CRANBOURNE Cranbourne is encounted when traveling the Melbourne to South Gippsland/ Phillip Island (or vice versa) route. Cranbourne is an older and established country town that has been gobbled up by the Melbourne scrawl. The locals do not see themselves as a suburb Melbourne, hence the Bustout synopsis. In 2006 Cranbourne had a population of 14,750 that is expected to double soon. Prior to European settlement the Cranbourne area is thought to have been occupied by the Boonwurrung Aboriginal people. The first white settlers, the Ruffy brothers, arrived in 1836. They later opened the Cranbourne Inn that soon gave the town its name. The Motor Club Hotel is now a grand and relatively old pub. The Settlement new. Progress in developing the land around Cranbourne was hampered by the Koo Wee Rup swampland. However William Lyall (who bought land in the swamp area) assisted in coordinating the draining of the swamp to make it usable as farmland. Some the swamp made for the Botanic Gardens. (not visited) There is some evidence of heritage, but the developers have once again let the citizens down badly. The Anglican and the Presbyterian Churches are ‘old’. The Catholic is modern and pretty ugly. The Cranbourne War Memorial is in the centre of the cbd, plus the Avenue of Honour.. There is no need to make an effort of even stop in Cranbourne, unless to go to the Botanic Gardens od the races. Heritage diary