Blayneyis a farming town and administrative centre with a population of 2,997 in 2021, in theCentral Westregion ofNew South Wales,Australia. Situated on theMid-Western Highwayabout 240 km (150 mi) west ofSydney,35 km (22 mi) west ofBathurstand 863 m (944 yd) above sea-level, Blayney is the seat ofBlayney Shire Council.
| Blayney New South Wales | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Town Entry Sign on Mid Western Highway | |||||||||
  Blayney | |||||||||
| Coordinates | 33°32′0″S149°15′0″E/ 33.53333°S 149.25000°E | ||||||||
| Population | 2,997 (2021 census)[1] | ||||||||
| Postcode(s) | 2799 | ||||||||
| Elevation | 863.0 m (2,831 ft) | ||||||||
| Location | |||||||||
| LGA(s) | Blayney Shire | ||||||||
| State electorate(s) | Bathurst | ||||||||
| Federal division(s) | Calare | ||||||||
| |||||||||
History
editPrior to European settlement the area was occupied by the AboriginalWiradjuriand, or,Gundungarapeoples.[2]
The first European to travel through area was surveyorGeorge Evans,in 1815 and unofficial occupation of the district began in 1821. The first land grant in the general area known asCoombing Parkwas issued toThomas Icelyin 1829.
In 1836 the locality was known as King's Plains, with Doyle's inn being the only public-house. There was also a mill worked by a man called Lambert.[3]
In 1842Governor Gippsproposed the creation of a village to be named 'Blayney'. His proposed site, however, was about 9 km north-east of the present site in the Kings Plains area, but once that spot proved unsuitable the Blayney village location was established on its present site in 1843.[4][5]
A train line used to run from Blayney to the Lime Kilns, transporting lime. This is situated on land adjoining the Blayney Cemetery and is heritage listed. Remnants of the lime kilns can still be seen today.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1921 | 1,345 | — |
| 1933 | 1,588 | +18.1% |
| 1947 | — | |
| 1954 | 1,688 | — |
| 1961 | 1,852 | +9.7% |
| 1966 | 1,909 | +3.1% |
| 1971 | 2,614 | +36.9% |
| 1976 | 2,535 | −3.0% |
| 1981 | 2,694 | +6.3% |
| 1986 | 2,593 | −3.7% |
| 1991 | 2,652 | +2.3% |
| 1996 | 2,672 | +0.8% |
| 2001 | 2,608 | −2.4% |
| 2006 | 2,745 | +5.3% |
| 2011 | 2,810 | +2.4% |
| 2016 | 2,963 | +5.4% |
| 2021 | 2,997 | +1.1% |
| Source:Australian Bureau of Statisticsdata.[6][7] | ||
Heritage listings
editBlayney has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
- Adelaide Street:Blayney Uniting Church[8]
- Main Western railway:Blayney railway station[9]
Facilities and services
editBlayney has three hotels: The Exchange, the Royal, and Tattersalls,[10]all in Adelaide Street. A fourth, the Club House, has been converted to a Baptist church. There are six churches in all, the other five being Catholic, Uniting, Anglican, Presbyterian and Pentecostal.
There are three service stations, one offering unmanned 24-hour service for credit card purchases, one supermarket (IGA/Discount Daves), and various retail shops. A multi-purpose Community Centre with a large auditorium and a commercial standard kitchen is adjacent to the Council Chambers, and council also operate an aquatic centre with a large indoor swimming pool and other exercise facilities, and a public library. There are State Government run primary and high schools, with pupils arriving by school bus from surrounding rural areas, and a Catholic run primary school. The hospital offers emergency and medical care and limited surgical services, with more serious cases being transferred toOrange Base Hospital.
There is a 24-hour public toilet in Adelaide Street (theMid-Western Highway) just before leaving the town heading west.
Industry
edit
The arrival of the railway in 1874 boosted development and Blayney replacedCarcoaras the major service centre to local farmlands. Blayney then became a municipality in 1882 and by 1900 a butter factory and freezing works employed many within the town. Anabattoiropened in 1957 and this industry was later supplemented with tanneries and a pet food plant. The abattoirs closed in 1999.[11]
In the late 1970s or early '80s a meat canning factory was built on farmland land East of Blayney. This producedSpamand other canned meats. This was later turned into an export meat boning facility run by Ron Jones Exports and then a pet food factory. Prior to this, the dam on the land was famous foryabbies,withSunday schoolexcursions frequenting there.[12]
In 1989,Nestlébuilt a new pet food plant,Nestlé Purina,and purchased adjoining land including Blayney Foods. The Nestlé factory exports pet food to Asia and the Pacific.[13]
TheCadia-Ridgeway Mineis a major employer in the area.
