Small service town on Thunderbolt Highway.
Bundarra is a tiny rural settlement on the Thunderbolt Highway between Armidale and Inverell. It is one of those towns that it is easy to pass through without really noticing that it has some interesting historic buildings and that Copeton Dam, which is 43 km away, is a magnet during the summer months. For birdlovers the region is home to the critically endangered Regent Honeyeater which can be found in the ironbark trees in the district.
Location
Bundarra is located 582 km north of Sydney and 378 km south-west of Brisbane on the road between Armidale (88 km to the south-east) and Inverell (44 km to the north). It is 700 metres above sea level.
^ TOPOrigin of Name
Bundarra is a Kamilaroi word for the grey kangaroo.
^ TOPThings to See and Do
Police Station and Court House
The most interesting historic buildings in town are the police station and residence (c. 1879) with a stables/garage on the corner of Oliver Street and Bendemeer Street. It features a stone-flagged veranda, a hipped roof and flat brick arches over the window heads. It is listed on the Register of the National Estate.
Court House
There is a museum in the Court House. It houses an interesting display of local memorabilia and the surrounding complex now includes the Mount Drummond School which has been moved to the site. It has been furnished in the style of an old school room and contains an interesting photographic display of the local area.
Bottle Museum
Known as the Gallery of Glass and located at 18 Bendemeer Street, this former Baptist church now has a collection of over 6,000 bottles as well as Aboriginal pipes and artefacts. The church was built in 1959.
Commercial Hotel
Located at 16 Bendemeer Street and built in 1861, the Commercial Hotel is heritage listed. It was once visited by Captain Thunderbolt. In recent times it has been upgraded and today it offers pub meals and accommodation.
Gwydir River
The banks of the Gwydir River in the town are an ideal place to stop and relax. As well the river is a noted breeding ground for freshwater fish species such as cod, redfin, yellow belly, catfish, silver perch and bass. It is also possible to see platypus in the river particularly around dawn and dusk.
Other Attractions in the Area
Copeton Dam
Located 43 km to the north-west of town is Copeton Dam and Copeton Waters State Park, the 900 ha recreational and adventure playground. There are camp and caravan sites, a kiosk and general store, an amenities block, cabins, fuel sales, boat hire, a six-hole golf course, tennis courts, sailing, windsurfing, power boating, water skiing, fishing (for cod, yellowbelly, silver perch, catfish and redfin), walking tracks, two adventure playgrounds, waterslides and plenty of wildlife. Tel: (02) 6723 6269 or http://www.copeton.com.au. The Gwydir River runs between the lake and Bundarra where it passes right through the town. It is a popular fishing destination.
Rumbling Mountain (George’s Mount)
Located directly east of Bundarra (although it is 115 km by road) is a rocky scrub-covered hill that occasionally rumbles. The Kamilaroi Aboriginal people have a legend that a Kamilaroi elder fought a huge kangaroo in a battle that lasted for a very long time. Finally they became tired and rested for a time of many months and then restarted the battle. The rumbling is the angry voice of the tribal elder and the thumping and shaking is caused by the kangaroo beating his massive tail on the ground.
Mount Yarrowyck Nature Reserve and Rock Art Site
Located 49 km south of the town along Thunderbolt's Way is the Nature Reserve which preserves the traditional lands of the Anaiwan people. The reserve was created in 1983. It is 589 ha. There is a small signpost pointing towards the gravel road which leads to a car park and picnic area where there are boards pointing out the highlights of a 3 km loop walk to an Aboriginal rock art site in a small shelter on the south-western slopes of Mt Yarrowyck. On a rock surface are some red ochre paintings which are dominated by bird track motifs. There are also stick figures and other geometric shapes. It is an information cave telling other Aboriginal groups what type of food was available in the area. For more information check out http://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/visit-a-park/parks/mount-yarrowyck-nature-reserve and http://www.visitnsw.com/destinations/country-nsw/armidale-area/uralla/attractions/mount-yarrowyck-nature-reserve.
History
* Prior to the arrival of Europeans the area was inhabited by people from the Kamilaroi and Anaiwan language groups.
* The explorer Alexander Cunningham passed through the district in 1827.
* In 1836 Edward G Clerk and John Rankin took up land which he called Bundarra Station.
* In 1837 William Smith took up land which he called Laura.
* By the late 1830s John Cameron ahd taken up land which he called Lochiel. He sold the property in 1841 by which time it was known as Abington.
* Mrs Clerk established a hotel and store.
* The town was surveyed in the 1850s.
* In May 1868 the bushranger known as Thunderbolt (Fred Ward) stole two quality horses from the stables at Abington station, near Bundarra. They belonged to police inspector Brown and a trooper who were then staying at the station.
* The first church was built in 1857.
* By the 1860s the town had two police officers.
* In the 1870s Bundarra became a staging post for Cobb & Co.
* Around 1879 the Court House and Police Station were built.
* In 1881 the Bundarra Bridge across the Gwydir River was opened.
* In the late 1880s copper was discovered in the area.
* A hospital was opened in the town in 1911.
* The Court House closed in 1967.
* In 1978 Fred Schepisi used the town as a location in his film The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith.
* The Police Station operated until 1980.
^ TOPVisitor Information
There is no Visitor Information in Bundarra. The closest is the Uralla Visitor Information Centre, 104 Bridge Street, Uralla, tel: (02) 6778 6420.
