Batlow is a town in the

South West Slopes The South Western Slopes, also known as the South West Slopes, is a region predominantly in New South Wales, Australia. It covers the lower inland slopes of the Great Dividing Range, extending from north of Dunedoo through central NSW and into ...

region 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, on the edge of the Great Dividing Range, 775 m above sea level. Batlow is well known for its apples. About 50 growers in the district supply 1.6 million cases of apples, or 10% of the Australian apple crop, to the Australian market. The district also produces cherries and stone fruit. The town's main landmark, the "Big Apple", which stands on private land 5 km north of the town,Batlow: Big Apple
Big Trip. stands testament to the orchards which have been vital to the town's economy for over 120 years.

History

Before European settlement the

Wiradjuri The Wiradjuri people (; ) are a group of Aboriginal Australian people from central New South Wales, united by common descent through kinship and shared traditions. They survived as skilled hunter-fisher-gatherers, in family groups or clans, a ...

people lived in the Batlow area.

Hamilton Hume Hamilton Hume (19 June 1797 – 19 April 1873) was an early explorer of the present-day Australian states of New South Wales and Victoria. In 1824, along with William Hovell, Hume participated in an expedition that first took an overland rout ...

and

William Hovell William Hilton Hovell (26 April 1786 – 9 November 1875) was an English explorer of Australia. With Hamilton Hume, he made an 1824 overland expedition from Sydney to Port Phillip (near the site of present-day Melbourne), and later explored the ...

were the first Europeans to explore the area in 1824, en route to

Port Phillip Port Phillip ( Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, narrow channel known as The Rip, and is com ...

. When gold was discovered in the area in 1854, a small settlement called Reedy Creek was established as a supply point and service centre for the mining area, and a Mr Batlow surveyed a townsite nearby. The gold deposits were quickly exhausted, but farmers found the area better suited to a variety of crops, so the mining supply point was moved and the current township established around 1855. Reedy Flat Post Office opened on 1 August 1873 and was renamed Batlow in 1889. Fruit trees and timber quickly became the main sources of income for the town, and in 1910 the townsite was gazetted. In 1922, the first cool stores in New South Wales were constructed in the town. At the same time a railway was built from nearby

Tumut Tumut () is a town in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia, situated on the banks of the Tumut River. Tumut sits on the north-west foothills of the Snowy Mountains and is located on the traditional lands of the Wiradjuri, Wolgalu ...

. These developments facilitated the town's trade with Sydney and beyond. The district supplied troops with dehydrated fruit and vegetables during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Many Land Army Girls were stationed in and around Batlow during the Second World War and a sizeable collection of memorabilia is held at the Historical Society Museum. There are two Soldier Settlements close to Batlow, Willigobung and Kunama. On 4 January 2020 the town was damaged by fire during the

2019–20 Australian bushfire season The 201920 Australian bushfire season (Black Summer), was a period of bushfires in many parts of Australia, which, due to its unusual intensity, size, duration, and uncontrollable dimension, is considered a megafire. The Australian National ...

. In the town itself at least 17 homes were destroyed, as well as the old hospital and service station. Outlying properties were also affected with hundreds of apple trees "scorched".

Population

In the 2016 Census, there were 1,313 people in Batlow. 76.3% of people were born in Australia and 81.5% of people spoke only English at home. The most common responses for religion were No Religion 27.0%, Anglican 24.5% and Catholic 20.4%.

