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{{Redirect|Wagga}}
{{Use Australian English|date=August 2011}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox Australian place
| type = city
| name = Wagga Wagga
| state = NSW
| image = {{multiple image
| total_width = 280
| border = infobox
| perrow = 1/2/2/2
| caption_align = center
| image1 = Aerial view of Central Wagga Wagga.jpg
| caption1 = Wagga Wagga City Centre
| image2 = St Michael's Cathedral (Church Street view).jpg
| caption2 = St Michael's Cathedral
| image3 = Chisholm Fountain at the Victory Memorial Gardens 01.jpg
| caption3 = The Chisholm Fountain
| image4 = Hampden Bridge over Murrumbidgee River in Wagga Wagga.jpg
| caption4 = Hampden Bridge over the [[Murrumbidgee River]]
| image5 = Historic Council Chambers, Wagga Wagga, NSW, 2022, 01.jpg
| caption5 = Historic Council Chambers
}}
| caption =
| coordinates = {{Coord|35|7|8|S|147|22|8|E|display=inline,title}}
| relief = yes
| lga = City of Wagga Wagga
| county = *[[Wynyard County|Wynyard]] <br />
*[[Clarendon County, New South Wales|Clarendon]]
| parish = South Wagga Wagga
| stategov = [[Electoral district of Wagga Wagga|Wagga Wagga]]
| fedgov = [[Division of Riverina|Riverina]]
| elevation= 180<ref>{{cite web|last1=Chen|first1=Xangyang|title=Wagga Wagga 1:100 000 Map Sheet, New South Wales|url=http://crcleme.org.au/RegLandEvol/WaggaWagga.pdf|website=Cooperative Research Centre for Landscape Environments and Mineral Exploration|access-date=29 September 2020|year=2003}}</ref>
| maxtemp = 22.1
| mintemp = 9.0
| rainfall =
| postcode = 2650
| pop
| pop_year = 2021
| pop_footnotes = <ref name=Census2021/>
| poprank = 26th
| est = 1829 (explored)<ref name="WillamE"/><br />1847 (village)<br />1849 (surveyed)<br />1849 (town)<br />1870 (municipality)<br />1946 (city)
| timezone
| utc
| timezone-dst = [[Time in Australia|AEDT]]
| utc-dst = +11:00
<!-- | local_map = yes needs but I think the LGA link would be better, this does say the city of, not the suburb, but the wikidata says the LGA -->
| dist1 = 452 | dir1 = SW | location1 = [[Sydney]]
| dist2 = 456 | dir2 = NE | location2 = [[Melbourne]]
| dist3 = 244 | dir3 = W | location3 = [[Canberra]]
| dist4 = 147 | dir4 = NNE| location4 =
|
}}
'''Wagga Wagga''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|w|ɒ|ɡ|ə|_|ˈ|w|ɒ|ɡ|ə}};<ref>{{cite book|title=Macquarie ABC Dictionary|publisher=The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd|year=2003|page=1108|isbn=978-1-876429-37-9}}</ref> informally called '''Wagga''') is a major regional city in the [[Riverina]] region of [[New South Wales]], Australia. Straddling the [[Murrumbidgee River]], with an urban population of more than 57,003 as of 2021,<ref>{{Cite web|title=2021 Maitland (NSW), Census All persons QuickStats {{!}} Australian Bureau of Statistics|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/quickstats/2021/UCL111003|access-date=2024-05-14|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|title=Maitland (City, Australia) – Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location|url=https://www.citypopulation.de/en/australia/admin/new_south_wales/15050__maitland/|access-date=2024-05-14|website=citypopulation.de}}</ref> it is an important agricultural, military, and transport hub of Australia. The ninth largest inland city in Australia,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.id.com.au/2015/population/australian-demographic-trends/what-is-australias-fastest-growing-inland-town/|title=What is Australia's fastest growing inland town?|work=blog.id.com.au|date=5 March 2015|access-date=5 August 2016|archive-date=22 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822091803/http://blog.id.com.au/2015/population/australian-demographic-trends/what-is-australias-fastest-growing-inland-town|url-status=dead}}</ref> Wagga Wagga is located midway between the two largest cities in Australia—[[Sydney]] and [[Melbourne]]—and is the major regional centre for the [[Riverina]] and [[South Western Slopes|South West Slopes]] regions.
The central business district is focused around the commercial and recreational grid bounded by Best and Tarcutta Streets and the [[Murrumbidgee River]] and the [[Sturt Highway]]. The main shopping street of Wagga is Baylis Street which becomes Fitzmaurice Street at the northern end. Wagga is accessible from Sydney via the [[Sturt Highway|Sturt]] and [[Hume Highway]]s, Adelaide via the [[Sturt Highway]] and Albury and Melbourne via the [[Olympic Highway]] and [[Hume Highway]]. Wagga is in an [[alluvial]] valley and much of the city has a problem with urban [[soil salination|salinity]].{{citation needed|date=May 2024}}
The original inhabitants of the Wagga Wagga region were the [[Wiradjuri]] people. In 1829, [[Charles Sturt]] became the first [[European land exploration of Australia|European explorer]] to visit the future site of the city. [[squatting (pastoral)|Squatters]] arrived soon after. The town, positioned on the site of a [[ford (crossing)|ford]] across the Murrumbidgee,<ref name="gazette"/> was surveyed and gazetted as a village in 1849 and the town grew quickly after. In 1870, the town was gazetted as a municipality.
During the negotiations leading to the [[Federation of Australia|federation]] of the Australian colonies, Wagga Wagga was a contender for the site of the capital for the new nation.<ref name="Federation">Morris, p. 115.</ref> During World War I, the town was the starting point for the [[Snowball marches#Kangaroo March|Kangaroo recruitment march]]. The [[Great Depression]] and the resulting hardship saw Wagga Wagga become the centre of a [[secession]] movement for the [[Riverina]] region. Wagga Wagga became a garrison town during World War II with the establishment of a military base at [[Kapooka, New South Wales|Kapooka]] and [[Royal Australian Air Force]] bases at [[Forest Hill, New South Wales|Forest Hill]] and [[Uranquinty]]. After the war, Wagga Wagga was proclaimed as a city in 1946 and new suburbs were developed to the south of the city. In 1982, the city was amalgamated with the neighbouring [[Kyeamba Shire|Kyeamba]] and [[Mitchell Shire (New South Wales)|Mitchell]] Shires to form the [[City of Wagga Wagga]] [[Local government in Australia|local government area]].
