History

Hamilton Hume and William Hovell were two early explorers who passed through the area, travelling from Sydney to Geelong in 1824.

The township was originally known as "Dight's Forest", after John Dight who was a relative of Hamilton Hume. Although likely to be aboriginal, the origin of the place name "Jindera" is now obscure. There is some thought that it may refer to Jim and Dora, who were a pair of Aboriginal conjurers.

During the nineteenth century Jindera saw a substantial population of German Australians who had migrated to the Riverina in the 1860s, principally from South Australia.

Dight's Forest Post Office opened on 1 January 1870 and was renamed Jindera in 1885.