Conargo is a town in the Riverina 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. The town is in the

Edward River Council The Edward River Council is a local government area in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. This area was formed in 2016 from the merger of the Deniliquin Council with the surrounding Conargo Shire. The combined area covers the u ...

local government area. It is on

Billabong Creek The Billabong Creek, a partly perennial stream of the Murray River catchment within the Murray-Darling basin, is located in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. At (with some estimates ranging up to ), Billabong Creek is belie ...

, a

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

of the

Edward River Edward River, or Kyalite River, an anabranch of the Murray River and part of the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the western Riverina region of south western New South Wales, Australia. The river rises at Picnic Point east of Mathoura, a ...

. The nearest towns are Jerilderie and Deniliquin. At the

2006 census 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

, Conargo had a population of 188 people. The Aboriginal name for the locality of Conargo was 'Gooriara', meaning "hopping" or "kangaroo ground". The actual town itself is quite small, with only a

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

, a

convenience store A convenience store, convenience shop, corner store or corner shop is a small retail business that stocks a range of everyday items such as coffee, groceries, snack foods, confectionery, soft drinks, ice creams, tobacco products, lottery ticket ...

that sells fuel and a small number of houses. There are five nearby villages – Blighty,

Mayrung Mayrung is a community in the central part of the Riverina about 45 kilometres east of Pretty Pine and 35 kilometres north-east of Deniliquin. The Wiradjuri The Wiradjuri people (; ) are a group of Aboriginal Australian people ...

, Pretty Pine, Wanganella and Booroorban. The surrounding rural area consists of large

sheep Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus ''Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated s ...

stations Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...

, including some Merino studs.

History

In 1859 William McKenzie opened the Conargo Inn there (named after the nearby "Conargo" pastoral run). A township at Conargo was laid out in 1860 by the surveyor McCulloch. During 1865 another hotel was built at the village – the Riverine Hotel (publican James McKeys). At about the same time the Conargo Inn, together with , was sold for £1,857 to T. Robertson. Conargo Post Office opened on 1 September 1864 and closed in 1988. In 1866 Conargo was reported as having a population of thirty persons, with a post-office, a store, and two hotels. In 1867 the Billabong Hotel was added to Conargo's hotels (with David Rogers as its first publican). In 1869 the Baker brothers built a store there. In 1872 Conargo was described as a small village with a store and three hotels. In February 1878 a correspondent to the ''Town and Country Journal'' said: "Conargo... was once – according to tradition – intended to be a town, which attempt finally diminished to a total failure". The writer added that the proprietor of the only store in the village had recently died after "a long and continued illness". Of the three hotels it was claimed the Conargo Hotel was the "better house", doing "a great deal more business than the other two combined". The Conargo Public School opened in 1879. Conargo Pub sticker on Ute

The Conargo Pub was destroyed by fire on 11 November 2014.Conargo Pub consumed by fire
The Daily Advertiser 11 November 2014

References

External links

Conargo Shire Council website
{{authority control Towns in the Riverina Towns in New South Wales

History

See also

References

External links