Surf Beach

History

Phillip Island was part of the traditional homelands of the Yallok Bulluk people of the Bunurong (Boonwurrung) Nation for many thousands of years. Prior to Crown Land sales in the early 1870s and subsequent cultivation/clearing of the land, the Surf Beach area was open country with sprawling grasslands, sand hummocks and scattered Ti Tree. A map from 1911 shows a chicory plantation and kiln were located near the corner of Sunderland Bay and Phillip Island Roads. Dairy farms and fisherman's huts dotted the adjoining land. In 1926, a private syndicate of Melbourne businessmen announced plans to create a planned beachside neighbourhood known as the "Surf Beach Estate" with a golf course on a greater-than 150-hectare site. The subdivision set out 556 residential blocks, shop sites and extensive recreational areas. It was marketed to Melbourne families seeking holiday homes and promoted as the “Playground of Australia”, including through a promotional film. The scheme attracted the public endorsement of Frank Beaurepaire, who selected a block for himself. The development was led by relatives Charles Columbine Jackson and Basil John Jackson, who worked with a circle of private investors. Both men had built their wealth through ventures in gold, gas and oil, alongside their Melbourne accounting practice. The estate’s first completed home was for George Seymour, an associate of the developers. Many blocks were also selected by speculative buyers, who did not necessarily intend to build. On 17 December 1927, an 18 hole-golf course and clubhouse opened on the estate. Covering 57 hectares, the course was built at a reported cost of about five thousand pounds and was designed by professional golfer Dick Banks. One of the developers served as inaugural president of the…

Most-observed species

• Silver Gull

  Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae (Stephens, 1826) · Aves
  8,373
• Masked Lapwing

  Vanellus miles (Boddaert, 1783) · Aves
  7,843
• Australian Magpie

  Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) · Aves
  6,670
• Cape Barren Goose

  Cereopsis novaehollandiae Latham, 1801 · Aves
  6,271
• Australian Ibis

  Threskiornis molucca (Cuvier, 1829) · Aves
  6,046
• Welcome Swallow

  Hirundo neoxena Gould, 1842 · Aves
  5,933
• Pacific Gull

  Larus pacificus Latham, 1801 · Aves
  5,615
• Black Swan

  Cygnus atratus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  5,296

Most recent

• M 3.3 — 2026-05-09
  4 km ESE of Mirboo North, Australia
• M 4.3 — 2024-02-08
  3 km E of Leongatha, Australia
• M 2.9 — 2021-11-05
  4 km S of Rosebud, Australia
• M 2.8 — 2015-03-10
  3 km NNE of Pakenham, Australia
• M 3.6 — 2014-12-03
  4 km SW of Pakenham, Australia
• M 2.8 — 2014-01-13
  1 km SSE of Lilydale, Australia