In 1994, Blayney became home to Australia's largest inlandcontainerterminal, which is situated beside therailway station.[14]
TheBlayney Wind Farm,launched in 2000, is the largest of its type in Australia. It consists of 15 wind turbine generators on elevated ridges between Carcoar Dam and Mount Macquarie. Capacity is 10 megawatts, sufficient energy to supply 3,500 Australian homes.[15]
Climate
editDue to its valley location, Blayney shows a greater diurnal range but narrower seasonal range throughout the year compared to nearbyMillthorpewhich is more exposed. On account of this geographical setup (jointly with its altitude), Blayney's absolute minimum of −10.6 °C (12.9 °F) is among the lowest recorded in the Central West region. Summers are warm and dry with severe thunderstorms, while winters are cool and partly cloudy, with many occurrences of snow.
| Climate data for Blayney Post Office (1885–1992); 863 m AMSL; 33.54° S, 149.26° E | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 37.5 (99.5) |
35.6 (96.1) |
35.0 (95.0) |
26.7 (80.1) |
24.9 (76.8) |
18.3 (64.9) |
18.5 (65.3) |
21.3 (70.3) |
27.8 (82.0) |
29.5 (85.1) |
31.2 (88.2) |
36.1 (97.0) |
37.5 (99.5) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 26.2 (79.2) |
25.4 (77.7) |
23.4 (74.1) |
19.2 (66.6) |
14.3 (57.7) |
11.5 (52.7) |
10.3 (50.5) |
11.2 (52.2) |
14.6 (58.3) |
18.1 (64.6) |
20.7 (69.3) |
24.4 (75.9) |
18.3 (64.9) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 10.6 (51.1) |
10.8 (51.4) |
8.1 (46.6) |
4.0 (39.2) |
1.1 (34.0) |
−0.5 (31.1) |
−1.1 (30.0) |
0.3 (32.5) |
1.6 (34.9) |
4.6 (40.3) |
5.6 (42.1) |
8.2 (46.8) |
4.4 (40.0) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 0.0 (32.0) |
1.7 (35.1) |
−5.5 (22.1) |
−5.1 (22.8) |
−9.4 (15.1) |
−9.1 (15.6) |
−10.6 (12.9) |
−8.9 (16.0) |
−6.2 (20.8) |
−5.6 (21.9) |
−2.5 (27.5) |
−1.1 (30.0) |
−10.6 (12.9) |
| Averageprecipitationmm (inches) | 70.8 (2.79) |
55.6 (2.19) |
52.7 (2.07) |
49.7 (1.96) |
56.1 (2.21) |
71.8 (2.83) |
73.5 (2.89) |
76.7 (3.02) |
63.9 (2.52) |
70.8 (2.79) |
59.8 (2.35) |
63.7 (2.51) |
765.5 (30.14) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.2 mm) | 6.3 | 5.4 | 5.3 | 5.7 | 8.0 | 9.9 | 10.4 | 10.2 | 8.6 | 8.2 | 6.6 | 6.4 | 91.0 |
| Source:[16] | |||||||||||||
Transportation
editThe town'srailway stationis served by the dailyNSW TrainLinkXPT service betweenSydneyandDubboand the weeklyOutback XplorertoBroken Hill,as well as several NSW TrainLink Coach and private company bus services connecting withBathurstandOrange.
Notable citizens
edit- Nathan Burns,professional football player withA-LeagueclubWellington Phoenixand theAustralian national team.
- Frank Cooper,Premier of Queenslandfrom 1942 to 1946.
- Liam Henry,rugby league player for thePenrith Panthers.
- Peter McCann,Australian rules footballer
- Peter Toohey,Australian Test cricketer of the late 1970s
Gallery
edit-
Blayney Valley view from the north -
Adelaide Street, 2007 -
-
St James Roman Catholic Church -
Christ Church Anglican -
Saint Paul's Church -
Shire Library -
Council Chambers 1934 -
Post Office -
Court House -
Masonic Temple -
National Australia Bank -
Railway Station -
Royal Hotel -
Club House Hotel
References
edit- ^Australian Bureau of Statistics(28 June 2022)."Blayney".2021 Census QuickStats.Retrieved24 January2024.
