 The Institute at Portland was founded in 1843 and Geelong's Institute in 1846.Institutes were established at Beechworth, Kyneton, Prahran and Sandhurst (later known as Bendigo) in 1854, Castlemaine and Eldorado in 1855, Footscray in 1857, Ballarat and Creswick in 1859, Berwick in 1862, and Maldon in 1863.The increasing numbers of Mechanics' institutes in Victoria seems to have been a consequence of the expansion of settlement, in particular associated with the gold rushes, rather than from meeting any specific cultural, educational or recreational need.