Part One of a 2-part seriesAN attractively printed brochure first published in 1911 highlighted the spectacular natural scenery at Bundanoon. The photographic collection was accompanied by advertisements for accommodation and other facilities awaiting the visitor to the village.
Bundanoon History Group will open a new display at its History Shed on August 21 showcasing enlarged, mounted prints of these photographs. As well, recollections from people growing up in the village will be displayed conveying the enthusiasm with which the local natural wonders were explored and enjoyed.
The early rapid rise in the popularity of Bundanoon as a tourist and holiday destination was due to these unique natural features being easily accessible, especially once the Great Southern Railway was built through the district and people sought to escape the stifling coastal summers.
The earliest mention of Bundanoon occurs in Doctor Charles Throsby’s Journal, which records that he and his party visited the locality in 1818. He records the name as “Bantanoon”, an Aboriginal name for “place of deep gullies”. So impressed was Throsby with the grandeur and beauty of the country he found that he recommended a portion be reserved to the Crown and 1200 acres in the vicinity of Bundanoon Creek were duly reserved.
However, it was not until the passing of the Robertson Land Act in 1861 that the pace of settlement quickened. This Act enabled selectors to take up land (usually in 40-acre portions) which could be bought for £1 an acre.
The construction of the railway in 1867 was crucial to the way forward for Bundanoon (then called Jordan’s Crossing). The railway required timber and coal, so mills and mines were established and quarrying for stone began. These activities brought workers to the area, some of whom settled, so the need for butchers, bakers, schools, churches, postal facilities, shops and so on eventually led to a village clustered around the railway station.
As the new rail line split the land selection of Mr Jordan, a crossing was installed so he could reach his house and when a platform was built nearby it was called Jordan’s Crossing. In 1880 the residents petitioned for a change of name and on April 2, 1881, the post office and station became known as Bundanoon.
Soon after the railway opened, visitors who came to see the new developments were not only impressed by the industries which had been established, but also by the spectacular natural scenery and the health-giving quality of the air at Bundanoon.
A correspondent to the Scrutineer (a Moss Vale newspaper) wrote in March 1877: “Just a few hundred yards from the (Amos timber) mill, is a scene almost tropical. A dense scrub containing some splendid sassafrass, beech, musk, cedar and lillypilly trees . . . Along the edge of this scrub which is filled with fern trees and vines and climbers of numerous kinds, there runs a creek of never-failing cool and clear water. A thought came across me when viewing this beautiful scrub . . . that the place would make an excellent resort for excursionists and holiday folks, for a more pleasant place for a picnic and its accompanying amusements I have not seen between Mittagong and Goulburn.”
The article went on to describe the spectacular views: “After leaving the scrub and mounting a hill not far distant, a landscape unsurpassed for grandeur in this district meets the eye. The scene before you is one of wild beauty and great extent. It is called the Bundanoon Gorge. Range upon range, thickly timbered, now and then abruptly terminating in huge perpendicular rocks some hundreds of feet in height, while deep gullies and ravines make up a picture that would well repay the time and trouble of the traveller . . .”
Official recognition by State authorities of the special significance of these scenic attractions was instituted not long after they began to attract public recognition. Considerably more land for public recreation was reserved by a series of proclamations in the late 1870s and through the 1880s.
The main recreation reserve, a short distance down the hill from the village, functioned as a picnic area and pleasure ground and from it tracks led to spectacular lookouts and waterfalls and to many fern-filled bowers.
Fairy Bower was a great favourite, as it included a spectacular waterfall and rock pools. Glow Worm Glen and Echo Point were other popular spots that rewarded the effort of trekking, cycling or horse-riding the several kilometres needed to reach them.
- Continued next week
This article is sourced from the archives of Bundanoon History Group, Old Goods Shed, Railway Avenue, Bundanoon. Open 10-3pm on first and third Sunday each month. Contribution of information and photographs most welcome. Contact the Secretary, PO Box 180 Bundanoon 2578.
Email a friend