Bushy Park and the Angus McMillan Memorial
Accommodation in Bushy Park
The Angus McMillan Memorial gives Bushy Park a tangible point of historical interest. It is located at the intersection of Bushy Park-Valencia Creek Road and Briagolong-Maffra Road. McMillan’s story also leads to the Avon River: he first built a hut on its banks in Bushy Park. Maffra-Briagolong Road also crosses the river in Bushy Park. Together, these details offer several tangible connections to the area for anyone wishing to discover Bushy Park through its history.
The memorial and the history of the homestead
The large cairn of the Angus McMillan Memorial was erected in 1927 in McMillan’s honour. The monument is located in the road reserve of Maffra-Briagolong Road; in April of that year, it was unveiled by Lord Somers, the Governor of Victoria. A 2016 description records the ruins of Angus McMillan’s homestead, dating from the 1840s, directly opposite. This places two distinct periods of local history side by side: the homestead from the 1840s and the memorial erected in 1927.
McMillan’s time in Bushy Park
McMillan first built a hut on the banks of the Avon River in Bushy Park. He then built a station homestead, where he lived until 1861. This sequence links three tangible historical points of interest: the hut he built first, the later residence where McMillan spent part of his life, and the memorial erected in his honour. For history-minded travellers, this sequence makes the area’s history easier to follow than a single date on its own.
Trees and landmarks in the reserve
The trees in front of the memorial are also part of the area’s timeline. In 2015, there were four pencil pines there, also called Italian cypresses (Cupressus sempervirens stricta); three of them were mature. The trees are dated to around the 1930s. Their planting therefore belongs to a later period than the construction of the memorial and adds a different, landscape-related point of interest to the history.
A 2016 record also notes a picnic table east of the memorial within the reserve. Together with its location on Maffra-Briagolong Road, this provides an additional landmark for the site described. The road crosses the Avon River in Bushy Park; McMillan’s hut was also on the riverbank. This helps place the historical connection to the Avon River in context, without treating the river crossing and the memorial as the same location.
A historical highlight for planning your trip
If you like your choice of destination to have a tangible historical connection, Bushy Park offers a clearly defined focal point. The memorial, the history of the homestead, McMillan’s former residences and the dated group of trees belong to different periods of the area’s history. For families whose children are interested in stories about the past, the sequence from the homestead of the 1840s, through McMillan’s time, to the memorial and the trees dated to a later period can provide conversation starters.
Discover more destinations: Cosgrove, Steels Creek, Moondarra, Smiths Gully, Benalla, Lang Lang, Bonegilla, Beaufort
For the main travel overview: Victoria.
