Nerriga is a small village in the

Southern Tablelands The Southern Tablelands is a Regions of New South Wales, geographic area of New South Wales, Australia, located south-west of Sydney and west of the Great Dividing Range. The area is characterised by Plateau, high, flat country which has gene ...

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 ...

in Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council. It is situated at the edge of

Morton National Park The Morton National Park is a national park located in the Southern Highlands, South Coast and Illawarra regions of New South Wales, Australia, situated approximately south southwest of Sydney. Location and features The most notable attractio ...

, on the Braidwood -

Nowra Nowra is a city in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. It is located south-southwest of the state capital of Sydney (about as the crow flies). As of the 2021 census, Nowra has an estimated population of 22,584. Situated in th ...

road. The population of Nerriga and the surrounding localities at the was 72.

History

In 1828, grazier George Galbraith was listed as the owner of some of land on the

Endrick River Endrick River is a perennial river of the Shoalhaven catchment located in the Southern Tablelands region of New South Wales, Australia. Location and features Endrick River rises below Quiltys Mountain on the western slopes of the Budawang Range ...

, to the east of the current village. This property was then known as "Narriga". The name "Nerriga" was first recorded by surveyor

Robert Hoddle Robert Hoddle (21 April 1794 – 24 October 1881) was a surveyor and artist. He is best known as the surveyor general of the Port Phillip District (later known as the Australian state of Victoria) from 1837 to 1853, especially for creation of ...

on an 1828 expedition of the

Shoalhaven River The Shoalhaven River is a perennial river that rises from the Southern Tablelands and flows into an open mature wave dominated barrier estuary near Nowra on the South Coast of New South Wales, Australia. Location and features The Shoalhaven ...

. Following Galbraith's death in 1837, his land holdings were subsequently auctioned. Galbraith's holding was purchased by another settler, John Mackenzie, who had been granted land near Nerriga in 1836. In 1840,

James Larmer James Larmer (b. 1808 or 1809 – d. 1886) was a government surveyor in the colony of New South Wales. Between 1830 and 1859, he surveyed land, roads and settlements in New South Wales. He was an Assistant Surveyor to the Surveyor-General, Sir Th ...

surveyed a village site and a route over the mountains from Nerriga to Vincentia. It was intended that this pass, known as

The Wool Road The Wool Road (also later known as 'The Old Wool Road') was a historic road in New South Wales, Australia, that ran from Nerriga to what is now called Vincentia on Jervis Bay. It was constructed privately in 1841, using convict labour. Its purpo ...

would allow movement of agricultural produce to a port on

Jervis Bay Jervis Bay () is a oceanic bay and village on the south coast of New South Wales, Australia, said to possess the whitest sand in the world. A area of land around the southern headland of the bay is a territory of the Commonwealth of Australia ...

from the Braidwood and

Goulburn Goulburn ( ) is a regional city in the Southern Tablelands of the Australian state of New South Wales, approximately south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Canberra. It was proclaimed as Australia's first inland city through letters pate ...

districts. The road was completed in 1841, a distance of approximately at an estimated cost of £997. In 1842, the existing road linking Nerriga to Braidwood was substantially upgraded. Both projects utilised convict labour under the command of Nerriga landowner John Mackenzie. The discovery of

alluvial Alluvium (from Latin ''alluvius'', from ''alluere'' 'to wash against') is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluv ...

gold on the Shoalhaven River in 1851 led to increased interest in the area around Nerriga, and the town began to grow, with the Commercial Hotel opening for business some time around 1864. The building still stands today, but is now known as the Bark Tree Hotel. Records show that between 1878–1901, the peak of production in the area, some of gold were produced from the Nerriga Mining Division. Some quartz reefs were also worked in the area, however the yields from these activities were not significant. Prospecting on a large scale continued through to the 1960s. Nerriga had a state school from 1868 to 1917 and from 1928 to 1975. It was generally described as a "public school", but sometimes as "provisional" or "half-time." In October 2010, a substantial upgrade of the road between Nerriga and

was completed by the

Roads & Traffic Authority The Roads & Traffic Authority (RTA) was an agency of the New South Wales Government responsible for major road infrastructure, licensing of drivers, and registration of motor vehicles. The RTA directly managed state roads and provided fundin ...

, the Commonwealth Department of Infrastructure and Transport and the

Shoalhaven City Council The City of Shoalhaven is a local government area in the south-eastern coastal region of New South Wales, Australia. The area is about south of Sydney. The Princes Highway passes through the area, and the South Coast railway line traverses t ...

, providing high quality, sealed all-weather road access for the community. A community celebration was held to mark the completion of the upgrade. In December 2019, the Currowan and Tianjara fires destroyed properties around Nerriga. The Nerriga Pub provided shelter for residents evacuated from their homes in the surrounding communities after thick smoke forced them to move from the community hall. Local residents continued to hose down the building for several hours to protect it from burning embers until volunteers from the

New South Wales Rural Fire Service The New South Wales Rural Fire Service (NSW RFS) is a volunteer-based firefighting agency and statutory body of the Government of New South Wales. The NSW RFS is responsible for fire protection to approximately 95% of the land area of New South ...

arrived.

References

{{authority control Towns in New South Wales Southern Tablelands Queanbeyan–Palerang Regional Council Mining towns in New South Wales