Elaine, Victoria
Elaine is a town in Victoria, Australia, located on the Midland Highway between Ballarat and Geelong. At the, Elaine and the surrounding area had a population of 232.
History
Elaine started out a minor gold rush district. Since the Steiglitz goldfield was discovered in 1854, gold mining had occurred in the area.The new Geelong–Ballarat railway line opened on 11 April 1862 and passed through the settlement. The train station only opened a decade after, officially establishing the township as Elaine.
Townscape
Elaine is located in the Shire of Moorabool, a local government area of Victoria. Surrounded by farmland, the town is situated on the Midland Highway between Ballarat and Geelong.The Railway Hotel is a hotel and pub at 5280 Midland Highway. Built in 1874, the building was intermittently used as a hotel, a brothel, or both until it was given its current name in 1912. In December 1922, publican Henry Gray was put on trial for fatally shooting drunken customer Michael Fahey, who had attacked him with an axe, but was acquitted. Locals, including the current publican, Bevley Townsend, tell a story that a murdered 19th-century miner, Lenny, has been reincarnated as the hotel's resident poltergeist. The station that was opposite the hotel has long been gone.
The Elaine Farmacy, a general store; and the Farmgate Shop, a farm shop recognised for its potatoes, are also located on the Midland Highway. The Farmgate's owner, Mark Dunne, said that it was one of the first titles registered in Elaine on Cobb & Co.'s GeelongBallarat service. Elaine Recreation Reserve hosts the town's sporting facilities and clubs. There is also a public hall.
As of 2014, Elaine had two churches. Elaine is home to a Serbian Orthodox monastery with five monks and two nuns.