Camperdown

History

The Djargurd Wurrung people were the traditional Aboriginal people of the Camperdown area, who had lived in the area for countless generations as a semi-nomadic hunter gatherer society. The first British settlers, the Manifold brothers (Thomas, John and Peter Manifold), arrived in the area from Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) after 1835 to establish sheep and cattle runs. Settlement was met with resistance by some of the Djargurd Wurrung. One method of resistance was to drive off or kill the settlers sheep, and an allegation of sheep killing was behind the Murdering Gully massacre. The area's history records instances of mutual assistance and friendship between native and settler people. Notable on this account is the family of David Fenton, the Scottish Presbyterian shepherd and drover who built the first house in Camperdown in 1853. The original settlement was several miles to the north, near where the racecourse is now located. The settlement was called Timboon, but after a wet winter it was decided to move the town to higher ground nestled at the base of Mount Leura. With the relocation of the town, the local lake then known as Lake Timboon reverted to its indigenous name of Golongulac now known as Lake Colongulac. The town was surveyed in 1851 and some of the founding fathers had Duncan as their Christian name. Wanting something more prestigious than Duncan as the town name it was decided to name the township Camperdown after Scottish Royal Navy admiral Lord Viscount Adam Duncan, who was the Earl of Camperdown. The first dwelling was erected on the site of the present Commercial Hotel in 1853 and the Post Office opened on 1 January 1854, replacing an earlier one in the area named Timboon. In 1883 Wombeetch Puuyuun (also known as Camperdown George) died at the…

Geography

Camperdown lies within the 'Lakes and Craters' region, sitting at the foot of Mount Leura which together with nearby Mount Sugarloaf are part of a large extinct volcanic complex known as the "Leura Maar". To the immediate west are the deep volcanic crater lakes Bullen-Merri and Gnotuk while to the east is the crater lake Purrumbete popular for its Trout and Chinook Salmon fishing. It is the starting point of the Crater to Coast Rail Trail which, when completed, will reach Port Campbell. It currently terminates in Timboon.

Most-observed species

• Australian Magpie

  Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) · Aves
  816
• Black Swan

  Cygnus atratus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  659
• Little Raven

  Corvus mellori Mathews, 1912 · Aves
  657
• Superb Fairywren

  Malurus cyaneus (Ellis, 1782) · Aves
  579
• Eurasian Coot

  Fulica atra Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  572
• Pacific Black Duck

  Anas superciliosa J.F.Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  571
• Welcome Swallow

  Hirundo neoxena Gould, 1842 · Aves
  541
• Australasian Swamphen

  Porphyrio melanotus Temminck, 1820 · Aves
  513

Most recent

• M 4.1 — 2026-07-05
  28 km WNW of Apollo Bay, Australia
• M 3.5 — 2023-10-21
  10 km NW of Apollo Bay, Australia
• M 4.8 — 2023-10-21
  16 km WNW of Apollo Bay, Australia