Welcome to the Andrew Ross Museum

Welcome to the Andrew Ross Museum.

Housed in a former schoolhouse, the museum is situated in picturesque Kangaroo Ground in the wine-growing region of the Yarra Valley, 30 kms North East of Melbourne CBD.

The museum is home to a wealth of artifacts and information detailing the history of the local area, its geology and its people, from the original Wurundjeri Aboriginals through to settlement by mainly Scottish farmers in the mid nineteenth century.

Formed 25 years ago by local residents keen to preserve both the building and the area’s local history, the museum was named after Kangaroo Ground’s first school teacher, Andrew Ross. His meticulously kept diary and observations provide a firsthand account of the daily life and its many struggles for those early settlers.

The museum has amassed a large photographic collection and historical documents on many of the prominent early families and is a good starting point for anyone wishing to trace their ancestors and the heritage surrounding their home.

It also has a large selection of books on the area, both for reference and for sale, many written by local historian Mick Woiwod. The museum also publishes two editions each year of the Kangaroo Ground Chronicle.

The Andrew Ross Museum is open each Thursday morning from 10 am to 12 noon when volunteer staff will be on hand to help with enquiries. Open at other times for group bookings by appointment.

Who Was Andrew Ross?

Andrew Ross was a key figure in the development of the European settlement of Kangaroo Ground. Among his achievements he was its first schoolteacher, lay preacher, inaugural postmaster, opened its first hotel, launched a successful newspaper and established a school which was so highly regarded its students numbered boarders from out of the area. His legacy is present today all around the area, from the cemetery which he helped to create to the local shire council which grew from the roads board he was instrumental in developing. Perhaps his most lasting achievement is the historical record he made of Kangaroo Ground and the area through the keen observations written in the diary he kept throughout his adult life.