Inverell New South Wales | |||||||||
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Coordinates | 29°46′S151°07′E / 29.767°S 151.117°E | ||||||||
Population | 12,057 (2021 census) [1] | ||||||||
Established | 1856 | ||||||||
Postcode(s) | 2360 | ||||||||
Elevation | 582 m (1,909 ft) [2] | ||||||||
Location |
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LGA(s) | Inverell Shire | ||||||||
County | Gough | ||||||||
State electorate(s) | Northern Tablelands | ||||||||
Federal division(s) | New England | ||||||||
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Inverell is a large town in northern New South Wales, Australia, situated on the Macintyre River, close to the Queensland border. It is also the centre of Inverell Shire. Inverell is located on the Gwydir Highway on the western slopes of the Northern Tablelands. It has a temperate climate. In the 2021 census, the population of Inverell was 12,057 and the Inverell Shire population was 17,853. [1]
Prior to British colonisation, the Jukambal and Weraerai Aboriginal peoples lived in and occupied this region. [3] Around 1838, colonist Peter MacIntyre directed his employee, Alexander Campbell, to take up land in the area for his sheep and cattle. Campbell subsequently laid claim to a large section of pastureland along the Macintyre River, which he called 'Byron Plains' after Peter Byron, one of MacIntyre's stockmen. Campbell later staked out 50,000 acres for himself on the southern side of Byron Plains. He named his run 'Inverell', the word being of Gaelic origin, and signifies "meeting place of the swans"; from Inbhir, a confluence, and eala, a swan. [4] [3] In the initial years, the local Aboriginal people resisted this occupation by spearing MacIntyre's shepherds and taking his livestock. [5] [6]
Inverell is at the junction of the MacIntyre River and Swanbrook Creek and was also known as "Green Swamp" in the 1850s. Wheat growers, Colin and Rosanna Ross established a store there in 1853, [7] and it was proposed that a town be surveyed. In 1858, this was done and in the following years the plan was approved and the first land sale was held. Byron Post Office (open since 1855) was replaced by the Inverell Post Office on 15 September 1859. [8] The municipality was proclaimed in March 1872. [9] The last section of the Inverell branchline, from Delungra to Inverell, was opened on 10 March 1902. [10] The last train ran to Inverell on 22 June 1987, [10] and the Delungra to Inverell section of the line was closed on 2 December 1987. [10]
In 1871, the population of Inverell was 509, this increased to 1,212 in 1881. [11] After Federation, the population of Inverell was 1,230 in 1911, and grew to 6,530 (1947) and 8,209 (1961 census). [12] [13] [14]
The massacre of at least 28 Wirrayaraay people by European convicts and settlers took place at Myall Creek near Inverell on 10 June 1838 was notable in that it was one of the very rare cases in colonial Australia for which white people were subsequently executed for the murder of Indigenous people. [15] The crime became known as the Myall Creek Massacre. On 18 December 1838, seven men were publicly hanged at the Sydney Gaol for the atrocity.
Every year on the Sunday of the June long weekend, hundreds of people, both Indigenous and non-Indigenous, gather at the Myall Creek Massacre and Memorial Site to attend an annual memorial service. [15]
Diamonds were discovered at Copes Creek in 1875 and were mined at Copeton from 1883 to 1922. Commercial sapphire mining was commenced in 1919 at Frazers Creek near Inverell. Rich alluvial deposits in streams were worked initially by hand miners, but this ceased in the 1930s due to the economic effects of the Great Depression. There was little recorded production up until approximately 1960, when commercial sapphire mining resumed due to a worldwide sapphire shortage. During the 1970s there were over 100 active mining operations in the New England region, however this number declined significantly in the 1980s due to weakening demand and exhaustion of the previously rich alluvial sources. Currently there are only a small number of commercially active mines in the area. [16] [17]
Inverell has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
Year | Pop. | ±% |
---|---|---|
1921 | 4,369 | — |
1933 | 5,305 | +21.4% |
1947 | 6,530 | +23.1% |
1954 | 7,514 | +15.1% |
1961 | 8,209 | +9.2% |
1966 | 8,413 | +2.5% |
1971 | 9,712 | +15.4% |
1976 | 9,432 | −2.9% |
1981 | 9,734 | +3.2% |
1986 | 9,693 | −0.4% |
1991 | 9,736 | +0.4% |
1996 | 9,378 | −3.7% |
2001 | 9,525 | +1.6% |
2006 | 9,749 | +2.4% |
2011 | 9,347 | −4.1% |
2016 | 9,547 | +2.1% |
2021 | 9,654 | +1.1% |
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics data. [20] [21] |
According to the 2016 census of Population, there were 11,660 people in Inverell.
