Quirindi ( or ) is a small town on the North West Slopes 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, in

Liverpool Plains Shire Liverpool Plains Shire is a local government area located in the North West Slopes region of New South Wales, Australia. The Shire was formed on 17 March 2004 by the amalgamation of Quirindi Shire with parts of Parry, Murrurundi and Gunnedah sh ...

. At the , Quirindi had a population of 3,444. It is the nearest link to Gunnedah to the west and Tamworth to the north. The local economy is based on agriculture, with

broadacre Broadacre in Australia is land suitable for farms practicing large-scale crop operations. The key crop segments in this category are as follows: * oilseeds - canola, sunflowers * winter and summer cereals - wheat, barley, oats, triticale, sorghum ...

farming dominant on the black soil plains to the west and livestock grazing in the hilly eastern part of the district. The town is on the

Kamilaroi Highway Kamilaroi Highway is a state highway located in the north-western region of New South Wales, Australia, and links via and to . The highway is named after the Kamilaroi Indigenous Australian people who live in the area. Route The highway be ...

northwest of its junction with the New England Highway at Willow Tree.

History

The indigenous Gamilaroi people lived in the area for many thousands of years. The name Quirindi comes from the Gamilaraay language, with a number of meanings having been attributed it, which include "nest in the hills", "place where fish breed" and "dead tree on mountain top". Early spellings of the name included "Cuerindi" and "Kuwherindi". Quirindi Post Office opened on 1 January 1858. The town was gazetted on 19 February 1884.

Heritage listings

Quirindi has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * Main Northern railway:

Quirindi railway station Quirindi railway station is a heritage-listed railway station located on the Main Northern line in Quirindi in the Liverpool Plains Shire local government area of New South Wales, Australia. The station serves the town of Quirindi and opened o ...

Climate

Sport

Quirindi sporting facilities include several sporting ovals catering for athletics, cricket (Falcons), Rugby League (Quirindi Grasshoppers), Rugby Union (Quirindi Lions), soccer (Qurindi Football Club- QFC formed in 2011), basketball and netball. Other sporting complexes include the racecourse, polo grounds,

rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working va ...

campdrafting Campdrafting is a unique Australian sport involving a horse and rider working cattle. The riding style is Australian stock, somewhat akin to American Western riding and the event is similar to the American stock horse events such as cutting, w ...

, a 9-hole golf course, two tennis clubs, three bowling greens, gun club and swimming complex.

Local Teams/Events

* Quirindi Falcons Cricket Club * Quirindi Lions RUFC * Quirindi Lions FC (Soccer) One major issue faced by Quirindi's sporting scene was the demise of the local rugby league club, the Quirindi Grasshoppers, who have been in recess since 2017 after years of financial problems. This has left the town without a team in its most popular sport, and forces local players to either travel to play for Murrurundi or

Werris Creek Werris Creek is a small town in New South Wales, Australia, near Tamworth, New South Wales, Tamworth, in Liverpool Plains Shire. It is north of Quirindi, New South Wales, Quirindi and is at the junction of the Main North railway line, New South ...

, or give up the game they love entirely. Quirindi Jockey Club plays host to seven race meetings each year including the Boxing Day Races which attracts thousands of people each year. A motorcycle club is located north-east of Quirindi on the Borah Creek Road, with a motorcross track named Stu Johnson Park.

Quirindi annual events

* Quirindi Rural Heritage Festival- 1st weekend in May * Quirindi Show- September * Boxing Day Races- December * Prime Stock Show / Hook and Hoof- August *

ANZAC Day , image = Dawn service gnangarra 03.jpg , caption = Anzac Day Dawn Service at Kings Park, Western Australia, 25 April 2009, 94th anniversary. , observedby = Australia Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Cook Islands New ...

Services- Dawn Service and Day time Service 25 April * Nick Tooth Memorial Rugby Tens Tournament * Sunflowers on the Plains - January

Surrounding towns

is north of Quirindi, following the path of the explorer Thomas Mitchell.

Wallabadah Wallabadah is a town and locality in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. The town is located 55 kilometres south of Tamworth on the New England Highway and is in the Liverpool Plains Shire. At the , Wallabadah had a population ...

is located east of Quirindi on the New England Highway. Spring Ridge is about west of Quirindi.

Transport

is located on the Main North railway line, from Sydney. The station opened in 1877,Quirindi Railway Station
NSWrail.net. Retrieved 1 April 2008. and continues to be served by daily rail services operated by a

NSW TrainLink NSW TrainLink is a train and coach operator in Australia, providing services throughout New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, along with limited interstate services into Victoria, Queensland and South Australia. Its primary interc ...

Xplorer train to and from

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

and Armidale/ Moree. Quirindi Airport is the local airfield, though most commercial flights in the region use

Tamworth Regional Airport Tamworth Airport is a regional airport serving Tamworth, a city in the Australian state of New South Wales. It is located from the town centre, on New Winton Road. The airport is owned and operated by the Tamworth Regional Council and is li ...

Notable people

Ellen Savage Ellen Savage, GM (17 October 1912 – 25 April 1985) was an Australian army nurse (AANS) and hospital matron from Quirindi, New South Wales. Savage was the only nurse to survive the sinking of the hospital ship '' Centaur'' off the Queenslan ...

, sole surviving nurse from the sinking of the ''AHS Centaur'', advocate for career nursing * Sir John Oscar Cramer, Australian politician and founding member of Liberal Party * Ben Smith, former Parramatta Eels NRL player * Andy Saunders, former NRL player for Canterbury Bulldogs *

Tony Windsor Antony Harold Curties Windsor, (born 2 September 1950) is a former Australian politician. Windsor was an independent member for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly seat of Tamworth from 1991 to 2001 − supporting the incumbent Greiner L ...

, politician

References

External links

{{authority control Towns in New South Wales North West Slopes Liverpool Plains Shire