Town by town snapshot – Elmore

Elmore is approximately 135.3 square kilometres and has four parks covering nearly 0.1 per cent of total area.

The town’s population in 2011 was 669 people and by the 2016 Census it was 774, showing growth of 15.7 per cent in the area during that time.

Elmore is little rural township steeped in history and character, located on the western side of the Campaspe River, 45 kilometres north-east of Bendigo.

It is at the junction of the Northern and Midland Highways and was at the fork in the railway lines to Echuca and Cohuna until the latter was closed in stages during the 1980s and 1990s.

Elmore is situated in part of the original Burnewang pastoral run (1841) of which a section was sold in about 1857 and named Elmore Estate, the name was most likely inspired by Elmore of Gloucestershire in England.

Elmore was close to the route travelled by gold diggers from Bendigo to the Ovens and north-east goldfields, and a village was formed about five kilometres southwards at Runnymede.

The Elmore district was surveyed in 1857 and the railway line opened between Bendigo and Echuca, via Elmore in 1864, town lots were sold soon afterwards.

An immediate effect was a decline in Runnymede on the other side of the Campaspe River, and the bridging of the river in 1870 hastened the process.

A private school was opened in Elmore in 1865 and replaced by a government school in 1875.

An athenaeum was opened in 1885 and it, along with the railway station and water tower (1871) are registered historic buildings.

Elmore had a diverse farming base, including vineyards (until affected by Phylloxera in the 1920s), dairying, poultry, sheep grazing and cereals.

Milk was supplied to the Rochester dairy factory, and Rochester drew ahead of Elmore as irrigation from the Waranga Reservoir western channel was extended to and west of Rochester.

The flour mill which opened in 1873 operated continuously until shortly before 1960.

Elmore’s hospital began in 1924, became a bush nursing centre in 1939, and survived a threat of closure in the early 1990s before being amalgamated to form the Rochester and District Health Service in 1993.

CoreLogic data indicates that the predominant age group in Elmore is 60-69 years with households in Elmore being primarily childless couples and are likely to be repaying $1000 to $1399 per month on mortgages. In general, people in Elmore work in a managerial occupation.

In 2011, 78.8 per cent of the homes in Elmore were owner-occupied compared with 76.7 per cent in 2016.

 

TIDBIT:

In 1915 the junction railway line was opened from Elmore to Cohuna.

 

Population: 776

Male: 51.4%

Female: 48.6%

Median age: 51

5-year population change: 15.7%

House median value: $292,000

Change in Median Price: (5yrs) is 45.7%

Median asking rent per week: $215

Average length of ownership: 8 years

Owner occupiers:82%

Renters: 18%

 

House median sale price:

July 2021: $255,000

July 2020: $225,000

July 2019: $242,000

July 2018: $187,500

July 2017: $190,000

 

House sales per annum:

Period ending July 2021: 13

Period ending July 2020: 12

 

Land median sale price:

July 2021: N/A

July 2020: N/A

 

Land sales per annum:

Period ending July 2021: 0

Period ending July 2020: 0