Geelong North 3215 |
Geelong North is a residential and industrial suburb on the west side of Corio Bay. It is separated from Geelong by Geelong West. Its northern boundary, Cowies Creek, separates it from Norlane, where the Ford Motor Plant is situated.
The Melbourne to Geelong road passes through Geelong North, and by 1854 a hotel and a general store were opened there. The railway line (1857) runs beside the road and the Geelong North station or stopping place was opened within a few years. An independent church opened in 1861, three subdivision estates were opened west of the railway line by 1864, and a school was opened by the church. It was replaced by a State school in 1877.
North Geelongs industrialisation began with the Geelong Gas Works in 1860, near the railway station. Industrial growth was concentrated soon after 1900 with the Oriental Timber Companys mill (1908) and the Federal Woollen Mill (1909), which rapidly grew as a source of employment making uniforms during the 1914-18 war. It was joined by a meat-freezing works, a fertilizer plant, a glass works and storage and bulk-loading facilities for wheat.
The residential community grew with several churches rebuilding or being established soon after 1900. A North Geelong football club (1876) moved from the Geelong Councils abattoirs paddock to Osborne Park in 1919. Osborne Park adjoins the historic Osborne House which overlooks Corio Bay. Built in 1857, the eleven-roomed, two-storey stone house has been a residence, Harbor Trust building and Corio shire offices (1937-93). Another similarly located notable house is St. Helens (1850), later becoming the Stella Maris Convent of Mercy (1930). Both are on the Register of the National Estate.
Osborne Houses latest role is as a Naval and Maritime Museum, near several water-based activities including coastguards, boating facilities small jetties and the Rippleside ship repair yard.
South of Osborne Park there are St. Helens and Rippleside parks, each with beach frontages. The nearby railway station is adjacent to a small shopping centre and local churches. The Geelong North High School (1968), later a secondary college, is in neighbouring Bell Park.
The median house price in Geelong North was $55,000 in 1987 and $89,500 in 1996.
Geelong North had census populations of 245 (1901) and 855 (1933).
❊ Web Links ❊
➼ Geelong North 3215
➼ www.comedystore.com.au
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