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Mia Mia

Community Plan Review 2013

- Mia Mia Community Plan Review Web: www.miamiavic.com

Reviewing the Plan

As part of a Community Engagement Project, the Mia Mia Mechanics' Institute organised a series of workshops. The items in the old community plan were mailed to community members, along with an invitation to attend a community dinner to discuss the changes needed for the plan. 56 community members attended the first workshop and we developed a mailing list to keep all those involved with the plan review. A list of all the proposed amendments to the plan was subsequently circulated, with an invitation to attend a second workshop and BBQ. At the workshop we discussed the final content for our revised plan and we allocated names to various projects. The focus areas shown on Pages 11 – 13 were then circulated to community members with a request for final suggested amendments. The plan was accepted at a meeting of the Mia Mia Mechanics' Institute early in 2013 and several of the projects in the new plan are well underway, particularly Item 1.4 - Produce a book on the history of Mia Mia, and Item 4.1 - Continue a regular newsletter, and. Item 4.2 - Develop a welcome letter and district service package".

Other projects are progressing at a slower pace. Items shown with "ongoing" in the timeline column are indeed ongoing, especially Item 1.1 "Support and promote existing and new community events." We now have an email list for advising those who have requested our email community newsletter, and that list is growing in number. The history project team (Item 1.4) applied for a grant to produce a history book of Mia Mia & District and the application was successful. It came with a completion date of September 2014 so a good deal of community energy is being spent on that project. As a result of promoting events around the history project we have renewed contact with prior residents as well as current residents, which help enrich our community life. We expect to implement the plan as shown by the end of 2015, although some items can only happen if we have some financial support from external sources, including our local councils.

Web: www.miamiavic.com Mia Mia Community Plan Review -

Contents

The importance of a Community Plan Page 4

Mia Mia - Our History

The Beginning Pages 5 - 6

Burke and Wills Page 7

McIvor Gold Escort Robbery Page 7

The first flight of an Page 8

Australian-made Aeroplane

The Heritage Bridge Pages 9 - 10

Focus Areas

Economic Page 11

Environment Page 12

Infrastructure Page 12

Health and Wellbeing Page 13

Mia Mia - results from the Pages 14 - 15

2011 Census

Mia Mia Events Page 16

Mia Mia in 2013 Pages 17 - 18

Contact Details: Email: [email protected] Web: www.miamiavic.com

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.miamiavic.com/


The importance of a Community Plan This community plan was developed by the community of Mia Mia during 2012 and 2013. Community members were invited by mail to workshops organised by the Mia Mia Mechanics' Institute. An important consideration for the community is that Mia Mia is a rural area where almost all the land is privately owned. While some may see tourism potential for activities such as walking and cycling tracks around Lake Eppalock, these create potential risks for lakeside landowners who already are required to spend time protecting their properties from damaged fences, interrupted water access, discarded rubbish and badly managed camp fires. The ten items in the Focus Areas, on pages 11 – 13, show the priorities of the community over the next three years. Only those action items that community members felt they had the resources to contribute to are included in the plan. We now have Mia Mia mailing lists, both email and postal, so we can keep community members informed of meetings and other events. A newsletter for Mia Mia residents, the quarterly Mia Mia Messenger, started in March 2013, this is item 4.1 in our plan. A New Resident Kit (Item 4.2) is being developed and a working group has been set up to investigate the preparation and production of a book on Mia Mia history (Item 1.4). All community members are welcome to assist in all items in the plan as well as enjoy the various events, including community dinners that are staged at Mia Mia Hall.

How you can be involved We are happy to add all Mia Mia residents and landowners to our distribution lists. To have your details added to the distribution lists, please send an email to the Mia Mia community email address at [email protected] We hope that all new residents and landowners will become involved in our community activities. Our web address is: www.miamiavic.com As our needs change, the plan should reflect those changes. We receive outside funding support to implement only those items on our plan. When we discover a new need, with a higher priority than those in the plan, then we need to add that new need to the plan before applying for support. The addition of a new item may lead to removal of an existing item, and so the plan evolves and remains current. Community planning is a concept endorsed by local government across Victoria. Development of Mia Mia's revised Community Plan 2013 has been supported by the City of Greater Bendigo with some assistance from the Victorian Department of Planning and Community Development.