==Geography==
Wagga Wagga is at the eastern end of the [[Riverina]] region where the slopes of the [[Great Dividing Range]] flatten and form the Riverina plain. Wagga straddles the [[Murrumbidgee River]], one of the great rivers of the [[Murray–Darling basin]], and the city centre is on the southern bank, protected by a [[levee]] from potential flooding.
Wagga sits halfway between the largest cities in Australia, being 452 kilometres southwest of Sydney and 456 kilometres northeast of Melbourne with the [[Main Southern railway line|Sydney–Melbourne railway line]] passing through.<ref name="TravelMat">{{cite web|url=http://www.travelmate.com.au/MapMaker/MapMaker.asp|title=Map Maker|publisher=Travel Mate|access-date=7 April 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070325131221/http://www.travelmate.com.au/MapMaker/MapMaker.asp|archive-date=25 March 2007}}</ref> The [[Sturt Highway]], part of Australia's [[National Highway (Australia)|National Highway]] network, passes through Wagga on its way from [[Adelaide]] to its junction with the main Sydney–Melbourne route, the [[Hume Highway]], a further 45 kilometres east.
This ___location astride some of Australia's major transport routes has made Wagga Wagga an important heavy truck depot for a number of companies, including [[Toll Group]]. Wagga Wagga itself is the major regional centre for the [[Riverina]] and for much of the [[South Western Slopes|South West Slopes]] regions, providing education, health and other services to a region extending as far as [[Griffith, New South Wales|Griffith]] to the west, [[Cootamundra]] to the north and [[Tumut]] to the east.
{{wide image|360° aerial panorama from Willans Hill Reserve.jpg|800px|Wagga Wagga from Willans Hill||none}}
===Landform and salinity===
[[File:Aerial view of Ashmont Reserve and Moorong.jpg|thumb|An aerial view of Ashmont Reserve and Moorong along the [[Murrumbidgee River]], on the outskirts of the city]]
Wagga Wagga is upstream from the Riverina plain in the mid-catchment range of the [[Murrumbidgee River]] in an [[alluvial]] valley confined by low [[bedrock]] hills.<ref name="Landform">{{cite web|author1=Page, K.|author2=Dare-Edwards, A. J.|author3=Owens, J. W.|author4=Frazier, P. S.|author5=Kellett, J.|author6=Price, D. M.|url=http://aqua.org.au/AQUA/meetings/Bowlerfest/Page.html|title=TL Chronology and stratigraphy of riverine source bordering sand dunes near Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia|access-date=3 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070829235640/http://www.aqua.org.au/AQUA/meetings/Bowlerfest/Page.html|archive-date=29 August 2007}}</ref> Much of Wagga Wagga is on heavy [[clay]] soils in a large [[drainage basin]] with a small catchment discharge point. [[Groundwater]] therefore cannot leave easily, leading to Wagga Wagga having a problem with waterlogged soil and [[soil salination]]. Urban salination in Wagga Wagga is now the subject of a large multi-pronged approach to prevent further salination and reclaim salt-affected areas.<ref name="UrbanLandcare">{{cite web|url=http://silo.csu.edu.au/WWULC/selfGuidedSalinityTour.html|title=Self Guided Salinity Tour|publisher=Wagga Wagga Urban Landcare Group|access-date=3 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060819095943/http://silo.csu.edu.au/WWULC/selfGuidedSalinityTour.html|archive-date=19 August 2006}}</ref>
===City and suburbs===
[[Image:Wagga Wagga map 1897.jpg|thumb
{{
The ___location of Wagga Wagga's
Most residential growth in Wagga Wagga has been on the higher ground to the south of the city centre, with the only residential areas north of the Murrumbidgee being the flood prone suburb of [[ [[Thomas Mitchell (explorer)|Thomas Mitchell]], the surveyor who served under [[Lord Wellington]], named many of the streets after [[Peninsular War]] veterans.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article51780016|title=The romance of Australian place names.|newspaper=[[The Australian Women's Weekly]]|date=27 May 1964|access-date=14 October 2013|page=59|via=National Library of Australia}}</ref>
===Climate===
Wagga Wagga has a [[temperate climate]] with hot dry summers and cool to cold winters.<ref>{{cite web|title=Australian climate zones – major classification groups|work=Australian Government|publisher=[[Bureau of Meteorology]]|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/environ/other/kpn_group.shtml|access-date=21 December 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121015022851/http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/environ/other/kpn_group.shtml|archive-date=15 October 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Australian climatic zones|work=Australian Government|publisher=Bureau of Meteorology|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/environ/travel/map.shtml|access-date=21 December 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130902020150/http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/environ/travel/map.shtml|archive-date=2 September 2013}}</ref> Under the [[Köppen climate classification]], the city has a [[humid subtropical climate]] (''Cfa''),<ref name="SpechtRundel2012">{{cite book|author=R. L. Specht|author2=Philip Rundel|author3=W. E. Westman|author4=P. C. Catling|author5=Jonathan Majer|author6=Penelope Greenslade|title=Mediterranean-type Ecosystems: A data source book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j93qCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA95|date=6 December 2012|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|isbn=978-94-009-3099-5|page=95}}</ref> with a [[semi-arid]] influence in its vegetation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/threatenedSpeciesApp/VegFormation.aspx?formationName=Semi-arid+woodlands+(shrubby+sub-formation)|title=Semi-arid woodlands (shrubby sub-formation)|date=26 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230419150846/https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/threatenedSpeciesApp/VegFormation.aspx?formationName=Semi-arid+woodlands+(shrubby+sub-formation)|archive-date=19 April 2023|publisher=[[Office of Environment & Heritage]]|access-date=26 May 2016}}</ref> At a latitude of 35 degrees and altitude of {{convert|212|metres}}, Wagga Wagga has four distinct seasons.
