Portland | |
|---|---|
 Bentinck Street, looking north | |
  Portland | |
| Coordinates:38°20′0″S141°36′0″E / 38.33333°S 141.60000°E /-38.33333; 141.60000 | |
| Country | Australia |
| State | Victoria |
| LGA | |
| Location |
|
| Established | 1834 |
| Population | |
| • Total | 10,016 (2021) |
| Postcode | 3305 |
| Mean max temp | 17.7 °C (63.9 °F) |
| Mean min temp | 9.3 °C (48.7 °F) |
| Annual rainfall | 848.3 mm (33.40 in) |
Portland (/ˈpɔːrtlənd/PORT-lənd)[2] is a city inVictoria, Australia, and is the oldest European settlement in the state. It is also the main urban centre in theShire of Glenelg and is located onPortland Bay. As of the2021 census the population was 10,016,[3] increasing from a population of 9,712 taken at the2016 census.[4]
TheGunditjmara, anAboriginal Australian people, are thetraditional owners of much of south-west Victoria, including what is now Portland, having lived there for thousands of years. They are today renowned for their earlyaquaculture development at nearbyLake Condah. Physical remains such as the weirs andfish traps are to be found in theBudj Bim heritage areas. The Gunditjmara were a settled people, living in small circular weather-proof stone huts about 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) high, grouped as villages, often aroundeel traps and aquaculture ponds. On just one hectare of Allambie Farm, archaeologists have discovered the remains of 160 house sites.[5][6][7][8]
Portland was named in 1800 by the British navigatorJames Grant, who sailed in theLady Nelson along the Victorian coast. "I also distinguished the Bay by the name ofPortland Bay, in honour of His Grace theDuke of Portland", wrote Grant. The bay, the onlydeep sea port betweenAdelaide andMelbourne, offers a sheltered anchorage against the often wild weather ofBass Strait.[citation needed]
By the early 19th century, whalers and sealers were working the treacherous waters of Bass Strait, and Portland Bay provided good shelter and fresh water, which enabled them to establish the first white settlement in the area. Whaling captainWilliam Dutton is known to have been resident in the Portland Bay area when the Henty clan arrived, and is said to have provided seed potatoes for the Henty garden.[citation needed]
TheConvincing Ground massacre, in which 20 native owners of the land were massacred by whalers, occurred in Portland Bay in 1833 or 1834, following a dispute about abeached whale between whalers and theKilcarer gundidj clan of theGunditjmara people.[9]
In 1834, the year before Melbourne was founded,Edward Henty and his family, who had migrated from England toWestern Australia in 1829, and then moved toVan Diemen's Land, ferried some of their stock across the Strait in search of the fine grazing land of theWestern District. After a voyage of 34 days, theThistle arrived at Portland Bay on 19 November 1834. Henty was only 24 years old, and, early in December, cultivated the land using aplough he had made himself. He was the first white man to turn a sod in Victoria.[10] The next voyage of theThistle brought his brotherFrancis, with additional stock and supplies, and in a short time houses were erected and fences put up.[11][12]
In his diary entry for 3 December 1834, Henty wrote:
Arrived at 6 p.m., made the boat fast in the middle of the river, and started three days' walk in the bush accompanied by H Camfield, Wm Dutton, five men, one black woman and 14 dogs, each man with a gun and sufficient quantity of damper to last for the voyage.
In the 5 December entry Henty wrote:[13]
On descending the hill we saw a native. He immediately ran on seeing us. He was busily employed pulling the gums from the wattle trees.
Henty sowed the first Victorianwheat crop on clifftop land, known today as "The Ploughed Field".[citation needed] The Henty brothers established a shore-based whaling station at Portland.[14] They went on to own five vessels engaged in the trade.[15]
The Hentys were "discovered" in Portland by the explorerThomas Mitchell in 1836. Thesquatter settlement was illegal since, at that time, theBritish Colonial Office policy was to contain colonial settlements in Australia within geographic limits. It had been still considering how to deal with the rights to the land ofAboriginal Victorians. The Hentys also farmed in areas known as"Australia Felix", aroundCasterton.