mailto:[email protected]


Mia Mia – the beginning Major Thomas Livingstone Mitchell passed through the district now known as Mia Mia in October 1836, on his way back to Sydney from Portland on his third journey through Southern Australia. He gave a glowing report on the farming potential of the land he passed through in Victoria. His Camp 13 was just southeast of what is now the township of Mia Mia, where Pohlman's Creek meets Briggs Creek and eventually becomes Wild Duck Creek, close to the boundary of the City of Greater Bendigo and Mitchell Shire. Mitchell then proceeded just south of Heathcote towards what is now Nagambie.

Mitchell's account of the favourable country through which he had passed attracted the attention of settlers. By 1840 most of Central Victoria was occupied by new settlers. New South Wales was in the grip of drought and overlanders arrived from the north and settlers from Tasmania crossed Bass Strait with their flocks and herds from over-stocked Tasmania. These men did not own the land but paid an annual fee of £10 to occupy a run, the size of which varied according to the size of their flock. Henry Munro was the first person to select land in the area. He selected some 30,000 acres in 1838, as the Spring Plains Run. His land stretched from the foot of Mt Alexander across to the McHarg Ranges. Munro sold the land in early 1843 to William McGill, who in turn sold it to Patrick Maine in December of the same year. Maine built a log hut east of the land where the township of Mia Mia now stands, and erected a log hut on a rise nearby, possibly in 1844. The hut became popular as an overnight resting place for travellers along the nearby ‘Major’s Line’, which at that time was the principal ‘highway’ in Central Victoria. His hut became known as ‘Maine’s Mia Mia’, which today is known as Mia Mia. Some early documents show the spelling as Mia Mi, others as Miami. In July 1838, Chas Hutton settled at Moorabbee, then known as Campaspe Plains and now located on the eastern side of Lake Eppalock. His shepherds roamed over all the area around Mia Mia and far to the north. Within a couple of years Barfold, Spring Plains, Wolfscrag and Tourbourie were separately occupied and they effectively limited the southern boundary of Moorabbee to roughly the Major’s line of track.

Pohlman’s Creek


In 1848 a hostelry, the Mia Mia Hotel, built by Henry Farrell, was located in what became Valley Road, just above the bluestone ruins still visible behind the bus shelter. It was bought by Michael Madden in 1854. Madden's widow ran the hotel after her husband's death. In 1858, she married Fred Westblade and they ran the hotel until 1871 when they leased it to their son-in-law Thomas Dwyer. In 1898 Patrick Dwyer bought the Inn freehold, the bluestone hotel whose ruins are clearly visible today. The little settlement of Mia Mia grew up around the hotel. Mia Mia was surveyed by Philip Chauncey in 1859. He demarcated allotments, named streets, and declared Mia Mia a township in 1861. The population was then 31. By 1868, Mia Mia boasted a school, 2 stores (1 licensed), at least 2 smithies and the Mia Mia Inn, besides many small settlers living nearby. Ewen Matheson conducted the licensed store, and it was there that the first Presbyterian services were held by the Rev. David Renton of Heathcote. (Adapted from Jack Ross’s Mia Mia Presbyterian Church 1872-1972 the first 100 years, unpublished, n.d. and from his "Mia Mia School 1869-1969 booklet).

The Mia Mia

Inn ruins

The Mia Mia

Post Office ruins


Burke & Wills Exploration

The Burke & Wills Track, sometimes called the Mia Mia Lancefield Road or the Three Chain Road, is a sealed road between Lancefield and Mia Mia. It originally formed part of a stock route from the north to ports in Melbourne. In 1860, the Burke & Wills Scientific Expedition team, on its journey to cross Australia from south to north, followed this track from Melbourne to Mia Mia where the expedition team's men, horses and camels spent two days. Some of the exploration party stayed at the Mia Mia Inn, some camped at what is now the Recreation Reserve, also known as The Flat, on the corner of Westblade Street.

