Brunswick Heads is a small town on the north coast of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Byron Shire Byron Shire is a local government area located in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia. The shire is located adjacent to the ''Coral Sea'' about south of the Queensland border. The shire, administered from the town of Mullu ...

. At the , the town had a population of 1,737 people.

History

Originally inhabited by people of the Bundjalung nation, the Brunswick River was charted by Captain Rous in 1828. His visit was followed more than 20 years later by cedar cutters whose activities led to the first town in what is now Byron Shire. By the 1880s Brunswick Heads was a busy port with a small commercial centre. The township went into decline after the construction of the railway through Mullumbimby in 1894. From the 1920s, however, Brunswick's popularity for family seaside holidays returned. Holiday cottages from that period are still in evidence throughout the town. The early camping grounds along the foreshores later became caravan parks. Poet and painter Edwin Wilson (b. 1942) started school at Brunswick Heads, as recorded in "The Mullumbimby Kid".

Geography

Brunswick Heads is a small coastal holiday village situated at the mouth of the Brunswick River. Torakina Beach is located within the breakwater, while a white sandy surf beach stretches to the south. The north bank of the river is the home to a protected rainforest and the southern bank provides a harbour and small marina for fishing boats and small craft. Mount Chincogan and

Mount Warning Mount Warning ( Bundjalung: ''Wollumbin''), a mountain in the Tweed Range in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia, was formed from a volcanic plug of the now-gone Tweed Volcano. The mountain is located west-south-west of Mu ...

are located in the area, and form a backdrop to the river that leads down from the small town of

Mullumbimby Mullumbimby is an Australian town in the Byron Shire in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales. It promotes itself as "The Biggest Little Town in Australia". The town lies at the foot of Mount Chincogan in the Brunswick Valley about 9 k ...

. Despite the surrounding coastal development, Brunswick Heads has retained its traditional seaside village atmosphere. Timber bridges link the riverside to the river and surf beaches. Brunswick Heads is situated 10 km (15 minutes drive) north of the town of

Byron Bay Byron Bay ( Minjungbal: ''Cavvanbah)'' is a beachside town located in the far-northeastern corner of the state of New South Wales, Australia on Bundjalung Country. It is located north of Sydney and south of Brisbane. Cape Byron, a hea ...

and 30 minutes travelling time from both

Coolangatta Coolangatta is a coastal suburb in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. It is the Gold Coast's southernmost suburb and it borders New South Wales. In the , Coolangatta had a population of 5,948 people. Geography Coolangatta and its ...

and Ballina airports, and 40 kilometres south of the

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

border. Brunswick Heads is across the river from Ocean Shores. The Pacific Highway bypassed Brunswick Heads in 1998.

Economy

Brunswick Heads has a number of cafes, restaurants, accommodation and specialty shops. Brunswick Heads offers a range of leisure activities all year round, and hosts a number of small-scale community and family-oriented festivals and events.

In popular culture

The town was the location for the cult 1980s comedy series ''Brunswick Heads Revisited'' (a send-up of Waugh's ''

Brideshead Revisited ''Brideshead Revisited: The Sacred & Profane Memories of Captain Charles Ryder'' is a novel by English writer Evelyn Waugh, first published in 1945. It follows, from the 1920s to the early 1940s, the life and romances of the protagonist Charles ...

''), broadcast across Australia by the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

. The fourth series of the ABC TV drama series, ''

SeaChange ''SeaChange'' is an Australian television program that ran from 1998 to 2000 on the ABC and in 2019 on the Nine Network. It was created by Andrew Knight and Deborah Cox and starred Sigrid Thornton, David Wenham, William McInnes, John Howar ...

'', was filmed there in 2019.

References

External links

Brunswickheads.org.au - Website of Brunswick Heads Chamber of CommerceVisitnsw.com – Brunswick Heads
{{authority control Towns in New South Wales Northern Rivers Fishing communities in Australia Coastal towns in New South Wales