Barham, New South Wales

Barham is a town in the western Riverina district of New South Wales, Australia. The town is located 823 kilometres south west of the state capital, Sydney and 303 kilometres north west of Melbourne. Situated on the banks of the Murray River across from Koondrook in the neighbouring state of Victoria, Barham had a population of 1,132 at the 2006 census. The town is the largest in the Wakool Shire Local government area.

History

The land in the Barham area was thought to have been occupied by the Wemba-Wemba Aborigines prior to European settlement commencing in 1843. The Post Office opened on 1 January 1895. Growth was slow until 1904 with the construction of a lift span bridge designed to allow let paddle steamers through. A similar bridge was constructed upstream at the same time between Cobram, Victoria and Barooga, New South Wales.

The Town today

The major industries in and around Barham are agriculture, including dairying and citrus, and forestry. Like much of the southern Riverina, the town is attuned culturally to Victoria, reading Victorian newspapers and watching Victorian television channels. The most popular team sport is Australian rules football, the town in conjunction with neighbouring township Barham across the Murray having an Australian Rules football team competing in the Central Murray Football League.

Notable people

Barham is the birthplace of Australian cyclist Michael Rogers and AFL footballer Brent Guerra.

References

External links

• Wakool Shire Council - Official site
• Koondrook-Barham Bridge - Local Newspaper.
• Walkabout website - Tourist information.