^ TOPUseful Websites
A good overview is provided at http://uralla.com/bundarra-63.html and there is also an excellent community website - https://www.bundarra.info.
^ TOP
Camping Grounds? Apart from Copeton which is mentioned here.
Can anyone help? This site doesn’t record available accommodation. Why? Because there are over 28,000 places in Australia. Can you imagine how many change every day?
Their is camping at the Lions park south of town 1km on right. Their are also a caravan park across the road from the pub, and the pub has accommodation
The Lions Park on the southern approach to Bundarra has free camping, and there is a caravan park in Court St Bundarra near the hotel. The hotel also has rooms to let.
Does anyone remember a family named Browning? He died in 1973. His wife died in 2016, I think.
Yes Doreen Browning’s family still live in Bundarra.
Please visit Bide-A-Wee Farm Cooking, 58 Muirhead St Bundarra.
At Bide-A-Wee we grow, cook and bottle all our own home grown fruit and vegetables. Jams, Pickles, chutneys and sauces. Free-range farm eggs available when plentiful.
Hi, i will be looking to come to Bundarra probably next year as my relatives in the O’Connor family come from there my great grandmother lived on a property called “Goose Neck’ which i am hoping is still there. My grandfather Ern (known locally as “Mo” and his brothers all played Rugby League / Union for Bundarra in the 1920-30’s and good to see they won the comp this year. My father Brian was also born there. Any info or handy hints for visiting Bundarra and surrounding areas welcome ! Looks like a nice quiet country town that i could spend a few days at, probably around the time of the annual race meeting.
Hi, I will be looking to come to Bundarra probably next year as my relatives in the O’Connor family come from there. My great grandmother lived on a property called “Goose Neck’ which I am hoping is still there. My grandfather Ern (known locally as “Mo” and his brothers all played Rugby League / Union for Bundarra in the 1920-30’s and good to see they won the comp this year. My father Brian was also born there. Any info or handy hints for visiting Bundarra and surrounding areas welcome! Looks like a nice quiet country town that I could spend a few days at, probably around the time of the annual race meeting.
Marion (née HOWARD born in Inverell) married James PARSON – their place was near Bundarra. CSIRO scientist from Bundarra – Mena K ABDULLAH (co-author with poet Ray MATHEW of A&R published short stories – 1960s) The Time of the Peacock. Any information pertaining to these names?
Who now owns the Commercial Bank?
Viv Sigley: The old bank is owned and occupied by Ronnie Webber. It’s not for sale. 🙂
Does anyone have any knowledge of the Vercoe family who lived at Bundarra in the 1870’s. I think they would have worked on one of the local properties.
A family member was involved in transporting the Megaethon tractor from Sydney to Bundarra so perhaps he worked for the Clerk family. I would also be interested to know if there is a Charles Vercoe (died at Inverell hospital in 1878) buried at the local cemetery.
Grateful for any advice – paul.vercoe@gmail.com
Paul Vercoe: NSW BDM does not show the death of any person with the surname Vercoe in that time period. I have also checked FamilySearch and can find no data there either. A cursory online check of available data for Bundarra Cenetery shows no hits for that name.
I’ve been doing genealogy intensely for about two years and have quite good search skills, so it’s unlikely that he was buried here.
Looking to travel from Barraba to Bundarra.
How is the road sealed unsealed? Partly sealed? Rugged?
I’ve visited Bundarra on a number of occasions, as lots of my Baker Family relatives lived there and worked on Laura Station. My great Grandfather David Duncomb Baker, his son Daniel Racraft Baker & Wife Mary Ann Duncomb, and the many relatives that were to follow, all contributed to the building of this lovely little town. Most worked on the great property Laura Station, which became very well known for its cattle and wool. I stayed on the fantastic portion of this station ‘Colorado’, loving every minute of my time there, though I sure wish I had known more about the ‘ Amazing Baker History’ at the time. It began in 1790 when my 3X Great Grandfather William Baker – came to Australia as a ‘Convict’ on the ‘ Horrible ‘ Hell ‘Ship Neptune – Second Fleet, a ‘Gentleman’ who worked hard after his pardon, acquiring many portions of land in the Windsor & Wollombi Regions.
My great great grandmother was Mary Ann’s sister, she is on dads side but my great great grandparents on mums side also lived in the area, grgorton@yahoo.com.au
I can’t find the opening days/hours of the museum at the courthouse in Bundarra NSW.
Bundarra Court House and Police Station
The Court House Museum houses an interesting display of local
memorabilia and the surrounding complex now includes the historic
Mount Drummond School which has been moved to the site. It has
been furnished in the style of an old school room and contains a great
photographic display of the local area. Another historic building in town
is the police station and residence (c.1879) with stables/garage on the
corner of Oliver and Bendemeer Streets. It features a stone-flagged
verandah, a hipped roof and flat brick arches over the window heads
and is also heritage listed.
Cost: $5pp
To visit, contact (allow some advance warning if possible):
Jenny Dezius 6723 7205 Mob 0427 237 205
Jean Jurd 0475 382 340
No history on the copper mine – why?
An oversight which will be corrected.
I am interested to know if there were descendents of John and Maria Leverett still going strong in Bundarra. They lived there in the 1850s
I believe there was a timber mill there back in the 50’s or so does anyone remember it.