb there are large farm properties which are now being developed for housing under the development names Brimbank Gardens and St Andrews Field. This area surrounds Mt Derrimut, which will be the location of the newly relocated Sunshine Golf Club. Deer Park is home to a local football club, cricket club and tennis club. Victoria's main maximum security female prison, the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre is located in Deer Park. Deer Park has also gained a slightly tarnished reputation, due to the maximum security prison that is located there. This myth was the subject of an advertisement by the radio station Nova 100, in which comedian Dave Hughes claimed that he had seen a car on fire on a Deer Park street. In a letter they received from a resident, they came to the said residents house and then, whilst talking to her, the car they had arrived in was attacked by several men and a woman, though this was staged for the commercial.
Famous Residents
Nathan Phillips (actor), Snakes on a Plane
References
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). Deer Park (State Suburb). 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved on 2007-09-26.
- ^ Deer Park, accessed 27 November 2006
External links
- Deer Park, Victoria is at coordinates Coordinates:
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Albanvale · Albion · Ardeer · Cairnlea · Calder Park · Deer Park · Delahey · Derrimut · Hillside · Kealba · Keilor · Keilor Downs · Keilor Lodge · Keilor North · Keilor Park · Kings Park · St Albans · Sunshine · Sunshine North · Sunshine West · Sydenham · Taylors Lakes · |
