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| Bellingen from the Rotary
Lookout looking towards the Dorrigo Plateau
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Bellingen
Attractive inland town on the Bellinger River
Bellingen is an attractive township in the heart of the
Bellinger Valley surrounded by rich pasturelands. It is
located 547 km north of Sydney and 23 metres above sea level
and lies between the coast and the beautiful Dorrigo
plateau.
Bellingen is a town in transition. Traditionally a rather
substantial town on the Bellinger River servicing the
surrounding dairy farmers and timber cutters in recent times
it has seen an influx of people fleeing from the city. The
changes are obvious. The menus in the cafes has a distinctly
citified feel about them, the shops have lots of home made
novelties, and on Saturdays people with a certain urbanity
mooch into town to do the shopping. While the transition has
not been as radical as that which occurred at Nimbin the
change still reflects the movement to the country which
occurred in the 1960s and 1970s. It happened to coincide
with a transitional period in dairy farming which saw the
local farmers only too happy to sell off the odd 3040
hectares for a price far better than its rural value.
The valley had a community of Gumbaynggir Aborigines
living along the banks of the river before the arrival of
Europeans. These Aborigines called the river the 'billengen'.
In the early days of European exploration and settlement of
the valley the local Aborigines fought for the protection of
their land.
The first European into the Bellinger Valley was the
stockman William Myles who arrived in 1840 looking for new
valleys north of Kempsey and the Macleay River. The
following year Myles, accompanied by Surveyor Clement
Hodgkinson explored the valley and by 1842 there were cedar
cutters at the mouth of the Bellinger River and sheep
grazing in the valley. This was hardly surprising because
Hodgkinson reported back 'The brush contained the finest
cedar and rosewood I have ever seen.' So determined were the
local Aborigines to keep the cedar cutters and explorers off
their land that they regularly attacked the cedar cutters
camps and when Hodgkinson returned to the valley he was
accompanied by members of the Yarrahappinni group who he
hoped would explain his 'innocent' intentions to the locals.
In 1845 it was estimated that there were 300 Aborigines
living in the Bellinger Valley.
The growth of cedar cutting throughout the 1840s was
dramatic with 20 pit sawers operating along the river by
1843 and, by 1849, the first timber vessel, the 'Minerva',
being built by a shipwright named William Darbyshire. So
rich was the area in cedar that it was estimated that over 2
million feet of cedar were being extracted each year.
The valley was progressively settled throughout the
1850s. By 1857 the North Coast Steam Navigation Coy. had
been established and by 1865 there was a pilot station to
guide ships through the Bellinger Heads. In 1869 both the
Police Station and the Court House were built in Bellingen
and this largely determined the town's preeminence over the
rival claims of smaller settlements at Fernleigh and
Raleigh. The 1870s saw the building of the Bellinger Public
School (1870) and the establishment of a Post Office at Boat
Harbour (1871) although the name 'Boat Harbour' was
officially changed to Bellingen in 1870. By 1876 a road
through the valley and up to Dorrigo was being surveyed and
by 1880 there were accessible roads throughout the valley
and the road to Dorrigo was being cut up the mountain.
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| The Bellingen River at
Bellingen |
In 1876 the Sydney Morning Herald reported 'There are two
townships, Fernmount and Boat Harbour; at the former there
are two stores, a church, public school, two public houses
and boot store. The principal storekeeper is Mr Pulsford who
is also the postmaster and a J.P.
'The police court, a neat and commodious building, is
situated at Boat Harbour, and is presided over by Capt.
Fisher, P.M., who, I am informed, has managed since his
appointment to reduce the work of the office very
considerably simply by advising litigants to settle their
differences, if possible, without making public spectacles
of themselves in a police court.'
By the late 1880s Bellingen had reached a point where the
local School of Arts was built (1887) and by the 1890s the
first Church of England (1896) had been completed and in
1900 the town's most admired commercial building, Hammond &
Wheatley's Store was established.
The town continued to grow through the twentieth century.
The Bank of NSW arrived in 1903. By 1905 the Upper Bellingen
Co-op Dairying Coy. was established and the shire was
formally proclaimed in 1906. In 1909 a new Post Office had
been built and that same year Hammond & Wheatley built the
first concrete building in Australia.
