Shire of Towong
Local government area in Victoria, Australia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Shire of Towong (/ˈtaʊɒŋ/; first syllable to rhyme with wow)[3] is a local government area in the Hume region of Victoria, Australia, located in the north-east part of the state. It covers an area of 6,675 square kilometres (2,577 mi2) and in August 2021 had a population of 6,223.[1]
Shire of Towong | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Location in Victoria | |||||||||||||
 | |||||||||||||
| Country | Australia | ||||||||||||
| State | Victoria | ||||||||||||
| Region | Hume | ||||||||||||
| Established | 1994 | ||||||||||||
| Council seat | Tallangatta | ||||||||||||
| Government | |||||||||||||
| • Mayor | Peter Tolsher | ||||||||||||
| • State electorate | |||||||||||||
| • Federal division | |||||||||||||
| Area | |||||||||||||
• Total | 6,675 km2 (2,577 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Population | |||||||||||||
| • Total | 6,223 (2021 census)[1] | ||||||||||||
| • Density | 0.93228/km2 (2.4146/sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Gazetted | 18 November 1994[2] | ||||||||||||
| Website | Shire of Towong | ||||||||||||
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It includes the service towns of Corryong and Tallangatta and the rural towns of Bethanga, Bellbridge, Cudgewa, Dartmouth, Eskdale, Mitta Mitta, Tintaldra and Walwa.
The shire is nestled between Australia's highest peaks, from Mount Bogong near Eskdale Spur to the foothills of Mount Kosciuszko at Tom Groggin. It is also home to Pine Mountain, reportedly the largest monolith in Australia. The Shire is bordered by the Murray River to the north and the Mitta Mitta River in the south.
The Shire is governed and administered by the Towong Shire Council. Its seat of local government and administrative centre is located at the council headquarters in Tallangatta; it also has a service centre located in Corryong.
History
The first entity known as the "Shire of Towong" was formed in 1874. It occupied the same region as the modern LGA. In October 1920 the eastern part of the shire was severed to form the Shire of Upper Murray. No longer containing the Towong locality, the Shire of Towong was renamed the Shire of Tallangatta in 1974.[4]
As part of the substantial local government reforms of 1994, the Shire of Towong was created anew by amalgamating the Shires of Tallangatta and Upper Murray.[2]
Council
Current composition
The council is composed of five councillors elected to represent an unsubdivided municipality.[5]
| Ward | Councillor | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unsubdivided | David Wortmann | ||
| Peter Tolsher | Mayor | ||
| Denise Anderson | Deputy Mayor | ||
| Jonathon Pitman | |||
| Andrew Whitehead | |||
Administration and governance
The council meets in the council chambers at the council headquarters in the Tallangatta Municipal Offices as well as its offices in Corryong on alternating months. Tallangatta is the primary location of the council's administrative activities. It provides customer services at both its administrative centre in Tallangatta, the Tallangatta library and its service centre in Corryong.
Townships and localities
According to the 2021 census, Towong Shire had a population of 6,223, up from 5,985 in the 2016 census.[6]
| Population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Bellbridge | 370 | 393 |
| Berringama | 37 | 35 |
| Bethanga | 471 | 485 |
| Biggara | 49 | 61 |
| Bullioh | 75 | 63 |
| Bungil | 11 | 0 |
| Burrowye | 43 | 24 |
| Colac Colac | 51 | 61 |
| Corryong | 1,348 | 1,352 |
| Cudgewa | 261 | 254 |
| Population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Dartmouth | 104 | 130 |
| Eskdale | 242 | 238 |
| Mount Elmo | 0 | 0 |
| Georges Creek | 62 | 75 |
| Granya | 99 | 88 |
| Guys Forest | 18 | 20 |
| Jarvis Creek | 43 | 46 |
| Koetong | 20 | 26 |
| Lucyvale | 28 | 25 |
| Mitta Mitta | 171 | 171 |
| Population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Mount Alfred | 26 | 39 |
| Nariel Valley^ | 90 | 87 |
| Old Tallangatta | 35 | 45 |
| Pine Mountain | 34 | 32 |
| Shelley | 7 | 5 |
| Talgarno | 219 | 245 |
| Tallandoon | 79 | 92 |
| Tallangatta | 1,082 | 1,175 |
| Tallangatta East | 56 | 39 |
| Population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Tallangatta South | 139 | 142 |
| Tallangatta Valley | 202 | 194 |
| Thologolong | 11 | 22 |
| Thowgla Valley | 82 | 70 |
| Tintaldra | 60 | 66 |
| Tom Groggin | 0 | 7 |
| Towong | 132 | 143 |
| Towong Upper | 34 | 37 |
| Walwa | 177 | 191 |
^ – Territory divided with another LGA
