HistoryStirling is 5kms from Balclutha. The town is named for the home of Archibald Anderson who gifted land for the main railway line and secured a railway station for the area. A post office attached to the railway station began services in 1876. From 1864 Stirling was connected to Inchclutha via a punt, however in 1876 a bridge was constructed to link the two communities. The Stirling School opened in 1879 and a school continues to provide education for primary aged children in the town. Community services also included an athenaeum which was constructed in 1882 and rebuilt in 1910. Inchclutha's St Mary's Anglican church was relocated to Stirling in 1905. Flooding plagued the town from 1917 to 1919 and many houses were shifted to higher ground. The railway closed in 1972 and the post office in 1988. The first cheese factory began operating in Stirling in 1886. Today Fonterra operates a cheese factory in Stirling.