The progress in the valley continued throughout this
century and was characterised by the town reflecting the
success of the local dairy industry. The rich soils of the
valley and the extensive sunshine and good rainfall ensured
that it would always be prosperous. Today the town is a
pleasant retreat away from the Pacific Highway and its
traffic heading for the sunshine of Queensland it has the
charm of a rural centre with an urbanity created by the new
arrivals.
In recent times the Bellinger Valley has been described
as "The Bellinger was not like it is now, with wide
electric-green fields pushing down on to the river. The
banks were like green cliffs of camouflage pierced with
giant knitting needles and spun and tangled all about with
ferns and creepers" by the novelist Peter Carey who had the
Reverend Oscar Hopkins float his glass church down the
Bellinger River in 'Oscar and Lucinda'.
Things to see:
Bellingen Heritage Walks
There is a brochure available around the town (published by
the Rotary Club and Heritage Council) which offers three
walks around the town.
Walk 1
This takes half an hour and basically goes from Church
Street down the main street to Prince Street and back up
again. It includes:
Court House and Police Station
These buildings were all constructed by George Moore in
1910. They were constructed from concrete bricks which were
made in a brick-making machine imported from the USA.
Shire of Bellingen Administration Centre
In the centre of the town is the Shire of Bellingen
Administration Centre, a series of buildings surrounding a
rather gracious park, which includes the library (1882), the
local folk museum and the old Headmasters Residence, a
handsome timber building on the main street, which has been
turned into a Neighbourhood Centre.
Bellinger Valley Historical Museum
The museum has a photo collection which covers the local
pioneers, early forms of transportation in the valley and
town life. There are unusual artefacts connected with
schools in the district, farming and pioneer families. There
is also a small collection of Gumbaynggirr Aboriginal
artefacts.
The Yellow Shed
An excellent and interesting Craftworks and Garden Centre
located in an old Workers Recreation Hall which was built by
Fredrick Doepel at his timber mill in the early 1900s and
moved to the present site in 1928. It became the Yellow Shed
in 1981.
The Sara Quads - 14 Hyde Street
Those old enough to remember will recall the enormous
publicity which was associated with the birth of the Sara
Quads. Their lives were duly followed by the Australian
Women's Weekly. Their home at the time was the residence at
number 14.
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| The Hammond & Wheatley
Emporium |
Walk 2
Hammond & Wheatley Emporium
This walk also starts at Centennial Place in the centre of
town. However where Walk 1 heads east, Walk 2 heads west
past the superb Hammond & Wheatley Emporium which was built
in 1909 by George Moore. The brochure describes the building
as 'An innovative enterprise with locally manufactured
concrete blocks and techniques and materials ahead of
contemporary country practice. Restored in 1989. Cast iron
columns support the awnings with iron lacework featuring
department names. Original brass shop front framings with
engraved brass sills remain. Internally a mezzanine floor is
reached via a grand staircase.
Federation Hotel
Further along is the Federal Hotel which was completed,
appropriately given the name, in 1901. The hotel is part of
a streetscape of one and two storey buildings all of which
were completed around the turn of the century. They form an
interesting and important part of the town's streetscape.
The walk continues on to a lookout over the town and
passes the St Margaret's Church which dates from 1935.
Old Butter Factory
Down the eastern end of the main street is the Old Butter
Factory which includes a number of interesting art and
crafts shops specialising in leather, pottery, woodcraft,
glass and country crafts. The first building was completed
in 1906 as the home of the Upper Bellingen Dairy
Co-Operative. In 1919 it expanded with the inclusion of a
bacon factory. In 1924 however, due to strict regulations
placed on butter production, it was pulled down and
replaced. It eventually closed down in 1963 and some years
later was revived as a craft centre.
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| The countryside between
Bellingen and Bowraville |
Driving in the Local Area
The Bellinger Valley is well worth exploring. Go to any one
of the major tourist attractions in town - the Yellow Shed
or the Old Butter Factory - and ask for suitable directions
to explore the valley. The drives are well worth taking.
Famous People
Out in the area to the north of the town - Hydes Creek,
Gleniffer and Promised Land - live a number of well-known
personalities who have sought the Bellinger Valley as a
retreat. The most famous would be George Negus, the '60
Minutes' reporter, and David Helfgott who was the subject of
the movie 'Shine'. They are suitably private although locals
tell stories of people driving by and seeing Helfgott
walking naked along the road after going for a swim in the
nearby creek.
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Bellingen
