Woolbrook is a village 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 nearest town, Walcha is 29 km to the east of Woolbrook. At the , Woolbrook had a population of 248. The village straddles the Macdonald River which is in the headwater of the

Namoi River The Namoi River, a major perennial river that is part of the Barwon catchment of the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the Northern Tablelands and North West Slopes districts of New South Wales, Australia. The Namoi River rises on the west ...

. Woolbrook village is located in

Tamworth Regional Council Tamworth Regional Council is a local government area in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. The area under administration is located adjacent to the New England Highway and the Main North railway line. It was established in Ma ...

local government area, it is close to the

Oxley Highway Oxley Highway is a rural highway in New South Wales, Australia, linking Nevertire, Gilgandra, Coonabarabran, Tamworth, and Walcha to Port Macquarie, on the coast of the Tasman Sea. It was named to commemorate John Oxley, the first European t ...

a few kilometres east of the junction between the Oxley Highway and 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 ...

. Other parts of the Woolbrook area are within the

Walcha Shire Walcha Shire is a local government area located in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. The Shire is situated adjacent to the junction of the Oxley Highway and Thunderbolts Way and is east of the Main North railway line passi ...

local government area.

History

In 1836 Robert Rodd settled on the land known as Surveyor's Creek Run an area of that then covered the area of the future villages of Woolbrook and Walcha Road. Amos Brothers erected the MacDonald River Private Hospital in 1879 to tend the men employed during the railway construction. The railway from Sydney to Woolbrook and onto

Uralla Uralla is a town on the Northern Tablelands, New South Wales, Australia. The town is located at the intersection of the New England Highway and Thunderbolts Way, north of Sydney and about south west of the city of Armidale, New South Wales, Arm ...

was completed in 1882. Norm, Don and Geoff Goodwin, started the Goodwin Brothers sawmill there in c.1950. It was sold several times after Don died and finally closed in 2004. ''Macdonald River'' Post Office opened on 1 December 1889 and was renamed ''Woolbrook'' in 1891 and closed in 1990. A bakery was in operation at Woolbrook until around 1998. A Weather Bureau site was opened in 1958 and is now monitored by the Watson family. Remaining is a public school with about 20 pupils, a store, the AIF Memorial Hall and St John's church which was built in 1929. The main industry in the area is sheep and beef cattle breeding. The population is now 220 persons, usually resident in the Woolbrook area. On 28 and 29 November 2008, Woolbrook received torrential rain that caused severe flooding in the Macdonald River and led to the area being declared a natural disaster area. Woolbrook hosts the annual Woolbrook Stampede each Easter. The horse sports include campdrafting, plus other sporting and novelty events. Woolbrook Spring Fair is held in October with draught horse events, goat racing, dog trials and other entertainment. The Macdonald River is a popular swimming and fishing spot and there are picnic facilities.

Climate

Woolbrook has the typical cool winter, mild to warm summer climate of the

Northern Tablelands The Northern Tablelands, also known as the New England Tableland, is a plateau and a region of the Great Dividing Range in northern New South Wales, Australia. It includes the New England Range, the narrow highlands area of the New England regio ...

. Although due to the towns location in a deep valley, it records some of the coldest temperatures in the region, and sometimes even in the whole of Australia during the winter months. Woolbrook is fairly sunny, recording 118 clear days on a yearly basis. On 19 June 1994, a temperature of −14.5 °C (5.9 °F) was recorded in the town, the coldest temperature observed anywhere in Australia outside of the

Australian Alps The Australian Alps is a mountain range in southeast Australia. It comprises an interim Australian bioregion,0042-5184 However, the moth has also been a biovector of arsenic, transporting it from lowland feeding sites over long distances int ...

Notable people from Woolbrook

Barnaby Joyce Barnaby Thomas Gerard Joyce (born 17 April 1967) is an Australian politician who served as the 17th deputy prime minister of Australia under Malcolm Turnbull from 2016 to 2018 and under Scott Morrison from 2021 to 2022. He was the leader of the ...

, an Australian politician, grew up at Woolbrook and attended the school there until he was 11.

Heritage listings

The heritage-listed sites in Woolbrook are: * Woolbrook rail bridge over Macdonald River

Woolbrook railway station

Woolbrook station was opened on 2 August 1882 as Macdonald River. On 30 October 1891 it was renamed Woolbrook and closed at an unknown date in the late 1990s/2000s. The nearest current station is Walcha Road. Woolbrook Railway

References

External links

Inscription List for Woolbrook General Cemetery
{{authority control Towns in New South Wales Towns in New England (New South Wales) Walcha Shire Tamworth Regional Council Railway stations opened in 1882