Coonamble Heritage Walk

Explorers came to Coonamble in search of possible grazing land for sheep and cattle. However, in 1818 it was George Evans who discovered the flooded Castlereagh River near the present site of the town. In 1840, James Walker was the first to lease land for his “Koonamble Run”.

Official recognition of the needs of the district was proclaimed on the 5th July 1855 by reserving land on the Eastern side of the Castlereagh for a future township. Development of Coonamble soon followed and in 1880 the Coonamble Municipal District local government was formed. In 1903 a railway between Dubbo and Coonamble opened which gave graziers a reliable and cheap method of transporting wool. But the district owes its survival to the discovery of Artesian water in the area in the 1890’s.

Unfortunately, on the evening of the 6th of February 1929 a fire swept through Castlereagh Street and destroyed most of the buildings. It is reported that the glow from the fire could be seen from Gilgandra, some 100 kilometres away. As a result, many of the main buildings were destroyed or badly damaged, 200 people became homeless and historical photographs and documents were gone forever.

The Coonamble Town Heritage Walk is an informative walk of the town centre which includes 32 places of historic interest.

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Coonamble Information & Exhibition Centre
120 Castlereagh St, Coonamble NSW 2829