Murwillumbah

Murwillumbah (/mərˈwɪləmbɑː/ mər-WIL-əm-bah) is a town in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia, in the Tweed Shire, on the Tweed River. Sitting on the south eastern foothills of the McPherson Range in the Tweed Volcano valley, Murwillumbah is 848 km north-east of Sydney, 13 km south of the Queensland border and 132 km south of Brisbane.

Murwillumbah
New South Wales
Partial view of town and Tweed River, 2008
Murwillumbah is located in New South Wales
Murwillumbah
Murwillumbah
Coordinates28°19′39″S 153°23′45″E
Population9,245 (2016 census)[1]
Postcode(s)2484
Elevation8 m (26 ft)
Location
LGA(s)Tweed Shire
CountyRous
State electorate(s)Lismore
Federal division(s)Richmond
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall
25.8 °C
78 °F		 14.4 °C
58 °F		 1,570.1 mm
61.8 in
Localities around Murwillumbah:
Nobbys Creek Kynnumboon Tygalgah
North Arm Murwillumbah South Murwillumbah
Eungella Byangum
Bray Park		 Dunbible

The town's name is often abbreviated to M'bah[2] or Murbah.[3] At the 2016 census, Murwillumbah had a population of 9,245.[1] Many of the buildings are Art Deco in style and there are cafes, clothes shops and antique shops in the town.

History
Main street, c. 1905

The first people to live in the area were Kalibai people. The name Murwillumbah may derive from an Aboriginal compound meaning either "camping place" – from murrie, meaning "aboriginal people", wolli, "a camp", and bah, "place" – or alternatively from murra, "big", willum, "possum", and bah.[4] Nearby Mount Warning and its attendant national park are known as Wollumbin, meaning "Cloud Catcher", in the Bundjalung language.

Timber-getters were drawn to the region in the 1840s.[5] The river port at Tumbulgum was initially the main settlement. In 1902, a local government municipality was declared with Murwillumbah as its centre.[5]

Most of the town's business district was destroyed by fire in 1907.[6]

In 1918 an initial 18 allotments were advertised for sale in the Hartigan Estate and a subsequent 200 allotments were advertised for sale in September 1920.[7][8] The land was bounded by the Tweed River and Commercial Road on the east, Condong Street on the north, Riverview Street on the west and Elizabeth Street to the south.[9] The subdivision was sold as part of the estate of Denis Hartigan.[7] In December 1923, "Bray Estate" made up of 9 farm and farmlet blocks was advertised to be auctioned by A. E. Budd & Son.[10][11]

Murwillumbah was the location of Australia's largest-ever[12] bank robbery, when A$1.7 million in cash was stolen from the vault of the Bank of New South Wales by the 'Magnetic drill gang' in 1978. The case remains unsolved.[13]

Floods

Murwillumbah is protected by a series of levees,[14] but they do not protect all parts of the town in major floods. The worst inundation, exceeding those of 1954,[14] 1956,[6] 1974, 2008 and 2009, started on 30 March 2017. The Tweed River reached 6.2 metres (20 ft) after rainfall of over 700 millimetres (28 in) from the remnants of Tropical Cyclone Debbie fell in its upper catchment over a 36 hour period. There was extensive and severe flooding, with mass evacuations from South Murwillumbah and other low-lying areas, and road access cut from both north and south. It fell just short of overtopping the 6.3 metres (21 ft) levees protecting the central business district.

The March 1974 flood caused two hundred people to be evacuated from the town after floodwater from Tropical Cyclone Zoe inundated the area.[15] In January 2008, Murwillumbah and its surrounding areas were hit by severe flooding,[16] while May 2009 saw more evacuations in the town and surrounds after very heavy rainfall.[17] Major flooding also occurred in 2022.[18] The 2022 floods were the worst seen on record. Even worse than 2017, much of Murwillumbah was inundated.

