The settlement is located on a sandy coastal strip, backed by wooded hills, in which the creek itself rises, running about 10 km south-east to the ocean. The origin of the name Moggs is uncertain, the creek having also been known as the McLaren and Bell Bird in the past. Local belief is that Moggs derives from a family of graziers near St Arnaud, who used to bring cattle to graze in the area.[2]
The construction of the Great Ocean Road in the 1920s paved the way for further development, but it was only after World War II that land in the area was subdivided and sold for housing.[2]
In 1959, a group of Moggs Creek residents erected a rough cairn of bricks, topped by a plaster bust, as a monument to the mythical Sir Samuel Moggs, alleged to be the first European to have landed at the location, on 29 February 1759.[3]
Geography
The coast of Moggs Creek, unlike that of Aireys Inlet, is a long uninterrupted sand beach, connected to the beaches of Fairhaven in the east and Eastern View in the west. The shore is lined with sand dunes covered in shrubbery that separate the beach from the Great Ocean Road. Though usually a very wide and easily traversable coast, at high tide, the water level can rise close to the dunes.
The main feature of the beach is the mouth of Moggs Creek, which seldom connects to the ocean except after heavy rain, and instead often forms a shallow estuary in one area of the coastline.
Beyond the coastline are wooded hills, through which the creek runs from a high point towards the ocean.
