Numeralla
Location
It is 400 km from Sydney and 23km east of Cooma, the nearest regional town. It is near the confluence of Numeralla River (until 1972 known as the Umaralla River) and Big Badja River. It lies on the road from Cooma to Braidwood.
History
Aboriginal and early settler history
The area later known as Numeralla lies within the traditional lands of Ngarigo people.
Colonial settlers came into the district in the 1840s. By 1850, the area was part of a large squatter's run called 'Numarella'. Other settlers came as gold miners in the 1850s and 1860s.
It was reported in 1892 that there were just two of the 'Monaro tribe' (Ngarigo) remaining in the Monaro region. It is now believed some Ngarigo people survived colonisation by leaving the district, some merging with clans around Bega and Bermagui.
Gold mining
Alluvial gold was found on the Numeralla River in 1858 and on the Big Badja river in 1861. In 1866, diggings extended for three miles along the Numeralla River. By 1868, only a few miners remained. Alluvial mining returned to the area between 1892 and 1897, using hydraulic mining.
Village
The site for a village was gazetted on 16 July 1863. It was proclaimed a village for a second time, in 1885, as a consequence of the Crown Lands Act 1884. Originally named Umaralla, it was renamed Numeralla in 1972.
Numeralla has had a post office since 1863. The village's public school, which opened in 1877, only closed at the end of 2015.
After mining, the rich river flats were used for some years to grow potatoes for the Monaro and Canberra markets.
Present day
Numeralla has a public hall (Numeralla Digger's Memorial Hall, also known as Numeralla Hall), a Catholic church (All Saint's), an Anglican church (St John's) and a cemetery to the north of the village.
Folk festival
The Numeralla Folk Festival usually takes place on the weekend closest to Australia Day each year. It is a free event. The last festival was in 2019, as it was cancelled in 2020–22 due to the Black Summer bushfires and the COVID-19 pandemic in New South Wales.
References
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022). "Numeralla (suburb and locality)". Australian Census 2021 QuickStats. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
- ^ "Numeralla". Geographical Names Board. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
- ^ "Numeralla". OpenStreetMap. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
- ^ "2016 Census QuickStats: Numeralla". quickstats.censusdata.abs.gov.au. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
- ^ "Map of the village of Umaralla and suburban lands [cartographic material]: Parishes of Umaralla and Undoo, County of Beresford, Land District of Cooma, Monaro Shire : within Eastern Division, N.S.W. ..." Trove. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
- ^ "Numeralla and District Activities Inc". www.numeralla.org.au. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
- ^ "GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES ACT, 1966". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales (Sydney, NSW : 1901 - 2001). 28 April 1972. p. 1505. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
- ^ Studies, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (28 July 2023). "Map of Indigenous Australia". aiatsis.gov.au. Retrieved 27 August 2023.
- ^ Plowman, Suzannah (September 2007). "Cooma-Monaro Shire – Thematic History 1823-1945". Victoria Design & Management Pty Ltd. p. 22. Archived from the original on 28 May 2020.
- ^ Plowman, Suzannah (September 2007). "Thematic History 1823 – 1945, Cooma-Monaro Shire, New South Wales". Victoria Design & Management Pty Ltd. p. 13. Archived from the original on 28 May 2020.
- ^ Plowman, Suzannah (September 2007). "Thematic History 1823 – 1945, Cooma-Monaro Shire, New South Wales". Victoria Design & Management Pty Ltd. p. 6. Archived from the original on 28 May 2020.
- ^ "SITE FOR A VILLAGE". New South Wales Government Gazette (Sydney, NSW : 1832 - 1900). 16 July 1863. p. 1535. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
- ^ "Government Gazette Proclamations and Legislation". New South Wales Government Gazette (Sydney, NSW : 1832 - 1900). 20 March 1885. p. 1853. Retrieved 18 December 2020.
- ^ "The closure of public schools in New South Wales" (PDF). Select Committee on the Closure of Public Schools in New South Wales. October 2015. p. 5.
- ^ "Numeralla". nswgovschoolhistory.cese.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
- ^ "Numeralla Hall, McLean Street, Numeralla". Eventfinda. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
- ^ "All Saints', Numeralla". The Catholic Archdiocese of Canberra & Goulburn. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
- ^ Design, UBC Web. "St John's Anglican Church | Churches Australia". www.churchesaustralia.org. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
- ^ "Australian Cemeteries Index - Cemetery 1920 - Numeralla". austcemindex.com. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
- ^ "Numeralla Cemetery". www.australiancemeteries.com.au. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
- ^ Steve. "Numeralla Folk Festival - The little festival with the big heart". Numeralla Folk Festival. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
- ^ Proust, Keira; Doak, Emily (12 January 2022). "COVID-19 puts future of live music in doubt as more events are cancelled, but hope is left for some". ABC South East NSW. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 12 January 2022.