Lara is a town in Victoria, 18 km north-east of the Geelong CBD, inland from the Princes Freeway to Melbourne. Its population at the 2016 census was 16,355. History The explorers Hume and Hovell arrived at Lara on December 16, 1824, believing that they had reached Westernport Bay. They recorded that the Aboriginals described the bay as Djillong and land as Corayo, suggesting origins for the names of Geelong and Corio. The area was originally named Kennedy's Creek but was also given several different names including Duck Ponds, Hovell's Creek, Cheddar, Swindon and Lara Lake. The area of Lara was no more than a few farms at this time. The railway through the town was opened in 1857 along with the local railway station, with several subdivisions then announced. A Post Office opened on 1 March 1858 as Duck Ponds, renamed Hovell's Creek in 1872, and finally Lara in 1884. The population grew to a few hundred by 1890, and several facilities like schools and churches were built, but a municipal water supply was not completed until 1947. In January 1969, 17 people were killed in bushfires which ravaged Lara. Most of the victims were trapped by the fast-moving grass fire while travelling on the Princes Highway. Several scenes from the 1979 feature film Mad Max were shot on location around Lara, as well as several scenes from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation mockumentary We Can Be Heroes: Finding The Australian of the Year, in which the town carried the fictional name "Dunt". The town's history is being preserved at the Lara Museum and Historical Centre on the corner of Forest and Canterbury Roads. This historic property, formerly the Lake Bank Hotel (circa 1860), was renovated by local businessman Lino Bisinella and provided in 2013 to the community group which runs the museum, Lara Heritage and Historical Inc. Heritage listed sites Lara contains a number of heritage listed sites, including: 605 Bacchus Marsh Road, Elcho Homestead Princes Highway, Hume and Hovell Monument 108 Windermere Road, Pirra Homestead Population According to the 2016 census, there were 16,355 people in Lara. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 1.4% of the population. 80.1% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were England 3.9%, Philippines 1.4%, New Zealand 1.0%, Scotland 0.8% and Vietnam 0.6%. 81.9% of people spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home