Editing Ballarat (section)

== History ==

=== Prehistory and European settlement ===
The Ballarat region was first populated by the [[Wathaurong|Wadawurrung]] people, an [[Indigenous Australian]] people.<ref name="history">{{cite web|title=Ballarat's Indigenous Heritage|url=http://sheducationcom.ascetinteractive.biz/uploads//SovHill%20indigenousheritage%20notes%20ss1.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706144302/http://sheducationcom.ascetinteractive.biz/uploads//SovHill%20indigenousheritage%20notes%20ss1.pdf|archive-date=6 July 2011|work=Sovereign Hill Education|access-date=19 August 2010}}</ref> The first Europeans to sight the area were an August 1837 party of six men, including [[Thomas Livingstone Learmonth]] and Henry Anderson, who scaled [[Mount Buninyong]]. Some of this party set off again in January 1838, this time with others including Thomas' brother Somerville Learmonth and William Cross Yuille and his cousin Archibald Buchanan Yuille.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Withers|first=William Bramwell|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofballara00with/page/n26/mode/1up|title=The history of Ballarat, from the first pastoral settlement to the present time|publisher=F. W. Niven and co.|year=1887|edition=2nd|location=Ballarat|pages=1–3|language=EN}}</ref>

The Yuille cousins<ref>{{Cite news|date=1934-07-14|title=ARCHIBALD YUILLE AND BALLARAT|work=Argus|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article10963390|access-date=2023-05-27}}</ref> arrived in 1838 and took up a {{convert|10000|acre|ha|adj=on}} sheep run at Ballarat.<ref>{{Citation|last=Hone|first=J. Ann|title=Yuille, William Cross (1819–1894)|url=https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/yuille-william-cross-4909|work=Australian Dictionary of Biography|access-date=2023-05-27|place=Canberra|publisher=National Centre of Biography, Australian National University|language=en}}</ref> The first houses were built near Woolshed Creek (Sebastopol) by Henry Anderson and taken over by the Yuilles.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Withers|first=William Bramwell|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofballara00with/page/n26/mode/1up|title=The history of Ballarat, from the first pastoral settlement to the present time|publisher=F. W. Niven and co.|year=1887|edition=2nd|location=Ballarat|pages=3–5}}</ref> William Yuille established a hut on the northern edge of the swamp which would be called Yuille's Swamp, later Lake Wendouree.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Lake Wendouree|url=https://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/208835|access-date=28 May 2023|website=Victorian Heritage Database}}</ref> Archibald Yuille named his property "Ballaarat", from the local [[Wathaurong]] [[Indigenous Australian|Aboriginal]] words, ''balla'' and ''arat'', meaning a camping or 'resting place', with the word 'balla' meaning bent elbow.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Heritage {{!}} City of Ballarat|url=https://www.ballarat.vic.gov.au/city/strategic-planning/heritage|access-date=2023-05-27|website=ballarat.vic.gov.au}}</ref> Both 'Ballaarat' and 'Ballarat' were used interchangeably until the present spelling was officially adopted by the City of Ballarat in 1994, when the city amalgamated with surrounding local government areas.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Ballarat history|url=https://www.ballaratgenealogy.org.au/ballarat-history|access-date=2023-05-27|website=ballaratgenealogy.org.au}}</ref>

=== Gold rush era ===
{{further|Victorian gold rush}}
[[File:Ballarat 1853-54 von guerard.jpg|thumb|upright=1.25|Painting by [[Eugene von Guerard]] of Ballarat's tent city in the summer of 1853–54.]]
The first publicised discovery of gold in the region was by [[Thomas Hiscock]] on 2 August 1851, in Buninyong to the south.<ref>Griffiths Peter M, "Three Times Blest A History of Buninyong 1737–1901", Ballarat Historical Society pp13</ref> The find brought other prospectors to the area and on 19 August 1851, more gold was found at Poverty Point.<ref name="The Courier 1851-11-05">{{cite news|title=Victoria|date=5 November 1851|work=The Courier|page=2}}</ref> Within days, a gold rush began, bringing thousands of prospectors to the Yarrowee Valley, which became known as the Ballarat diggings. Yields were particularly high, with the first prospectors in the area extracting between half an ounce<ref>Ballarat Diggings: From the Correspondent of the Geelong Advertiser. pg 2. The Argus. 13 September 1851.</ref> (which was more than the average wage of the time) and up to five ounces of alluvial gold per day. As news of the [[Victorian gold rush]] reached the world, Ballarat gained an international reputation as a particularly rich goldfield. As a result, a huge influx of immigrants occurred, including many from Ireland and China, gathering in a collection of prospecting [[shanty town]]s around the creeks and hills. Within a few months, numerous alluvial runs were established, several deep mining leads began, and the population had swelled to over 1,000 people.<ref name="Ballarat Population 1852">{{cite news|title=Victoria – Mount Alexander|date=11 December 1852|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|page=2|access-date=6 May 2012|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article12942220}}</ref>

