Alan Marshall Discovery Trail
Step into the landscapes that inspired Alan Marshall’s beloved 1955 novel I Can Jump Puddles. Wander through Noorat, where Marshall spent his formative years, and uncover the places that shaped his perceptions, values, and storytelling for a lifetime.
The trail showcases a variety of local attractions, including Noorat Public Hall, Noorat Primary School, Neil Black Memorial Presbyterian Church and Noorat Recreation Reserve.
The Corangamite Arts Council was formed in Terang in 1982 and have actively pursued local and regional arts and cultural development through funded and unfunded programs and projects, including the Alan Marshall Precinct, design and installation in 1998-99.
- Noorat Public Hall
Alan Marshall’s father, William, in partnership with George Neale, used this building as a grain store while operating the Beehive Store nearby. - Beehive Store
Alan Marshall’s birthplace and home throughout his childhood. - Commemorative boulder and plaque
Unveiled by Alan Marshall in 1979. - Manna Gum and Memorial Plaque to Alan Marshall
Tree was planted and the plaque unveiled by Cathy McCallum, Alan Marshall’s daughter, at the first Alan Marshall Festival in 1996. - Horse trough
One of the many erected nationwide through the generosity of Annis and George Bills, providing fresh water for working horses.
- Noorat Primary School
Alan Marshall attended school here and relates events of his early school day memories and the people he met in the book ‘I Can Jump Puddles’. - Lake Lolly
Site of a pond called Lake Lolly by the local children. Alann Marshall and his best friend used to sail salmon tins across the pond with ants for crew trying to sink them by throwing stones. - Niel Black Memorial Presbyterian Church
Built in 1883 in memory of Niel Black (1804-1880). The Marshall family attended church here and Alan Marshall the Sunday School. - The Old Manse
Two Presbyterian ministers who lived at the Manse were notable mentors of the young Alan Marshall.
- Noorat Recreation Reserve
Alan Marshall loved country shows and travelled to many as a fortune teller and palm reader. - Black’s Gates
Noorat’s history is linked to the settlement of the area by the Black Family, after Niel Black took up the ‘Glenormiston’ run in 1839. ‘Mt. Noorat’ is a portion of the ‘Glenormiston’ property still operated by family members. The Carruthers family in Alan Marshall’s ‘I Can Jump Puddles’ is based loosely on the Black family. - Glenormiston College and former Trufood Factory
Alan Marshall worked in the office of the Trufood Factory in 1923. The factory is now an indoor equestrian centre at the Glenormiston College, formerly the property ‘Glenormiston’.
- Mt. Noorat & the Alan Marshall Walking Track
Traditional meeting and bartering place for Aboriginal tribes of the district. Known in the book ‘I Can Jump Puddles’ as Mount Turalla, the unique volcanic crater was the site of childhood adventures of Alan Marshall and his mates. One of the best preserved dormant volcanoes in Victoria, the crater is 159m deep and 400m wide. The ‘Alam Marshall Walking Track’ leads from Carroopook Street to the crater rim. - Former Glenormiston Butter Factory
The Glenormiston Butter and Cheese Factory was an integral part of the economic, social and cultural history of the Noorat-Glenormiston District. Originally established in 1895 on the site of the bluestone wool shed at Glenormiston, production was transferred to Noorat in 1910. After a series of amalgamations, it ultimately became part of Bonlac Foods Ltd. The factory ceased operation in 1970 and Bonlac Foods sold the building in 1998.
- Lake Keilambete
Alan Marshall learnt to swim at Lake Keilambete, a tale he has recounted in ‘I Can Jump Puddles’, in which the lake was called Lake Turalla. - Mount Emu Creek
A conspicuous water course through the district, Mount Emu Creek was the favoured spot for fishing for eels by Alan Marshall and his friends. - Consumption Dyke
Alan Marshall believed that the stone walls at Noorat and Kolora were the best in the country. He wrote an account of them, “The Walls in the West”, included in If These Walls Could Talk: The Report of the Corangamite Dry Stone Walls Conservation Project 1995. - Terang-Mortlake Road Wall
As a boy Alan Marshall and his friends used to catch rabbits in the stone walls at Noorat and Kolora. This wall is No 7 on the Corangamite Dry Stone Walls Heritage Trail.