Ballarat - photos

Lydiard St North	Lydiard St South	Lydiard St South	Lydiard St North
Union Bank	Mining Exchange	Post Office	Building
St Peters	Clarendon College	Loreto College	St Patricks
Loreto College	Arch of Victory	Arch of Victory	Homes
Sovereign Hill	Sovereign Hill View	Lake Wendouree	Loreto College
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About Ballarat

Ballarat is the third biggest city and biggest inland city of the Australian state of Victoria. The city is located near the Great Dividing Range, about one hour by train or car to Melbourne.

The city was originally a sheep station, but in the 1850s, news that one of the richest gold fields in the world had been discovered led to a gold rush that attracted over 100,000 people by 1855. To keep pace, many fine oppulant buildings sprung up which were financed by the wealth generated from the gold.

The boom times lasted even after the gold ran out, until the turn of the century when the city was no longer growing. While there was a shrinkage of population during World War 1, the population has otherwise grown and today's growth matches the national average. While gold has since disappeared, today the city is a significant tourist destination due to its Victorian era architecture and history.

Ballarat sits at an elevation of 435 metres/1,427 feet above sea level, so temperatures tend to be about 3 or 4 degrees Celsius cooler than Melbourne.

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Facade	Lydiard St North	Lydiard St North	Victorian Filigree
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