Conargo

Conargo
New South Wales
The "famed" Conargo Pub praised by the Ute Muster sub-culture
Conargo is located in New South Wales
Conargo
Conargo
Coordinates35°19′S 145°09′E / 35.317°S 145.150°E / -35.317; 145.150
Population117 (2006 census)[1]
Postcode(s)2710
Elevation95 m (312 ft)
Location
LGA(s)Edward River Council
CountyTownsend
State electorate(s)Murray
Federal division(s)Farrer

Conargo /kɒˈnɑːrɡoʊ/ is a town in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. The town is in the Edward River Council local government area. It is on Billabong Creek, a tributary of the Edward River. The nearest towns are Jerilderie and Deniliquin. At the 2006 census, Conargo had a population of 117 people.[1]

The Aboriginal name for the locality of Conargo was 'Gooriara', meaning "hopping" or "kangaroo ground".[3]

The actual town itself is quite small, with only a pub, a convenience store that sells fuel and a small number of houses. There are five nearby villages – Blighty, Mayrung, Pretty Pine, Wanganella and Booroorban.[4]

The surrounding rural area consists of large sheep stations, including some Merino studs.

History

In 1859 William McKenzie opened the Conargo Inn there (named after the nearby "Conargo" pastoral run). A township at Conargo was laid out in 1860 by the surveyor McCulloch. During 1865 another hotel was built at the village – the Riverine Hotel (publican James McKeys). At about the same time the Conargo Inn, together with 320 acres (1.3 km2), was sold for £1,857 to T. Robertson. Conargo Post Office opened on 1 September 1864 and closed in 1988.[5] In 1866 Conargo was reported as having a population of thirty persons, with a post-office, a store, and two hotels.  In 1867 the Billabong Hotel was added to Conargo's hotels (with David Rogers as its first publican). In 1869 the Baker brothers built a store there. In 1872 Conargo was described as a small village with a store and three hotels.[6]

In February 1878 a correspondent to the Town and Country Journal said: "Conargo... was once – according to tradition – intended to be a town, which attempt finally diminished to a total failure". The writer added that the proprietor of the only store in the village had recently died after "a long and continued illness". Of the three hotels it was claimed the Conargo Hotel was the "better house", doing "a great deal more business than the other two combined".[7]

The Conargo Public School opened in 1879.[8]

A "Conargo Pub" sticker on the back window of a Holden Commodore Ute

The Conargo Pub was destroyed by fire on 11 November 2014.[9] It was re-opened in October 2022. [10]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Conargo (State Suburb)". 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 13 August 2023. Edit this at Wikidata
  2. ^ Travelmate Archived 24 March 2007 at the Wayback Machine[dead link‍]
  3. ^ "Conargo". Geographical Names Register (GNR) of NSW. Geographical Names Board of New South Wales. Edit this at Wikidata
  4. ^ Conargo.nsw.gov.au Archived 5 February 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ Phoenix Auctions History, Post Office List, retrieved 7 March 2021
  6. ^ 'The Western Riverina: A History of Its Development' by James Jervis (Royal Australian Historical Society Journal and Proceedings Vol. XXXVIII 1952), p. 142; Listings of Publicans Licences, New South Wales Government Gazettes.
  7. ^ Town and Country Journal, 2 March 1878, p. 422.
  8. ^ "Notice Board". Trove. Australian Women's Weekly. 28 March 1979. p. 82. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
  9. ^ Conargo Pub consumed by fire The Daily Advertiser 11 November 2014
  10. ^ Piccione, Tim. "Conargo Hotel to re-open over October Long Weekend for Deni Ute Muster". The Daily Advitiser. The Daily Advitiser. Retrieved 13 August 2023.

Media related to Conargo at Wikimedia Commons