Heritage listings

Murwillumbah has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

Transport
Murwillumbah sign

The Pacific Highway passed through South Murwillumbah, but the town was completely bypassed when the 27 kilometre dual carriageway Yelgun to Chinderah upgrade was opened in August 2002. The pre-existing highway, now significantly quieter, was renamed The Tweed Valley Way, and is the main means of access to Murwillumbah from both north and south.

A road leading north west, a scenic tourist drive, heads along the Numinbah Valley through the towns of Chillingham, Numinbah and Natural Bridge. A road south west of the town heads to Kyogle via the town of Uki, passing near to Nimbin en route.

Murwillumbah railway station was the terminus of the Casino–Murwillumbah branch line, and had daily services to Sydney until the line closed in 2004. Today NSW TrainLink coaches to and from Casino provide connections to Sydney, while the station itself is used as a tourist information centre.

Several bus services serve the area. Murwillumbah Bus Company offers regular services to major parts of the town, as well as Condong and Uki. Parson's Bus Service links passengers with Pottsville, Cabarita Beach, and Stokers Siding. Gosel's Bus Service offers services to Nimbin via Uki. Singh's Bus Service links the town to Chillingham, Tyalgum and Eungella. Kinetic Group operate hourly service to Tweed Heads via Terranora.

Murwillumbah's airfield, Whittle Field (ICAO code YMUR), is named after a noted local World War II Spitfire pilot, the late Bob Whittle.[20][21] There are no scheduled flights, but its 800-metre grass runway supports Murwillumbah Aero Club and business activities including crop-dusting, aircraft restoration, training and scenic charter flights.

Industry

Aside from tourism, the major industry of the area, is sugarcane growing. The sugar mill at nearby Condong was served by numerous tramways until 1973 saw the introduction of mechanical cane harvesting.[22] There is also some dairy farming in the area. Coffee, bananas and assorted tropical fruit and vegetables are also produced throughout the area. South Murwillumbah is home to Stone & Wood Brewing Co.'s second brewery, which opened in 2014.

There are alternative lifestyle retreats nearby, including one of the Hare Krishna organisation.

Festivals

The annual Tweed Banana Festival, the second oldest festival in Australia is staged in the town. In 2005, the festival celebrated its 50th anniversary.[23]

From 2002 to 2009 an historic motor racing festival was run through the streets of Murwillimbah, featuring a parade through town, a one kilometre hillclimb course, and connected events, attracting thousands of spectators. Modeled on the Goodwood Festival of Speed, Speed on Tweed was a highlight of the local calendar attracting cars and competitors from all over Australia and from Europe and North America. In September 2009 the event was held in conjunction with Rally Australia which has scheduled one special stage in Murwillumbah.

Demographics

In the 2016 census, Murwillumbah recorded a population of 9,245 people, 52.5% female and 47.5% male. The median age of the Murwillumbah population was 45 years, 7 years above the national median of 38. 81.1% of people living in Murwillumbah were born in Australia. The other top responses for country of birth were England 3.4%, New Zealand 1.9%, India 0.8%, Scotland 0.4%, and Philippines 0.4%. 89.2% of people spoke only English at home; the next most common languages were Punjabi 1.2%, Spanish 0.3%, Italian 0.3%, Tagalog 0.2%, and German 0.2%.[1]

Climate

Murwillumbah has a humid subtropical climate. The Köppen climate classification is Cfa.[24]

