| Bairnsdale | |
Location: | 276km east of Melbourne on the Princes Highway |
Council: | City & Shire of Bairnsdale |
Population: | 10 770 |
Postcode: | 3875 |
Bairnsdale sits on the river flats of the Mitchell River at the tip of Lake King, serving the wool and cattle industries and the southern lakes system of the district. The town and the coastline to the east is promoted as the Victorian Riviera as winter temperatures can be up to 6°C warmer than in Melbourne. Grazier Archibald MacLeod settled the area in the 1840s and it became an important port for the Omeo goldfields in the 1850s and 60s.
St Marys Roman Catholic Church is famous for its murals, painted in the European tradition by Italian artist Francesco Floreani in the 1930s. The 19th century Courthouse gives the impression of a French chateau with its distinctive gables and conical towers. Above the entrance is an impressive piece of sculptured stonework depicting native plants and animals carved by local sculptor Albert Smith.
The local Museum is located in the old St Andrew's College in Macarthur Street, overlooking McLeods Morass a wildlife reserve protecting a colony of strawnecked ibis. The reserve features a boardwalk accessible from Bosworth Road.