{{wide image|Ballarat George Rowe SLNSW FL4317605.jpg|750px|Bird's-eye view of Ballarat, Victoria, Australia, 1858, by George Rowe}}
The first post office opened on 1 November 1851, the first to open in a Victorian gold-mining settlement.<ref name="a">{{cite web|last=Phoenix Auctions History|title=Post Office List|url=http://www.phoenixauctions.com.au/cgi-bin/wsPhoenix.sh/Viewpocdwrapper.p?SortBy=VIC&filter=*Ballarat*|access-date=20 March 2021}}</ref> Parts of the district were first surveyed by [[William Swan Urquhart|William Urquhart]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.oolac.com/dictionary/en/en/tag/Ballarat|title=OOLAC – #Ballarat|work=oolac.com|access-date=22 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161023053637/https://www.oolac.com/dictionary/en/en/tag/Ballarat|archive-date=23 October 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> as early as October 1851.<ref>{{cite web|last=James|first=Ken|title=The surveying career of William Swan Urquhart, 1845–1864|url=http://www.prov.vic.gov.au/provenance/no8/SurveyingCareer1.asp|work=Public Record Office Victoria|publisher=Victoria State Government|access-date=19 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091027064407/http://www.prov.vic.gov.au/provenance/no8/SurveyingCareer1.asp|archive-date=27 October 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref> By 1852 his [[grid plan]] and wide streets for land sales in the new township of West Ballarat,<ref name="Ballarat: A Guide to Buildings">{{cite book|last1=Jacobs|first1=Wendy|last2=Nigel|first2=Lewis|last3=Elizabeth|first3=Vines|last4=Richard|first4=Aitken|title=Ballarat: A Guide to Buildings and Areas 1851–1940|publisher=Jacobs Lewis Vines Architects and Conservation Planners|year=1981|page=11|isbn=0-9593970-0-0}}</ref> built upon a [[plateau]] of [[basalt]], contrasted markedly with the existing narrow unplanned streets, tents, and gullies of the original East Ballarat settlement. The new town's main streets of the time were named in honour of [[police commissioner]]s and [[gold commissioner]]s of the time, with the main street, Sturt Street, named after [[Evelyn Pitfield Shirley Sturt]]; Dana Street named after [[Henry Dana]]; Lydiard Street after his assistant; Doveton Street after Francis Crossman Doveton, Ballarat's first gold commissioner; Armstrong after David Armstrong; and Mair Street after William Mair.<ref name="HIS 2011-10">{{cite web|url=http://www.ballarat.vic.gov.au/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308213340/http://www.ballarat.vic.gov.au/|archive-date=8 March 2016|title=Heritage Impact Statement – Civic Hall|access-date=14 May 2012|date=October 2011|work=City of Ballarat}}</ref> These officials were based at the government encampment (after which nearby Camp Street was named), which was strategically positioned on an escarpment with an optimal view over the district's diggings.

The first newspaper, ''The Banner'', published on 11 September 1853, was one of many to be distributed during the gold-rush period. Print media played a large role in the early history of the settlement.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Cornfield|first1=Jason|last2=Wickham|first2=Dorothy|last3=Gervasoni|first3=Clare|title=The Eureka Encyclopedia|publisher=Ballarat Heritage Services|year=2004|page=391|isbn=1-876478-61-6}}</ref> Ballarat attracted a sizable number of miners from the Californian 1848 gold rush, and some were known as Ballafornians.<ref>K. T-. Livingston, Richard Jordan, Gay Sweely (2001) ''Becoming Australians: the movement towards federation in Ballarat and the nation'' p.34. Wakefield Press</ref>

[[File:Eureka stockade battle.jpg|thumb|upright=1.25|Troopers storm the rebels' stockade during the 1854 [[Eureka Rebellion]].]]
Civil disobedience in Ballarat led to an armed civil uprising, the [[Eureka Rebellion]] (colloquially referred to as the "Eureka Stockade") which took place in Ballarat on 3 December 1854. The event, in which 22 miners were killed, is considered to be a defining moment in Australian history.