McIvor Gold Escort Robbery On Wednesday, July 20th 1853, a private escort for gold started out from McIvor diggings (now known as Heathcote) and was going to Melbourne via Kyneton. This escort had a cart containing 2,223 ounces of gold and about £700 pounds in money, packed into two boxes. When they were just outside of Mia Mia they came across a log thrown across the road and were ambushed by robbers who took the two boxes. Most of the escort were badly injured including the horses. As soon as the news became known a massive search was undertaken by all in the area. Eventually they arrested three men and in September 1853 they were convicted and executed in October the same year. Reference: The “Told by the Pioneer Series; Recollections of a Victorian Police Officer” by John Sadler


The first flight of an Australian-made aeroplane In 1910, an aeroplane was designed and constructed by John Robertson Duigan (born 1882) and his younger brother, Reginald Charles Duigan on their parent’s property, Spring Plains at Mia Mia. After many trials, the first flight was achieved by John on 16th July 1910, making this the first flight of an Australian aeroplane. The plane's official flight was at Bendigo racecourse on 11th May, 1911, before 600 spectators. In 1960, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first flight a pylon with the plane’s propeller was erected on the Burke & Wills Track, in front of the place where the plane first flew. In 2012 the Duigan family helped the Mia Mia community commemorate the centenary of the first flight with a number of celebrations, and a replica of the Duigan plane was constructed by the CSIRO. Images of the flight are available at www.duigancentenaryofflight.org.au and the monument can be visited 5 kilometres down the Burke & Wills Track, also known as the Mia Mia Lancefield Road.

http://www.duigancentenaryofflight.org.au/


The Mia Mia Heritage Bridge Mia Mia Bridge or Redesdale Bridge, built in the years 1867-8, is a unique wrought-iron lattice-girder through-truss road bridge on stone-masonry abutments, with divided lanes and a longitudinal timber deck. It is historically, scientifically and aesthetically significant at State level, and stands out clearly above other Victorian examples of stone-masonry, iron and timber-topped colonial bridges for several reasons. The Mia Mia Bridge was built to allow a cross-country mail route that linked the prosperous gold fields centres of Kyneton and Heathcote. It is the second-oldest lattice-girder bridge in Victoria, after Hawthorn Bridge, and is in more original condition than that bridge. It was constructed from parts of a larger iron-bridge consignment originally imported from England in 1859 to bridge the Yarra River at Hawthorn, but replaced for that purpose when the ship carrying it to Melbourne caught fire and was scuttled in Hobson's Bay. When salvaged it became the subject of a controversial attempted 'deal' with the Victorian Government and lay neglected for several years, before much of its ironwork was modified and sold by the Port Phillip Foundry to the combined Shires of McIvor and Metcalfe for use at the Campaspe crossing. The bridge site can claim historical significance in its own right, it being claimed at the bridge's official opening to be adjacent to the scene of a significant early colonial battle between local Aborigines and early European settlers of the area. The divided-lane through-truss design at Mia Mia was created specifically for this difficult Campaspe River crossing site and is unique. The design of the original Hawthorn bridge from whose components the Mia Mia Bridge was constructed, had involved three rows of trusses below deck level. When these materials were used as through-trusses at Mia Mia, the three above-deck trusses had to be linked and stabilised by two sets of unusual custom-built overhead arches, which give this bridge its striking appearance. Its lengthy single clear span of 54.7 metres, without use of intermediate piers, differs from the multiple-span


designs of our other rural lattice-girder bridges. It also features a longitudinal deck, once common with this type of bridge but now very rare on surviving bridges of the colonial era. The few other surviving Victorian examples of this lattice-girder type are of deck-truss design (with trusses below deck level). They are not divided-lane bridges and their visual impact is totally different. The Mia Mia Bridge and site are also outstanding in aesthetic terms. Its siting, high above a broad and deep river valley where stone-masonry intermediary piers would be impractical, distinguishes it from other colonial Victorian lattice-girder truss bridges. Soaring iron arches linking unusually lengthy and tall triple-through-trusses of attractive wrought-iron work, combined with the physical ruggedness and visual impressiveness of this difficult river-crossing site, make it one of Victoria's most aesthetically appealing road bridges. The Mia Mia Bridge is substantially intact, with recent replacement of the timber crossbeams and decking and an increase in the height of the arch trusses. A recent collision with a truck necessitated repairs to the trusses and abutments. (Adapted from the Victorian Heritage Register and the National Trust entries).


