Cressy, Victoria
Encyclopedia
Cressy is a country town in Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, about 38 km north of Colac
Colac, Victoria
Colac is a small city located in the Western District of Victoria, Australia, situated approximately 150 kilometres south-west of Melbourne on the southern shore of Lake Colac and the surrounding volcanic plains, approximately 40 km inland from Bass Strait. Colac is the largest city in and...

 on the Ballarat
Ballarat, Victoria
Ballarat is a city in the state of Victoria, Australia, approximately west-north-west of the state capital Melbourne situated on the lower plains of the Great Dividing Range and the Yarrowee River catchment. It is the largest inland centre and third most populous city in the state and the fifth...

 road. At the 2006 census
Census in Australia
The Australian census is administered once every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent census was conducted on 9 August 2011; the next will be conducted in 2016. Prior to the introduction of regular censuses in 1961, they had also been run in 1901, 1911, 1921, 1933,...

, Cressy and the surrounding area had a population of 122.

History

George Russell put Cressy on the map around 1836. A Frenchman named Jean Duverney crossed the Woady Yaloak River in 1837, claimed land on both banks and called the area Frenchman's Run. Duverney called the small, developing village Cressy, after Crecy in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, where he was born.

Cressy Post Office opened on 1 January 1858.
The old airfield towards Colac was used by the RAAF
Royal Australian Air Force
The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...

 during WWII
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. It operated during the war years 1939-1946 as a combat training aerodrome
Aerodrome
An aerodrome, airdrome or airfield is a term for any location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve cargo, passengers or neither...

. The history group at the church have some photos and information on the airmen and the planes. The local cemetery is surrounded by old trees, very peaceful and still in use today.

Cressy in recent times

Cressy was once a bustling town with several shops, garages, churches and a thriving railway station. Cressy still boasts many interesting old buildings, although many were destroyed in the fires of 1977. There are two beautiful old churches, and the Cressy Historical Society is now housed in the Presbyterian Church, opposite the old Post Office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...

and general store. The church was built in 1862 and is open for research on the first Sunday of every month. The old post office was built in 1924 at a cost of £5,000 and is currently a family home. The public restrooms back onto a picnic spot with a new children's playground.
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