It is testimony to the vagaries of Australian place names that some proponents claim 'Nathalia' is an Aboriginal word meaning 'place with no stones' while others say it is named after Peter the Great's mother.

The area is thought to have been occupied by the Yota-Yota people prior to white settlement. The first European in the district was explorer Charles Sturt who followed the Murray to its junction with the Goulburn River in 1838. Squatters soon followed and the town was to develop on the 'Kotupna' station, established by W.J. Locke in 1843. This was divided in two in 1861 then broken up for closer settlement after the 1869 Land Act, despite the strenuous resistance of the squatters.

One of the selectors, Richard Blake, took up land on the future townsite in 1875. He built a sawmill in 1876 and a flour mill in 1877. A village was in existence by 1876, when the first hotel was licensed, and a regular coach service was established the following year. The first post office, state school and Wesleyan Church opened in 1878. When the first survey was conducted in 1879, there were about 150 persons living on both sides of Broken Creek. The streets were named after early landholders.

The town's main thoroughfare (Blake St) was modelled on Sturt St in Ballarat. It features a fine central plantation on the southern side of Broken Creek. There are some attractive 19th-century verandah-fronted shops and red-brick buildings and a large reserve on the southern bank of the creek, off Park St, which is ideal for picnics.

Nathalia was gazetted as a village in 1880. A Catholic Church and the first bank opened in 1881, a coach factory in 1882, a local newspaper and police station in 1884 and a flour mill in 1885. The railway arrived from Numurkah in 1888, facilitating the expansion of local production. A butter factory was built in 1895 and, in 1900, a local man patented the Empire combine harvester but, unfortunately for the state, the design was sold to a South Australian company. By 1905 the population had reached 1000 and the town had settled into the role it enjoys to this day as a service centre to the district which produces wheat and other crops.

Annual events include the Easter Bush Bash and the Agricultural Show on the first weekend in October. The Bush Bash entails a major tennis tournament, involving some three or four hundred competitors. It takes place on the town's 16 lawn tennis courts.

Camping and fishing can be enjoyed along the Goulburn and Murray Rivers and Nathalia has a golf club.

Things to see

Tourist Information
Nathalia Community Crafts and Tourist Information are located in Blake St. They are open from 10.00 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. on weekdays and on Saturdays from 9.00 a.m. to 12.30 p.m., tel: (03) 5866 3063.

The Broken Creek Walk Track
The information centre has a pamphlet outlining eight separate walks along the creek which meanders through the centre of town, taking in some fine waterside homesteads, the weir, a few fishing spots, a lookout and some attractive local flora, including redgum, box trees and wattles.

An Historic Walk-Drive
The information centre also has a pamphlet outlining a tour of the town's historic buildings and sites. The following is a truncated tour of the major sites.

Start at the unusual war memorial in the central plantation of Blake St, on the southern side of the Town Bridge which spans Broken Creek. It consists of a large rock bound in chains and bearing the names of the locals who died in the two world wars. On the western side of the road, adjacent the memorial, is the Bridge Hotel (1882). On the eastern side is a shop known as 'The Corner'(1888).

A few steps along Bromley St, to the right, is a wooden building. Its western end was the town's first building - a sawmill erected in 1876.

Return to Blake St, heading south. To the left are The Nathalia Herald building (1888) and the old Bank of Australasia (1889), now the ANZ Bank. On the other side of the road is the Westpac bank, situated in the old Commercial Bank building (1898).

Continuing south along Blake St, to the left, are Humberstone Hall (built in 1885 as a venue for balls and concerts) and the former post office - a decorative single-storey brick building with stucco mouldings and Jacobean touches. It was built in 1878 with the front office added in 1891 and the residence in 1915.

At the Pearce St corner is the rather beautiful Court House Hotel which was one of the town's first buildings (1876).

West, at Pearce and Veldt, is the former Presbyterian manse (1893) and church (1889). Head east along Pearce St to the Gifford St corner and the town's historical museum.

Museum
The Nathalia Historical Museum is located in the old mechanics institute (1887). It contains memorabilia, maps, books and old photographs and is open on the second Sunday of the month from 2.00 p.m. to 5.00 p.m.

Historic Walk Continued
Continue east along Pearce turning right into Robertson St where you will see the Anglican church (1887). Head north along Robertson St. Near the Bromley St corner is the Catholic church and presbytery (1893).

Turn left into Bromley St and on the left is the primary school which was started in 1878, with later additions. Return east along Bromley St to the Chapel St corner. Looking east there are kurrajongs on either side of Bromley St, planted as a memorial to the war dead.

Turn left into Chapel St, passing the Uniting Church built in 1889 as the Methodist Church (the porch was added later). On the other side of the road is the old Methodist parsonage from c.1900.

Cross over Squeezy Bridge (c.1901). Opposite the bridge in Muntz Ave is 'Norwood' (c.1880). Head west along Muntz Ave. By the Kostadt St corner is 'Hallfields' (c.1896 with recent additions). Just along Kostadt St, to the right, is St Paul's parsonage (c.1888).

Return to Muntz Ave and follow it back to the main road (known as Elizabeth St on the northern side of Broken Creek). At Elizabeth and Scott Ave is a craft shop built in 1893 as a bakery. Heading north along Elizabeth St, to the left, is the Brown, Corke & Co shop (1888), a rare survival of a type of large general store once common in provincial Victoria. It is a row of three single-storey brick shops with a decorative cast-iron verandah, large shop windows and central double doors. At the south-western corner of Elizabeth and North is the former Bank of Victoria (1891).

Turn left into North St then right into Scott Ave which follows the creek bank. At its end is 'Woodlands' (1896), one of the town's finest homes.

Return to the Elizabeth and North St corner, heading north along Elizabeth St. To the immediate right are the Memorial Gardens where there are 64 rose bushes and plaques; one for each of the locals who died in the two world wars.

At the north-eastern corner of Elizabeth and Nicholson is the former Yeomanry Store (1889). A little further along Elizabeth, to the left, is the old butter factory (1895).

Woodbine Gardens
From September 1 to May 31 the gardens of the 'Woodbine' homestead are open to group tours. There are deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs, interplanted with perennials, bulbs and annuals, as well as ducks, hens, and aviaries with finches, parrots and canaries. The cost is $3.50 per person. Lunches and tea can be arranged, tel: (03) 5866 2334.

Barmah State Forest
Barmah State Forest (29 500 ha) is situated upon the floodplains of the Murray River. In conjunction with Moira State Park across the border it forms the largest redgum forest in the world and has received a World Heritage listing. Some of the trees rise to 40 m in height and are 300 years old. Canoe trees and middens bear testimony to thousands of years of Aboriginal occupation.

In winter the area usually floods creating a wetland biosphere which becomes a breeding ground for birds (there are 206 species in the forest). Consequently it is a popular spot for birdwatching, as well as fishing, walking, boating, camping, picnicking and car touring. However, in the wet season, the tracks are flooded and canoeing becomes a preferred means of exploration. Emus, kangaroos, wild horses, reptiles and amphibia are also found in the park.

Head north for 7 km along the Murray Valley Highway and you can either continue along the highway towards Cobram or turn left onto the Picola/Barmah Rd. Several access roads head northwards into the park from both these major thoroughfares. However rain, flooding and seasonal closure affect that access. Ring (03) 5866 2702 for a report on the state of the roads and (03) 5869 3308 for further information on the park. The main public area is just north of Barmah.