Lorne, Victoria

Infobox Australian Place | type = town
name = Lorne
state = vic


caption = Lorne, Victoria viewed from the west beach along Louttit Bay
lga = Surf Coast Shire
postcode = 3232
est = 1869
pop = 967 (2006 census)
elevation= 15
maxtemp = 18.3
mintemp = 9.2
rainfall = 922.8
stategov = Polwarth
fedgov = Corangamite
dist1 = 138.3
dir1 = sw
location1= Melbourne
dist2 = 65
dir2 = sw
location2= Geelong
dist3 = 57
dir3 = s
location3= Colac|

Lorne is a seaside town on Louttit Bay in Victoria, Australia. It is situated about the Erskine River and is a popular destination on the Great Ocean Road tourist route. The town has a postcode of 3232. Lorne is in the Surf Coast Shire and at the 2006 Census in Australia had a population of 967,Census 2006 AUS|id=UCL229600|name=Lorne (Urban Centre/Locality)|accessdate=2007-12-19|quick=on] but this figure grows during the holiday season.

History

Prior to European settlement, the area was occupied by the Kolakngat Aborigines. Lorne is situated on a bay named after Captain Louttit, who sought shelter there in 1841 while supervising the retrieval of cargo from a nearby shipwreck. The coast was surveyed five years later in 1846. The first European settler was William Lindsay, a timber-cutter who began felling the area in 1849. The first telegraph arrived in 1859. Subdivision began in 1869 and in 1871 the town was named after the Marquis of Lorne from Argyleshire in Scotland on the occasion of his marriage to one of Queen Victoria's daughters. The Post Office opened on 29 April 1874. Citation
last = Premier Postal History | title = Post Office List | url = https://www.premierpostal.com/cgi-bin/wsProd.sh/Viewpocdwrapper.p?SortBy=VIC&country= | accessdate = 2008-04-11 ]

In 1891, the area was visited by Rudyard Kipling who was inspired to write the poem "Flowers", which included the line:

cquote|Buy my hot-wood clematis,

Buy a frond of fern,

Gathered where the Erskine leaps

Down the road to Lorne.

By 1922 the Great Ocean Road was extended to Lorne, making the town much more accessible. The first passenger service to Geelong was established in 1924 and guesthouses began to appear after 1930. The local fishing industry expanded significantly in the 1930s and 1940s. The Ash Wednesday bushfires swept through the area in 1983, destroying 76 houses.

Tourism

Popular local activities include traditional beach pursuits such as family bathing and surfing, as well as pier fishing for barracuda, whiting, and trevally. Teddy's Lookout lies at the end of George Street on the town's southern outskirts and offers fine views over the town, coastline, and Great Ocean Road. The Great Otway National Park is nearby.

The town's population swells to around 13,000 each New Year's Eve when the Falls Festival takes place. During the first weekend of January over 20,000 spectators visit Lorne when the town hosts the 1.2 km Pier to Pub swim (described in the Guinness Book of Records as "the largest organised ocean swim in the world" and currently capped at 4,000 competitors [ [http://www.lornesurfclub.com.au/Photo?Gallery=21 Lorne Surf Life Saving Club ] ] ), the 8km Mountain to Surf run, and the Lorne Surf Boat Race. Terminating in Lorne on the Queen's Birthday was the Great Otway Classic Foot Race (no longer held). Fair on the Foreshore occurs on the first weekend in November.

Lorne is also the home of the band the Beachniks.

The town has an Australian Rules football team competing in the Colac & District Football League.Citation | last = Full Points Footy | title = Lorne | url = http://www.fullpointsfooty.net/Lorne.htm | accessdate = 2008-07-25 ]

Annual events

* Pier to Pub
* Schoolies week (November)
* Falls Festival (New Years)
* Lorne 160

Gallery

ee also

*Pong Su incident

References