The Inverell district is in a fertile agricultural region which produces a wide range of crops, including wheat, barley, oats, sorghum, wine grapes and maize. There are also some mining activities with tin, sapphires, zircons and diamonds (mainly industrial) being found. [16] Inverell is known as the "Sapphire City" because of the sapphires that have been found throughout the local district, which contributed a significant amount of Australia's sapphire production in the 1970s. [22] [17]
Copeton Dam, the region's main water supply, was completed in 1976. [23] While being smaller than Sydney Harbour, it can hold nearly 2 times the capacity of Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour). [23] The Inland Fishing Festival is held there every year.
The Grafton to Inverell Cycle Classic is an annual one day cycling race. [24] Beginning in Grafton, passing through Glen Innes and finishing in Inverell, the Classic is a 230 km ride over the demanding Gibraltar Range. The race starts at 23 metres above sea level and climbs to 1260 metres, before finishing in Inverell at 630 metres. The race is six to seven hours long, depending on weather conditions. [25] Inverell is home to the Bruderhof, an Anabaptist community who share all their possessions. They run a publishing business. [26]
The National Transport Museum comprises more than 120 vehicle exhibits ranging from vintage, veteran, classic and motorcycles in a purpose-built structure on Rifle Range Road.
Inverell is the last place in Australia to have a Coles New World supermarket.[ citation needed ] It has resisted external pressure to rename the supermarket since the early 90s.[ citation needed ]
There are two primary schools in Inverell; Ross Hill School and Inverell Public School. The two local high schools are Inverell High School and Macintyre High School. Holy Trinity School is a Roman Catholic School in Inverell which caters for students from Kindergarten to Year Ten.
Inverell is served by Inverell Airport.
Inverell lies on the Gwydir Highway, one of the primary east–west routes through New South Wales. Thunderbolts Way terminates at Copes Creek, 16 km south of the Gwydir Highway intersection at Inverell. [27] [28]
Bus services in Inverell are provided by Inverell Bus Service, which operates two town loops, to the east and west. Interurban bus service is provided by Symes Coaches to Glen Innes.
NSW TrainLink operates three Coach services in and out of Inverell: between Moree and Grafton, between Inverell and Tamworth via Manilla and between Inverell and Armidale via Tingha. [29] [30]
The most popular sport in Inverell is Rugby league. The local team are the Inverell RSM Hawks, who compete in the Group 19, playing out of Varley Oval. The club has won six first grade titles in the competition and its predecessor, Group 5, with the last coming in 2016. The club has produced numerous National Rugby League players, including Owen Craigie and Phil and Chris Bailey.
Other sports teams include the Inverell Highlanders RUFC competing in the Central Northern Rugby Union, Inverell Saints AFC competing in AFL North West NSW and Inverell FC competing in the Northern Inland Football.
Inverell, like most of the North West Slopes features a textbook subtropical climate with a marked summer peak in rainfall. The town is located on the boundary region between the cool, wet Northern Tablelands of the Great Dividing Range and the hot, dry plains of western New South Wales, having climate characteristics of both regions.
The highest maximum temperature recorded at Inverell was 43.7 °C (110.7 °F) on 4 January 1903 at the Inverell Comparison site. [31] The lowest maximum temperature for any of the Inverell weather sites was 3.0 °C (37.4 °F) on 3 July 1984 at Inverell Research Centre. [32] In September 1892, the town had its biggest snowfall, with 4 to 5 inches (10 to 13 cm) falling. [33] On 5 August 1923, snow fell in parts of the Inverell district. [34]
