Olinda Creek is a major tributary

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

 of the Yarra River

Yarra River

The Yarra River, originally Birrarung, is a river in east-central Victoria, Australia. The lower stretches of the river is where the city of Melbourne was established in 1835 and today Greater Melbourne dominates and influences the landscape of its lower reaches...

 in Victoria, Australia. Its origins are in the Dandenong Ranges

Dandenong Ranges

The Dandenong Ranges are a set of low mountain ranges, rising to 633 metres at Mount Dandenong, approximately 35 km east of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...

, and it is notable for passing through the settlement of Lilydale

Lilydale, Victoria

Lilydale is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 35 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district situated in the Olinda Creek valley. At the 2006 Census, Lilydale had a population of 13,887...

 (now a suburb of Melbourne

Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

) before joining with the Yarra near Coldstream

Coldstream, Victoria

Coldstream is a locality and township within Greater Melbourne beyond the Melbourne metropolitan area Urban Growth Boundary, 36 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Yarra Ranges...

..

History and Toponomy

When Europeans first entered this area of southern Australia, they moved up the valley of the Olinda Creek (then called Running Creek because it was a perennial stream). The formal naming process began with the survey of Lilydale township by John Hardy

John Hardy

John Hardy can refer to:*"John Hardy" , an American folk song about a murderer*John Hardy , British composer*John Hardy , British human geneticist and molecular biologist*John Hardy , jewelry maker...

 in 1859-60. At the same time that he named Lilydale, Hardy re-named the creek ‘Olinda’ after Alice Olinda Hodgkinson, daughter of Deputy Surveyor-General Clement Hodgkinson

Clement Hodgkinson

Clement Hodgkinson was a notable English naturalist, explorer and surveyor of Australia. He was Victorian Assistant Commissioner of Crown Lands and Survey from 1861 to 1874.- Exploration in New South Wales :...

.

Lillydale Lake

Between 1988 and 1990 a dam was built on the creek just south of Lilydale, creating Lillydale Lake

Lillydale Lake

Lillydale Lake is an artificial lake and wetlands area created in Lilydale, Melbourne, Australia. The park in which it is situated covers over 100 hectares and includes extensive recreational facilities....

. The lake provides flood mitigation to areas downstream. It incorporates extensive wetlands and is a community recreation facility.