Ganmain is a town in the

Riverina The Riverina is an agricultural region of south-western New South Wales, Australia. The Riverina is distinguished from other Australian regions by the combination of flat plains, warm to hot climate and an ample supply of water for irrigation ...

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 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 ...

. Ganmain is located around north west of

Wagga Wagga Wagga Wagga (; informally called Wagga) is a major regional city in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, with an urban population of more than 56,000 as of June 2018, Wagga Wagga is the state's la ...

, and east of

Narrandera Narrandera ( ) until around 1949 also spelled "Narandera", is a town located in the Riverina region of southern New South Wales, Australia. The town lies on the junction of the Newell and Sturt highways, adjacent to the Murrumbidgee River, and ...

. Ganmain is in the

Coolamon Shire Coolamon Shire is a local government area in the Riverina region of south-western New South Wales, Australia. The Shire comprises and is located adjacent to the Newell Highway and the Burley Griffin Way. The Shire includes the towns of Coolamo ...

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a State (administrative division), state, province, divi ...

and had a population at the

2016 census Sixteen or 16 may refer to: *16 (number), the natural number following 15 and preceding 17 *one of the years 16 BC, AD 16, 1916, 2016 Films * ''Pathinaaru'' or ''Sixteen'', a 2010 Tamil film * ''Sixteen'' (1943 film), a 1943 Argentine film dir ...

of 779.

History

The town name is said to be an

Aboriginal Aborigine, aborigine or aboriginal may refer to: *Aborigines (mythology), in Roman mythology * Indigenous peoples, general term for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area *One of several groups of indigenous peoples, see ...

word meaning "Crown scenes on the Moon for tribal reasons" or "native decorated with scars". Ganmain takes its name from Ganmain Run, a cattle station established in 1838, by settler James Devlin. Boggy Creek Post Office opened on 10 December 1888, was renamed Derry in 1894 and Ganmain later the same year. In 1973, the Ganmain Historical Society was opened by six local families.

Today

Ganmain is the self-proclaimed "Sheaf Hay centre of Australia"Sheaf Hay Centre
Ganmain and has produced

chaff Chaff (; ) is the dry, scaly protective casing of the seeds of cereal grains or similar fine, dry, scaly plant material (such as scaly parts of flowers or finely chopped straw). Chaff is indigestible by humans, but livestock can eat it. In agri ...

for many leading racehorse trainers in Australia. The Big Haystack in Pioneer Park reflects this background. The town has two primary schools, Ganmain Public School and St. Brendan's Catholic Primary School.

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

is the most popular sport with the local team, Ganmain-

Grong Grong Grong Grong is a small town that is located in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. The town is situated on the Newell Highway, east of Narrandera in the Shire of Narrandera. The name ''Grong Grong'' is an Aboriginal term mean ...

Matong Matong is a town in the central east part of the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. The town is east of Narrandera and west of Coolamon. At the 2016 census, Matong had a population of 164 people. Sport The most popular sport in ...

playing in the

Riverina Football Netball League The Riverina Football Netball League (RFNL) is an Australian rules football and netball competition containing nine clubs based in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. The league features three grades in the Australian rules footbal ...

Sport

The most popular sport in Ganmain is

, as it lies in the narrow 'canola belt', a geographical triangle stretching from Grong Grong and

Marrar, New South Wales Marrar is a town in the central east part of the Riverina region of New South Wales. Australia. The town is situated about west of Old Junee and north of Downside. At the 2016 census, Marrar had a population of 368. Marrar Post Office opened ...

at either end of the

Canola Way Close-up of canola blooms Canola flower Rapeseed oil is one of the oldest known vegetable oils. There are both edible and industrial forms produced from rapeseed, the seed of several cultivars of the plant family Brassicaceae. Historically, i ...

, to

Ungarie Ungarie is a town in New South Wales, Australia which is the second major town of the Bland Shire, located in the Central West region of New South Wales. It is located west of Sydney and north of Melbourne, between the towns of West Wyalong ...

, , in which Australian football retains a strong following, despite

being a largely rugby league supporting state. The town's team competes in the

Riverina Football League The Riverina Football Netball League (RFNL) is an Australian rules football and netball competition containing nine clubs based in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. The league features three grades in the Australian rules footbal ...

Notable people from Ganmain

* Former Catholic

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

of the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn is a Latin Rite archdiocese located in the Australian Capital Territory, and the South West Slopes, Southern Tablelands, Monaro and the South Coast regions of New South Wales, Australia. ...

Francis Carroll Francis Patrick Carroll (born 9 September 1930), a retired Australian archbishop, was the fifth Roman Catholic Archbishop of CanberraGoulburn, serving between 1983 until his retirement in 2006. Prior to his election as archbishop, Carroll ser ...

. * Former

Sydney Swans The Sydney Swans are a professional Australian rules football club based in Sydney, New South Wales. The men's team competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), and the women's team in the AFL Women's (AFLW). The Swans also field a reser ...

Australian rules footballer,

Dennis Carroll Dennis Carroll (born 7 November 1960) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Sydney Swans in the Victorian Football League (VFL). He was the last South Melbourne player to retire for Sydney. From Ganmain, a small town o ...

and North Melbourne's

Frank Gumbleton Frank Gumbleton (born 6 March 1951) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the North Melbourne Football Club in the Victorian Football League during the 1970s. Gumbleton was recruited from the country NSW football club of Gan ...

External links

Travelmate
- Ganmain. Tourist information site.

- Official website. Ganmain page.

References

{{authority control Towns in the Riverina Coolamon Shire