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Johann August MeyerPrint Page 
The gates commemorate the founder of Donald, Johann August Meyer. The gates were erected in 1963 during the Shire of Donald centenary year.
In 1863 an enterprising businessman named Johann August Meyer saw an opportunity to set up a store and liquor shanty by a bridge that had been built over the Richardson upstream from the Banyenong homestead. It was a crossing and camping place for teamsters, travellers, drovers and herdsmen. The shanty met strong objections from William Donald and other pastoralists, as shepherds were being enticed from their lonely vigil, minding sheep in the unfenced land.
When a road from St. Arnaud to Morton Plains was surveyed in 1864, the bridge was re-located, and Johann Meyer built a weatherboard store and hotel near the site of the present Mt. Jeffcott Hotel. Edward Miller followed him, building his Royal Hotel, and this was the nucleus of the town that was called Richardson Bridge until the name "Donald" appeared on a survey map in 1866.
Location
| Address: | Houston Street, Donald Park, Donald, 3480 |
|---|---|
| State: | VIC |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -36.372453 Long: 142.987295 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Gates |
|---|---|
| Monument Theme: | People |
| Sub-Theme: | Settlement |
Dedication
| Approx. Monument Dedication Date: | 1963 |
|---|
Dedicated to Johann August Meyer
Founder of Donald
1863.
Erected by Shire of Donald
Centenary Year,
1963
A. A. Dunstan,
Shire President
