The Murray Attractions
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The Murray region of New South Wales features a variety of attractions. The region follows the Murray River.
Albury, Australia
Albury (pop. 43,770) is the twin town of Wodonga. It is a popular stopover on the Hume Highway between Sydney and Melbourne. It was here that Hume and Murray on their journey of exploration in 1824 reached the Murray, and this later became the most important crossing over the river, which here forms the boundary between New South Wales and Victoria.
Dean Street
On the main street (Dean Street) of Albury are a number of interesting 19th C buildings: the railway station, the courthouse, the post office and the Regional Art Centre, housed in the former town hall. The old Turk's Head Inn (Wodonga Place) is now the Regional Museum.
Surroundings
Lake Hume, a large artificial lake created by the Hume Weir in 1936, is a paradise for water-sports enthusiasts and anglers. To the south of Albury can be seen the Bogong Mountains in Victoria, which are covered with snow in winter. There are day trips to the areas around Rutherglen in Victoria.
Monument Hill
There is a good view of Albury from Monument Hill, on which there is a 30 m high war memorial.
Deniliquin, Australia
Deniliquin (pop. 8200) is in an extensive irrigated area in which the main crop is rice (largest rice mill in Australia). Other products are wheat and wool. Between the Edward River and a series of lagoons is an island scheduled as a nature reserve (kangaroos, emus).The town has a number of interesting old buildings (Courthouse, Town Hall, Taylor's Cottage). There was formerly a well-known cattle market for dealers from Victoria. Sheep farming is now of economic importance in the north part of the area.
Mulwala, Australia
Mulwala (pop. 1750) lies on the shores of Lake Mulwala, an artificial lake created by the damming of the Murray River in 1939 to provide water for irrigation. The neighboring town of Yarrawonga, developing faster, has now outstripped Mulwala.Mulwala is a popular water sports center, and there are cruises on Lake Mulwala. The trunks of trees submerged by the lake were left standing to break the waves in a storm. The Mulwala Canal is an important element in the Murray River irrigation project, conveying water 120 km north and irrigating more than 2000 farms.
Jerilderie, Australia
Jerilderie (pop. 1100) is a little settlement on Billabong Creek and was founded in the mid-19th c. and developed into a staging post on the Newell Highway. It is now the center of a large sheep-farming area. In 1879 it was held for two days by the Kelly gang, who captured the police station, cut the telegraph wires and robbed the bank.
