Yarrabin (formerly known as Merrendee) is a

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near the junction of the Meroo and Cudgegong rivers in the New South Wales Orana Region. The village of Merrendee was established after the discovery of gold in that area around 1851 and was located approximately 23 miles west of

Mudgee Mudgee is a town in the Central West (New South Wales), Central West of New South Wales, Australia. It is in the broad fertile Cudgegong River valley north-west of Sydney and is the largest town in the Mid-Western Regional Council Local gover ...

. The locality was renamed Yarrabin by postal authorities in 1923.

History

Gold was discovered by European settlers at Merrendee in approximately August 1851. By August 1857 a correspondent for ''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...

'' described how "bark and comfortable slab huts ad takenthe place of calico tents, and a little village adsprung up". This early account of Merrendee describes the village as being made up of "an excellent building ... being erected for a public house, and Mr. F. B. Gulley's new store, a neat pine building with verandah, fitted out quite in the Sydney style ...

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... a very neat and substantial slab store". The first General Publicans' License in Merrendee was issued for "the house situated at Merindee ic in the district of Avisford, to be known as the Cricketers Arms". The license was granted to Joseph Cox and transferred to a Mr. Jones in May 1863. Other licensed establishments in the town included Richard Knight's "Merrendee Inn" (c1858) and Robert Forbes Milne's "Royal George Inn" (c1858). By 1904 the only public house in the town was Herbert Francis McGrath's "Merrendee Hotel". McGrath conducted the hotel from July 1904 until its closure in 1923 "as a result of the decree of heLicenses Reduction Board". The Australian tennis champion

Vivian McGrath Vivian Erzerum Bede McGrath (17 February 1916 – 9 April 1978) was a tennis champion from Australia. Along with John Bromwich, he was one of the early great players to use a two-handed backhand. His name was pronounced "McGraw". Biography ...

, son of Herbert and Florence McGrath, was born at the "Merrendee Hotel" in 1916. A post office was established at Merrendee in July 1859. By 1908 the ''Mudgee Guardian'' reported that "Merrendee of to-day, with its paucity of population, its deserted appearance, abandoned shafts, grassless paddocks, its monotony and general activity, presents a striking contrast to the Merrendee of about fifty years ago". By 1927 there were only 12 pupils enrolled at the Merrendee Provisional School "and as a rule an average daily attendance of 9 pupils and over". The school was first referred to as Yarrabin Public School in 1925. The school closed in November 1963. A church operated in Yarrabin until at least 1947.

References

{{authority control Towns in New South Wales Ghost towns in New South Wales Mining towns in New South Wales