Hume and Hovell
In 1824, Hume and Hovell became the first Europeans to pass through the Bonnie Doon area. Until then there had been only a few wandering Koori clans who seldom stayed long, catching kangaroo, possum, fish, yams and white grubs. By the 1850s, a few station owners had taken up large tracts of land from Government leasehold. The owners had to employ shepherds to mind their sheep as there were no fences or roads. The sheep were yarded at night as the wild dogs were numerours. As more settlers arrived the land was further sub-divided into sizeable properties under the close Settlement Act.
Doon
In early 1860's a township arose beside the Brankeet Creek. The town was a centre for surrounding farms and the post-offfice opened on 1st October 1866. The region continued as a pastoral area until 1869, when six Chinese workers purchased a mining claim for 45 pound in the Dry Creek area. The men netted 19 ounces of gold in one week. Gold was soon found in the California and Growlers's Gullies. Several hundred men arrived to mine the surrounding hills and creeks. A canvas town sprang up with hotels and stores. They called the township Doon
Town Name changed to Bonnie Doon
The farming community, whose main industries were dairying and oats, prospered with the town. Doon boasted a butter factory, two general stores, two bakers, two blacksmiths, two butcheries, a saddlery, boot maker, harness shop, Mechanics Institute, Public Hall, and a billiard saloon. The first school was officially established on the 24th September 1878; the first church built in the area a small weatherboard chapel, was blessed by Archbishop Goold on Sunday, 15th March 1885; Bonnie Doon newspaper, The Goldern Era, was first published in the 1890; and in early 1891, many locals turned up to watch the first steam train deliver a load of sleepers, rails and livestock. Later that year, the town changed it name to Bonnie Doon
Switching on ceremony
Throughout the early twentieth century, Bonnie Doon continued to grow. A racecourse was developed where the bridge now stands; a soldiers' memorial was erected in 1921; the Bonnie Doon Bush Fire Brigade was founded in 1928; and the Public Library was opened on 27 February 1931. However, the most historical event of this era occurred on 31 January 1941, when a gala ball was held in the Public Hall to celebrate the "switching on" ceremony, as Bonnie Doon was now connected to the SEC network.
Raising the weir
As northern Victoria expanded as a farming area, demand for irrigation soared. Immediately after the Second World War the Bonnie Doon branch of the Victorian Country Party proposed to either raise the current weir a hundred feet or to have a chain of smaller storages. Raising the weir meant the town of Bonnie Doon would be submerged.
At the largest ever public meeting ever held in the area, 400 residents of the district formed a common voice in favour of subsidiary weirs, but the cost of this alternative worked against the residents. The town was then divided into those who felt they had to relocate and rehabilitate, and those who wished to stay and rebuild, despite the suburban sized allotments proposed by the Water Commision.
Bonnie Doon under siege
By November 1953, Bonnie Doon appeared under siege. The State Rivers' workers, railway gangs and C.R.B crews were shifting the town further up the hill, while the railway line deviation, new bridges and a new highway were also under construction. Most buildings were demolished and many residents had moved
Steady rains soaked the Eildon Weir catchments
In the winter of 1955 steady rains soaked the Eildon Weir catchments and thousands of acres of prime pasture land disappeared under the rising waters. Numerous displaced persons, some from families that had given many years to the development of the Bonnie Doon district and township, were forced to rehabilitate themselves in unfamiliar surroundings. Many old landmarks from the pioneering days were covered by the swifly advancing waters.
New town tourism opportunities
However, with the new town and lake came tourism opportunities- boating, fishing, skiing and other water recreational activities. A caravan park was built, then boat ramps, picnic areas, stores, hotels, motels, garages, cafes, and holiday houses.
Bonnie Doon, with its surrounding rivers and mountains, has remained a tourist destination, particularly in summer after the spring rains refill Lake Eildon and water-skiers pass under the bridge where the old ractrack lies below.