By 1838, land auctions had been authorised fromSydney, andCharles Tyers surveyed the Portland township in 1839. "It was government policy to encourage squatters to take possession of whatever land they chose". A Post Office was opened on 4 December 1841, the third to open in the Port Phillip District after Melbourne andGeelong.[16]
During the 1840s theEumeralla Wars between Europeans andGunditjmara took place in the area between Portland andPort Fairy.
AtWesleyan Mission meeting in 1841, Rev. Benjamin Hurst (missionary to Aboriginal people at Port Phillip) noted that in the Portland bay area "it was usual for some to go out in parties on theSabbath with guns, for the ostensible purpose of kangarooing, but, in reality to hunt and kill these miserable beings".[17]
Around 1842 aPresbyterian church and school were founded by the Rev. Alexander Laurie (c. 1817–1854),[18] who later ran thePortland Herald. His widow Janet Laurie (Black) and two sons foundedThe Border Watch in nearbyMount Gambier.[citation needed]
From the time of European settlement, the region around Melbourne was known as thePort Phillip District, and this gained some administrative status prior to separation fromNew South Wales and the declaration as theColony of Victoria in 1851.
Portland was proclaimed a city on Monday 28 October 1985, in the presence ofCharles, Prince of Wales andDiana, Princess of Wales.[19]
Portland is in theVictorian Legislative Assembly electoral district ofSouth West Coast, theWestern Victoria Region of theVictorian Legislative Council and thefederalDivision of Wannon. It is in thelocal government area of theShire of Glenelg. Its postcode is 3305.
On 30 March 2007, the Gunditjmara people were recognised by theFederal Court of Australia to be thenative title-holders of almost 140,000 hectares (350,000 acres) ofCrown land and waters in the Portland region.[20] On 27 July 2011, together with theEastern Maar people, the Gunditjmara People were recognised to be the native title-holders of almost 4,000 hectares (9,900 acres) of Crown land in theYambuk region, includingLady Julia Percy Island, known to them asDeen Maar.[21] The Gunditjmara People are represented by theGunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation.[22]
As of August 2020[update], after a question raised at a council meeting by resident Shea Rotumah, who is of thekilcarer gundidj clan of the Gunditjmara people, the council is undertaking an audit of their colonial monuments, to assess the "nature and magnitude of monuments and place names across the shire". The mayor, Anita Rank, sees it as "an amazing opportunity for our community to be better educated".[23]
At the2021 census Portland had a population of 10,016 people.
Through the 19th century Portland developed to become an important fishing port providing for the town and later, with the connection of the railway, to the region as far afield as Ballarat and eventually Melbourne.Barracouta,Australian salmon and crayfish (nowsouthern rock lobster) were the main catches with many fishermen working the bay, around theLawrence Rocks and in the season,Bridgewater Bay.
Portland's harbour enabled the development of the wool growing industry of the Western District, however it has since lost its primacy to facilities atGeelong. Even in western Victoria, Portland fell behindWarrnambool as the main commercial centre. In the 20th century Portland's role as a port revived, and its economy was also boosted by the tourism industry and analuminium smelter.
The port of Portland was sold in 1996 by the State Government to a group including the listed New Zealand companyInfratil & the Scott Corporation (owned byAllan Scott), the first privatisation of port facilities in Australia. Since then, it has been traded a number of times and is now owned by two institutional investors – the publicly listed Australian Infrastructure Fund and Utilities Trust of Australia, a private infrastructure fund – both of which are managed by Hastings Funds Management.
