The Heritage Walk

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The heritage walk follows the following trail:

1. MATHOURA VISITOR & BUSINESS CENTER
   Constructed in 2002, the centre provides historical and interpretive displays, arts and crafts, and find all you need to know about the rivers and forests. Tel 5884 3730
2. RED BANK INN & GARDEN & CIRCUS
   In 1851 William Carter built a public
   house called the Red Bank Inn. McKenzie and
   Taylor in 1858 established a Coach run and
   the Red Bank Inn became a horse changing
   station increasing trade to the Red Bank
   settlement. Henry Burton’s Circus purchased
   the Red Bank property in 1865. He spelled
   his circus animals during the winter months
   and the practice ring remained as a landmark
   for many years.
   Red Bank Inn was destroyed by fire in
   1970.
3. KANGAROO HOTEL
   Built by Mrs Ryan during the 1860’s across the highway from the Redbank Inn.
   There being no permanent police, trading went very late. One night about midnight, Mrs Ryan called closing time and sent the patrons home. The hotel was off the ground and the verandah was made of Murray pine. The men were pretty intoxicated and the last one to leave had a wooden peg leg. As he walked on the verandah his peg leg went through a knot hole in the floor and he stayed there all night until he was rescued the next morning.
4. SCHOOLS (OLD & CURRENT)
   A private school was established in 1877 with the Department of Education
   making it a government school with Miss Miller, official teacher. In 1900 Allan Campbell was teacher in charge with an enrolment of 100 pupils. In 1914 the principal William Morris was distressed by the number of children being taken away from school with no opportunities for education so he decided to give lessons by correspondence. The response lead to the Education Department appointing a principal in charge of correspondence schools in NSW in 1916. By 1919 enrolments had risen to 130 and improvements occurred in 1925 by JC Brewis at a cost of £1200.
5. CATHOLIC SCHOOL
   Early 1920’s Father, Paul Zundolovich of Moama, and Mathoura residents raised£1100 to build a convent for the sisters. In January 1926 a group of nuns left Broken Hill in two cars arriving in Mathoura a week later and the convent was officially opened.
   Cricket and football were played by the boys and vigoro (a type of cricket) and basketball by the girls. With no heating or cooling the Sisters and pupils suffered extreme heat and cold. Ink froze in the inkwells and summer was spent on the steps of the church playing "Jacks" with knucklebones of sheep. By 1963 numbers had declined and the school closed.
6. STREET TREES
   Logging of timber was a major industry in Mathoura for many years but the importance of trees as decoration and shade for streets, gardens and farms was acknowledged many years ago. H. Keck advertised in 1909 in the Pastoral Times that sugar gum trees were available from his Bendigo nursery and early photographs show pepper trees flourishing in Livingstone Street. However, these were replaced in 1923 with "ornamentals", namely Kurrajong trees, a sum of _150 having been voted for that purpose.
   In 1941 it was decided to plant trees in Morris Street from the railway gates to Livingstone Street. Plantations of coral and salmon gum were established in 1957 by the Mathoura Junior Farmers beside the Cobb Highway, with later plantings by Council and the Forestry Commission.
   CAN YOU IDENTIFY:
   i) Kurrajong - Brachychiton populneus
   ii) White Cedars - Melia dubia
   iii) Jakaranda - Dalbergia nigra
   iv) Peppercorn Tree - Schinus molle
   v) Salmon Gum - Eucalyptus salmonophloia
   vi) Coral Gum - Eucalyptus torquata
   vii) Sugar Gum - Eucalyptus cladocalyx
   BAKERY
   In 1872 the first bakery in Mathoura was opened by John Henry Bock on the corner of Livingstone and Lawrence Streets where Tattersall’s Hotel now stands. In 1892 he sought to buy the land but the asking price was too high. Instead, for half the cost, he bought the adjoining block to which he proceeded to move his buildings – on rails borrowed from the D & M Railway Company, and with the use of Trewella jacks from Opitz’s sawmill.
7. TATTERSALLS HOTEL
   This site was originally the first butcher shop which was pulled down by John Bock to build a bakery which he moved next door. The new premises were constructed in 1915 and the licence was transferred from the Kangaroo Hotel to Tattersall’s Hotel in 1917. Cost of a beer: 6d = 5 cents
8. D & M WATER TOWER
   In 1875 the D & M Railway Company completed the survey for its proposed line, taking in the settlement at Redbank.The line was officially opened with much festivity on 4 July 1876.
