Taggerty is a town in central Victoria, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. It is located at the intersection of Maroondah Highway

Maroondah Highway

Maroondah Highway , is a major east-west thoroughfare in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne and a highway servicing the lower alpine region Victoria, Australia.-History:...

 and Thornton Road. The Acheron River

Acheron River (Victoria)

The Acheron River is a inland river in Victoria and a tributary of the Goulburn River. The river rises in Yarra Ranges National Park near Acheron Way and flows into the Goulburn River near Alexandra. It is 84 kilometres long and has 10 tributaries. Its major tributaries are Steavensons River,...

 also crosses the highway at Taggerty. It is thought to be named after the Aboriginal

Indigenous Australians

Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....

 word for blue clay. At the 2006 Census, Taggerty and the surrounding area had a population of 612.

A pastoral run called Taggerty Run was established in 1846. The homestead of the run was called Taggerty House. Gold

Gold

Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...

 was discovered along the Acheron River in 1870, which led to the establishment of two settlements, named Acheron Lower (now known as Acheron

Acheron, Victoria

Acheron is a small town in Victoria, Australia.It is located along the Maroondah Highway, near the junction of Acheron River and Goulburn River. The town was initially known as Acheron Lower, with Acheron Upper being what is now known as Taggerty. Both towns developed following the discovery of...

) and Acheron Upper (now known as Taggerty). The Post Office opened on April 15, 1876 and was renamed Taggerty in 1893.
Acheron Upper Primary School opened in 1875. The general store opened in 1891, as did a butter

Butter

Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...

 factory, reflecting the area's shift from gold mining towards dairy farming

Dairy farming

Dairy farming is a class of agricultural, or an animal husbandry, enterprise, for long-term production of milk, usually from dairy cows but also from goats and sheep, which may be either processed on-site or transported to a dairy factory for processing and eventual retail sale.Most dairy farms...

. The town was given the name Taggerty in 1890 to avoid confusion with Acheron Lower.

Today Taggerty remains a small township, with a general store, primary school, a town hall, a caravan park, and several bed and breakfast

Bed and breakfast

A bed and breakfast is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast, but usually does not offer other meals. Since the 1980s, the meaning of the term has also extended to include accommodations that are also known as "self-catering" establishments...

s.