Undera is a rural village and locality in northern Victoria

Victoria (Australia)

Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

, in the Goulburn Valley

Goulburn Valley

The Goulburn Valley is a region of Victoria, Australia. The region consists of those areas in the catchment of the Goulburn River and other nearby streams, and is part of the Murray-Darling Basin. The Goulburn Valley is bordered on the south by the Great Dividing Range and to the north by the...

 irrigation

Irrigation

Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...

 area. It is 26 kilometres (16 mi) north-west of Shepparton. At the 2006 census

Census in Australia

The Australian census is administered once every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent census was conducted on 9 August 2011; the next will be conducted in 2016. Prior to the introduction of regular censuses in 1961, they had also been run in 1901, 1911, 1921, 1933,...

, Undera and the surrounding area had a population of 636.

History

In 1874, when the area came under farm-selection activity, a township was surveyed and named Undera, the Post Office opening on 24 August 1875.

It is thought that the name is derived from an Aboriginal word, most likely meaning fat. Before being named Undera, the area was known as Mundoona. A school was opened in 1876, and Catholic

Catholic

The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...

 and Presbyterian churches were opened the following year.

The Undera district extends northwards to Undera North and a westerly bend of the Goulburn River

Goulburn River (Victoria)

The Goulburn River is a major inland river in Victoria, Australia.The headwaters of the Goulburn River rise in the western end of the Victoria Alps, near Mount Buller. The Eildon Dam creates Lake Eildon, a major storage of water for irrigation...

. Whilst the township is in the Goulburn Valley irrigation area, the northern parts sustained a local timber industry until the 1940s, and are mixed grazing and agricultural.

Undera has a school (21 pupils, 1998), a church, a memorial hall, (1928), a large reserve with a motorcycle

Motorcycle

A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...

 track and a tennis court

Tennis court

A tennis court is where the game of tennis is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the center. The same surface can be used to play both doubles and singles.-Dimensions:...

. The town has an Australian Rules football team competing in the Kyabram & District Football League

Kyabram & District Football League

The Kyabram District Football League is an Australian rules football league in Victoria. It is made up of 13 teams, following Yea's departure in 2007 to join the Yarra Valley Mountain Football League, and Longwood's admission in 2010 following the collapse of the Benalla District Football League....

.

Its census populations have been 95 (1911), 350 (1933) and 156 (1966).