Beaufort, Victoria

Beaufort is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located on the Western Highway midway between Ararat and Ballarat, in the Pyrenees Shire local government area. It is 387 m above sea level. At the 2016 census, Beaufort had a population of 1,539. The town takes its name either from Rear-Admiral Francis Beaufort or a Welsh village in Monmouthshire.

The area was once occupied by the Wadawurrung Indigenous Australians who called the area 'Peerick' or 'Yarram-yarram'.

History
Thomas Mitchell passed through the district on his expedition of 1836. Early settlers in the area were the Kenneth Kirkland his wife Katherine Kirkland and her two brothers in 1838. The station was taken over by Adolphus Goldsmith in 1841 and he developed the property into a rich grazing enterprise. Lake Goldsmith was named after him.

Gold was discovered in 1852, with another gold rush from 1854 at nearby Fiery Creek. The Fiery Creek diggings supported four townships, Beaufort, Yam Holes Creek, View Point and Southern Cross, during the 1850s. The population on the fields reportedly reached approximately 100,000 people at its height in the late 1850s and produced 450,000 ounces of gold over a two-year period, 1855–1856.

The town was surveyed in 1857 and town allotments were sold from 1858. By 1860, Beaufort had become a small but strong agricultural, pastoral and timber district. Beaufort's Court House was built in 1864 and the Post Office renamed as Beaufort the same year.

Land development
In the mid-2010s, the town and Pyrenes Shire had realised that there was no viable answer for a land developer to create new housing in the area. Pyrenes decised to become its own developer, purchased land just west of the town, and undertook the planning processes of subdividing into around 100 blocks of 700 to 1,100 square metres, road alignments and utilities connection before selling the lots through a real estate agent.

In 2023, with Correa Park fully developed, Pyrenes is embarking on its second housing project, after purchasing another parcel of land on Burke Street on the north-west side of the town, around 10 minutes walking distance from the train station. There will be 20 to 30 lots of between 300 and 700 square metres.

Education
Beaufort has one Kinder - Year 12 State School, located at the original Beaufort Secondary School site. The original State Primary School site, currently, lies empty. On the site of the original Elizabeth Watkins Kindergarten, in Havelock Street, is the new Ambulance Station. (This is opposite the Beaufort Hospital, & next to the Wortherspoon Lane Playground. Adult Education Programs are run from the Beaufort Community House & Learning Centre in Neill Street.

Transport
Beaufort is approximately 164 km west from the state capital Melbourne. The Western Highway runs through the town and is the main highway between Melbourne and Adelaide.

The town is serviced by railway at the Beaufort railway station on the Ararat railway line.

Sports and culture
The town has an Australian Rules football club competing in the Central Highlands Football League.

Beaufort is primarily known around the state for the five-day music and arts festival, the Rainbow Serpent Festival which has been held since 1998 during January on the outskirts of the town.

Notable People

 * Bernard O'Dowd (poet), born in Beaufort and spent his early years in the town


 * Cyril Callister, inventor of Vegemite, was born in Beaufort
 * Max Sharam (singer)

Twin town

 * 🇺🇸 Beaufort, North Carolina