About Leongatha, VIC

Leongatha is a town in the foothills of the Strzelecki Ranges, South Gippsland Shire, Victoria, Australia, located 135 kilometres (84 mi) south-east of Melbourne. At the 2021 census, Leongatha had a population of 5,869.Canadian dairy company Saputo which trades in Australia under the Devondale label, among others, has a dairy processing plant on the north side of the town producing milk-based products for Australian and overseas markets. == History == First settlement of the area by Europeans occurred in 1845. The Post Office opened as Koorooman on 1 October 1887 and renamed Leongatha in 1891 when a township was established on the arrival of the railway.The railway line from Melbourne reached the town in 1891, and stimulated further settlement. Regular V/Line passenger operations on the line to the local railway station ceased in 1993.The Leongatha Magistrates' Court closed on 1 January 1990.The town made international media headlines in 2023, when four people were taken to hospital after consuming beef Wellington suspected to have contained death cap mushrooms. Three of the four guests subsequently died, and one survived, later receiving a liver transplant. The woman who cooked the meal, Erin Patterson, was charged with murder in November 2023. == Transport == The town is located on the South Gippsland Highway which links Leongatha to Melbourne. Leongatha was formerly situated along the South Gippsland railway corridor that operated to its terminus at Yarram in the early 1980s and Leongatha in the mid 1990s. A V/Line road coach service replaced the rail service on 24 July 1993, running between Melbourne and Yarram.