Gunnedah
Gunnedah (30°58′S 150°15′E / 30.967°S 150.250°E) is a town and Local Government Area (LGA) in north-western New South Wales, Australia. LGA population is 12287 (2004), of which around 8000 people live within the town of Gunnedah itself. Other villages within the LGA include Breeza, Carroll, Curlewis, Mullaley and Tambar Springs.
The Gunnedah Shire LGA is situated 264 metres above sea level on the Liverpool Plains in the Namoi River valley. It is very flat; the tallest hills are 400 to 500 metres above sea level. The climate is hot in summer, mild in winter and dry, although rainstorms in catchment areas occasionally cause flooding of the Namoi River. Major floods cut transport links to the town, briefly isolating it from the outside world. The Gunnedah area is noted for its abundance of native wildlife, including kangaroos, echidnas and koalas. Gunnedah is considered the World's Koala capital and Koalas are found in trees within the town, as well as in the surrounding countryside with the help of signs placed by the local tourist centre.
Gunnedah and the surrounding areas were originally inhabited by the Kamilaroi tribe. The town was settled by Europeans in 1834.
Gunnedah is located on the Oxley and Kamilaroi Highways providing road links to the state capital Sydney (440 km) and the nearest regional centre Tamworth (70 km). It is also linked to Sydney by rail. Local media include the Namoi Valley Independent newspaper and the radio stations 2MO and 2GGG. 2MO claims to be the first station established in Australia outside the capital cities.
The major industry is agriculture, with 80% of the shire area devoted to farming. Gunnedah's primary exports are cotton, coal, beef, lamb and pork, and cereal and oilseed grains. Gunnedah is also home to AgQuip, Australia's largest annual exhibition of agricultural equipment.
Dorothea Mackellar wrote her famous poem My Country (popularly known as I love a Sunburnt Country) about her family's farm near Gunnedah. This is remembered by the annual Dorothea Mackellar Poetry Awards for school students held in Gunnedah.
The town is served by the daily Countrylink Xplorer service between Sydney and Moree.
External links
| Countrylink North Western | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Werris Creek | ↔ | Gunnedah | ↔ | Boggabri |
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