Murringo

Murringo is a small town in New South Wales. It is 25kms east of Young and 406 km west of the state capital, Sydney. The town was in the area often robbed by the bushranger, Ben Hall.

Early settlement

Europen settlers moved into the area in 1827.[1] The first farm in the area was Marengo Station, 1833, owned by John Scarr. By 1840 there were about 40 people living in the area. When the town was laid out by the surveyors in 1849, they called the town Murringo. It has also been called Meringo, Marringa, Maringa, Muringo, Maringo and Marengo. In 1926 the town was officially called Murringo.[2] In 1864, Ben Hall robbed John Scarr and his brother as they rode along the road to Burrowa.

The original plans included a market place, a big cemetery and large parks. When gold was found nearby at Lambing Flat in 1860, most of the people moved to the goldfields. Although there were only about 120 people living in the town, the people saved money and built the Christ Church Anglican Church in 1866. The foundation stone for the Sacred Heart Catholic Church was laid in 1871. A post office opened in 1857.[2]

A number of historic buildings are still standing in Murringo. The church (1866), the Marengo Hotel, the police station (1880), the school (1870), school teacher's house (1879), the Plough Inn (a hotel) (built before 1860) and the Post Office (1857). A blacksmiths shop and cottage from the 1870's has been turned into a craft workshop.[1]

Other websites

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 "The Historic Village of Murringo". Cultural Map, Young. Archived from the original on 2008-10-06. Retrieved 2008-12-14.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Murringo - New South Wales". Sydney Morning Herald, Fairfax Digital. Retrieved 2008-12-14.