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| The Big Oyster outside
Taree |
Taree (including Manning Point, Old Bar and Saltwater)
Substantial service centre on the Manning River.
One of the major towns on the rivers of the New South Wales
Mid North Coast, Taree is idyllically situated on the
Manning River 317 km north-east of Sydney. The Pacific
Highway runs right through the town taking a sharp turn on
either end of the bridge over the Manning River before
heading north and south. It is a big, modern, attractive
town servicing the surrounding rural industries and driven
by the tourists and travellers who pass through the town. It
is located 16km inland from the mouth of the Manning River
and consequently has tended to develop more as a service
centre and stopover point than as an actual tourist
destination.
In 1770 when Captain Cook first sailed up the eastern
coast of Australia he identified and named 'The Brothers', a
group of three mountains - South, Middle and North Brother
Mountains. At the time the Biripai, Ngamba and Worimi
Aborigines were well established in the district and it is
probably from them that the word 'tareebit', which
supposedly is the name for a local fig tree, comes. The
Aborigines lived off seafood and fish from the river as well
as tropical fruits which they found in the rainforest which
characterised most of the area.
The first European explorer to traverse the Manning River
was John Oxley who explored the Manning Valley in 1818 and
named the settlement of Harrington at the mouth of the
Manning River.
The Manning River was well known to the government in
Sydney by the mid-1820s. By 1824 it defined the northern
boundary of the vast area of land (from Newcastle to Taree)
which had been granted to the Australian Agricultural
Company. In 1829 Governor Darling declared the Manning River
the northern limit of settlement in the colony of New South
Wales.
Cedar cutters moved into the area around this time. The
first official land grant (a grant of 1037 hectares) in the
district was made to William Wynter to arrived and settled
in 1831. The modern township of Taree stands on this land.
It was Wynter who gave his family home the name Tarree and
subsequently named a schooner 'Tarree'. The schooner was
used for shipping cedar to Sydney and ports to the south of
Taree.
By 1854 William Wynter's son-in-law, a Scotsman named
Henry Flett, had laid out a private town and was hoping that
the town would develop into a major centre. This did not
happen as the government had already decided on Wingham as
the major centre because it was at the limit of navigation
of the Manning River. Flett's private town was eventually
incorporated into Taree when the municipality was declared
in 1885.
Although it was on the route from Sydney to Brisbane the
town grew slowly - this was almost certainly due to its
distance from the sea and the fact that sea transport was
still the main form of transportation along the northern New
South Wales coast until the 1930s.
Consequently the local Presbyterian Church was completed
in 1869, the Court House was completed in 1897, the railway
arrived in 1913 (this proved crucial to the development of
the town as it gave Taree preference over Wingham) and a
bridge, replacing the ferry, across the river was completed
in the 1940s. By 1981 it had become a city.
The bridge across the river, known as Martin Bridge, was
opened by the Minister for Public Works in 1940. At the time
the Newcastle Herald reported: 'This is the story of men who
have to yawn or blow through their noses for 17 minutes
before they begin their daily work; who have to wave their
heads and legs and arms about and exercise all their joints
for 38 minutes before they finish.' The article went on to
explain that the men who built the bridge had to work in air
where the pressure was 35 pounds to the square inch and that
the cylinders which formed the legs of the bridge were sunk
to a depth of 70 feet.
Today Taree is a successful rural centre sustained by a
wide range of activities including dairying, a timber
industry, leather goods and engineering works. The famous
Australian poet, Les Murray, was educated at Taree High
School.
Things to see:
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| The Herb and Sculpture
Garden beside the river |
Visitor Information Centre
There is an excellent and very comprehensive Visitor
Information Centre which is located on the Pacific Highway
north of the town centre. It is well worth visiting and has
good parking. For more information contact 1800 801 522.
Fotheringham Park
One of the town's true delights is the Fotheringham Park
which lies between the Pacific Highway and the Manning River
just north of the bridge. In the Bicentennial Year a
community project established a very unusual 'Herb and
Sculpture Garden' with tiles, two sculptured and tiled posts
and a range of interesting herbs which can be picked by
locals eager to add a little flavour to the evening meal.
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| A cruiser leaves Taree to
travel along the Manning River |
Manning River Cruises
There is no better way of experiencing the Manning River and
the area around Taree than taking a Manning River Cruise
which leaves from the wharves near Fotheringham Park.
Contact (02) 6552 4767 for times and costs.
