Olinda Creek

Olinda Creek
River
Olinda Creek Main street crossing from pedestrian footbridge
Name origin: Named after Alice Olinda Hodgkinson, daughter of Deputy Surveyor-General Clement Hodgkinson
Country	Australia
State	Victoria
Region	Central Victoria
City	Melbourne
Source	Mount Dandenong
- location	Great Dividing Range, Victoria
- elevation	580 m (1,903 ft)
Mouth
- location	Yarra River, Coldstream, Victoria, Australia
- elevation	76 m (249 ft)
Length	21.4 km (13.3 mi)

Olinda Creek is a major tributary of the Yarra River in Victoria, Australia. Its origins are in the Dandenong Ranges, and it is notable for passing through the settlement of Lilydale (now a suburb of Melbourne) before joining with the Yarra near Coldstream.

History and Toponomy

When Europeans first entered this area of southern Australia, they moved up the valley of the Olinda Creek (then called Running Creek because it was a perennial stream). The formal naming process began with the survey of Lilydale township by John Hardy in 1859-60. At the same time that he named Lilydale, Hardy renamed the creek ‘Olinda’ after Alice Olinda Hodgkinson, daughter of Deputy Surveyor-General Clement Hodgkinson.

Lillydale Lake

Between 1988 and 1990 a dam was built on the creek just south of Lilydale, creating Lillydale Lake. The lake provides flood mitigation to areas downstream. It incorporates extensive wetlands and is a community recreation facility.