Winters can be cold by Australian standards. The mean maximum temperature falls in July to {{Convert|12.7|°C|°F}} and a mean minimum of {{Convert|2.8|°C|°F}}. The lowest temperature recorded at Wagga was {{Convert|-6.3|°C|°F}} on 21 August 1982. The lowest maximum temperature was {{convert|3.4|C|}} on 16 July 1966. [[Fog]] and heavy [[frost]]s are common in the winter; while [[Snow in Australia|snow]] is now a very rare occurrence, with the last significant snowfall on 17 August 1970 (though with several occurrences prior to that year).<ref>{{ cite web | url=https://cdn.csu.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/163260/7525_09_2010.pdf| title=Wagga snow records|website=Trove|access-date=2025-03-09}}</ref><ref name="BOM">{{cite web|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/weather/nsw/wagga/climate.shtml|title=Climate of Wagga Wagga|publisher=[[Bureau of Meteorology (Australia)]]|access-date=28 April 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090322192652/http://www.bom.gov.au/weather/nsw/wagga/climate.shtml|archive-date=22 March 2009}}</ref>
Summers in Wagga Wagga are hot and dry, with mean maximum temperatures ranging between {{convert|29|and|32|C|F}}. The highest temperature on record was {{Convert|46.1|°C|°F|abbr=}} on 4 January 2020.<ref name="ave">{{Cite web|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/cw_072150_All.shtml|title=Climate statistics for Wagga Wagga AMO|date=20 February 2020|publisher=Bureau of Meteorology|access-date=2020-02-21}}</ref> [[Relative humidity]] is low in the summer months with a 3 pm average of around 30%. Wagga Wagga is considerably sunny with 124.3 clear days annually, averaging 8.1 sunshine hours daily or 2,961.5 hours annually (with the majority in the warmer months).<ref name="BOM"/>
In 2009 the city recorded an anomalous maximum of {{Convert|25.03|°C|°F}}, which was {{convert|2.33|C-change}} above the country's average of {{Convert|22.7|°C|°F}} and the highest anomalous maximum in Australia for 2009.<ref>{{cite news|title=Wagga's temperature above national average|first=Laura|last=Suckling|newspaper=The Daily Advertiser|date=7 January 2010}}</ref> This preceded the [[2009 southeastern Australia heat wave|early 2009 southeastern Australia heat wave]], in which Wagga Wagga recorded 13 consecutive days over {{Convert|100|F|order=flip}}.
Wagga Wagga has a mean annual rainfall of {{Convert|571.5|mm||abbr=}} per year.<ref name="ave"/> This rainfall is distributed fairly equally over the 12 months, with a slight peak in winter and spring.<ref name="BOM"/> On 8 March 2010, Wagga Wagga Airport recorded {{Convert|110.2|mm|abbr=on}} of rain. This broke the previous all-time daily record of {{convert|104.1|mm|abbr=on}} set on 16 March 1966, with {{convert|127|mm|abbr=on}} of rain recorded at Gurwood Street in the city's CBD.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/current/statements/scs20a.pdf|title=Special Climate Statement 20|date=10 March 2010|publisher=Bureau of Meteorology|access-date=11 March 2010}}</ref> In December 2010, the city recorded its wettest year on record and the first yearly rainfall recording of {{convert|1000|mm|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite news|last=Grimson|first=Ken|title=Rainfall records tumble as Wagga reaches 1000mm|url=http://www.dailyadvertiser.com.au/news/local/news/general/rainfall-records-tumble-as-wagga-reaches-1000mm/2022204.aspx|access-date=12 December 2010|work=The Daily Advertiser|date=10 December 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Today's temps and weatherwatch|url=http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/todays-temps-and-weatherwatch/story-fn6b3v4f-1225969203638|work=The Daily Telegraph|___location=Sydney|access-date=12 December 2010|date=11 December 2010}}</ref>
{{Weather box|___location = Wagga Wagga AMO (1941–2020); 212 m AMSL; 35.16° S, 147.46° E
|metric first = yes
|single line = yes
|Jan record high C = 46.1
|Feb record high C = 45.2
|Mar record high C = 39.9
|Apr record high C = 35.8
|May record high C = 28.7
|Jun record high C = 23.2
|Jul record high C = 23.2
|Aug record high C = 26.6
|Sep record high C = 32.9
|Oct record high C = 36.3
|Nov record high C = 42.8
|Dec record high C = 43.2
|year record high C = 46.1
|Jan high C = 31.9
|Feb high C = 31.0
|Mar high C = 27.7
|Apr high C = 22.6
|May high C = 17.4
|Jun high C = 13.9
|Jul high C = 12.8
|Aug high C = 14.5
|Sep high C = 17.7
|Oct high C = 21.7
|Nov high C = 25.9
|Dec high C = 29.6
|year high C = 22.2
|Jan low C = 16.4
|Feb low C = 16.4
|Mar low C = 13.5
|Apr low C = 9.2
|May low C = 5.9
|Jun low C = 3.7
|Jul low C = 2.8
|Aug low C = 3.5
|Sep low C = 5.1
|Oct low C = 7.8
|Nov low C = 10.9
|Dec low C = 14.0
|year low C = 9.1
|Jan record low C = 3.4
|Feb record low C = 2.3
|Mar record low C = 2.6
|Apr record low C = -2.1
|May record low C = -4.4
|Jun record low C = -5.2
|Jul record low C = -6.3
|Aug record low C = -5.4
|Sep record low C = -3.8
|Oct record low C = -2.2
|Nov record low C = -0.2
|Dec record low C = 3.4
|year record low C = -6.3
|precipitation colour=green
|Jan precipitation mm = 40.1
|Feb precipitation mm = 40.2
|Mar precipitation mm = 44.6
|Apr precipitation mm = 39.7
|May precipitation mm = 50.6
|Jun precipitation mm = 50.4
|Jul precipitation mm = 54.1
|Aug precipitation mm = 50.7
|Sep precipitation mm = 48.8
|Oct precipitation mm = 55.8
|Nov precipitation mm = 46.5
|Dec precipitation mm = 46.1
|year precipitation mm = 571.5
|unit precipitation days = 0.2 mm
|Jan precipitation days = 5.5
|Feb precipitation days = 5.3
|Mar precipitation days = 5.6
|Apr precipitation days = 6.7
|May precipitation days = 9.2
|Jun precipitation days = 11.3
|Jul precipitation days = 13.6
|Aug precipitation days = 12.9
|Sep precipitation days = 10.4
|Oct precipitation days = 9.3
|Nov precipitation days = 7.5
|Dec precipitation days = 6.3
|year precipitation days = 103.6
|humidity colour=green
|Jan afthumidity = 29
|Feb afthumidity = 33
|Mar afthumidity = 35
|Apr afthumidity = 43
