Sellecks Flat, Victoria

[ronwoods]

A friend (who is not an "on-line" person) has been trying to identify the location of Sellecks Flat, which is shown in the 1871 Victorian census as having 12 dwellings, 12 females and 29 males.  The census shows it as being in the Parish of Buninyong, County of Grant.

Initial information suggested that it may have been near Scotsburn, east of Buninyong, however more recent information confirms that it was "between Ballarat and Buninyong".  This and some additional information has led him to believe that it may have been in near the intersection of Magpie Road and Aubreys Road in present-day Magpie, however this is by no means certain.

He has contacted the Buninyong & District Historical Society, however they had no record of Sellecks Flat.  It occurred to me that some Rootschatters may know of it.

Ron

[wivenhoe]

Use Trove..........  1871   +/-     5 years to find contemporary references to Sellecks / Sellicks  Flat.

[judb]

TROVE has these mentions which may (or may not) help to pinpoint it.

1870 Buninyongshire Council meeting report - Cr Lamb presented a petition from ratepayers at
Selleck's Flat, asking that a cutting might be made on the road near Eason's.
http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/191563536

1871
Gold digging in the vicinity of Selleck’s Flat, near Buninyong
http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/197573976

1871
Advertisement for an auction on the Ground, situate at Selleck’s Flat, opposite G. Eason’s, and adjoining Murphy’s Paddock, about one mile from the Bunlnyong Toll-gate, off the Geelong road,
http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/197562584

1872
Buninyongshire Council meeting report re a letter from James Lynch, for the ratepayers, asking for
repairs opposite the old Mount toil-gate leading to Selleck’s Flat
http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/197627082

1875
Buninyongshire Council meeting report re a road  "between Chapman and Guthrie’s land at Selleck’s Flat".
http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/208330568

1875 Report -  The fire which broke out at Selleck's Flat, near the Post Office Ranges, a few miles from Buninyong
http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/148773581/17544780 (the report is on p3 of this newspaper)

1878
Bush-fire between Sellecks Flat and Clarendon.  This article gives a list of farmers who were affected by the fire.
http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/199283502

There was a Mr Selleck owning the Crown Hotel Buninyong in 1857 so perhaps he owned/leased the land called Selleck's Flat 
http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/66042214

Judith

[cando]

I guess the information came from here

http://hccda.anu.edu.au/pages/VIC-1871-census-03_38

http://www.rootschat.com/links/01hf8/

Sellecks Flat (see Scotsburn)   Ballarat City   Longtitude 143.925   Latitude -37.692   

Scotsburn    Ballarat City    Longtitude 143.925    Latitude -37.692

Appears to be the former name for Scotsburn.

Cando

[ronwoods]

Thanks for the quick responses, it gives me a few things to chase up.  Cando, the information you've found appears to be the same info my friend had, which is included in his book: "Lost and Almost Forgotten Towns of Colonial Victoria."  It was his later doubts about the location being Scotsburn that resulted in my involvement.  Before retiring in 2011, I was Place Names Officer at the City of Ballarat.
Again, many thanks,
Ron

[rusted]

Try Trove for maps.
When I was looking for Gum Tree and Hard Hills, which you helped me with, I found quite a few maps that show landowners, I remember seeing the Easons (mentioned in Judiths Links) on at least one of them.
The really good map I found which actually showed the places I wanted was at the Buninyong information centre in the old Library, I am not sure that that map showed out towards Scotsburn though, but I know a couple of those online maps on Trove certainly do.

Paul

[rusted]

I have had a look at those online maps.
http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/27008030?q=buninyong&c=map
have a look at the second map and magnify it, out towards Scotsburn and just after the Yendon Rd at the back of Mt buninyong you will see a lot of land belonging to Sellicks, also on the same map if you look towards the SW corner of Sellicks land you will see Easons and Guthries mentioned in those Trove links. No Chapmans at that time.
Edit. Murphies (trove link) are on the main Rd near the Yendon Rd, same map
Edit. All the people mentioned in the bushfire report, (including Chapmans) are South of Scotts Mt Buninyong PR. and Sellicks.

[ronwoods]

Thanks Paul

I will look at those maps you mentioned.  I believe the newspaper reports of the fires are what led my friend to initially place Sellecks Flat at Scotsburn.  It was some later research that caused him to have doubts about that location.

I know that Chapman owned property immediately south of the present Federation University (previously University of Ballarat), where current maps show Chapmans Lane.

A advertisement for a clearing sale at George Selleck's property in 1862 stated that it was...
To be held on the Proprietor's Farm, at Mount Buninyong, near the Toll-bar, about nine miles from Ballarat, on the Geelong road.
There were a number of toll gates in the district at the time, so I'll need to do some reasonably accurate mapping to determine where the nine mile mark would have been.  (I have some old 1" to 1 mile maps which I'll use for this task.)

Many thanks and kind regards,
Ron