As newsupertankers have emerged, Portland, along withHastings inWestern Port Bay was proposed as an alternative to the controversial plans for deepening of Melbourne's shallowerPort Phillip. The plans are aimed at maintaining Victoria's shipping status (since Melbourne has become Australia's busiest port, the Victorian economy relies heavily on the import and export of goods). Due to environmental reasons, the plan to deepen Port Phillip has been heavily criticised, whereas Portland offers some of the necessary infrastructure with minimum environmental impact.
The Port of Portland has received major assistance through public funding of an A$18 million overpass which gives better access to the port for heavy traffic. In 2007, the Glenelg Shire Council adopted a plan for the redesign and development of the foreshore precinct including a new multi purpose marina in the north-west corner of the harbour.[24]
Alcoa is Victoria's largest exporter. ThePortland aluminium smelter is located in Portland in South West Victoria. The smelter was commissioned in 1987 and is managed byAlcoa World Alumina and Chemicals for Portland Aluminium (a joint venture project between Alcoa (55%), CITIC (22.5%) and Marubeni (22.5%)).
Portland is Australia's third largest aluminium smelter, with a capacity of around 352,000 tonnes of aluminium per annum. The majority of Portland's production is supplied to the export market.[citation needed]
The Portland Aluminium smelter, in conjunction with Alcoa'sPoint Henry smelter which closed in 2014, produced about 30% of Australia's total aluminium.[citation needed]
Portland today is the home of a varied professional fishing fleet of approximately 60 vessels, harvesting a wide variety of sustainable commercial species.[citation needed] During the austral summer (November to May), the Bonney Upwelling (part of the largerGreat South Australian Coastal Upwelling System) brings nutrient-rich deep ocean water to the surface in the Portland area, supporting a rich abundance of marine life.[25] Trawlers target deepsea finfish such asrockling,hoki, blue eyetrevalla and more, whileSouthern rock lobster,giant crab,blacklip andgreenlip abalone, arrow squid,wrasse and others are also landed in significant quantities.[26] The industry is a significant employer and directly generates approximately $30 million[citation needed] in export and domestic earnings for the town with major flow-on benefits through local seafood processing (both export and domestic), transport & engineering services, fuel supplies and other ancillary industries. An abalone hatchery has been established on the shores of Portland Bay and apart from some current difficulties, is likely to be an indicator of future seafood production.[vague] Easy access to prime locations supports a flourishing amateur angling fraternity, with many locals and tourists regularly enjoying a fresh catch of King George Whiting, Snapper, Kingfish, Flathead, Morwong and in recent times,Southern bluefin tuna.
The first blades from theVestas Portland plant were produced in July 2005 and the plant was officially commissioned in August 2005. The facility cost $9 million, and has a capacity of 225 blades (75 blade sets) per annum.[27]Vestas began manufacturing wind turbines in 1979. Their core business comprises the development, manufacture, sale, marketing and maintenance of wind power systems. The blade manufacturing facility in Portland worked in conjunction with their assembly plant inTasmania which has since been closed down. In August 2007, Vestas announced the closure of its near new Portland blade manufacturing plant with the loss of 130 jobs.[28]
The Portland Wind Energy Project,PWEP[29] involves the development of four wind farms at Cape Bridgewater, Cape Nelson, Cape Sir William Grant and Yambuk in south-west Victoria. As one of the biggest wind farm developments in the Southern Hemisphere, the 195MW project proponents claimed that it will deliver major environmental, economic and social benefits.