Climate data for Murwillumbah (Bray Park), New South Wales, Australia (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1972–present); 8 m AMSL
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 42.9
(109.2)		 40.9
(105.6)		 36.5
(97.7)		 35.4
(95.7)		 31.9
(89.4)		 27.8
(82.0)		 29.5
(85.1)		 35.9
(96.6)		 37.4
(99.3)		 38.2
(100.8)		 39.6
(103.3)		 40.8
(105.4)		 42.9
(109.2)
Mean maximum °C (°F) 33.1
(91.6)		 32.2
(90.0)		 31.2
(88.2)		 29.3
(84.7)		 26.3
(79.3)		 24.1
(75.4)		 23.9
(75.0)		 26.0
(78.8)		 29.5
(85.1)		 31.1
(88.0)		 32.2
(90.0)		 33.5
(92.3)		 33.5
(92.3)
Average high °C (°F) 29.6
(85.3)		 29.1
(84.4)		 28.1
(82.6)		 26.1
(79.0)		 23.6
(74.5)		 21.3
(70.3)		 21.3
(70.3)		 22.8
(73.0)		 25.4
(77.7)		 26.6
(79.9)		 27.9
(82.2)		 29.0
(84.2)		 25.9
(78.6)
Daily mean °C (°F) 24.9
(76.8)		 24.6
(76.3)		 23.4
(74.1)		 21.0
(69.8)		 18.1
(64.6)		 15.8
(60.4)		 15.1
(59.2)		 15.9
(60.6)		 18.6
(65.5)		 20.6
(69.1)		 22.5
(72.5)		 23.9
(75.0)		 20.4
(68.7)
Average low °C (°F) 20.1
(68.2)		 20.0
(68.0)		 18.7
(65.7)		 15.8
(60.4)		 12.5
(54.5)		 10.2
(50.4)		 8.8
(47.8)		 9.0
(48.2)		 11.8
(53.2)		 14.5
(58.1)		 17.0
(62.6)		 18.8
(65.8)		 14.8
(58.6)
Mean minimum °C (°F) 17.0
(62.6)		 17.3
(63.1)		 15.7
(60.3)		 13.4
(56.1)		 8.0
(46.4)		 5.0
(41.0)		 3.6
(38.5)		 4.6
(40.3)		 7.4
(45.3)		 10.5
(50.9)		 13.4
(56.1)		 15.2
(59.4)		 3.6
(38.5)
Record low °C (°F) 13.2
(55.8)		 13.8
(56.8)		 11.5
(52.7)		 6.6
(43.9)		 2.2
(36.0)		 −0.3
(31.5)		 0.2
(32.4)		 −1.4
(29.5)		 3.2
(37.8)		 4.1
(39.4)		 6.6
(43.9)		 10.6
(51.1)		 −1.4
(29.5)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 196.9
(7.75)		 231.3
(9.11)		 186.8
(7.35)		 108.5
(4.27)		 105.5
(4.15)		 112.8
(4.44)		 48.5
(1.91)		 50.1
(1.97)		 38.8
(1.53)		 98.8
(3.89)		 109.8
(4.32)		 189.0
(7.44)		 1,476.8
(58.13)
Average rainy days (≥ 1.0 mm) 11.3 12.6 13.3 9.6 8.6 7.5 5.7 4.5 5.4 7.6 9.1 10.8 106
Average relative humidity (%) 71.0 74.5 73.5 70.5 70.5 69.5 66.0 61.0 59.0 61.0 66.5 67.0 67.5
Average dew point °C (°F) 20.2
(68.4)		 20.3
(68.5)		 18.8
(65.8)		 16.5
(61.7)		 13.7
(56.7)		 11.1
(52.0)		 9.6
(49.3)		 9.9
(49.8)		 12.3
(54.1)		 14.6
(58.3)		 16.9
(62.4)		 18.6
(65.5)		 15.2
(59.4)
Source 1: Australian Bureau of Meteorology (temperature, precipitation, humidity- 1972–present extremes)[25]
Source 2: Australian Bureau of Meteorology (temperature, precipitation, humidity- 1991–2020 normals)[26]

Education

Primary schools

  • Hare Krishna School
  • Mt St Patrick Primary School
  • Murwillumbah East Primary School
  • Sathya Sai School
  • South Murwillumbah's Infants School
  • St Joseph's Primary School
  • Murwillumbah Primary School
  • Tweed Valley Adventist College

Secondary schools

Sport and recreation

Murwillumbah has numerous sports clubs including Murwillumbah Mustangs, Murwillumbah SC, The Gentlemen of Murwillumbah Rugby Club, golf, rowing, cricket, lawn bowls and cycling.

Murwillumbah was used as the location for the film Lou (2010) starring John Hurt. The ABC television series of the novel Pastures of the Blue Crane was also filmed in the Tweed region in 1969.[27] In 2018, the town was used as a film location for the Netflix-distributed Lunatics (2019) starring Chris Lilley.[28] The town is close to the filming location of British reality TV show I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here and is used as a base for staff and crew working on the show.

