Place Names Register Extract

Irving Creek

Extract date: 12/06/2026

Name Irving Creek
Type Designation Stream
Place Id 13818
Place Type Feature
Status Recorded
Date Registered
Location (Datum GDA94)  
Latitude: -25° 00' S (Decimal degrees -25)
Longitude: 130° 03' E (Decimal degrees 130.05)
Locality / Suburb  
  Petermann
Local Government Area  
  MacDonnell Shire Council
History/Origin On 1?June?1874, explorer Ernest Giles officially named a watercourse Irving Creek during his Central Australian expedition. This is recorded in Geographical Explorations in Central Australia 1872-74 (page?200). Giles honoured William Irving Winter of Stanhope, Victoria, a prominent grazier, magistrate, and later member of the Victorian Legislative Council. Winter was a subscriber to Giles?s expedition fund.

William Irving Winter was born on 20?February?1840 in Edinburgh. He emigrated to Australia as a toddler in 1841 and was educated at Scotch College, Melbourne.

In 1857, he and his brothers purchased extensive pastoral runs - including Colbinabbin, Toolamba, Dhurringile, and notably the Stanhope estate - initially as a family conglomerate but later divided in 1868, when Stanhope became Winter's exclusive property.

He invested heavily in the estate, spending approximately £40,000 on improvements and constructing a mansion.

Winter held various public roles: he served as a magistrate from 1868, president of the Waranga Shire Council, and later, in 1884, succeeded Sir William Mitchell as a member of the Victorian Legislative Council's Northern Province - retaining that seat unopposed until his death.

In 1890, he honoured his maternal lineage by adding 'Irving' to his surname, officially becoming William Irving Winter-Irving.

Winter-Irving died suddenly of internal bleeding at his estate 'Noorilim', Goulburn Valley, Victoria on 28?June?1901, aged 61. His funeral in Brighton Cemetery, Melbourne, drew prominent figures including parliamentary leaders and business dignitaries.

Sources:
OBITUARY. (1901, July 6). The Australasian (Melbourne, Vic. : 1864 - 1946), p. 38. Retrieved June 23, 2025, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article139163659
Australian Dictionary of Biography. (n.d.). Winter-Irving, William Irving (1840?1901). National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/winterirving-william-irving-4957
Wikipedia contributors. (2024, April 15). William Winter-Irving. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved June 23, 2025, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Winter-Irving


Register & Gazettal information

Date Gazettal Comment
  (None Found)  

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