Beeac was originally created as a reserve for campers, and the name is thought to mean either "salt lake" or "grubs" in the local Aboriginal language.[2] From 1860, the area was opened for selection and a townsite was surveyed in 1864.[2] A post office opened on 1 January 1862 but was known as Ondit (the name of the surrounding parish) until 1872.[3]
The original post office building was destroyed by fire in 1926, but was eventually replaced by the current building. By the end of the decade, the Beeac area had become a prominent wheat growing district, wine grapes were cultivated and a salt works was operating on the lake. Throughout the 1860s and 1870s, churches, schools, shops and hotels were established.[2] The railway reached Beeac in 1889, bringing the area into closer contact with nearby Colac. The line closed in 1953.[4] A newspaper, The Beeac Advocate and Weering and Warrion Advertiser, operated from 1901 to 1902 and the local hospital was founded in 1928.[2][5]