Notable people

Notable people from Murwillumbah include:


References
  1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Murwillumbah (Urban Centre/Locality)" Archived 2017-12-01 at the Wayback Machine. 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  2. "M'bah rail too costly: report" by Saffron Howden, Tweed Daily News (18 April 2009)
  3. "Crittle set to tackle Murbah" by Jamie Gallagher and Geoff Campbell, Tweed Daily News (15 December 2009)
  4. J. S. Ryan, 'Some Aboriginal Place-Names in the Richmond Tweed Area,' Oceania September 1963, volume 34, no. 1, pages = 38-55, p.42
  5. "About the Tweed: History". Tweed Shire Council. Archived from the original on 20 April 2011. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  6. "Murwillumbah: A Brief History". Murwillumbah Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  7. "Advertising". The Tweed Daily. Vol. V, no. 172. New South Wales, Australia. 20 July 1918. p. 8. Retrieved 26 March 2019 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. "Advertising". The Tweed Daily. Vol. VII, no. 215. New South Wales, Australia. 11 September 1920. p. 4. Retrieved 26 March 2019 – via National Library of Australia.
  9. Hartigan Estate, subdivision, Town of Murwillumbah, hdl:10462/deriv/251881
  10. "Bray Estate Sale". The Tweed Daily. Vol. X, no. 304. New South Wales, Australia. 1 December 1923. p. 4. Retrieved 25 March 2019 – via National Library of Australia.
  11. Bray Estate, Tweed River, Murwillumbah, hdl:10462/deriv/251876
  12. Chenery, Susan (7 January 2022). "'They got the lot': the mystery of the biggest bank heist in Australia's history". The Guardian.
  13. "Murwillumbah remembers great bank robbery 40 years ago, still wonders where the cash is". ABC News. 23 November 2018. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
  14. "Flood Plan". Murwillumbah Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  15. "Historical Tropical Cyclone Impacts in New South Wales". Bureau of Meteorology. Archived from the original on 19 March 2011. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  16. "Remembering Murwillumbah floods". Tweed Daily News. The Tweed Newspaper Company. 6 January 2010. Archived from the original on 11 January 2010. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  17. Kristy Martin (21 May 2009). "Mass evacuations forced in Tweed". Tweed Daily News. The Tweed Newspaper Company. Archived from the original on 4 January 2011. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  18. Hanna, Conal (2 February 2022). "Floods in south-east Queensland and northern NSW: what has happened and which areas could be hit next?". Sydney. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  19. "Murwillumbah Railway Station and yard group". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01206. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC-BY 4.0 licence.
  20. Boyd, Max (January 2013). "Bob Whittle OAM DFM" (PDF). Timelines. Murwillumbah Historical Society. 1 (3): 1–3. Archived (PDF) from the original on 9 March 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  21. "F/Lt ROBERT JAMES CLARENDON "BOB" WHITTLE DFM". Pacific Victory Roll. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
  22. "The Sugar Tramways of Northern New South Wales", Armstrong, J., Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, June, 1976, pp. 118–132
  23. "Banana Festival under way". Tweed Daily News. The Tweed Newspaper Company. 20 August 2005. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  24. "Murwillumbah climate: Average Temperature, weather by month, Murwillumbah weather averages". en.climate-data.org. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
  25. "Murwillumbah (Bray Park), NSW Climate (1972–present extremes)". Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
  26. "Murwillumbah (Bray Park), NSW Climate (1991–2020 normals)". Australian Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
  27. Pastures of the Blue Crane at IMDb
  28. Brennan, Aisling (16 April 2018). "Could Mur'bah be back on screen in new Chris Lilley comedy?". Tweed Daily News. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  29. "Max Bryant". Cricinfo. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
  30. "The one story the English actually give a rat's about" Archived 2011-01-17 at the Wayback Machine by Amy Fallon, The Punch (10 December 2009)
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