The four Portland sites are considered by the proponents of the project to be ideal wind farm locations, with consistently strong winds, access for construction vehicles and machinery, a nearby connection to the National Electricity Grid, compatible farming activities and a large land area. By August 2007 construction was underway but there is still ongoing substantial resident opposition to the project regarding the planning process enabling this development and the visual impact of towers and the power lines.[30]
The 195MW project will produce enough clean electricity to power about 125,000 homes each year, equal to more than 7 per cent of Victoria's residential electricity demand, or powering a city the size of Geelong. The project is being developed byPacific Hydro.[31]
Geothermal heating was used to heat more than 19,000 square metres of municipal buildings, a motel and the town 2000m³ swimming pool in Portland. Commissioned in 1983, naturally hot groundwater (58 °C) was extracted from a bore (1400m deep) at a rate of 90 litres/second.[32] The total capacity of the Portland facility, operated by the Glenelg Shire was 10.4 MW before being closed down prematurely in April 2006.[32][33][34]
TheGreat South West Walk is a 250-kilometre (160 mi) walking track that begins at the Visitor Information Centre, Portland. Designed as a long distance walking track, it is also ideal for short walks and day walks. The walk travels through forests, river gorges, cliff tops and sublime bays. Established in 1981 the walk is administered, maintained and promoted by 'The Friends of the Great South West Walk Inc', a wholly volunteer organisation, in partnership withParks Victoria.[35]
ThePortland Cable Tram was established as a community organisation in June 1996, with the view to laying light rail to carry refurbished diesel powered trams, as both an outlet for rail and heritage enthusiasts and a tourist venture. The tram carries passengers along the scenic route from Henty Park to the World War 2 Memorial Lookout, at the old North Portland Water Tower. The route takes in the natural wetlands (tidal) of Fawthrop Lagoon Park, the foreshore, cliff tops and botanic gardens. The Portland Cable Tram Group is planning additional tram carriages and engines, for greater capacity and to provide more reliability and maintenance support options. Volunteer drivers and conductors provide a commentary about Portland's significant past and present-day buildings, harbour and sights. Over 12,000 passengers were carried on the tram during the 2006–07 financial year.[36]
The Portland Maritime Museum was developed to house the Portland Lifeboat built in 1858. The Lifeboat is one of the oldest lifeboats remaining in the world. Famous for rescuing 19 survivors of theAdmella shipwreck in 1859, and the Julia shipwreck in 1863. TheAdmella, a steamship of 392 tons, was sailing from Adelaide to Melbourne when it was smashed onto a reef offCarpenter Rocks in South Australia with a loss of 89 lives. The Portland Lifeboat and crew were taken to the scene, and were pivotal in the rescue operations. On display is a real whale skeleton, and the famed 'Portland Lifeboat' used in theAdmella rescue.
Portland is 362 kilometres (225 mi) west ofMelbourne via thePrinces Highway. It is connected toHamilton by theHenty Highway.
Portland is served by the standard gaugeMaroona-Portland line, which branches from the mainWestern standard gauge line. Until 1995 the line wasbroad gauge, the line having been opened on 19 December 1877.[37] Passenger movements are by coach to Warrnambool where passengers transfer to rail, the last direct passenger train between Ararat and Portland was on 12 September 1981 operated by aDRC railcar.[38] Grain is the most common commodity delivered by rail from theWimmera.
Transport MinisterPeter Batchelor, opened a $15m overpass in Cliff Street constructed forVicRoads in October 2006.[39] The government committed to the project in May 2003, and work began in 2005.[40] The overpass allows road transports and trains continuous access to the port; moving commodities like grain, fertiliser, wind-farm blades, aluminium ingots and woodchips. Port activity is projected to increase significantly and the overpass, which had been discussed since 1991, was finally installed. The project was completed three months ahead of schedule because of the drought and less than the expected delays due to rain.
