Wingen is a village in the

Upper Hunter Shire The Upper Hunter Shire is a local government area in the Upper Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. The Shire was formed in May 2004 from the Scone Shire and parts of Murrurundi and Merriwa shires. The Mayor of the Upper Hunter Sh ...

, in the

Hunter Region The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, is a region of New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River and its tributaries with highland areas to the north and so ...

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 ...

. Situated 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 ...

, it lies about 15 minutes from the town of

Scone A scone is a baked good, usually made of either wheat or oatmeal with baking powder as a leavening agent, and baked on sheet pans. A scone is often slightly sweetened and occasionally glazed with egg wash. The scone is a basic component of th ...

. It is known for the local ''

Burning Mountain Burning Mountain, the common name for Mount Wingen, is a hill near Wingen, New South Wales, Australia, approximately north of Sydney just off the New England Highway. It takes its name from a smouldering coal seam running underground through ...

'' tourist attraction, a burning underground coal seam. Wingen has a population of just several hundred people. Its few businesses include an antique store and a pub. The town is known for the ''Burning Mountain'', which according to scientists is the world's oldest known coal fire, and has been burning for approximately 6,000 years. Explorers in the 19th century mistook its smoking summit for a volcano. In fact the name Wingen comes from the local Aboriginal language, and means "fire". The ''Wingen Maid'' is a rock formation in the local Wingen Maid Nature Reserve which resembles a woman when viewed from a particular direction. A now-demolished railway station on the Main North railway line operated between 1871 and 1975.Wingen station
NSWrail.net, accessed 15 September 2009.

Heritage listings

Wingen has a number of heritage-listed sites, including: * Raglan Street: Mountain House, Wingen

References

External links

''Sydney Morning Herald'' article on Wingen and the Burning Mountain

Wingen Maid Nature Reserve
{{authority control Suburbs of Upper Hunter Shire Towns in the Hunter Region Main North railway line, New South Wales