The New Crossing Place

Long before the first white man came to Australia, the Taungurung people lived on a vast area along the catchments of the Goulburn River including this area that we now know as the District of Seymour.

In 1824, Hume and Hovell on their return from Port Phillip, camped by the Goulburn River not far upstream of Seymour. In 1836 Major Mitchell crossed the Goulburn at Mitchellstown and soon afterward overlanders and other early settlers began to use the Seymour section of the river as a crossing place.

The mail service between Melbourne and Sydney had been operating for just a year when it was found that a better route was available using the “New Crossing Place.” An inn was operating there by the end of 1839.

In 1841 the Government decided that the new crossing place was a good spot for a town. Plans were laid before the Executive Council of NSW and Mitchell proposed the name Seymour which was approved on December 21st, 1843. The town was named after Lord Seymour, the son of the 11th Duke of Somerset.

Some of the first runs in the district were Tallarook 1837 (Joseph Hawdon), Kerrisdale 1838 (Murchison) Glenaroua 1838 (Hamilton), Mount Piper 1840 (Colonel White). Northwood 1846 (John Clark) Avenel 1838(Henry Kent Hughes) Ghin Ghin 1838 (James Henry Campbell), Mangalore 1838 (Colonel Anderson), Marengo 1844 (Mary Dempsey) Worrough 1838 (Thomas) Over time, some of these runs were broken down into smaller holdings.

The next major influence on the growth of Seymour was the laying of the railway from Melbourne through Seymour and to the border. This venture opened up not only Seymour as a “break point” on the journey for passengers but also had an enormous affect in making it possible for farmers to access the Melbourne markets and hence be competitive in the sale of their products. In addition to the possibilities for farmers and producers, the impact on the townships in the provision of work cannot be understated. Some towns such as Longwood were moved to take advantage that the railway system would bring to them. The Society is a gold mine of information that relates to the history of Seymour and the district and the community is invited to make use of it.