Freight operatorPacific National indefinitely suspended all rail services to the town of Portland in 2004, impacting local companies includingPortland Aluminium, transport companyKalari, and freight broker Anchor Logistics. Portland container traffic was conveyed between Maroona and Portland on grain services twice a week, but Pacific National said that due to the drought there were no trains to attach the loading to. On the route the price differential between rail and road is $12.97 per tonne in rail's favour.[41] Pacific National closed their Portland operations in March 2008, withGrainCorp leasing a limited number of locomotives and rolling stock from them, but favour transporting grain to thePort of Geelong instead.[42] In September 2008 it was announced that freight traffic would restart using the line from Portland, with operatorEl Zorro signing a multi-million deal with minerIluka Resources to carry containerisedmineral sands toMelbourne, with Iluka saying rail transport was cheaper than road.[43]
Portland is served by thePortland Airport (IATA:PTJ,ICAO:YPOD).Sharp Airlines provided a regular service to Portland and Warrnambool airports fromEssendon airport up until 30 June 2019.[44][45] Sharp Airlines started operations in Portland by flying staff and employees from Portland Aluminium toAvalon Airport, so they could link to the Point Henry Smelter near Geelong. With significant demand and the support of the community, non-charter, passenger flights were also added. Sharp has established a maintenance hub at Portland Airport, so support staff could service the growing commuter and tourist airline.[citation needed]
Community radio station 3RPC-FM 99.3 is located opposite The Arts Company, on the corner of Richmond Street, and broadcasts to the majority of the Shire of Glenelg. This too lends itself to the promotion of the city's various performances, exhibitions and cultural events. Each week volunteer presenters write and produce many hours of on-air entertainment covering arts, culture, sport, community news and special interest programs.
Portland tourist radio station is WAVE-FM, broadcasting easy listening music, news and information about local attractions.
Portland has a vibrant cultural diversity, with many potters, painters, musicians, quilters, lead lighters, wood-turners, photographers, cinematographers, multi-media artists, print-makers, jewellers, sculptors, actors and writers. Many of these talents come together under the banners of CEMA Inc (Council for Encouragement of Music and the Arts), or the associated The Arts Company.
The Portland Art Centre, on the corner of Glenelg and Bentinck Streets, incorporates a gallery and theatre, where local and visiting performances are regularly staged.[46]
The Arts Company is located in the heritage precinct of Portland in refurbished old buildings in Julia Street. Along with community workshops and studios, local artists' works are also for sale. The Arts Company also has accommodation and studios for theartist in residence programs.
The town has anAustralian rules football team competing in theHampden Football League. The club is known asPortland Football Netball Cricket Club.
The Portland and District Cricket Association is the local cricket association, with 6 clubs competing from the local area.
Golfers play at the course of the Portland Golf Club on Madeira Packet Road.[47]
The Portland Hockey club plays in the Lower South East Hockey Association. Games are mainly played in Mount Gambier on an artificial turf pitch. However, some games are played in Portland at Nelson Park on grass pitches. Training is at Flinders Park.
Portland also has a soccer team, the Portland Panthers, and they play most of their games with the Mount Gambier Sides.
Portland has a coolmediterranean climate that is transitional with theoceanic climate (Köppen climate classificationCsb/Cfb). Its summers as well as annual mean temperature, are extraordinarily cold for the latitude due to facing the coldest ocean in the world; the rainy winters have moderate lows.