The city earned the nickname "The Golden City" in the 1850s.<ref>Perkin, Corrie [http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/golden-city-of-ballarat-comes-into-the-picture/story-e6frg8n6-1225768084821 Golden city of Ballarat comes into the picture] The Australian 1 September 2009.</ref> The gold rush population peaked at almost 60,000, mostly male diggers, by 1858.<ref>{{cite news|title=Gold Rush Population Peak 1858-9-23|date=23 September 1858|work=The Star|page=2|access-date=6 May 2012|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-page6460448?zoomLevel=1}}</ref> However the early population was largely itinerant. As quickly as the alluvial deposits drew prospectors to Ballarat, the rate of gold extraction fluctuated and, as they were rapidly worked dry, many quickly moved to rush other fields as new findings were announced, particularly [[Castlemaine, Victoria|Mount Alexander]] in 1852, [[Fiery Creek (Victoria)|Fiery Creek]]<ref name="Fiery Creek 1855-11-03">{{cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article708233|title=Colonial News.|newspaper=[[The Maitland Mercury and Hunter River General Advertiser]]|location=New South Wales, Australia|date=3 November 1855|access-date=3 June 2020|page=3 (Supplement to the Maitland Mercury)|via=Trove}}</ref> in 1855, and [[Ararat, Victoria|Ararat]] in 1857. By 1859, a smaller number of permanent settlers numbering around 23,000,<ref name="The Argus 1860-08-20">{{cite news|title=Summary for Europe – Introduction|date=20 August 1860|work=The Argus|page=5}}</ref> many of whom had built personal wealth in gold, established a prosperous economy based around a shift to [[Underground mining (hard rock)|deep underground gold mining]].

Confidence of the city's early citizens in the enduring future of their city is evident in the sheer scale of many of the early public buildings, generous public recreational spaces, and opulence of many of its commercial establishments and private housing. A local steam locomotive industry developed from 1854 with the Phoenix Foundry operating until 1906.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Butrims|first1=Robert|last2=Macartney|first2=David|title=The Phoenix Foundry: Locomotive Builders of Ballarat|publisher=Australian Railway History Society|year=2013|isbn=978-0-646-90402-3}}</ref> The railway came to the town with the opening of the [[Geelong-Ballarat railway line|Geelong–Ballarat line]] in 1862 and Ballarat developed as a major [[railway town]].<ref name="rg">{{cite web|url=http://www.railgeelong.com/lineguide/geelong|title=Rail Geelong – Geelong Line Guide|publisher=railgeelong.com|access-date=23 April 2008}}</ref> As the city grew the region's original indigenous inhabitants were quickly expelled to the fringe and by 1867 few remained.<ref name="history"/>

=== Post gold rush ===
[[File:Dana St Ballarat Victoria c1872 63783.jpg|thumb|upright=1.25|Dana Street, Ballarat, Victoria, Australia, c. 1872]]
From the late 1860s to the early 20th century, Ballarat made a successful transition from a gold rush town to an industrial-age city. The ramshackle tents and timber buildings gradually made way for permanent buildings, many impressive structures of solid stone and brick mainly built from wealth generated by early mining.

[[Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh]] visited between 9 and 13 December 1867 and as the first royal visit, the occasion was met with great fanfare.<ref name="Speak Out Boldly">{{cite book|last1=Clarke|first1=Jan|title=Speak Out Boldly: The first 125 years of the Ballarat Courier|publisher=The Courier|year=1992|location=Ballarat|page=12|isbn=978-0-646-09971-2}}</ref> The Prince Room was prepared at Craigs Royal Hotel for his stay.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.craigsroyal.com.au/accommodation/Video/history/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120525042154/http://www.craigsroyal.com.au/accommodation/Video/history/|archive-date=25 May 2012|title=Craig's Royal Hotel – History|access-date=30 June 2012|publisher=craigsroyal.com.au}}</ref> The city's first civic centre—Prince Alfred Hall—erected over the Yarrowee between the two municipalities, was named in his honour during his visit. The later attempt by Ballaratian [[Henry James O'Farrell]] to assassinate the Prince was met with shock and great horror from locals.<ref name="Speak Out Boldly"/>

