Suburb by suburb snapshot – Epsom

The size of Epsom is approximately 10.7 square kilometres and has three parks covering nearly 2.2 per cent of total area.

The population of Epsom in 2011 was 2687 people and by the 2016 Census was 4324 showing a big growth of 60.9 per cent in the area during that time.

Epsom is a developing outlying northern suburb of Bendigo on the Midland Highway and adjoins the White Hills district of Bendigo, and both places were first mined for gold during the 1850s.

Later, when the railway line was built north of Bendigo, the area separated from Epsom by the line was named Ascot, also a location synonymous with English horse racing.

Epsom is situated on the junction of the Bendigo and Piccaninny Creeks, and the alluvial soil was a source of agricultural produce for the gold diggings.

As the ground was overturned for gold it revealed good pottery clay.

An immigrant, George Guthrie (1828-1910) opened Epsom’s best-known industry, Bendigo Pottery, in 1858.

Guthrie’s pottery coincided with the opening of religious and civic institutions at Epsom, an Anglican school (1856-81), a Catholic school (1856-76), a Wesleyan church (1859) and a police station (1862).

Gold mining was the main industry of the 1860s, with 16 crushing mills and 12 horse puddling machines, and remained so until the late 1880s when the diggings were nearly all worked out after which selectors took up farms, including vineyards and orchards.

Epsom was an agricultural and industrial town until after the 1950s.

As the iron foundry gave out market gardens supplied tomatoes to a pulp processing factory. Throughout all of Epsom’s industrial history, however, the Bendigo Pottery has continued.

Until the 1930s the pottery manufactured household wares, pipeware, bricks, tiles, bottles and demijohns.

During subsequent years pipework became more important for sewerage schemes but by the 1950s plasticware overtook much of the ceramic houseware and the pottery remained technologically unadvanced.

In 1968 the possibility of reintroducing household pottery was taken up, and the new era of handmade Epsomware began.

Tourism soon followed and the former stables became a pottery gallery, and along with the kilns and other structures were placed on the Australian and Victorian historic buildings registers.

CoreLogic data indicates that predominant age group in Epsom is 0-9 years with households being primarily couples with children and are likely to be repaying $1400 – $1799 per month on mortgages, and in general, people in Epsom work in a professional occupation.

In 2011, 70.4 per cent of the homes in Epsom were owner-occupied compared with 73.3 per cent in 2016.

 

TIDBIT:

Epsom was thought to be named after the horse racing town of Epsom Downs, Surrey, England

 

Population: 4324

Male: 48.2%

Female: 51.8%

Median age: 31

5-year population change: 60.9%

Median house price: $464,000

Change in Median Price: (5yrs) is 31%

Median asking rent per week: $350

Average length of ownership: 9 years

Owner occupiers:75%

Renters: 25%

 

Historic median house price:

December 2020: $448,300

December 2019: $390,200

December 2018: $372,700

December 2017: $353,000

December 2016: $356,200

 

House sales per annum:

Period ending December 2020: 91

Period ending December 2019: 111

 

Land median sale price:

December 2020: $180,000

December 2019: $128,000

 

Land sales per annum:

Period ending December 2020: 20

Period ending December 2019: 24