| Climate data for Portland Airport (1991–2020, extremes 1982–2024); 38.31° S, 141.47° E | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 42.5 (108.5) | 43.1 (109.6) | 40.5 (104.9) | 34.2 (93.6) | 26.8 (80.2) | 20.6 (69.1) | 18.7 (65.7) | 24.4 (75.9) | 31.0 (87.8) | 32.8 (91.0) | 35.5 (95.9) | 43.6 (110.5) | 43.6 (110.5) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 22.3 (72.1) | 22.5 (72.5) | 21.2 (70.2) | 18.5 (65.3) | 15.8 (60.4) | 13.8 (56.8) | 13.2 (55.8) | 14.0 (57.2) | 15.3 (59.5) | 17.1 (62.8) | 18.8 (65.8) | 20.4 (68.7) | 17.7 (63.9) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 12.5 (54.5) | 13.0 (55.4) | 11.7 (53.1) | 9.7 (49.5) | 8.3 (46.9) | 6.8 (44.2) | 6.4 (43.5) | 6.7 (44.1) | 7.5 (45.5) | 8.5 (47.3) | 9.9 (49.8) | 11.0 (51.8) | 9.3 (48.8) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 1.6 (34.9) | 4.1 (39.4) | 2.5 (36.5) | 1.2 (34.2) | 0.0 (32.0) | −1.5 (29.3) | −2.3 (27.9) | −1.1 (30.0) | −0.6 (30.9) | −0.9 (30.4) | 1.5 (34.7) | 0.9 (33.6) | −2.3 (27.9) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 38.0 (1.50) | 30.8 (1.21) | 42.8 (1.69) | 58.1 (2.29) | 84.5 (3.33) | 110.9 (4.37) | 112.5 (4.43) | 112.1 (4.41) | 90.1 (3.55) | 61.0 (2.40) | 55.7 (2.19) | 51.8 (2.04) | 848.3 (33.40) |
| Average rainy days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 5.1 | 4.6 | 7.6 | 9.9 | 14.2 | 16.0 | 17.3 | 17.0 | 14.2 | 10.5 | 8.5 | 7.6 | 132.5 |
| Source: Australian Bureau of Meteorology[48] | |||||||||||||
Rainfall and temperature records are found as early as 1857 and 1863 at the old Portland site, having terminated at 1956 for temperature readings but still recording rainfall (being one of the longest-running in Australia).
| Climate data for Portland (1863–1956, rainfall 1857–2024); 38.35° S, 141.59° E | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 42.8 (109.0) | 40.6 (105.1) | 40.9 (105.6) | 33.9 (93.0) | 27.8 (82.0) | 20.8 (69.4) | 21.1 (70.0) | 24.4 (75.9) | 28.3 (82.9) | 36.0 (96.8) | 38.9 (102.0) | 41.7 (107.1) | 42.8 (109.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 21.8 (71.2) | 21.9 (71.4) | 20.7 (69.3) | 18.4 (65.1) | 16.1 (61.0) | 14.1 (57.4) | 13.6 (56.5) | 14.4 (57.9) | 15.8 (60.4) | 17.3 (63.1) | 18.8 (65.8) | 20.5 (68.9) | 17.8 (64.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 12.7 (54.9) | 13.1 (55.6) | 12.0 (53.6) | 10.3 (50.5) | 8.7 (47.7) | 7.5 (45.5) | 6.5 (43.7) | 6.9 (44.4) | 7.8 (46.0) | 8.9 (48.0) | 10.3 (50.5) | 11.6 (52.9) | 9.7 (49.4) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 4.4 (39.9) | 3.3 (37.9) | 2.0 (35.6) | 1.1 (34.0) | −0.6 (30.9) | −2.2 (28.0) | −2.8 (27.0) | −1.7 (28.9) | −0.3 (31.5) | 0.6 (33.1) | 2.2 (36.0) | 3.3 (37.9) | −2.8 (27.0) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 35.6 (1.40) | 32.5 (1.28) | 42.1 (1.66) | 63.8 (2.51) | 87.9 (3.46) | 99.0 (3.90) | 108.4 (4.27) | 106.8 (4.20) | 84.5 (3.33) | 68.5 (2.70) | 52.0 (2.05) | 44.7 (1.76) | 822.9 (32.40) |
| Average rainy days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 4.7 | 4.2 | 6.1 | 8.7 | 11.5 | 12.7 | 13.8 | 14.1 | 11.6 | 9.9 | 7.5 | 6.2 | 111.0 |
| Source: Australian Bureau of Meteorology[49] | |||||||||||||
Mr. Hurst, (missionary to the aborigines of Port Phillip ), startled the audience, by a recital of facts that had been communicated to him, in reference to the treatment of the natives in the neighbourhood of Portland bay. He said it was usual for some to go out in parties on the Sabbath with guns, for the ostensible purpose of kangarooing, but, in reality to hunt and kill these miserable beings — the bones and the bodies of the slaughtered blacks had been found— but because the evidence of the native was not admissible in a court, the white murderers had escaped with im - punity, and were still pursuing their career of crime and blood.
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