Ballarat was proclaimed a city in 1871. Gong Gong dam was built in 1877 to alleviate flooding and to provide a permanent water supply. A [[Serviceton railway line|direct railway to Melbourne]] was completed in December 1889.<ref name="newsrail-line">{{cite journal|date=March 1990|title=Tracks Across the State|author=Sid Brown|journal=Newsrail|publisher=Australian Railway Historical Society (Victorian Division)|pages=71–76}}</ref> Many industries and workshops had been established as a result of manufacturing and servicing for the deep lead mining industry.

=== 20th century ===
[[File:Sturt and lydiard streets in 1899.jpg|thumb|right|The intersection of Lydiard and Sturt streets, c. 1905, shows a bustling city of trams, horses and pedestrians.]]
[[File:Ballarat North Workshops.jpg|thumb|Development of the Ballarat North Workshops was a major initiative to capitalise on the city's burgeoning role as a railway town and transition from a declining gold mining industry.]]
Local [[boosterism|boosters]] at the start of the 20th century adopted the nickname "[[Athens]] of Australia", first used to describe Ballarat by the jurist and politician [[John Madden (jurist)|Sir John Madden]].<ref>THE ATHENS OF AUSTRALIA, Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 11988, 3 November 1909, p. 7 [http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=PBH19091103.2.86&e=-------10--1----2-- Papers Past – Poverty Bay Herald – 3 November 1909 – "The Athens of Australia."]</ref><ref>Douglas Pike, Geoffrey Serle: Australian dictionary of biography, Vol. 9, Melbourne University Press, 1983</ref><ref>Frederic C. (Frederic Chambers) Spurr : Five years under the Southern Cross; experiences and impressions [http://www.ebooksread.com/authors-eng/frederic-c-frederic-chambers-spurr/five-years-under-the-southern-cross-experiences-and-impressions-ala/page-10-five-years-under-the-southern-cross-experiences-and-impressions-ala.shtml Read the ebook Five years under the Southern Cross; experiences and impressions by Frederic C. (Frederic Chambers) Spurr] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121012042738/http://www.ebooksread.com/authors-eng/frederic-c-frederic-chambers-spurr/five-years-under-the-southern-cross-experiences-and-impressions-ala/page-10-five-years-under-the-southern-cross-experiences-and-impressions-ala.shtml |date=12 October 2012 }}</ref><ref>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article10742486 The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848–1954), Saturday 23 October 1909]. Trove.nla.gov.au (23 October 1909). Retrieved 18 August 2011.</ref> The first electricity supply was completed in 1901, and that year a bluestone power station was built at the corner of Ripon Street and Wendouree Parade with the main aim of electrifying the city's tramway network.<ref name="autogenerated2">{{cite news|first=Julia|last=Balderstone|title=SEC offers historic lake property for sale|date=20 February 1993|work=The Courier}}</ref> Despite such advancements, mining activity slowed at this time and Ballarat's growth all but stopped, leading to a decades-long period of decline. The [[Sunshine rail disaster]] in 1908 resulted in the death of dozens of Ballarat residents,<ref name=age>{{Cite news|title=Terrible railway disaster|newspaper=The Age|location=Melbourne|publisher=David Syme & Co|date=21 August 1908}}</ref> and in August 1909, a great storm lashed the city, resulting in the death of one person and the injury of seven others, as well as the destruction of numerous homes.<ref>"The Ballarat Tornado" p6. The Mercury. 25 August 1909.</ref><ref>"Furious Storm at Ballarat – several houses demolished, woman crushed to death, several persons injured" p5. The West Australian. 23 August 1909.</ref>

Ballarat's significant representation in [[World War I]] resulted in heavy human loss. Around this time, it was overtaken in population by the port city of [[Geelong]], further diminishing its provincial status.<ref>Progressive Geelong – Industrial Expansion. Development of the Harbour. [[The Argus, Melbourne]] 14 October 1921 p 8</ref> In response, local lobbyists continually pushed the Victorian government for [[decentralisation]], the greatest success being the [[Victorian Railways]] opening the [[Ballarat North Workshops]] in April 1917.<ref name="lee144">{{cite book|author=Lee, Robert|author2=Rosemary Annable|author3=Donald Stuart Garden|title=The Railways of Victoria 1854–2004|date=1 August 2007|publisher=Melbourne University Publishing Ltd|isbn=978-0-522-85134-2|page=144}}</ref> The [[Great Depression]] proved a further setback for Ballarat, with the closure of many institutions and causing the worst unemployment in the city's history, with over a thousand people in the dole queue.<ref name="Speak Out Boldly"/>{{rp|38}}

