Adelong is a small town in the Riverina region of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, Australia, on the banks of the Adelong Creek. Adelong sits on the Snowy Mountains Highway and is a part of the Snowy Valleys Council. At the , Adelong had an urban population of 943.

Etymology

Adelong's name is said to be derived from the local Aboriginal language meaning "along the way" or "plain with a river".

History

The area now known as Adelong lies on the traditional lands of the Wiradjuri people. In 1852 during the Australian Gold Rush, gold was discovered at Upper Adelong. Records around the time indicated a yield of 198 kg of

precious metals Precious metals are rare, naturally occurring metallic chemical elements of high economic value. Precious metals, particularly the noble metals, are more corrosion resistant and less chemically reactive than most elements. They are usual ...

. In 1855 Adelong was declared a gold field. The Adelong township, which was first established in 1836, came alive when in 1857 William Willams discovered a gold bearing reef ore on Charcoal Hill. Alluvial mining and panning along the Adelong Creek was followed by mines being staked in the surrounding hills and water and steam powered stamper batteries were located along the creek to crush and process the hard pyritic

quartz Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide). The Atom, atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen Tetrahedral molecular geometry, tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tet ...

ore. These included the heritage-listed Adelong Falls Gold Workings. There were a number of deep quartz reef mines at Adelong, including the Great Victoria Mine. The gold ran out in the first part of the 20th century and the pastoral industry became the principal activity. This was mainly

Merino The Merino is a list of sheep breeds, breed or group of breeds of domestic sheep, characterised by very fine soft wool. It was established in Spain near the end of the Middle Ages, and was for several centuries kept as a strict Spanish monop ...

sheep and beef cattle, and continues now. Over the last 20 years a tourist industry has developed because of the pleasant scenery and gold mining history. During the gold rush many Chinese people worked in the mines, a lot of whom died and were buried in a special portion of the Adelong cemetery. One or two elderly Chinese and Indians still lived in Adelong in the 1950s. A community named Cornishtown existed about a mile to the west of Adelong until the 1940s.

Climate

Adelong has a climate that is characteristic of the upper South West Slopes, though wetter on account of its proximity to the Brindabella Range. Summers are warm to hot and dry, though often chilly by morning; winters cool and rainy, with occasional snow (the last occurrence being in August 2019). Cold rain below falls with some regularity in the winter months. Seasonal range is great about the maximum temperatures, and in the warmer months, diurnal range is also great. Under the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

scheme, the town is located in transitional areas between the humid subtropical (''Cfa'') and

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

s (''Cfb''). Rainfall records began in 1883 at Adelong (Tumut St), but temperature records not until 1907, and temperature extremes not until 1965. Temperature records ceased in 1994, but those of rainfall continued to 2020 before ceasing.

Heritage listings

Adelong has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * Adelong Falls Gold Workings * Hillas Creek: Hillas Hut

Education

There are currently two primary schools, Adelong Public School and St. Joseph's Primary School, servicing the town and surrounding areas.

References

{{Authority control Towns in the Riverina Snowy Valleys Council Adelong Mining towns in New South Wales