Gwydir River - Rocky River

Photo: Rocky River School. This school, the first National School in northen New South Wales, was held in a slab hut intil 1870, when a brick classroom and attached residence (still standing) was built by Alexander Mitchell (builder of McCrossin's Mill, Uralla).

Following the introduction of compulsory education a new wooden schoolroom was built in 1885, and this, with two additions, forms the present school building. A second teacher was appointed in 1903, with enrolments peaking at 155 in 1916. Since then Rocky River has been a two-teacher school, apart from a brief period in the 1960s when a third teacher was appointed.

Downstream, Kentucky Creek becomes Rocky River. The little township is about 4 km from Uralla (2o km from Armidale) on the Bundarra Road.

Today little remains, but this was gold rush territory.

Gold was discovered at Rocky River in 1851. In September 1856 the population reached 4,500. In that year, 1856, Rocky River produced 40,000 ounces of gold, worth around $32 million at today's gold prices. This provided sometimes rich pickings for miners, storekeepers and the bushranger Captain Thunderbolt.

In my first post in the Gwydir series I mentioned that Thunderbolt had been killed at Kentucky Creek. Northeast from this spot on the New England Highway can be found Thunderbolt's Rock where Thunderbolt is reported to have watched for the gold coaches

Production declined thereafter, so that by 1866 the population had declined to 700, the majority Chinese. At this field, as with many others in New England, the Chinese were a major presence. The photo shows the interior of the Chinese Joss House, now vanished, at Rocky River in 1908.

For those who would like to visit Rocky River, please visit nearby Uralla first for an introduction to the history of the area.

Introductory post. Last post. Next post.

Gwydir River - Kentucky Creek

Photo: Kentucky Creek at the point where the bushranger Captain Thunderbolt (Fred Ward) is reported to have been shot and killed by Constable Walker. And here.

As I write I am eating a piece of toast with some rather nice Gwydir River honey, gazing at a map of the Gwydir catchment area.

As I said in my introductory post on the Gwydir, it is one of New England's major west flowing rivers.

The Gwydir River catchment, covering 25,900 sq kms (10,000 square miles), is one of the major northern tributaries of the Barwon-Darling River. The river flows north-west from Uralla and Guyra in the east to Collarenebri in the west. Major tributaries drain from the New England Plateau in the east, the Mastermans Range in the north and the Nandewars in the south.

Most major tributaries join the main river above Moree. Downstream of Moree the river has the characteristics of an inland delta with important wetlands. In floods, water can flow to and from the adjoining river valleys. Another important feature is the Gwydir Raft, an immense accumulation of timber, debris and sediment which has been deposited in the former channel, forming a 30 km long blockage. It is assumed this formed during early European settlement due to tree clearance and subsequent erosion.

Rainfall decreases across the catchment from an annual average of over 1,100 mm (43.3 inches) in the east to 500 mm (19.7) in the west. Rainfall patterns are significantly affected by the mountain ranges surrounding the catchment. Summer rainfall dominates the rainfall pattern, and much of this rain can occur in heavy storms of short duration.

Kentucky Creek lies in the far south-east corner of the Gwydir catchment south of Uralla (and here). This is traditional central New England Tablelands' country, with the creek flowing north-west through open grazing country including Kentucky Station, one of New England's original squatting properties.

Most people drive past Kentucky Creek along the New England Highway without even noticing it other, perhaps, than a brief glance at the attractive valley as they top the hill on either side.

I think that it's always been the case that the major north-south highways linking Brisbane and Sydney create a north-south orientation. That's a pity, because the east-west transverse contains some of the most interesting history and country.

In the case of Kentucky Creek, this is Thunderbolt Country. Now the bushranger Fred Ward, aka Captain Thunderbolt, roamed widely across New England from the Hunter in the south into the Queensland portion of the New England Tablelands, so many places can and do claim a connection. But he was shot and killed in Kentucky Creek, just north you can find Thunderbolt's Rock where he used to watch for the gold coaches, while Uralla cemetery is his final resting place.

As children, this was an area that we knew well because Aunt Kay and Uncle Ron had a property at Kentucky, the mixed orchard and grazing area to the east of the highway.

Driving down to Glenroy from Armidale we often played on the rock - it seemed very big to us kids - then south past the Kentucky Station drive, down the hill before swinging left onto the Kentucky road. Here the country changed as we went over the divide to the east, entering small farming country, then through the little village and on to the property. Memories.

Introductory post. Next post.

Gwydir River - Introduction

Map: Gwydir River catchment.

I am not sure that the above map is goming to come out in any readable form. But you should be able to see the full map in bigger form by clicking on it. I won't know, however, until I load the post - it did, I see.

My last introductory post on Bingara reminded me that I had said very little about New England's western rivers, those rivers flowing west from the New England Tablelands. While these rivers carry less water than the better known coastal rivers, they are still major streams in their own right and form a significant part of the Darling River system.

The Gwydir River is one such, rising in the Tablelands to the south of Uralla. Over coming posts I will tell a little of the Gwydir River story.

Posts

Gwydir River - Kentucky Creek

Gwydir River - Rocky River