Wycheproof meaning "Grass on Hill" has had a settlement history of over 160 years. Wycheproof is notable for numerous thing include that it is has the small registered mount at 43m above the surrounding plains which are 237m above sea level.  Wycheproof is also one of two towns to have a trainline through its main street.

The pre-settlement history of the area is quite unkown. Wycheproof's Historical Society meets monthly and Allan "Prof" Milburn is one of its members. Prof has been passionate about preserving Wycheproof's past and kindly wrote the following history.

A CONCISE HISTORY OF WYCHEPROOF
by Allan "Prof" Milburn.

There was limited aboriginal presence in this area, as there was not enough water, and tribal presence was only in good rainfall years, there is quite a lot of evidence to support this. The only area where there was activity was out along the Avoca and along Tyrell Creek. The middens along the Avoca were very small say compared to along the Murray where they are 5 or 6 feet high, here, very small.  The squatters were in the area by the 1840’s and Wycheproof was a favoured site as it was very well watered, the Avoca River, Lalbert Channel and Cooroopajerrup Creek. The run off the mount filled 3 dams, 2 of which are still there. Robert Moffat took up the lease in 1867. Moffat and his manager Edmund Margetts was a truly amazing man, and a magnificent citizen to this town and area. The squatters were quite highly thought of in the area.

In 1883 the railways came to this town- this was the best day at Wycheproof as it ended isolation. You could go to Melbourne in a day where as it normally took 2 days to get to Bridgewater with a load of 12 bags of wheat. 

The land here was opened up for closer settlement by the McPherson land act and first selectors here were in 1873 when the Dempseys and Dobbins selected land in March 1873. Then the flood came, all the land was taken up by the late 1870’s but the barrier was the Mallee lands to the north of here.

This land was regarded useless by the selectors, until they were able to find a way to clear it. When the Mallee roller was invented the once useless land was regarded as good productive land. The selectors by our standards did it tough, but they knew no different so treated the conditions as normal, this has always gone on. My contention is that the Governments treated them badly.

They had to pay 1 pound and acre for free land, they had to fence it, build sheds and house and cultivate it, and sow crops. The selectors had to pay for then land, cash, 4 payments every year over 10 years; this burden was too much and later was extended over 20 years. Just think of all the land in Victoria that was selected and how much money went into the coffers of the Victorian treasury and paid for all the expansion in Victoria during the 1870’s, 1880’s and 1890’s mostly on the back of selectors.

1890’s depression

The 1890 spilled out the small selectors this period with the poor years saw an exodus from the area. A lot went to higher rainfall areas in Queensland and NSW, to the WA Goldfields and then stayed on selected ground there. Land was bought as people consolidated their holdings and battled through. The Wyche station went from 1200 acres in 1874 to 22000 acres when it was broken up after the 1st war all bought back. Things were tough. 

The cottage hospital was built in the early 1890, 1892 I think but they could not get enough money to open it and ran it until the late 1890’s. The 1902 drought was the straw the broke the camels back, this drought was the worst time, but after this things did improve.
Wycheproof Township

The first commercial building in the town was the Mount Wycheproof Hotel built by James O’Connor in 1874. This is now the site of the Motel. The second building in 1876 was Tippings General Store where Brocky Dixon lives and the third was Robertsons in 1876 Blacksmiths (Johns Family) where Margaret Currie lives. The town has ebbed and flowed but its still here. James O’Connor who built the 1st Hotel- the Mount Wycheproof was another wonderful citizen and would go very close to being the towns founder. I cannot speak highly enough of his achievement to this town.
1914-1918

A terrible time read the local papers, and the war started in a blaze of patriotism and duty to the Empire. The first person killed was George McPherson who died on Anzac day 1915 at the Anzac landing ( many years later I found out he is a distant relation to me). By 1917-1918 reading local papers is dreadful, hardly a week went by when there is not somebody killed from here, or a relation of somebody. 60,000 Australians died from a population of 4 million, more that generation lost it must have set this town back in a way we cannot imagine and the other tragedies, wounded, “shell shock”, trauma. Terrible. 

1920 boom years I was told on a farm who after a good year first built a house, second bought a car, paid his taxes and lived, put that in modern day terms. The downside was high land prices which always come in a boom followed by a bust.

1930’s
As my father told me there was nothing good about the 30’s, they must have been terrible times. No work, no hope. Groups of people walking to try and find work to support families- got together in groups to pool resources (sustenance work in this town stone gutters). People who wanted to work and couldn’t. When the Mutual store went broke it had debts of 80,000 pounds. The debt adjustment act was a failure, designed to help struggling farmers but was abused. The farmers started to organise just before the 2nd war came in the Wheat Board and the Grain Elevators Board, to break the power of the Multi Nationals.

War
The worst effect of this 1939-1945 was 4 droughts in 7 years. This was total war, people leaving to work, to join the services call up for serviced and man power. The worst effect was the surrender at Singapore a lot of locals were captured and a lot never returned. The desert and islands, desperate times.

Late 1940’s and 1950’s

The first good year was 1948 after the droughts of the early 1940’s wheat reached $1.40 a bushel and the boom years started. Most farmers took until the wool boom in the Korean war to pay off their debts from the depression and drought. Wool in 1951-52 reached a $1 ( $2) for a pound of wool. There were prosperous times.