View of Wallabadah races, New Year's day - Wallabadah, NSW, n

Wallabadah is a town and locality in the

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...

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. The town is located 55 kilometres south of Tamworth on the

New England Highway New England Highway is an long highway in Australia running from Yarraman, north of Toowoomba, Queensland at its northern end to Hexham at Newcastle, New South Wales at its southern end. It is part of Australia's National Highway system, an ...

and is in the

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 ...

. At the , Wallabadah had a population of 382.

History

The Wallabadah region was originally known as "Thalababuri" by the

Kamilaroi The Gamilaraay, also known as Gomeroi, Kamilaroi, Kamillaroi and other variations, are an Aboriginal Australian people whose lands extend from New South Wales to southern Queensland. They form one of the four largest Indigenous nations in Aust ...

Aboriginal people. Wallabadah's name was derived from an aboriginal word meaning "stone". The first European squatters arrived in the region in about 1830 and Wallabadah Station was established in 1835 on of land. During the 1850s the settlement began to develop at the intersection of two mail coach runs which came from the north and northwest, and Wallabadah Post Office opened on 1 October 1856. In August 1866

Captain Thunderbolt Frederick Wordsworth Ward (1835 – 25 May 1870), better known by the self-styled pseudonym of Captain Thunderbolt, was an Australian bushranger renowned for escaping from Cockatoo Island, and also for his reputation as the "gentleman bushra ...

's third daughter, Mary Ann was born at Wallabadah. On 30 May 1867 he robbed the northern mail coach at Wallabadah. Thunderbolt also worked on a property west of Wallabadah during that period. Australia's first country racing club was established at Wallabadah in 1852 and the Wallabadah Cup is still held on New Year's Day (the current racecourse was built in 1898). The

Marshall MacMahon Marie Edme Patrice Maurice de MacMahon, marquis de MacMahon, duc de Magenta (; 13 June 1808 – 17 October 1893) was a French general and politician, with the distinction of Marshal of France. He served as Chief of State of France from 1873 to 1 ...

Hotel was constructed circa 1867 and a part of it is still in use. In 1877 Wallabadah was larger than Quirindi, 15 kilometres away, but a rail connection to Quirindi reduced Wallabadah's expansion. A public school was opened in 1867 with the residence dating from 1898. In 1896 the Anglican Church of the Ascension (with 1912 additions) was established while the Catholic Church was constructed in 1910 on the New England Highway. Agriculture is the dominant industry in the area with livestock, especially beef cattle and some sheep being reared there. Wallabadah now has a primary school, a pub and one shop.

Attractions

In 2005, the First Fleet Garden, a memorial to the First Fleet immigrants was created on the banks of

Quirindi Quirindi ( or ) is a small town on the North West Slopes region of New South Wales, Australia, in Liverpool Plains Shire. At the , Quirindi had a population of 3,444. It is the nearest link to Gunnedah to the west and Tamworth to the north. ...

Creek. Stonemason, Ray Collins, carved 1,520 names of all those who came out to Australia on the eleven ships in 1788 on tablets along the garden pathways. The stories of those who arrived on the ships, their life, and first encounters with the Australian country are presented throughout the garden. The surrounding area has a barbecue, tables, and amenities. Near the historic Wallabadah Cemetery is one of the largest undisturbed whitebox woodlands remaining in Australia, along with the indigenous trees and grasses that are peculiar to these woodlands.SMH: Travel
Retrieved 2010-8-28

References

External links

Wallabadah

Cemetery inscriptions
{{authority control Towns in New England (New South Wales) Liverpool Plains Shire

History

Attractions

See also

References

External links