Climate data for Inverell Research Centre (1949–2020); 664 m AMSL; 29.78° S, 151.08° E | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 41.1 (106.0) | 41.3 (106.3) | 35.7 (96.3) | 32.1 (89.8) | 27.4 (81.3) | 25.6 (78.1) | 23.0 (73.4) | 31.9 (89.4) | 32.1 (89.8) | 36.2 (97.2) | 39.2 (102.6) | 41.5 (106.7) | 41.5 (106.7) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 29.7 (85.5) | 28.9 (84.0) | 27.1 (80.8) | 23.6 (74.5) | 19.3 (66.7) | 15.8 (60.4) | 15.2 (59.4) | 16.7 (62.1) | 20.0 (68.0) | 23.2 (73.8) | 26.0 (78.8) | 28.4 (83.1) | 22.8 (73.1) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 16.4 (61.5) | 16.3 (61.3) | 14.5 (58.1) | 11.0 (51.8) | 7.5 (45.5) | 4.9 (40.8) | 3.6 (38.5) | 4.4 (39.9) | 7.0 (44.6) | 10.3 (50.5) | 12.8 (55.0) | 15.1 (59.2) | 10.3 (50.6) |
Record low °C (°F) | 6.5 (43.7) | 6.2 (43.2) | 3.4 (38.1) | −0.3 (31.5) | −3.5 (25.7) | −5.5 (22.1) | −5.0 (23.0) | −4.3 (24.3) | −2.0 (28.4) | −1.0 (30.2) | 2.7 (36.9) | 5.7 (42.3) | −5.5 (22.1) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 99.1 (3.90) | 93.9 (3.70) | 69.8 (2.75) | 40.2 (1.58) | 47.9 (1.89) | 45.5 (1.79) | 47.9 (1.89) | 44.4 (1.75) | 48.3 (1.90) | 75.8 (2.98) | 87.0 (3.43) | 98.9 (3.89) | 800.6 (31.52) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2mm) | 9.8 | 8.4 | 6.9 | 5.6 | 6.0 | 7.0 | 7.3 | 6.6 | 6.6 | 9.2 | 9.3 | 9.9 | 92.6 |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 279.0 | 245.8 | 260.4 | 237.0 | 201.5 | 180.0 | 195.3 | 248.0 | 258.0 | 279.0 | 267.0 | 279.0 | 2,930 |
Source: [35] |
Climate data for Inverell Comparison (1874–1997); 584 m AMSL; 29.78° S, 151.11° E | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 43.7 (110.7) | 41.7 (107.1) | 41.1 (106.0) | 33.9 (93.0) | 29.4 (84.9) | 25.6 (78.1) | 24.2 (75.6) | 29.4 (84.9) | 32.8 (91.0) | 36.7 (98.1) | 39.4 (102.9) | 41.9 (107.4) | 43.7 (110.7) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 30.6 (87.1) | 29.8 (85.6) | 27.8 (82.0) | 24.1 (75.4) | 19.7 (67.5) | 16.2 (61.2) | 15.3 (59.5) | 17.2 (63.0) | 20.5 (68.9) | 24.0 (75.2) | 27.4 (81.3) | 29.7 (85.5) | 23.5 (74.4) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 15.3 (59.5) | 14.8 (58.6) | 12.4 (54.3) | 7.8 (46.0) | 3.7 (38.7) | 1.2 (34.2) | −0.2 (31.6) | 0.5 (32.9) | 3.5 (38.3) | 7.6 (45.7) | 11.1 (52.0) | 13.8 (56.8) | 7.6 (45.7) |
Record low °C (°F) | 2.8 (37.0) | 2.2 (36.0) | 1.5 (34.7) | −4.3 (24.3) | −7.5 (18.5) | −10.0 (14.0) | −10.6 (12.9) | −9.4 (15.1) | −7.2 (19.0) | −6.7 (19.9) | −1.7 (28.9) | 1.5 (34.7) | −10.6 (12.9) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 98.7 (3.89) | 83.4 (3.28) | 65.1 (2.56) | 43.3 (1.70) | 47.9 (1.89) | 49.7 (1.96) | 50.8 (2.00) | 44.4 (1.75) | 48.5 (1.91) | 67.7 (2.67) | 73.9 (2.91) | 90.6 (3.57) | 765.8 (30.15) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.2mm) | 8.7 | 7.5 | 6.6 | 5.2 | 5.7 | 6.7 | 7.0 | 6.6 | 6.4 | 7.9 | 8.0 | 8.6 | 84.9 |
Average afternoon relative humidity (%) | 42 | 45 | 45 | 45 | 49 | 51 | 48 | 41 | 39 | 39 | 37 | 38 | 43 |
Source: Australian Bureau of Meteorology; Inverell Comparison |
Over the years, Inverell has had three weather stations run by government astronomers (prior to 1908) or the Bureau of Meteorology (after 1908), or both. [36] These stations are:
Notable people from or who have lived in Inverell include:
Grafton is a city in the Northern Rivers region of the Australian state of New South Wales. It is located on the Clarence River, on a floodplain, approximately 608 kilometres (378 mi) by road north-northeast of the state capital Sydney.
New England is a geographical region in the north of the state of New South Wales, Australia, about 60 km (37 mi) inland from the Tasman Sea. The area includes the Northern Tablelands and the North West Slopes regions. As of 2021, New England had a population of 185,560, with over a quarter of the people living in the area of Tamworth Regional Council.
Moree is a town in Moree Plains Shire in northern New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the banks of the Mehi River, in the centre of the rich black-soil plains. Newell and Gwydir highways intersect at the town. It can also be reached from Sydney by daily train and air services.