Focus Areas

1. Economic

Goal Timeline Partners 1.1 Support and promote existing and new

community festivals & events such as Flower Show, Trivia Night, Twilight Opera, Big Sing, Muster of the Lambs, and Community Dinners.

Ongoing

MMMI (Mia Mia Mechanics' Institute) Committee and The Flat committee

1.2 Establish an annual cultural event that brings

together the professional artists of the area.

By 2015

Heather McCormack, Frank Firkin, Anton Hasell, Victoria Hartcup

1.3 Investigate the inclusion of a Mia Mia Slow

Cooking Competition in the Muster of the Lambs event at The Flat.

By 2014

Julia Sievers, Jenny Dempster, Wendy Hulls, Sue O'Sullivan

1.4 Produce a book on the history of Mia Mia.

By 2014

Jim Coombe, Wendy Hulls, Mary Bennett, Gwen and Brian Ellis, Annette Coombe, Anthony Ryan, Kate Hicks


2. Environment

Goal Timeline Partners 2.1 Provide storyboards at places of local

geographical & historical interest .

By 2015

MMMI and the "The Flat" Committees

2.2 Ensure community members are aware of local

Landcare and other environmental organisations' projects in the region.

Ongoing

.Baynton Sidonia Landcare Group; Campaspe Valley Landcare Group North Central Catchment Management Authority

2.3 Ensure community members are aware of fire protection measures and the local resources and activities of the Country Fire Authority (CFA).

Ongoing

Mia Mia CFA Rural Brigade

3. Infrastructure Goal Timeline Partners 3.1 Maintain the Mia Mia Mechanics' Institute (The

Hall) and The Flat (Mia Mia Recreation Reserve) so they are safe & attractive for sport, passive recreation, tourism and community events.

Ongoing

"The Flat" Committee and the MMMI Committee

Mia Mia Recreation Reserve


4. Health & Wellbeing

Goal Timeline Partners 4.1 Continue a regular community newsletter for

Mia Mia residents that include dates and contact details of all local events, current social, craft, and environmental groups, and encourages new groups. (See also 2.2 above).

By 2013

MMMI Committee and all community members.

4.2 Develop a welcome letter & district service

package for new & existing residents, updated each year for distribution to all community members. Suggested items for such a package include CFA fire prevention recommendations, a local trade/services directory, a list of contacts for local community groups, and a 'neighbourhood watch' contact list.

By 2013

MMMI Committee to seek ideas on content from community members.

4.3 Create an annual award for Mia Mia

Community Volunteer recognition.

By 2014

MMMI and “The Flat” Committees and Mia Mia Rural Fire Brigade (CFA).


Mia Mia - Snapshot of results

from the 2011 Census At the time of the 2011 Census, there were 265 people in Mia Mia. Of these, 53.2% were male and 46.8% were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 3.8% of the population.

Age Mia Mia Greater Bendigo The median age of people in Mia Mia is 49 years which is higher compared to the median age for Greater Bendigo which is 38. The most common ancestries in Mia Mia are English 31.3%, Australian 27%, Irish 12.2%, Scottish 11% and German 3.8%.

Median Weekly Income People aged 15 years and over

Mia Mia Greater Bendigo Victoria

Personal $398 $513 $561

Family $883 $1,245 $1,460

Household $742 $991 $1,216

The personal, family and household median weekly income for residents in Mia Mia is significantly lower compared to Greater Bendigo and Victoria. In Mia Mia, 34% of households had a gross weekly household income of less than $600 compared to 28.1% for Greater Bendigo and there was no one counted as having a gross weekly income of more than $3,000.

Males Females

30 20 10 0 10 20 30

0-9 yrs

10-19 yrs

20-29 yrs

30-39 yrs

40-49 yrs

50-59 yrs

60-69 yrs

70-79 yrs

80-89 yrs

90+ yrs

Number

Males Females

8000 6000 4000 2000 0 2000 4000 6000 8000

0-9 yrs

10-19 yrs

20-29 yrs

30-39 yrs

40-49 yrs

50-59 yrs

60-69 yrs

70-79 yrs

80-89 yrs

90+ yrs

Number


The median weekly rent in Mia Mia is $92 which is lower compared to Greater Bendigo which is $200. 100% of households renting in Mia Mia paid less than 30% of the household income on rent compared to 91.5% in Greater Bendigo.

