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The following account of the Vice-Regal Visit to Back Creek on Thursday 17 October 1861 appeared in the next edition of The North Western Chronicle, the local newspaper which had its headquarters in Back Creek. The proprietors and editors of this paper were Edward Bateman, Robert Clark, who later jointly established The Courier in Ballarat, and James Gearing.

During the visit to Back Creek, the Governor, Sir Henry Barkly, announced the change of the town's name from Back Creek to Talbot. While this may seem unremarkable to the comtemporary reader, the issue of the town's name had assumed considerable importance to the town's leaders who believed that the name Back Creek did not sufficiently reflect its current status and probable future significance in the colony of Victoria.

The detailed account of the visit also provides a vivid and candid picture of a major official event of the time, including local jealousies and the disappointment and humiliation associated with arrangements gone awry. The reportage of the banquet, with its many speeches (all seemingly reported verbatim), interspersed with various entertainments, demonstrates a journalistic style very different from that of today. The masculine nature of the event is strongly evident, as is the unabashed use of the occasion to lobby for certain favoured causes. All in all, the event lives for us through the animated writing style.