|May afthumidity = 56
|Jun afthumidity = 64
|Jul afthumidity = 65
|Aug afthumidity = 59
|Sep afthumidity = 54
|Oct afthumidity = 46
|Nov afthumidity = 36
|Dec afthumidity = 30
|year humidity = 46
| Jand sun = 10.8
| Febd sun = 10.1
| Mard sun = 9.3
| Aprd sun = 8.2
| Mayd sun = 6.3
| Jund sun = 4.6
| Juld sun = 4.8
| Augd sun = 6.4
| Sepd sun = 7.6
| Octd sun = 9.2
| Novd sun = 9.7
| Decd sun = 10.4
| yeard sun = 8.1
| Jan sun = 334.8
| Feb sun = 285.3
| Mar sun = 288.3
| Apr sun = 246.0
| May sun = 195.3
| Jun sun = 138.0
| Jul sun = 148.8
| Aug sun = 198.4
| Sep sun = 228.0
| Oct sun = 285.2
| Nov sun = 291.0
| Dec sun = 322.4
| year sun =
|source 1 =<ref name="ave"/>
|source 2 =
}}
==History==
{{Main|History of Wagga Wagga}}
{{See also|Mary Gilmore and the history of Wagga Wagga}}
=== European settlement ===
The original inhabitants of the Wagga Wagga region, who maintain a relationship with the area to this day, are the [[Wiradjuri]] people and the word ''wagga'' in the [[Wiradjuri language]] was thought to mean '[[crow]]', so ''wagga wagga'' could be taken to mean 'the place of many crows'. Other interpretations had ''wagga'' to mean 'reeling' (a sick man or a dizzy man); 'to dance, slide or grind'.<ref name="GNBofNSW">{{NSW GNR|id=SXKqjzqbMa|title=Wagga Wagga|access-date=25 April 2007}}</ref> In August 2019, the [[City of Wagga Wagga]] dropped the definition 'crow' and adopted the city's Aboriginal meaning as 'dance and celebrations'.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-08-27/wagga-wagga-officially-adopts-citys-aboriginal-meaning/11452096|title=Wagga Wagga officially drops 'crow' and adopts city's Aboriginal meaning as 'dance and celebrations'|publisher=ABC News|___location=Australia|date=27 August 2019|access-date=22 January 2021}}</ref> The new meaning was officially enshrined in the city's first Reconciliation Action Plan.
[[File:Capture of Captain Moonlite and his gang.jpg|thumb|The capture of Captain Moonlite]]
[[European land exploration of Australia|European exploration]] of the future site of Wagga Wagga began in 1829 with the arrival of Captain [[Charles Sturt]] during his expedition along the Murrumbidgee River.<ref name="Sturt">Morris, pp. 15–16.</ref> Settlers arrived shortly thereafter with Charles Tompson establishing the Eunonyhareenyha 'run' in 1832 on the north bank of the river, and also in 1832 the Wagga Wagga 'run' established by Robert Holt Best<ref>{{cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article230334122|title=Herr Wagga Is Curious|newspaper=[[The Sun (Sydney)|The Sun]]|issue=8507|___location=New South Wales, Australia|date=10 April 1937|access-date=31 August 2024|page=2|via=National Library of Australia}}</ref> (died September 1853),<ref>{{cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article114836452|title=The Southern Districts|newspaper=[[The Freeman's Journal]]|volume=IV|issue=178|___location=New South Wales, Australia|date=19 November 1853|access-date=31 August 2024|page=5|via=National Library of Australia}} His father, also named Robert Holt Best, died in 1833.</ref> on the south bank. Other settlers followed, all [[squatting (pastoral)|squatting]] illegally, but by 1836 the colonial government regulated the tenure of land and established a licensing scheme.<ref name="Tompson">Morris, pp. 17–20.</ref> Within a few years settlers' numbers increased greatly and before 1850 a local bench of [[magistrate]]s and a place for holding [[Local Court of New South Wales|petty sessions]] was established.<ref name="Magistrate">Morris, pp. 33–34.</ref> The beginnings of a village formed near the ford used by most traffic passing through the area and included a crude [[blacksmith]]'s shop, a [[public house|hotel]], and a post office. By 1849 the town was marked out by [[surveying|surveyor]] Thomas Scott Townsend and formally [[gazette]]d as a village.<ref name="gazette">Morris, pp. 34–36.</ref>
As in most rural towns Chinese people made a significant contribution as storekeeper, scrub clearers and in other occupations. As observed in 1879: "Chinamen seem to pervade everywhere. It is evident that the yellow agony doesn't annoy the good folks of Wagga Wagga much. Chinese cooks, Chinese "boots" Chinese labourers, Chinese servants are everywhere." "Most of the "ringing" on the surrounding runs and selections is in the hands of Chinamen, who, be it noted, have so far advanced in the civilisation of the west as to understand fully the advantage of a fair day's pay for a fair day's work. Chinese cheap labour is unknown here. The Celestial business establishments seem well patronised by Europeans as well as by their compatriots."<ref>''Wagga Wagga Advertiser'' 26 March 1879, p.3</ref>
On
[[Image:WaggaWaggaBridgeOverMurrumbidgee.jpg|thumb|right|[[Hampden Bridge (Wagga Wagga)|Hampden Bridge]]]]
In September 1859 local residents formed a committee for the construction of a [[pile bridge]] over the Murrumbidgee River. After the New South Wales Government refused to support this type of bridge the committee decided to finance it themselves. The bridge was completed in October 1862 and opened on 27 October at just over 91 metres long and 7 metres wide. In 1884 the New South Wales Government purchased the bridge and it was demolished in 1895.<ref name="Gormly">Morris, p. 78.</ref> In 1895 a [[truss bridge]] called the [[Hampden Bridge (Wagga Wagga)|Hampden Bridge]], was built across the Murrumbidgee River at Wagga. The bridge served the Wagga Wagga community for over 100 years until 16 August 2006 when it was closed and fenced off to the public due to the bridge being declared a safety risk after one of the trusses failed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/items/200608/1716961.htm?riverina|title=Council closes Hampden Bridge over sinking concerns|access-date=17 August 2006|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071121202817/http://www.abc.net.au/news/items/200608/1716961.htm?riverina|archive-date=21 November 2007}}</ref><ref>''The Daily Advertiser'' Hampden Bridge is falling down – Page 3–17 August 2006</ref> In 2014 the Hampden Bridge was demolished.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Hayter|first1=Melinda|title=Hampden Bridge comes falling down, but not without a fight|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-08-21/hampden-collapse/5685734|publisher=ABC News|___location=Australia|date=20 August 2014|access-date=27 August 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Owen|first1=Brodie|title=Hampden Bridge erased from Wagga's landscape|url=http://www.dailyadvertiser.com.au/story/2501941/hampden-bridge-erased-from-waggas-landscape/?cs=147|access-date=27 August 2014|work=The Daily Advertiser|date=20 August 2014}}</ref>
