The traditional owners of Boort are the
Djadjawurrung. Boort is a
Djadjawurrung word meaning "Smoke from the hill". The area is home to many
scar trees which are of cultural significance. It is estimated that there are over five-hundred scar trees in the area. The township of Boort takes its name from the Boort pastoral run, established in 1846 by John Bear. Initially located southeast of Lake Boort, the Boort homestead marked the area's early European settlement, while the township itself emerged northwest of the lake. In the late 1840s, Frederick Godfrey acquired the pastoral run and diverted water from the Loddon River into Keningapanule Creek, which eventually formed the swampy depression known today as Lake Boort. By the 1870s, farm selections were steadily established in the Boort district, and water infrastructure followed with the creation of the Loddon Waterworks Trust in 1882, later succeeded by a local irrigation trust in 1888.
Boort railway station opened in 1883, linking it to Wedderburn Junction and eventually Quambatook. In 1905, the State Rivers and Water Supply Commission absorbed Boort's irrigation trust and extended the Waranga Eastern Channel to the district in the 1920s, spurring population growth through improved water access and a shift toward urban living. Key developments included a new hospital in 1923, its upgrade to a District Hospital in 1961 and a high school in 1963. Agricultural land west of Boort faced salinity issues from rising water tables, but laser profiling of paddocks has improved drainage and reduced water retention, helping sustain the region’s productivity. ==Population==