A MURDER in the 1860s sparked fear among Lilydale residents and prompted calls for a police station.

Now the gateway to the Yarra Valley, Lilydale was then a rural outpost policed by a single constable stationed in Healesville.

Today, more than 40 police officers are based in the township, with a further 50 to move into the new police complex on the Maroondah Highway when it opens within weeks.

In the 1850s, the police department owned the pocket of land between Clarke and Castella streets, including parts of the present-day Lilydale Primary School.

Despite its prime real estate in Lilydale, the department saw Healesville as a trouble spot and the place for a full-time station.

For the best part of 10 years, Irish recruit Constable George Ardill kept the peace from Healesville through to Lilydale on horseback.

A public outcry in the aftermath of the 1860s murder prompted the department to use a building it had built on Clarke Street as a police station.

The first Lilydale police station opened on April 14, 1866, with constables Lyons and O'Shanassy at the helm.

By 1901, the police station and residence had been relocated next to the court house on Castella Street.

In 1936, Lilydale - then with a population of 2600 - was served by four police officers: a senior constable, a mounted constable and two constables.

Current Lilydale station-manager Senior Sergeant Shaun Young said the station had grown from three police to more than 40 uniform police and a crime investigation unit of 14 staff.

"This is a police station of a bygone era that's served the community well. Modern policing needs a building like what's been built [on the Maroondah Highway]."

The new police complex on the corner of Maroondah Highway and Cave Hill Road will bring together the traffic management unit (currently based in Mt Evelyn), the crime desk (forensic), crime investigation unit, uniform police and the inspectors office.

"This will give us the opportunity to mix and match resources to target crime in the Yarra Valley and the Dandenongs. It's about more flexibility and giving members all the resources they need."