VICFarming
Traralgon
Drovers and timber came before electricity.
1859Town surveyed · pastoral and roadside settlement
WHAT STARTED IT
Traralgon grew from a pastoral run and a stopping place on the Gippsland road. Its hotel served drovers, travellers and miners heading towards mountain goldfields. A town survey in 1859 preceded substantial growth.
WHAT SUSTAINED IT
Rail access in 1877 encouraged sawmilling and dairying. The Maryvale paper mill’s main plant began operating in 1939, while the wider Latrobe Valley’s coal and electricity industries brought more workers and housing.
TURNING POINTS
1859Town surveyed.
1877Railway opens.
1939Maryvale’s main paper mill begins operating.
WHAT IT DOES NOW
A regional shopping and service centre in the Latrobe Valley, connected to the area’s health services and changing industrial economy.