9. MEMORIAL GARDENS
   The Memorial Gardens came into being through the voluntary labour of the RSL members. Mr Charles Hipworth built the archway and the Soldier’s Memorial Gardens sign. In 1928 the Council decided to take over the gardens and in 1932 when times were hard the caretaker requested money for seeds and was refused, but having bought the seeds with his own money, he was permitted to reimburse himself from the sale of cut flowers from the gardens.
   In 1934 a small monument of grey granite with four marble pillars supporting a small cupola was erected in the gardens and dedicated to the men of Murray Shire who fell during the 1914-1918 war. Two German machine guns were also installed.
10. PASTORAL HOTEL
    The Pastoral Hotel in 1908 was weather board and the licencee was Gus Pollard. It was rebuilt in 1914-15 in bricks made locally. In 1920 a disastrous fire in Livingstone Street burned several shops and houses and damaged the Pastoral Hotel.
    Legend has it that two men were perched at the Pastoral’s bar with a beer each, dressed in white shirts and ties when a bullock wandered in through the front door. A dog from the street chased the bullock giving him a nip, and as cattle do, let fly and squirted manure everywhere!
11. RAILWAY STATION
    In 1875 the D & M Railway Company completed the survey for its proposed line, taking in the settlement at Redbank. John Taylor, who owned most of the land in the vicinity, was approached by the directors, seeking the right of way to take the line close to the town.
    Taylor, however, tried to drive too hard a bargain, the line was re-routed and the station built about half a mile north of its original planned location.
    The line was officially opened with much festivity on 4 July 1876. Crowds gathered on the railway station, bearing the name Redbank, to cheer the arrival and departure of the special flag-bedecked train making its first journey to Deniliquin. Refreshment rooms adjacent to the ticket office were operating in 1878 and the existence of the Railway Hotel, opening onto the platform, was noted on 1882. By 1883 the post office was also located on the station, which was shown in old photographs to have been of considerable length.
12. OLD BANK
    In September 1921 fire destroyed many buildings in Livingstone Street including the building used by the bank. A new premises consisting of a banking chamber, manager’s office and a six roomed residence was erected in 1922. However, the building of cast cement was apparently unsuitable for the Mathoura climate and in 1928 a more satisfactory building of hardwood was erected at a cost of £2357 12s 10d. The land on which it was built had been purchased by the bank in 1926 for the sum of £400.
    In 1982 the Bank of NSW became Westpac and in 1986 the old building was demolished and new modular premises assembled on the same site.
13. POST OFFICE
    The original Post Office was located at Red Bank Inn and the mail taken and delivered by Coach. The first postmaster was Henry Burton in 1867 with an allowance of £12 per annum. With the new railway in 1867 and the rail company being awarded the mail contract, the mail then had to be delivered to the station and it was not long after that the post office moved to the station. The station remained the site of the post office until 1912 when the office was moved to the south-east corner of Livingstone and Morris Streets and designated as the "official" post office.
14. CHARLSTON HOTEL
    Charlston’s Hotel was built in 1926 by Frank Charlston, taking over the licence of the Railway Hotel. There was an enormous peppercorn tree in front and there were spikes driven into it so that the horses could be tied up.
    The original site was first occupied by the Douglas Brothers’ store which was then rebuilt across the street. The store closed during the war years but reopened in 1946 with "Lad" Henderson in the grocery part and Bert Dolan conducting the newsagency and the barber’s shop. Since then the store has changed hands more than once and today it is a combined newsagency and hardware business.
15. ANGLICAN CHURCH
    A new brick church was built in 1935. Designed by architect Louis Williams and built by JW Adams, it was hallowed on May 5 by R Halse, Bishop of Riverina, under the dedication of the Holy Cross. The rector of the parish at that time was Rev. Canon E Jellicoe Rogers, later archdeacon and succeeded in 1940 by Canon Kirkpatrick. A debt of £500 remained on the building until 1944 when it was finally paid, making possible the consecration of the Church on June 11.
16. FORESTRY ARBORETUM
    Dedicated to the memory of “Harry” McCormick, 7th August 1989, a popular forester who was well known for his tree planting and environment protection.