Gwydir Highway is a 568-kilometre (353 mi) state highway in northern New South Wales, Australia. The highway was named after the Gwydir River, which in turn was named after a locale in Wales.
Bingara is a small town on the Gwydir River in Murchison County in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. Bingara is currently the administrative centre for the Gwydir Shire that was created in 2003. The Gwydir River being a main highlight of the town is a main catchment of the Murray-Darling System.
Glen Innes is a parish and town on the Northern Tablelands, in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the centre of the Glen Innes Severn Shire Council. The town is located at the intersection of the New England Highway and the Gwydir Highway. At the 2016 census, Glen Innes had a population of 6,155.
Ashford is a small village situated in the north-west on the Northern Tablelands of the state of New South Wales. The New England rural village of Ashford lies within the broad sunlit lands 748 km north of Sydney, 500 km south west of Brisbane, close to the Queensland border. Ashford is 430 metres above sea level and located 56 km north of Inverell on a major arterial road, connecting the Gwydir and Bruxner highways through to the Queensland border.
Warialda is a town in the North West Slopes region of New South Wales, Australia, in Gwydir Shire. It is situated on the banks of Warialda Creek. At the 2011 census, Warialda had a population of 1,120.
Gwydir Shire is a local government area located in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. The northern boundary of the Shire is located adjacent to the border between New South Wales and Queensland.
Quirindi is a small town on the North West Slopes region of New South Wales, Australia, in Liverpool Plains Shire. At the 2021 census, Quirindi had a population of 2,602. It is the nearest link to Gunnedah to the northwest and Tamworth to the north. The local economy is based on agriculture, with broadacre farming dominant on the black soil plains to the west and livestock grazing in the hilly eastern part of the district.
Tingha is a small town on the Northern Tablelands, New South Wales, Australia in Inverell Shire. Formerly part of Armidale Region, on 1 July 2019, responsibility for Tingha was transferred from Armidale Regional Council to Inverell Shire Council. The town is 30 kilometres (19 mi) south of Inverell and 559 kilometres (347 mi) north-north-east of Sydney. Tingha is an Aboriginal word for "flat or level".
Guyra is a town situated midway between Armidale and Glen Innes on the Northern Tablelands in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. It is within Armidale Regional Council and at the 2021 census, it had a population of 2,077.
Inverell Shire is a local government area in the North West Slopes region of New South Wales, Australia adjacent to the Macintyre River and the Gwydir Highway.
Dorrigo, a small town on the Waterfall Way, is located on the Northern Tablelands, in northern New South Wales, Australia. The town is part of Bellingen local government area.
The New England Group 19 Rugby League competition is a Rugby league competition which is run under the auspices of the NSWRL, which absorbed the NSWCRL in 2019. It is based in the New England region. It was originally called the Group 5 Rugby League Premiership but that competition merged with another local competition to form New England Group 19. The competition is generally played on Sundays throughout the winter months, with strong local rivalries as well as inter – town rivalries.
The Inverell railway line is a closed railway line in New South Wales, Australia. The line branches from the Mungindi line at Moree and travels in an easterly direction through the town of Gravesend then Warialda Rail, gradually increasing in elevation through Delungra towards the terminus at Inverell. An initial estimate of its intended length was 96 miles 35 chains (155.2 km). The line opened in February 1900 as far as Gravesend, then more of the line in 1901 before the Gwydir River bridge was finally finished and the line completed in 1902. It was progressively closed between 1987 and 1994. Currently a 5 km (3.1 mi) section at the Moree end remains in use as a siding for the storage of railway wagons. On 8 August 2016, The NSW Government announced that a 2.8km section of the railway would be reinstated to allow grain to be sent by rail, as part of the Fixing Country Rail pilot round. Up to $2 million was allocated for the project.
Biniguy is a village in Moree Plains Shire of New South Wales in Australia. At the 2016 census, the village and surrounding area had a population of 147. The village is located on the Gwydir Highway approximately 40 km (25 mi) from Moree, the main service centre for the region and 645 km (401 mi) by road from the state capital Sydney. The village is prone to seasonal flooding; in February 2012 the entire village was evacuated by helicopter to Moree
Myall Creek is a rural locality split between the local government areas of Inverell Shire and the Gwydir Shire in New South Wales, Australia. In the 2021 census, Myall Creek had a population of 27.
Copeton is a small rural locality in the Gwydir Shire and Inverell Shire of New South Wales, Australia.
Peter MacIntyre, sometimes referred to as Peter McIntyre, was a Scottish born colonist of New South Wales. He is credited as being one of the main pioneers of British colonisation in the Upper Hunter and New England regions.
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