Monbulk

Monbulk is a town located 42 km east of Melbourne, and south of the Silvan Reservoir, with a population of 3577 as of the 2016 Australian census.

Monbulk is a town located 42 km east of Melbourne, and south of the Silvan Reservoir, with a population of 3577 as of the 2016 Australian census. The town's local government area is the Shire of Yarra Ranges.

The town is the home of Monbulk Cricket Club and Monbulk Football and Netball Club.

Originally referred to as the Dandenong Forest Village Settlement, the town was established in 1893, and comprised 76 farms across 10-acres or 40,000m2. The town's name is believed to have been derived from the local aboriginal people, the Wurundjer, and the word Monbolok or Monbolac, which translates as "hiding place in the hills" or "sanctuary in the hills". When the Parish of Monbulk was established, the town's name was changed to what it is today. The towns abundance of rich fertile soils led to the foundation of a number farms and orchards, growing fruits and vegetables, as well as cut flowers. A number of businesses took advantage of the rich soils, and focused their production on jams and preserves, such as the Monbulk Jam Factory, established in 1897.The town's first school, Monbulk Primary School was established in 1897, and by 1906 three churches had been built in the town. The town has been affected by bushfires throughout its history, with the Monbulk Primary School razed by fire in 1913. The town was again affected by bushfires in 1944. The town continued to grow throughout the later half of the 20th century, growing from a post-war population of 781 in 1947, to 3,577 people at the most recent census. The town continues to be a centre of agricultural activity, with the nursery production and floriculture production industries both representing the two most common industries of employment for residents of Monbulk as of 2016.

In the 1950s, Ivan Southall, built a house at Blackwood Farm, on Old Emerald Road, Monbulk.

His children's' novels Ash Road and Hills End were written there and set in the area.