Sunbury, Victoria

Sunbury Victoria
Aerial view of Sunbury, Victoria
Sunbury
Coordinates	37°34′52″S 144°42′50″E / 37.58111°S 144.71389°E / -37.58111; 144.71389Coordinates: 37°34′52″S 144°42′50″E / 37.58111°S 144.71389°E / -37.58111; 144.71389
Population	33,062 (2011 census)
• Density	1,496/km2 (3,875/sq mi)
Established	1836
Postcode(s)	3429
Elevation	214 m (702 ft)
Area	22.1 km2 (8.5 sq mi)
Location	44 km (27 mi) from Melbourne
LGA(s)	City of Hume
State electorate(s)	Sunbury
Federal Division(s)	McEwen
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall 47.5 °C 118 °F -2.0 °C 28 °F 534.0 mm 21 in
Localities around Sunbury: Gisborne Riddells Creek Clarkefield Gisborne South Sunbury Wildwood Melton Hillside / Diggers Rest Bulla

Sunbury /ˈsʌnbri/ is a town located 40.4 kilometres (25.1 mi) north-west of Melbourne's central business district, in the state of Victoria, Australia. Its local government area is the City of Hume. At the 2011 census, Sunbury had a population of 33,062. Statistically, Sunbury is considered part of Greater Melbourne.

Sunbury is a north-western suburb of Melbourne. The Victorian government's 2009 decision to extend the Urban Growth Boundary saw Sunbury absorbed by Melbourne's suburban expansion in 2011.

The Sunbury area has several important Aboriginal archaeological sites, including five earth rings, which were identified in the 1970s and 1980s, and believed to have been used for ceremonial gatherings. Records of corroborees and other large gatherings during early settlement attest to the importance of the area for Aboriginal people of the Wurundjeri tribe.

Sunbury was first settled in 1836, by George Evans and William Jackson. It was Jackson and his brother, Samuel, who named the township Sunbury, after Sunbury-on-Thames, in Middlesex, England when it was established in 1857. The Post Office opened on 13 January 1858.

Sunbury's connection with the history and development of Victoria is influential because of its most famous and powerful citizen, "Big" Clarke. Clarke's role as one of the biggest squatters in the colony and his power and position within the Victorian Legislative Council were critical in the early days of Victoria.