With its increasing prosperity and population, Wagga Wagga and the surrounding district became a place of interest to several infamous [[bushrangers]]. The Wagga police magistrate [[Henry Baylis]] was bailed up by [[Dan Morgan (bushranger)|Mad Dog Morgan]] in 1863.<ref name="TravelWagga"/> [[Captain Moonlite]] and his band arrived in the district on 15 November 1879 and held up 39 people at [[Wantabadgery, New South Wales|Wantabadgery Station]]. Moonlite and his gang escaped a police pursuit only to be captured at another nearby property when police from the neighbouring townships of [[Gundagai, New South Wales|Gundagai]] and [[Adelong, New South Wales|Adelong]] arrived.<ref name="TravelWagga"/>
[[File:Proposed Federal Capital site in Wagga.jpg|thumb|left|Federal parliamentarians visiting a proposed site for the Federal Capital of Australia in Wagga Wagga]]
Along with most of the [[Riverina]] region, the majority of Wagga Wagga residents supported the [[Federation of Australia|federation]] of the Australian colonies, in large part due to the prospect of [[free trade]] across colonial borders. In 1898, a group of residents promoted Wagga Wagga for consideration as the site of the future national capital due to its ___location equidistant from Sydney and Melbourne and its ample water supply. Despite the bid's lack of success, in the 1899 [[referendum]] Wagga Wagga residents voted strongly in favour of federation.<ref name="Federation"/>
During World War I the town was the starting point of the "Kangaroo March", one of a series of [[snowball marches]] conducted in New South Wales during the war in which groups of recruits marched towards Sydney and appealed to men in the towns along the route to join them and enlist in the [[First Australian Imperial Force|Australian Imperial Force]]. 88 recruits left Wagga Wagga on 1 December 1915, farewelled by a large crowd and to the accompaniment of a band. The marchers included [[John Ryan (Australian soldier)|John Ryan]], who later won the [[Victoria Cross]] for his actions in the [[Battle of the Hindenburg Line]] in 1918.<ref name="World War I">Morris, pp. 120–122.</ref> The march finished at [[Campbelltown, New South Wales|Campbelltown]] with over 220 recruits.<ref name="World War I"/><ref name="AWM">{{cite web|url=http://www.awm.gov.au/encyclopedia/recruiting_march/kangaroos.htm|title=Kangaroos|publisher=Australian War Memorial|access-date=5 May 2007}}</ref>
[[Image:Morrow Street Fire Station.jpg|thumb|Wagga Wagga Fire Station (C. 1903) on Morrow Street in 1912]]
After the war some of the area around Wagga Wagga was designated for [[Soldier settlement (Australia)|settlement by returned soldiers]], who faced insurmountable difficulties due to poor and unwatered land, lack of farming experience and lack of access to markets. Many walked off the land after years of backbreaking work.<ref name="SoldierSettlers">Morris, pp. 134–140.</ref> Residential growth continued with a population in 1921 of 11,631.<ref name="post">Morris, p. 148.</ref> Much of this residential growth was housed in the higher ground to the south, extending to the south of the railway tracks. A suburb consisting of tents and crude huts, known as "Tent Town", developed along the river providing housing for the poorer residents of Wagga Wagga.<ref name="suburb1920">Morris, p. 154.</ref> In 1922, electricity was provided for the town, with [[hydro-electric]] power available from [[Burrinjuck Dam]] from 1928.<ref name="electricity">Morris, p. 160.</ref>
Hardship as a result of the [[Great Depression]], and the election of [[Jack Lang (Australian politician)|Jack Lang]] of the [[Australian Labor Party|Labor]] party as [[Premier of New South Wales]], sparked the formation of the "Riverina Movement". Throughout the Riverina in early 1931, a series of rallies were organised by the movement, culminating in a great meeting in Wagga Wagga on 28 February 1931. The meeting called on the State and Federal governments to alleviate the concerns of producers in the district or hold a referendum to determine if the Riverina should [[secession|secede]]. The movement petered out following the dismissal of Lang in 1932 and the recovery of the regional economy.<ref name="secession">Morris, pp. 178–184.</ref>
The outbreak of World War II saw [[Royal Australian Air Force]] bases established at [[Forest Hill, New South Wales|Forest Hill]] in 1940 and [[Uranquinty]] in 1941. A major [[Australian Army]] camp was constructed at [[Kapooka, New South Wales|Kapooka]] in 1942 and one year later there were 8,000 troops in training there with Wagga taking on the characteristics of a garrison town.<ref name="World War II">Morris, pp. 191–198.</ref>
After the war, Wagga Wagga grew steadily and was proclaimed a city on 17 April 1946. Suburbs such as [[Turvey Park, New South Wales|Turvey Park]] and [[Kooringal, New South Wales|Kooringal]] were developed to the south of the city and in the 1960s, residential growth expanded to cover areas such as [[Tolland, New South Wales|Tolland]] and [[Lake Albert, New South Wales|Lake Albert]]. The main commercial district also moved south to the Baylis Street end with the development of the Sturt Mall in 1979. The City Council developed a series of industrial areas including areas for service and general industries, and agricultural processing and noxious industries were established in a new industrial estate in [[Bomen, New South Wales|Bomen]].<ref name="SuburbanGrowth">Morris, pp. 212–218.</ref>
