Where is Myrniong?

Myrniong is a town located in the state of Victoria, Australia. It is situated in one of the oldest settled districts in the region. The town’s history can be traced back to the mid-19th century (1852) when Captain William Wootton Blow held a large selection of fertile land in the vicinity to fulfill the government’s requirement to feed the sudden influx of diggers which resulted in a population explosion.

The relatively flat land became known as Blow’s Flat, after Captain Blow. It is interesting to note that the name “Blow’s Flat” seems appropriate considering the surrounding hilly landscapes of Pentland Hills and Mt Blackwood.

The Crown subdivided and sold Captain Blow's land in 1856, leaving the Captain to relocate back to Melbourne for a few years before heading back to Middlesex, England shortly thereafter to live out the rest of his days. He died in 1885, aged 72 years.

The first mention of “Myrniong” was as early as 1854, when the township was located on sub-division Maps. The exact reason for renaming is unclear, however it may have been as a result of Captain Blow leaving the district. It took more than a decade for the name Myrniong to be adopted, possibly because of the difficulty in pronouncing it, which still poses a challenge today. “Mer-nee-ong”

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Myrniong: hard to say, but easy to stay!

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Let's dish up some history from The Plough

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