Climate and Geography

Batlow is located west of Canberra, though, by highway is approximately due to the Great Dividing Range between them. The nearest city is Wagga, whilst three towns:

in the northeast;

Adelong Adelong is a small town in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia, situated 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 popu ...

in the northwest; and

Tumbarumba Tumbarumba ( ) is a small town in New South Wales, Australia, about southwest of the state capital, Sydney. Tumbarumba is located on the periphery of the Riverina and South West Slopes regions at the western edge of the Snowy Mountains. The s ...

in the southwest, are within . The countryside around Batlow is a plateau of rolling hills, straddling in altitude. Being on the western edge of the Great Dividing Range, Batlow receives much of the precipitation that has not fallen farther west, an average of per year; chiefly in winter, with August at . Little or no precipitation is received from the Tasman Sea to the east, due to the large distances and the Great Dividing Range; instead, precipitation is mainly sourced from Northwest cloudbands and cold fronts originating in the west. The cold, often snowy winters, combined with the higher rainfall and good soils, make an excellent apple-growing climate. However, in 2006, Batlow experienced the most severe downturn in rainfall in New South Wales, receiving only of rain that year. The Bago Plateau, to the south of Batlow, has a cool and very wet climate owing to its great elevation.

Snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...

is frequent from June to September, and often falls heavily. The region is subject to prolonged cloud cover in winter. Climate data are sourced from Pilot Hill, at an altitude of .

Present day

Batlow is an agricultural town offering services and facilities to the surrounding area, including two primary schools and a high school, a library (with

telecentre A telecentre is a public place where people can access computers, the Internet, and other digital technologies that enable them to gather information, create, learn, and communicate with others while they develop essential digital skills. Telecent ...

), a hall and several stores and small businesses. The Batlow Fruit Co-operative, trading since 1922, (now the Batlow Fruit Co.) is based in the town. Batlow was the home of the 'Mountain Maid' cannery until its closure in the early 2000s. The steel frame of the WWII

Lend Lease Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, ...

constructed building used in the production of food for the allied troops was a landmark for many years until it was largely destroyed in the January 2020 bushfire. Batlow's economy turns around the production of apples for the fresh food market. Some revenue is also obtained from other agricultural exploitations and timber from the large soft and hardwood plantations. There is a strong influx of seasonal labour for the harvesting of fruit from March to April. A smaller influx occurs at thinning time in December. There are a number of producers of cherries, nuts, honey and eucalyptus oil products. Batlow is now the home to a truffery, a number of published authors, including British media personality Joshua Fox and novice film makers. The Bago State Forest between Batlow and Tumbarumba contains stands of alpine ash and radiata pine. Pilot Hill Arboretum (est. 1920s) and the Sugar Pine Walk- a beautiful avenue of Sugarpine resembling a cathedral. On the third Saturday of May each year the Batlow Ciderfest is held in the main street showcasing locally and regionally produced cider and regional food. Many interesting stalls also attend the family friendly Ciderfest event. The Ciderfest recently came second in the NSW Event awards after only beginning three years ago. On the Friday preceding a Cider Industry Conference is held. In the past two years a 'Living Food conference' has also been added to the CiderFest weekend. On the third Saturday of October the Apple Blossom Festival is held. This re-invigorated festival began in 1942 and the First Apple Blossom Queen was a Land army girl.

Politics

Batlow is in the

Snowy Valleys Council The Snowy Valleys Council is a local government area located in the South West Slopes region of New South Wales, Australia. This area was formed in 2016 from the merger of the Tumut Shire with the neighbouring Tumbarumba Shire. The council a ...

. Batlow was moved to the

bellwether A bellwether is a leader or an indicator of trends.bellwether
" ''Cambridge Dictionary''. Ret ...

federal

Division of Eden-Monaro The Division of Eden-Monaro is an Australian electoral division in the state of New South Wales. The previous member, Mike Kelly resigned due to ill health on 30 April 2020. The seat was filled at a by-election on 4 July 2020. Geography Si ...

for the 2007 federal election. With Batlow usually voting overwhelmingly conservative, the vote swung to the centre left

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms t ...

member Mike Kelly by 26%. Batlow is now in federal seat of Eden-Monaro.

References

External links

Batlow Apples

Picture of the Big Apple
c.1986 (

National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...

)
Snowy Valleys Council

Batlow Railway Station
{{Authority control Towns in New South Wales Australian soldier settlements 1855 establishments in Australia Snowy Valleys Council Mining towns in New South Wales