Bongongolong

Bongongolong is an Australian district and cadastral parish of rural smallholdings within the bounded locality of Burra Creek of Gundagai Shire in the Riverina region of New South Wales. It is located approximately 17 km (11 mi) north west of Gundagai, within the Jones Creek district. The name was also applied to a former gold-mining settlement, now a ghost town, which also lies within the locality.

Bongongolong
New South Wales
Bongongolong is located in New South Wales
Bongongolong
Bongongolong
Coordinates34°54′S 148°03′E
Postcode(s)2722
Location
LGA(s)Cootamundra-Gundagai Regional Council

History

The area that was later known as Bongongolong lies of the traditional lands of Wiradjuri people.[1] The name, Bongongolong, is very likely a settler rendering of a local language word.

Early European settlers in the area originally used the land for grazing livestock. In 1874 while prospecting for gold between Bongongolong and Coolac, a previously unrecorded meteorite was discovered near the village by local man Thomas McMahon.[2] Development in the area around Bongongolong boomed in the late 19th century with the discovery of gold in Bongongolong Creek in 1879.[3] A public school was established in 1880[4] and by 1889 a stamping battery was in operation. This attracted national media attention when in August, the manager of the mill was committed for trial for his part in the fraudulent sale of impure smelted gold.[5] By the late 1890s, a community hall and post office had been built at Bongongolong.

The ongoing decline of the town from World War I onwards is evidenced by the closure of the public school for the last time in 1961.[4] Today little remains of the village, with a few farm houses surviving. The street-grid and foundations for a number of community buildings remain visible.

Sometimes the town's name has also been spelled 'Bongongalong', causing some difficulty when reviewing historical documents.

In literature

The poem "Those Names" by Banjo Paterson published in 1895 refers to Bongongolong as an example of place names unique to Australia.[6]

References
  1. Studies, Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (28 July 2023). "Map of Indigenous Australia". aiatsis.gov.au. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  2. Hodge-Smith, T. "An Unrecorded Meteorite from Coolac, New South Wales" (PDF). Australian Museum. Retrieved 9 March 2014.
  3. The Gundagai Times and Tumut, Adelong and Murrumbidgee District Advertiser (7 October 1879). "News of the Week". National Library of Australia.
  4. "Chronological List Of Schools 1861–1880" (PDF). Department of Education and Communities (New South Wales). 15 February 2003.
  5. The Argus (Melbourne) (23 August 1889). "Charge of Fraud". National Library of Australia.
  6. A. B. "Banjo" Patterson. "The Man from Snowy River and Other Verses". Retrieved 9 March 2014.


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