- ^South Western Slopes – regional historyNSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment
- ^Early Colonial Days II,'The Biography of a Reliable Old Native, John McGuire' by W. H. Pinkstone,Braidwood Dispatch and Mining Journal,1 August 1906, page 2.
- ^Shire Council local history siteArchived19 February 2011 at theWayback Machine
- ^"Tourism local history site".Archived fromthe originalon 3 August 2010.Retrieved16 August2010.
- ^"Statistics by Catalogue Number".Australian Bureau of Statistics.Retrieved24 January2024.
- ^"Search Census data".Australian Bureau of Statistics.Retrieved24 January2024.
- ^"Blayney Uniting Church & Hall".New South Wales State Heritage Register.Department of Planning & Environment.H00456.Retrieved18 May2018.
Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) underCC-BY 4.0licence.
- ^"Blayney Railway Station and yard group".New South Wales State Heritage Register.Department of Planning & Environment.H01089.Retrieved18 May2018.Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) underCC-BY 4.0licence.
- ^blayney.nsw.gov.auhttp://www.blayney.nsw.gov.au/tourism/eat-drink/hotel-or-motel.Retrieved4 January2019.
{{cite web}}:Missing or empty|title=(help)[title missing] - ^Abattoir industry in 'disastrous' state
- ^Memories of Julie Rourke fishing for yabbies and doing work experience in 1981
- ^http://www.blayneynsw.com.au/node/30Archived16 May 2010 at theWayback MachinePurina Plant
- ^FCL Transport: NSW government must act to make Blayney rail services sustainable
- ^"Wind Farm".Archived fromthe originalon 3 August 2010.Retrieved16 August2010.
- ^"Bureau of Meteorology; Blayney Post Office".
Bibliography
edit- St. Paul's Church, Blayney, 1862-1937: an historical sketch.Alan Dougan. [Blayney, N.S.W.?: Presbyterian Church of Australia, 1937]
- The Anglican Church of Australia, the Diocese of Bathurst: a history of the development of the Parish of Blayney, 1833-1991.[compiled and edited by J.T. Clarkson, C.H.R. Dent] Blayney, N.S.W.: Christ Church Anglican Church, 1991.ISBN0646073656:
- The kings colonials.Garry Reynolds; illustrated by Christine Reynolds. [Millthorpe, N.S.W.: G. Reynolds], 1982.ISBN0959305904:
- Together travel on: commemorating 150 years of Christian worship, service and mission through the Blayney [Uniting] Church, 1843 to 1993: Wesleyan Methodist (1843-1902), Methodist (1902-1977), Uniting (1977-1993)Blayney, [N.S.W.]: Uniting Church in Australia, 1993.
- Dear Mother: a nominal roll of the men and women from Blayney and surrounding districts who served "Queen and country" in the South African (Boer) War 1899-1902.Blayney, N.S.W.: Blayney Shire Local & Family History Group Inc., 2002.ISBN095815130X
- Notes on the geology of the Blayney area.G.A.M. Henderson. [Canberra]: BMR Geology and Geophysics, Australia, c1991.ISBN0642166978
- Blayney, list of interments: from Blayney Shire records and headstones found in cemetery.compiled by Helen Jeuken and Alan Nesbitt. Bathurst, N.S.W.: Bathurst Family History Research, 1989.ISBN0958841950
- The Blayney advocate and Carcoar herald.Originally published weekly: Blayney, N.S.W.: John Mellor. National Library of Australia Microform
- Blayney Shire pioneer registerSt. Joseph's Central School Blayney. Blayney, N.S.W.: St Joseph's Central School, Blayney, P. & F. Association, [1993]ISBN0646153730
- Blayney District Hospital, 1910-1960: a brief history to commemorate its 50th anniversary.compiled [i.e. written] by A.A. Cheney [Blayney, N.S.W.: Blayney Newspaper Co., 1960]
- Blayney Public School: established 1858[Sandra Retallack] Blayney, N.S.W.,: Blayney Public School, 2008.ISBN9780959167719
External links
edit
Media related toBlayney, New South Walesat Wikimedia Commons
- Biography of Thomas Icleyat ADB online
- Blayney Wind Farm
- Blayney Shire Website
- Industries in the Blayney Shire
- Parish of St James The Great, Blayney
- Blayney High School
- Blayney Public School
- Large Gold Find Near Blayney
- Blayney Chronicle
- Blayney St Joseph's Catholic School
- Blayney Local Library
- Tourism info.
- Visit.NSW.com – Blayney