[[File:QueenElizabeth InspectingSheep WaggaWagga 1954.jpg|thumb|Queen Elizabeth II being shown sheep at the Wagga Wagga show, 1954]]
In the 1950s the defence bases in Wagga Wagga again became an important part of the city. The Army camp at Kapooka was reopened as a recruit training centre from 1951, a role it maintains to this day. [[RAAF Base Wagga]] at Forest Hill also expanded, with training of defence force aircraft technicians there from 1969.<ref name="Bases">Morris, p. 223.</ref> After a series of major floods in the early 1950s, the City Council protected the city area on the south [[flood plain]] through construction of a [[levee]], completed in 1962. The levee was designed to provide protection from floods at levels expected once every one hundred years. North Wagga Wagga was initially excluded from protection however by 1982 another levee was constructed to protect the village, although at a lower standard.<ref name="Flood">Morris, pp. 237–238.</ref>
In 1971, following pressure from the Wagga Wagga community for a university, the teachers' college established in 1947 became the Riverina College of Advanced Education and was relocated to a site adjacent to the Wagga Agricultural College, with which it amalgamated in 1975. In 1989, the college amalgamated with the College of Advanced Education at [[Bathurst, New South Wales|Bathurst]] to become [[Charles Sturt University]].<ref name="HigherEducation">Morris, pp. 226–228.</ref> In 1981, the New South Wales government forced the amalgamation of Wagga Wagga City Council with neighbouring Kyeamba Shire and Mitchell Shire to form the new [[City of Wagga Wagga]] [[Local government in Australia|local government area]], containing 4,886 square kilometres.<ref name="Amalgamation">Morris, p. 237.</ref>
In February 1993, Wagga Wagga was the first city in the world to be proclaimed as a Rotary Peace City, with a Rotary Peace Monument unveiled on the corner of The Esplanade and Best Street.<ref name="Peace">{{cite web|url=http://www.rotarnet.com.au/users/P/PLEPFR/html/peace_city_article.html|title=Rotary peace city project|publisher=Rotary Australia|access-date=30 March 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080731224128/http://rotarnet.com.au/users/P/PLEPFR/html/peace_city_article.html|archive-date=31 July 2008}}</ref><ref name="HullPeace">{{cite web|url=http://www.nsw.nationals.org.au/html/media-alert-hull-to-attend-rotary-peace-day-ceremony-in-wagga-wagga.cfm|archive-url=https://archive.today/20110706125404/http://www.nsw.nationals.org.au/html/media-alert-hull-to-attend-rotary-peace-day-ceremony-in-wagga-wagga.cfm|archive-date=6 July 2011|title=MEDIA ALERT: Hull To Attend Rotary Peace Day Ceremony in Wagga Wagga|publisher=The Nationals NSW|access-date=30 March 2008}}</ref>
== Heritage listings ==
Wagga Wagga has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
* Botanic Gardens Site (BGS), Baden Powell Drive: [[Mobile Cook's Galley, Museum of the Riverina]]<ref name=nswshr-1722>{{cite NSW SHR|5053551|Mobile Cook's Galley, Museum of the Riverina|hr=01722|fn=H97/01122/1|access-date=18 May 2018}}</ref>
* Main Southern railway: [[Wagga Wagga railway station]]<ref name=nswshr-1279>{{cite NSW SHR|5012257|Wagga Wagga Railway Station and yard group|hr=01279|access-date=18 May 2018}}</ref>
==Symbols==
=== Flag ===
[[File:Flag of Wagga Wagga.jpg|thumb|Flag of Wagga Wagga]]
The Wagga Wagga city flag was designed by H Ellis Tomlinson and adopted in 1965.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Council |first=Wagga Wagga City |date=2021-03-31 |title=Our History |url=https://wagga.nsw.gov.au/community/about-wagga-wagga/our-history |access-date=2025-01-09 |website=wagga.nsw.gov.au |language=en-US}}</ref> Wagga Wagga City Council holds the copyright to Tomlinson's design. The flag is officially square and takes its design from the shield of the city's coat of arms.
===Coat of arms===
The upper quarter of the shield contains eight stalks of wheat positioned to form two capital letters W on a vert (green) field. The lower quarter of the upper half of the flag contains a wavy blue line on gold (yellow) representing the river winding through the wheat fields. The lower half of the flag contains the head of a ram positioned centrally on a vert (green) field.
The crest has a gold (yellow) mural crown on a knight's helmet. Inside the mural crown are a yellow caduceus with black wings, and eight gum leaves arranged as two letters W.
Both the supporters are crows, each with a gold (yellow) collar in the shape of the letter W.
The base of the coat of arms is grassy with a river in between, indicating that Wagga Wagga is built on both sides of the river.
{{Emblem table
|name = the City of Wagga Wagga
|image = File:Wagga Wagga Coat of Arms.jpg
|image_width =
|middle =
|middle_width =
|middle_caption =
|lesser =
|lesser_width =
|lesser_caption =
|image2 =
|image2_width =
|image2_caption =
|image3 =
|image3_width =
|image3_caption =
|armiger =
|year_adopted = 1965
|crest = Mural crown with caduceus and leaves arranged as two W's
|torse =
|escutcheon = Wheat arranged as two W's, a river, and a ram's head
|supporters = Crows
|compartment = Grassy green field with river
|motto = Forward in Faith
|orders =
|other_elements =
|earlier_versions =
|use =
}}
===Crows===
[[File:Welcome to Wagga Wagga sign (YSWG).jpg|thumb|The Wagga Wagga City Council logo features a crow and river, and it can be seen on this sign]]
[[Crows]] are considered a symbol of the city of Wagga Wagga, appearing in the council's logo, coat of arms, and throughout branding of local businesses, as well as in public artwork. This is due to the debated interpretation of 'Wagga Wagga' being derived from a [[Wiradjuri language]] term meaning 'place of many crows'.