Interesting Historic Buildings
The Taree Visitors Centre has a Taree Heritage Walk brochure
which is a pleasant walk along the riverbank and around the
main streets (Albert Street, Victoria Street, Macquarie
Street and Pulteney Street in the city centre). Some of the
highlights of the walk include:
Taree Public School
One of the buildings of interest in the town is the Taree
Public School building, a rather pretentious piece of work
which dates from 1902 although a plaque announces that
public education in Taree started in 1864.
St Pauls Church
The oldest building in town is St Pauls Presbyterian Church
which dates from 1869 and is a typical Victorian Gothic
Revival building. It is a rather simple building located in
Albert Street which is one street west of the Pacific
Highway.
Taree Court House
Over the road from St Paul's Church is the magnificent Court
House which was completed in 1897 and consists of the
two-storey court room with single storey offices on either
side. There is a small police station out the back. The
Court House is particularly attractive because of the trees
and shrubs which have been planted around it.
St Marys Catholic Church
Nearby is the huge St Marys Catholic Church which was built
in the 1930s to replace the original church which was
constructed in the 1870s. The Presbytery was built in 1890.
The Big Oyster
The tastefulness of Fotheringham Park (which is an ideal
picnic spot) is sharply contrasted by the bizarre Big
Oysterš (it looks more like a Big Clam) on the northern
outskirts of town. The unceasing quest for novelty knows no
bounds and the Big Oysterš has got to be one of the most
original and outrageous novelties on the coast. The same
company also lay claim to the Big Prawnš at Ballina.
Kiwarrak State Forest
Located 5 km south of Taree and clearly signposted from the
Pacific Highway the Kiwarrak State Forest has a 16km
signposted drive which includes Breakneck Lookout and a
delightful picnic area known as The Pines.
Cundleton
Cundleton, 6km north of Taree, has become a suburb of Taree.
Therefore it blends in with the surrounding countryside. It
is located on the Dawson River to the north of Taree. Its
main claim to historical fame is based on its connection
with the poet Henry Kendall, famous for his poem 'Bellbirds'
which generations of Australian schoolchildren learnt off by
heart. Kendall lived in Cundleton from 1881-1882 and was
employed as the local inspector of forests. He died of
consumption in 1882.
Kendall actually wrote about Taree in one of his poems.
'Tis where the green and gold is,
Secure from the storms and the sea,
Where never of winter's cold is,
The beautiful quiet Taree.
It is not one of Kendall's better poems. Kendall's
connection with the town is commemorated by a monument in
Kendall Reserve. Turn right at the Post Office.
Old Bar
Located 15 km south-east of Taree, Old Bar is the southern
entrance to the Manning River. It was first discovered by
Europeans when John Oxley passed through the area in 1818.
It boasts an excellent surfing beach, good fishing in the
estuary and the surf, and attractive picnic locations beside
the beach. To get there head south along the Pacific Highway
for 4 km then turn left onto the signposted road which leads
straight out to Old Bar. This road passes turnoffs to
Manning Point (8 km along on the left) and Saltwater (9 km
along on the right).
Saltwater
About 2 km west of Old Bar a side road heads south for 5 km
through Wallabi Point to Saltwater - a tiny holiday village
which is notable for a beautiful beach that stretches
northwards for 6 km to Old Bar. It is known as the best and
most popular surfing destination near Taree and it also
boasts a safe lagoon for toddlers. There are excellent views
up and down the coast from Wallabi Point.
Manning Point
The turnoff to Manning Point is located about 3 km west of
Old Bar. Follow this side north for about 4 km then take the
signposted turnoff on the right which transports you the
final 12 km to Manning Point - a delightful seaside resort
town situated on the principal estuary of the Manning River.
This is a great place for surfing and swimming as well as a
popular haunt for anglers. It is also known for its
excellent oysters.
Coopernook Forest Drive
Coopernook Forest Drive passes through the Coopernook,
Lansdowne and Comboyne State Forests, following Stewarts
River for quite some distance. It is well signposted with
brown-and-white signs and is suitable for 2WD vehicles in
dry weather but slow speeds and care are vital.
The drive commences from the Forest Headquarters just
north of Coopernook (22 km north of Taree). The route takes
in Coopernook Forest Park, Vincents Lookout (330 metres
above sea-level), Newbys Creek Walk, Newbys Lookout, Starrs
Creek Picnic Area, Big Nellie Mountain (a 560-metre volcanic
plug), Flat Rock Lookout (atop a 500-metre drop to the
valley floor) and the modest Waitui Falls where there are
swimming and picnicking opportunities.
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Taree