The city's two municipalities, Ballarat East and West Town Councils, finally amalgamated in 1921 to form the City of Ballarat.<ref name="Speak Out Boldly"/>{{rp|32}}

While deep, the depression was also brief. The interwar period proved a period of recovery for Ballarat with a number of major infrastructure projects well underway including a new sewerage system. In 1930, [[Ballarat Airport]] was established. By 1931, Ballarat's economy and population was recovering strongly with further diversification of industry, although in 1936 Geelong displaced it as the state's second largest city.<ref>Geelong Ousts Ballarat. Population Surprises. ''The Argus'' (Melbourne), 28 April 1936, p. 10.</ref> During World War II an expanded Ballarat airport was the base of the [[RAAF]] Wireless Air Gunners' School as well as the base for [[USAAF]] Liberator bomber squadrons. In 1942, Ballarat became connected to the state electricity grid by a 66,000 kV line.<ref name="autogenerated2"/> Prior to this, power supply was generated locally.

During [[World War II]], Ballarat was the location of [[List of RAAF inland aircraft fuel depots|RAAF No.1 Inland Aircraft Fuel Depot (IAFD)]], completed in 1942 in the defence of Australia against a Japanese invasion and decommissioned on 29 August 1944. Usually consisting of four tanks, 31 fuel depots were built across Australia for the storage and supply of aircraft fuel for the [[RAAF]] and the [[US Army Air Forces]] at a total cost of £900,000 ($1,800,000).<ref>{{Citation|author1=Australia. Royal Australian Air Force. Historical Section|title=Logistics units|year=1995|publisher=AGPS Press|isbn=978-0-644-42798-2}}</ref>

In the [[post-war]] era, Ballarat's growth continued. In response to an acute housing shortage, significant suburban expansion occurred. An extensive [[Housing Commission of Victoria]] estate was built on the former Ballarat Common (today known as [[Wendouree West, Victoria|Wendouree West]]).<ref>{{cite web|title=Wendouree West Profile and History|url=http://www.wendoureewest.com/renewal/wendwest.htm#history|work=Wendouree West Community Renewal|access-date=19 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100709075704/http://www.wendoureewest.com/renewal/wendwest.htm#history|archive-date=9 July 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref> The estate was originally planned to contain over 750 prefabricated houses. While planning for the estate began in 1949, main construction occurred between 1951 and 1962.

The 1950s brought a new optimism to the city. On 17 April 1952 it was announced that Lake Wendouree was to be the venue for rowing events of the 1956 Summer Olympics,<ref name="Speak Out Boldly"/> and work soon began on an Olympic village in Gillies Street. A new prefabricted power terminal substation at Norman Street Ballarat North was constructed between 1951 and 1953 by the State Electricity Commission.<ref>Ballarat 'B' Power Station. Ballarat Historical Society – private collection</ref> The first [[Begonia Festival]], a highly successful community celebration, was held in 1953. [[Elizabeth II]] visited on 8 March 1954.<ref name="Speak Out Boldly"/> The Civic Centre, Prince Alfred Hall had burned down suspiciously that year; however a new Civic Hall was constructed and opened in March 1955. On 23 November 1956, the Olympic torch was carried through the city, and the following day the rowing events were held at the lake.<ref name="Speak Out Boldly"/> On 2 March 1958 the [[Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother|Queen Mother]] visited Ballarat.

During the following decades, the city saw increased threats to its heritage. In 1964, the Ballarat City Council passed laws banning pillar-supported verandahs in the CBD, which threatened the removal of historic cast iron verandahs in the city. The by-law was met by staunch opposition from the National Trust, which had begun campaigning to protect some of the city's most historic buildings.<ref name="Speak Out Boldly"/>{{rp|58}} By the 1970s, Ballarat began to officially recognise its substantial heritage, and the first heritage controls were recommended to ensure its preservation. With the opening of [[Sovereign Hill]], the city made a rapid shift to become a major cultural tourist destination, visited by thousands each year.