Since 2019, the Wagga Wagga City Council has recognised this meaning as incorrect, instead adopting "many dances and celebrations", which was supported by [[Wiradjuri]] elder [[Stan Grant (Wiradjuri elder)|Stan Grant]]. Crows remain a ubiquitous civic symbol of Wagga Wagga. Both the council and [[ABC Riverina]] have promoted the use of the [[barking marsh frog]] as an alternative animal emblem for the city, originally suggested by Canberra resident Dec Browne.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/abcriverina/photos/a.153265121363403/3399760986713784/|title=What would be your town mascot? 🐸🐱🦓|via=Facebook|access-date=1 May 2023}}{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/waggacouncil/posts/pfbid02941tLUkbpE6kpM844fQNcF8dWPrpbF3rXLPY7wYVv1529PKHbxQEhFWrfwVbL9UDl|title=A shout out to a talented young Canberran, who's been sending us his creative redesigns of the Wagga Wagga City Council logo, the coat of arms, the flag and the Stone the Crows festival logo 🐸🖼🚍|via=Facebook|access-date=1 May 2023}}</ref>{{Primary source inline|date=January 2025}}
==Demographics==
[[File:Aerial view of Wagga Wagga Base Hospital.jpg|left|thumb|The [[Wagga Wagga Base Hospital]] is the primary medical care provider for the wider population of the [[Riverina]] region]]
Wagga Wagga is the major city of the Riverina and the second largest inland city in New South Wales after Maitland,<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=2021 Maitland (NSW), Census All persons QuickStats {{!}} Australian Bureau of Statistics|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/quickstats/2021/UCL111003|access-date=2024-05-14|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> In 2021 the urban area of Wagga Wagga was home to 57,003 people.<ref name=Census2021/> Wagga had grown, on average, 0.65 percent year-on-year during the previous five years.<ref name="ABSSUA">{{cite web|title=3218.0 – Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2017–18: Population Estimates by Significant Urban Area, 2008 to 2018|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3218.02017-18|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|date=27 March 2019|access-date=25 October 2019}} Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018.</ref> Much of this growth is attributable to the "sponge city" phenomenon as Wagga Wagga attracts residents from smaller towns in the region such as [[Urana]]. Other factors include Wagga's role as a regional centre and its hosting of major defence establishments and a [[Charles Sturt University]] campus.<ref name="WaggaDailyAdvertiser">{{cite news|first=Tim|last=Rowe|title=Wagga is the leading sponge city|url=http://www.riverinamediagroup.com.au/Home/news.asp?publication=The%20Daily%0Advertiser&articleType=Local&ArticleID=16339|work=[[The Daily Advertiser (Wagga Wagga)|The Daily Advertiser]]|date=2 March 2007|access-date=27 April 2007}}{{Dead link|date=August 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
{{Clear|left}}
In the [[2021 Australian census|2021 census]], there were 57,003 people in the Wagga Wagga Urban Area.
[[File:WaggaWagga Cathedral.JPG|thumb|St Michael's Cathedral is the seat of the Catholic Diocese of Wagga Wagga]]
* Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 7% of the population.
* 82.9% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were India 1.5%, Iraq 1.4%, England 1.2% and New Zealand and Philippines both 0.7%.
* 85.2% of people spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Kurdish 1.2%, Malayalam 0.8%, Mandarin 0.6%, Arabic 0.5%, and Punjabi 0.4%.
* The most common responses for religion were No Religion 31.2%, Catholic 27.4%, Anglican 15.3%, Not stated 5.9% and Presbyterian and Reformed 3.7%.<ref name="Census2021">{{Census 2021 AUS|id=1035 |name=Wagga Wagga |access-date=18 February 2022 |quick=on}}</ref>
{{Historical populations
|type= Australia
|1921|7679
|1933|11631
|1947|15340
|1954|19235
|1961|22092
|1966|24904
|1971|27719
|1976|32984
|1981|36837
|1986|37577
|1991|40875
|1996|42848
|2001|44272
|2006|46735
|2011|46913
|2016|48263
|2021|49686
|source=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] data.<ref name="ABS Census data">{{cite web|title=Statistics by Catalogue Number|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/ViewContent?readform&view=ProductsbyCatalogue&Action=Expand&Num=2.2|access-date=8 January 2024}}</ref><ref name="ABS Census data recent">{{cite web|title=Search Census data|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/search-by-area|access-date=8 January 2024}}</ref>
}}
Wagga is home to approximately 39% of Australia's [[Yazidi]] population.<ref>{{cite web|title=From War to Wagga Wagga – a tale of survival and resilience|url=https://www.sbs.com.au/news/insight/article/from-war-to-wagga-wagga-a-tale-of-survival-and-resilience/3ljbxf1ob|publisher=SBS World News|access-date=6 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231221232623/https://www.sbs.com.au/news/insight/article/from-war-to-wagga-wagga-a-tale-of-survival-and-resilience/3ljbxf1ob|archive-date=21 December 2023|url-status=live}}</ref>
Wagga Wagga falls within the boundary of the [[Anglican Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn]]. Anglican parishes include St John's, Wagga Wagga (Church St); St Paul's, Turvey Park (Fernleigh Rd); St Alban's, Kooringal (Lake Albert Rd); Community of the Redeemer, Ashmont (Blakemore Ave).
Wagga Wagga is the seat of a [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Wagga Wagga|Roman Catholic diocese]], with its principal church being St Michael's Cathedral.
