Sandringham, Victoria

Sandringham is a beachside suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, located 16km southeast of Melbourne's central business district. Its local government area is the City of Bayside and its federal division is the Division of Goldstein. At the 2011 Census, Sandringham had a population of 9,309.HistorySandringham formed part of the early estates in the parish of Moorabbin purchased by Josiah Holloway in 1852. Named Gipsy Village, lots were sold between 1852 and 1854 notwithstanding little settlement taking place at the time. Bluff Town Post Office opened on 1 April 1868, closed in 1871, reopened in 1873 and was renamed Sandringham in 1887.TodaySandringham is one of Melbourne's bayside suburbs, located beside Port Phillip at the end of the Sandringham railway line. Sandringham is a popular location for beachgoers, sightseers, walkers, picnickers, photographers, cyclists and shoppers. It has a quaint village atmosphere with a number of cafes, coffee shops and restaurants (Greek, Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Indian, Japanese), take-away food outlets, gourmet food outlets, clothing stores, boutique homewares, hairdressers, professional offices, multi-story apartments, real estate agents, bakeries, a modern bookshop, a news agency, Coles supermarket, a health food store, a chemist, an award-winning library, a historical society, a large modern police station, a medical centre, a Life Saving club, a video store, a hardware store, a wine store, a bank, a large modern hotel (The Sandy) with a balcony overlooking the bay, a bike track and a coastal walking track. The trip by train to and from Melbourne city takes 27 minutes. Buses travel between the Sandringham railway station and St Kilda, Westfield's Southland and other places. The Sandringham Yacht Club is host to a number of Sydney to Hobart yacht race winners. The main streets are home to some elegant old buildings, including the railway station. In the 2011 census the most common ancestries in Sandringham were English 29.3%, Australian 25.8%, Irish 9.7%, Scottish 9.3% and German 3.1%.