The median monthly mortgage repayment in Mia Mia is $1,300 which is the same as Greater Bendigo. Households with mortgage repayments less than 30% of household income in Mia Mia are 88.9% which is lower compared to Greater Bendigo with 92.5%. Households with mortgage repayments greater than 30% of household income is 11.1% which is higher compared to Greater Bendigo with 7.5%.

Family Composition

Mia Mia (%) Greater Bendigo (%) Victoria (%)

Couple family without children

63.2 39.2 36.7

Couple family with children

25.0 41.0 46.0

One parent family 11.8 18.3 15.5

Other family 0.0 1.5 1.8

In Mia Mia there are more couple family without children compared to couple family with children and one parent families. Compared to Greater Bendigo and Victoria, Mia Mia had more couple family without children.

In Mia Mia, 66.7% were family households (family households refer to a household with at least one child under the age of 15 years), compared to 68.8% in Greater Bendigo. The proportion of single or lone person households in Mia Mia is higher compared to Greater Bendigo with 30.6% and 24.5% respectively.

Dwellings

Mia Mia (%) Greater Bendigo (%) Victoria (%)

Occupied Dwellings 62.8 90.7 88.7

Unoccupied Dwellings 37.2 9.3 11.3

Of the total of private dwellings in Mia Mia, 62.8% were occupied. This rate of occupancy is considerably lower compared to Greater Bendigo and Victoria. The average number of bedrooms per dwelling in Mia Mia is 3 and the average number of people per household is 2.3. Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics Code SSC20888 (SSC) Web page link: http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/census_services/getproduct/census/2011/quickstat/SSC20888?opendocument&navpos=220

http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/census_services/getproduct/census/2011/quickstat/SSC20888?opendocument&navpos=220


Mia Mia Events For more details on these events, or for information on hiring the Mia Mia Hall, please check our website at www.miamiavic.com

Australia Day Breakfast Mia Mia's Australia Day breakfast is well supported by the community, attracting over one hundred people each year. A flag raising and communal singing of the national anthem is followed by a guest speaker and then a traditional Aussie breakfast is served.

Mia Mia Annual Flower Show

and Lunch The Mia Mia Flower Show and luncheon at the Mia Mia Mechanics' Institute (the Hall) attracts people from all over Central Victoria. There are references to this annual event as far back as 1934. The show is open to all and entries are accepted up to 11AM on the day of the show. In 2012 our guest speaker, a member of the Victorian Orchid Judging Panel, gave a passionate talk on growing orchids, showing some of his beautiful collection.

The Big Sing After the 2009 Black Saturday fires the Mia Mia Rural Fire Brigade was 'adopted' by a Melbourne choir, The Souffle Sisters, managed by Paula Curotte. Paula helped organise a very successful multi-choir Bushfire Benefit Concert in Melbourne to raise funds to assist the Mia Mia Rural Fire Brigade purchase a community owned tanker. These wonderful choirs continue to raise money for our brigade with this annual event.

Mia Mia Twilight Opera This is a wonderful opera recital by emerging young Australian opera stars. The performers

are sponsored by the Alice Amy McDonald Scholarship Trust which is managed by community members David and Lynne

McDonald. The audience enjoys superb singing and piano playing by an

accomplished group of performers. The wood panelling on the walls,

floor and ceiling of the Mia Mia Hall provide excellent acoustics. No microphones, no amplification,

just beautiful sounds that have the audience, clapping and cheering

with several standing ovations.

Mattia, Michelle, Dario and

Gaetano perform at the

Mia Mia Twilight Opera


Mia Mia in 2013 In more recent times as growth and progress has happened, Mia Mia has become known for its natural attractions. Mia Mia is part of the Heathcote wine region which has generated a growth in tourism. Long held events such as the Australia Day Breakfast, the Flower Show in October, and newer events such as a February Opera Recital, the Big Sing, local art shows, and community dinners are well attended. In October 2013, the new Country Fire Authority station was opened in Mia Mia. The brigade also received a new $200,000 four-wheel drive light tanker.


Mia Mia in 2013

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