Monbulk is a satellite town & suburb of Melbourne located 42 km east from Melbourne's central business district

Melbourne city centre

Melbourne City Centre is an area of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia. It is not to be confused with the larger local government area of the City of Melbourne...

. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Yarra Ranges

Shire of Yarra Ranges

The Yarra Ranges Shire is a Local Government Area in Victoria, Australia, located in the outer eastern and northeastern suburbs of Melbourne extending into the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges...

. At the 2006 Census, Monbulk had a population of 2715.

History

The Aboriginal name, "Monbolloc" translates as 'hiding place in the hills'. In 1893 a village settlement, Dandenong Forest Village Settlement, of 76 farms of 10 acres (40,468.6 m²) was created. The Post Office opened on 19 May 1898.

The area was well known for being the site of Monbulk Preserving Company founded by the Camm family, now owned by Cadbury Schweppes

Cadbury Schweppes

Cadbury is a confectionery company owned by Kraft Foods and is the industry's second-largest globally after Mars, Incorporated. Headquartered in Uxbridge, London, United Kingdom, the company operates in more than 50 countries worldwide....

, a jam factory, where Monbulk Jam was produced from locally grown fruit. The site is now owned by Garden City Plastics who produce recycled plastic plant pots.

The Town today

Today Monbulk is a thriving township with many diversified farms growing fruit, nursery plants and a substantial bulb and cut-flower industry for national and international markets. There are four schools, Monbulk Primary School (established in 1897), St Paul’s Catholic Primary School, Monbulk College and Mountain District Christian School. The town has a wide variety of sporting and leisure clubs including an Australian Rules football team competing in the Yarra Valley Mountain District Football League

Yarra Valley Mountain District Football League

The Yarra Valley Mountain District Football League is an Australian rules football and netball competition based in Victoria to the east and northeast of Melbourne.-History:...

, cricket club, soccer club, tennis club, aquatic club, pony club, bowling club, basketball club, netball club, scouts and girl guides.

Monbulk is well serviced by the Main Street retail shopping strip, all trades and professional services with many cafes and restaurants which are very popular with local, national and international tourists.