During the 1970s, a further 300 houses were constructed at Wendouree West. Private housing in the adjacent suburb of [[Wendouree, Victoria|Wendouree]] closely matched and eventually eclipsed this by the mid-1960s. The suburb of greater Wendouree and Wendouree West had evolved as the suburban middle-class heart of the city. [[Charles III of the United Kingdom|Charles, Prince of Wales]] visited Ballarat on 28 October 1974 during which he toured Sovereign Hill, the Ballarat College of Advanced Education's new Mt Helen Campus and the White Swan Reservoir and spoke at Civic Hall.<ref>City of Ballarat Mayors Report 1974 – 1975</ref>

Ballarat played an important role in the [[Stolen Generations|Stolen Generation]] throughout the 20th century, where the [[Ballarat Orphanage]] saw Aboriginal children who had been taken from their families. The Ballarat and District Aboriginal Co-operative (BADAC) was established by members of the Ballarat and district Aboriginal community in 1979. It became a co-operative to deliver health, social, welfare and community development programs to local Aboriginal people. In 2017, local Aboriginal community elder Ted Lovett was awarded the [[Order of Australia Medal]] for services to the indigenous community and for his works in eliminating racism in sports in south-west Victoria. Karen Heap and Ted Lovett were listed on the Victoria's Aboriginal Honour Role both in part for their work at BADAC.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Whelan|first=Melanie|date=2019-11-12|title=Ted Lovett, Karen Heap hope for 'path finders' in fight for equality|url=https://www.thecourier.com.au/story/6487496/ted-lovett-karen-heap-hope-for-path-finders-in-fight-for-equality/|access-date=2021-11-15|website=The Courier|language=en-AU}}</ref>

=== 21st century ===
[[File:View from St. Peter's Anglican Church, Ballarat.jpg|thumb|View of central Ballarat from St Peter's Anglican Church]]
The city continued to grow at the national average throughout the late 20th century and early 21st century. In 2008 the City of Ballarat released a plan directing that growth of the city over the next 30 years is to be concentrated to the west of the city centre. The Ballarat West Growth Area Plan was approved by the city and state government in 2010, planning an extensive fringe development consisting of 14,000 new homes and up to 40,000 new residents including new activity centres and employment zones.<ref name="ReferenceB">{{cite web|url=http://www.ballarat.vic.gov.au/media/57489/ballarat%20city%20council%20-%20tract%20expert%20evidence.pdf|title=Ballarat West Local Structure Plan|access-date=16 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723152436/http://www.ballarat.vic.gov.au/media/57489/ballarat%20city%20council%20-%20tract%20expert%20evidence.pdf|archive-date=23 July 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=autogenerated1>{{cite web|url=http://www.businessballarat.com/?id=ballaratwestlocalstr|title=Ballarat West Local Structure Plan|publisher=Business Ballarat|access-date=18 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100818045405/http://www.businessballarat.com/?id=ballaratwestlocalstr|archive-date=18 August 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The [[Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse#Catholic Church authorities in Ballarat|Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse]] final report, published on 15 December 2017, found that 139 people made a claim of child sexual abuse to the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Ballarat|Diocese of Ballarat]] between 1980 and 2015, and 21 alleged perpetrators were identified in these claims. Seventeen of the 21 alleged and convicted perpetrators were priests, which is 8.7% of the priests who ministered during this period.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au/sites/default/files/final_report_-_volume_16_religious_institutions_book_2.pdf|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/https://www.childabuseroyalcommission.gov.au/sites/default/files/final_report_-_volume_16_religious_institutions_book_2.pdf|archive-date=2022-10-09|url-status=live|title=Final Report: Volume 16, Religious institutions Book 2|last=Commonwealth of Australia|date=December 2017|website=Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse|page=106}}</ref> About 45 victims are estimated to have committed suicide.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/29/world/australia/ballarat-church-sexual-abuse-pell.html|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220101/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/29/world/australia/ballarat-church-sexual-abuse-pell.html|archive-date=2022-01-01|url-access=limited|title=Cardinal George Pell's Hometown Breaks Its Silence About Grim Past of Sexual Abuse|date=April 2018|website=The New York Times|page=106|access-date=22 August 2018}}{{cbignore}}</ref>