Shire of Leigh | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Location in Victoria | |||||||||||||
 | |||||||||||||
The Shire of Leigh as at its dissolution in 1994 | |||||||||||||
| Country | Australia | ||||||||||||
| State | Victoria | ||||||||||||
| Region | Grampians | ||||||||||||
| Established | 1861 | ||||||||||||
| Council seat | Rokewood | ||||||||||||
| Area | |||||||||||||
• Total | 982 km2 (379 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Population | |||||||||||||
| • Total | 2,340 (1992)[1] | ||||||||||||
| • Density | 2.383/km2 (6.172/sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| County | Grant, Grenville | ||||||||||||
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The Shire of Leigh was a local government area about 140 kilometres (87 mi) west of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The shire covered an area of 982 square kilometres (379.2 sq mi), and existed from 1861 until 1994.
History
Leigh Shire was first incorporated as the Shelford Road District in 1861, and was renamed Leigh at the time of its redesignation as a shire on 22 March 1864.[2]
The Shire offices were in Rokewood, but Council meetings took place at an isolated hall at Warrambine Creek, halfway between the towns of Rokewood and Shelford.[2][3]
On 6 May 1994, the Shire of Leigh was abolished, and along with the Shires of Bannockburn and Grenville, and parts of the Shire of Buninyong, was merged into the newly created Golden Plains Shire.
Wards
The Shire of Leigh was divided into three ridings in May 1965, each of which elected three councillors:
- East Riding
- Middle Riding
- West Riding
Towns and localities
* Council seat.
Population
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1954 | 1,096 |
| 1958 | 1,370* |
| 1961 | 1,460 |
| 1966 | 1,403 |
| 1971 | 1,177 |
| 1976 | 1,184 |
| 1981 | 1,285 |
| 1986 | 1,791 |
| 1991 | 2,226 |
* Estimate in 1958 Victorian Year Book.
References
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics, Victoria Office (1994). Victorian Year Book. pp. 49–52. ISSN 0067-1223.
- ^ a b Victorian Municipal Directory. Brunswick: Arnall & Jackson. 1992. pp. 736–737. Accessed at State Library of Victoria, La Trobe Reading Room.
- ^ "Former Leigh Shire Hall and Toll House". Victorian Heritage Database. (this source states the Hall ceased to be used for meetings in 1968, but the 1992 Municipal Directory still lists Warrambine Creek as the location of council meeting)
External links
- Interactive map of Victorian local government areas (pre-1994 vs present) - Victorian Government - Digital Twin Victoria
- Victorian Places - Leigh Shire
37°54′S 143°43′E / 37.900°S 143.717°E / -37.900; 143.717
