The Ballarat Star was a newspaper in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia, first published on 22 September 1855. Its publication ended on 13 September 1924 when it was merged with its competitor, the Ballarat Courier. The earliest original edition of The Star, Ballarat, was discovered early in 2011 in the Australiana Reference Room of the Ballarat library. An unusual masthead caught the eye of the research librarian. Instead of the lion and unicorn crest in the first edition facsimile, this sixth edition displayed a centrepiece which was much more elaborate.