Maribyrnong City

About the area

Key Statistics

Location

The City of Maribyrnong is located in Melbourne's inner-western suburbs, between 5 and 11 kilometres west of the Melbourne CBD. The City of Maribyrnong is bounded by the City of Moonee Valley in the north, the City of Melbourne in the east, Hobsons Bay City in the south, and the City of Brimbank in the west. The western boundary runs along Duke Street and the Newport-Sunshine railway line, while the southern boundary is the West Gate Freeway.

Included Areas

The City of Maribyrnong includes the suburbs of Braybrook, Footscray, Kingsville, Maidstone, Maribyrnong, Seddon, Tottenham, West Footscray and Yarraville.

Land Use

The City of Maribyrnong is a residential, commercial, industrial and educational area. The City encompasses a total land area of 31 square kilometres.

Name Origin

The City of Maribyrnong is named after the Maribyrnong River, which is named from an Aboriginal term meaning "I can hear a ringtail possum".

Indigenous Meaning

The original inhabitants of the Maribyrnong area were the Woimurrung and Boonwurrung tribes of the Kulin Aboriginal people.

Settlement

European settlement dates from the early 1800s. The settlement of Saltwater was established in 1839, growing into the town of Footscray. Growth took place in the late 1800s, with much industrial development in Footscray. Housing consisted of small workers cottages, still found throughout the area. Residential development was mainly along the railway lines. This focus on industry continued until the industrial decline of the 1960s and 1970s, when industry moved to the developing outer suburbs. After World War II, large numbers of migrants settled in the Maribyrnong area, and it remains one of the most ethnically diverse areas of Victoria. Housing developments from this era are found in Braybrook, Kingsville and Maribyrnong. The closure of large industrial sites since the 1960s has provided ample supply of land for new housing developments, particularly former Department of Defence sites along the Maribyrnong River in the suburb of Maribyrnong. The population declined slightly during the 1990s, and then increased from the early 2000s, mainly due to several new large housing developments.

Major Features

Major features of the City of Maribyrnong include Victoria University (Footscray Nicholson and Footscray Park Campuses), Maribyrnong Immigration Detention Centre, Highpoint Shopping Centre, Footscray Central Business District, Footscray Market, Central West Shopping Centre, Melbourne Museum of Printing, Footscray Hospital, Medway Golf Club, Sun Theatre Yarraville, Footscray Park, Pennell Reserve, Pipemakers Park, Pritchard Reserve, Whitten Oval, Maribyrnong Aquatic Centre, Jack’s Magazine and the Maribyrnong River.

Transport

The City of Maribyrnong is served by the West Gate Freeway, Ballarat Road, and the Sydenham, Werribee and Williamstown railway lines.

City of Maribyrnong

economic profile