Pambula is a town in

Bega Valley Shire The Bega Valley Shire is a Local government in Australia, local government area located adjacent to the South Coast, New South Wales, south-eastern coastline of New South Wales, Australia. The Shire was formed in 1981 with the amalgamation of t ...

on the far south coast 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 ...

south of Sydney via the

Princes Highway Princes Highway is a major road in Australia, extending from Sydney via Melbourne to Adelaide through the states of New South Wales, Victoria (Australia), Victoria and South Australia. It has a length of (along Highway 1) or via the former ...

. At the , Pambula had a population of 970 people.

History

The area was populated by the

Thaua The Thaua/Thawa, also spelt (also spelled Dhawa) and also called Yuin-Djuin, were an Aboriginal Australian people living around the Twofold Bay area of the South Coast of New South Wales. Language Thawa is an extinct member of the Yuin–Ku ...

Aboriginal people, with shell middens dating back 3000 years. The name Pambula is derived from its Dharwa name, pronounced "panboola", meaning 'twin waters'. In 1797, the European voyager George Bass explored the area. Pambula is a historic village with its first European settlers thought to have been the

Imlay brothers Alexander Imlay (1794 or 1800? – 31 March 1847) was a Scottish-born pioneer settler in southern New South Wales. Alexander and his brothers George (1794?-1846), and Peter (1797–1881) operated in the region as pastoralists, whalers and ship ...

who established cattle runs on the Pambula River flats in the 1830s. The village of Pambula situated on the flats near the river was planned in 1843 by surveyor Townsend and the first school and churches were built there, but frequent flooding led to the village being relocated to its present site on higher ground. Captain John Lloyd, RN, acquired land in 1844 with his severance pay when he left the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

, and built ''The Grange'' on the hill near the river. At about that time he invited the family of

Syms Covington Syms Covington (1816–1861) was a fiddler and cabin boy on HMS ''Beagle'' who became an assistant to Charles Darwin and was appointed as his personal servant in 1833, continuing in Darwin's service after the voyage until 1839. Originally named ...

to move there. Covington had joined the second survey expedition of HMS ''Beagle'' as a fiddler and

cabin boy ''Cabin Boy'' is a 1994 American fantasy comedy film, directed by Adam Resnick and co-produced by Tim Burton, which starred comedian Chris Elliott. Elliott co-wrote the film with Resnick. Both Elliott and Resnick worked for '' Late Night with Dav ...

. He became an assistant and manservant to

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...

during the voyage and for a few years afterwards before emigrating to Australia. In 1854 he became Postmaster of Pambula, and managed an inn called the ''Forest Oak Inn'' which still stands at a bend on the coast road. The main land uses were grazing and agriculture, and tented accommodation on stock routes was replaced by slab and bark huts, then by more permanent buildings providing homes, housing, smithies, and hotels. Pambula had five licensed hotels by 1856 and the foundation stone for the courthouse was laid in 1860. Pambula was proclaimed a town in 1885. In 1888, gold was discovered and villages grew up around the mines at nearby

Yowaka River Yowaka River, a perennial river of the Pambula River catchment, is located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. Course and features Yowaka River rises on the eastern slopes of the Bold Granite Range, southeast of Wyndham a ...

and Pipeclay Creek. This created a boom in the town, but in the early 20th century production of gold ceased and the prosperity of the town went into a decline. William McKell, Premier of New South Wales from 1941-1947 and Governor-General of Australia from 1947-1953, was born in Pambula in 1891. Pambula continued to be the dominant town of the district, providing facilities which came to include commercial premises, banks, courthouse, hospital, newspaper, and a school of arts. Agriculture developed on the river flats, producing prize crops of maize and potatoes, and a dairying industry became established. Timber felling was carried out in the surrounding forests, and oyster farming was developed in the river.

Heritage listings

Pambula has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * Princes Highway: Oaklands *Princes Highway: Roan Horse Inn * Northview Drive: The Historic Grange * 42 Toallo St: Pambula Courthouse & Police Station

Facilities

Pambula is situated approximately south of

Merimbula Merimbula is a town on the Merimbula Lake, located on the Far South Coast or Sapphire Coast of New South Wales, Australia. At the , the population was 3,544. The population within 10 km of the Merimbula Post office is over 18,000 people. ...

and has its own hospital, a small supermarket, a community bank, and a primary school. The nearest secondary school is a private secondary school in nearby Pambula Beach. The nearest public secondary schools are in Bega and Eden.

Attractions

Panboola, the Pambula wetlands heritage project, is located between the south edge of town and the Pambula River. Panboola contains fresh water billabongs, saline areas around the former racecourse, saltmarsh and mangroves, plantings of thousands of trees, shrubs and ground covers, walking and cycle tracks and tables and seats. Pambula is a significant producer of oysters.

Sport

Pambula has a local cricket team, the Pambula Bluedogs. Their home ground is located at the Pambula Recreation oval in the town's centre. The Pambula Sporting Complex is the home ground for the Pambula Panthers Australian Football Club. This club was formed in 1983. The ground is also the home ground for the newly created soccer club, Pambula United Football Club, also known as The Penguins. Located in between Pambula and Merimbula is the 27 hole course Merimbula Golf Club.

References

{{authority control Towns in New South Wales Towns in the South Coast (New South Wales) Bega Valley Shire