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Shepparton
Shepparton
w: Ralph Grayden
Coordinates: 36°23'S 145°24'E
County: Moira
Area: 248.9 km2
Population: 55,000
Established: 24 Sep 1860
Elevation: 116 m
Its indigenous name is Kanny Goopna, which depending on the source, could mean “deep waterhole by which people camped” or “place where big fish are caught”.
Either way, Shepparton’s position on the floodplain of the Goulburn River has always been central to its identity and economy. Today, the rich soil provides the nutrients for a thriving dairy industry and one of the country’s most significant fruit-growing sectors, which means it’s also home to Australia’s largest canned fruit manufacturer, SPC Ardmona.
Despite its location on the floodplain, it doesn’t rain a lot in Shepparton. In fact, the city’s cold, semi-arid climate sees an average of just 431mm of precipitation a year. If you’re considering moving to this part of the world, you’d probably also want to invest in reverse-cycle air conditioning because this is a climate of extremes, at least compared with coastal areas. The average January high is over 32 degrees, while the annual July low is 3.4 degrees. Brrr.
Shepparton takes its name from Irishman Sherbourne Sheppard, who, in 1843, established a sheep farm, Tallygaroopna, where the city now stands. Sherbourne’s claim to fame was that he married the daughter of prominent (and wealthy) Victorian J.B. Were. He was also involved in a legal stoush over ownership of the land after a stock agent he owed money illegally sold the 160,000-acre farm while he was out of the country. Sherbourne’s successful quest to re-occupy forcefully became known throughout Victoria as ‘the siege of Tallygaroopna’. Before Sherbourne owned the land, it was occupied by another Irishman, Paddy McGuire, who was better known for fleecing travellers by overcharging them to travel on his ferry across the Goulburn River and then forcefully encouraging them to stay in his below-par accommodation: a bark hut he optimistically called ‘the inn’.
Shepparton was declared a town in 1860, and its fortunes really took off in the 1880s when a railway station was built. Paddle steamers also connected Shepparton and the Goulburn River with the Murray. At the time, nearby Echuca was Australia’s fourth busiest port. In the twentieth century, Shepparton’s population began to swell as new migrants arrived from the British Isles, as well as Southern Europe, most notably Italy and Greece. After the Second World War, Shepparton saw a substantial number of people with German, Dutch and Polish heritage also settle in the area. Today, it is one of Australia’s most multicultural regional centres. It also has the largest Indigenous population of any Victorian centre outside of Melbourne. The most recent Census shows that a quarter of all residents were born overseas, with India and Afghanistan both featuring in the five most likely countries of birth.
TELLING A FURPHY
For a town of its size (approximately 55,000), Shepparton has made an oversized contribution to Australian culture. Blacksmith John Furphy designed and built the ‘furphy’ water cart in Shepparton – and the brand name became slang for a tall story. They were a productive family. Furphy’s younger brother Joseph penned the novel, ‘Such is Life’, a tale of nineteenth century life in Northern Victoria.
For a town of its size (approximately 55,000), Shepparton has made an oversized contribution to Australian culture. Blacksmith John Furphy designed and built the ‘furphy’ water cart in Shepparton – and the brand name became slang for a tall story. They were a productive family. Furphy’s younger brother Joseph penned the novel, ‘Such is Life’, a tale of nineteenth century life in Northern Victoria.