==Economy==
===Commercial===
[[File:August 2021 Regional NSW snap lockdown, 16 August in Wagga Wagga, NSW 04.jpg|thumb|Fitzmaurice Street is a major commercial and retail strip in Wagga Wagga]]
Wagga attracts people from all over the Riverina and southwestern New South Wales to its shopping facilities. It is the major support city for over 200,000 people who live across the region.{{citation needed|date=May 2024}}
Wagga's shopping centres include two notable centres of metropolitan standards, [[Wagga Wagga Marketplace]] and Sturt Mall in the central business district, and suburban shopping centres such as the South City Shopping Centre in [[Glenfield Park, New South Wales|Glenfield Park]], the Lake Village Shopping Centre, [[Lake Albert, New South Wales|Lake Albert]], the [[Tolland, New South Wales|Tolland]] Shopping Centre and Kooringal Mall in [[Kooringal, New South Wales|Kooringal]]. Wagga has a large HomeBase store located on the [[Sturt Highway]].
Wagga's central business district, with both Baylis and Fitzmaurice Streets and other surrounding streets, offers hundreds of speciality retailers including national chains such as [[Big W]], [[Myer]] and [[Kmart Australia|Kmart]]. [[Target Australia|Target Country]] closed its store on Baylis Street in March 2021.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Target Country closures to force Deniliquin residents across the border for essential items|publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]]|date=7 January 2021|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-01-08/deniliquin-target-country-store-closes/13038894}}</ref> The dairy company [[Fonterra]] (formerly Murrumbidgee Dairy Products<ref>{{cite web|title=Name change for Murrumbidgee Dairy Products|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2006/10/25/1773121.htm|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120722225534/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2006/10/25/1773121.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=22 July 2012|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|access-date=8 April 2008}}</ref>), is based on the Sturt Highway, and is a supplier of dairy products in the Riverina, Other major industries include [[Cargill]] and [[H. J. Heinz Company|Heinz]], which are in the suburb of [[Bomen, New South Wales|Bomen]].
===Defence forces===
[[File:ARTCKapooka.jpg|thumb|right|Army Recruit Training Centre]]
The [[Australian Army]] base at [[Kapooka, New South Wales|Kapooka]] includes the [[Army Recruit Training Centre (Australia)|Army Recruit Training Centre]], where general enlistment members of the [[Australian Army]] undertake their initial training.<ref name="1RTB">{{cite web|url=http://www.ausspecialforces.com/joining.htm#Kapooka|title=Joining the Defence Forces|publisher=AusSpecialForces.com|access-date=26 April 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070408203809/http://www.ausspecialforces.com/joining.htm#Kapooka|archive-date=8 April 2007}}</ref> The barracks at Kapooka are named after World War II military commander [[Order of the Bath|Sir]] [[Thomas Blamey]], born at [[Lake Albert, New South Wales|Lake Albert]] Wagga Wagga and Australia's only [[Field Marshal]].<ref name="TravelWagga"/><ref name="Blamey">{{cite Australian Dictionary of Biography|last=Horner|first=D. M.|year=1993|id=A130231b|title=Blamey, Sir Thomas Albert (1884–1951) , Online edition|access-date=27 April 2007}}</ref> Following recruit training, soldiers move on to take specific training at training establishments throughout Australia. The soldiers club at Kapooka is named for [[John Hurst Edmondson]], Australia's first [[Victoria Cross]] winner in World War II, who was born in Wagga Wagga.<ref name="VictoriaCross">{{cite web|url=http://www.defence.gov.au/Army/artc/Media/rtc2007.pdf|title=Joining instruction for the Australian Army's Recruit Training|publisher=Australian Army|access-date=26 April 2007}}</ref><ref name="AustraliansatWar">{{cite web|url=http://www.australiansatwar.gov.au/stories/stories.asp?war=W2&id=8|title=A mother grieves for death of VC winner.|publisher=Australian Government Department of Veterans' Affairs|access-date=27 April 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311060851/http://www.australiansatwar.gov.au/stories/stories.asp?war=W2&id=8|archive-date=11 March 2007}}</ref>
There is a separate [[Royal Australian Air Force]] (RAAF) base at [[Forest Hill, New South Wales|Forest Hill]], [[RAAF Base Wagga]], which is the administration and logistics training base for Air Force personnel and the tri-service (RAN/Army/RAAF) electronic (White hander) and aircraft (Black hander) trades school. Some [[Royal Australian Navy]] Aircraft Technicians assigned to the naval air station {{HMAS|Albatross|air station|6}} are based at RAAF Base Wagga as an Aircraft Maintenance and Flight Trials Unit (AMAFTU). As of 2008, No 1 Recruit Training Unit (1RTU) has moved from RAAF Edinburgh to RAAF Wagga Wagga.<ref name="RANWagga">{{cite web|url=http://www.navy.gov.au/establishments/hmas-albatross|title=HMAS Albatross|publisher=Royal Australian Navy|access-date=5 October 2012}}</ref> RAAF Base Wagga is also the home of the [[Wagga Wagga RAAF Museum]].
===Education===
[[File:South Wagga Public School (2).jpg|thumb|South Wagga Public School|left]]
The sole provider of higher education in Wagga Wagga is the local campus of the multi-campus [[Charles Sturt University]], located on the outskirts of the suburb of [[Estella, New South Wales|Estella]]. The university was established on 1 July 1989<ref name="CSU">Morris, pp. 228.</ref> following the enactment of The Charles Sturt University Act, 1989 and involved the merger of several existing separately-administered [[College of Advanced Education|Colleges of Advanced Education]] including the Riverina College of Advanced Education in Wagga Wagga. At the time of its establishment it became the ninth university in the state and its inaugural vice-chancellor was [[Cliff Blake|C.D. Blake]] [[Officer of the Order of Australia|AO]] who at the time was the principal of the Riverina College.<ref name="CSU"/>
[[File:Charles Sturt University Wagga Wagga campus.jpg|thumb|[[Charles Sturt University]]'s Wagga Wagga campus]]
The [[Riverina Institute of TAFE|Riverina Institute]], a collection of [[TAFE]] institute campuses has its headquarters in Wagga Wagga and Wagga is home to three campuses.<ref name="WaggaTAFE">{{cite web|url=http://www.rit.tafensw.edu.au/Wagga/default.aspx|title=Wagga Wagga|publisher=[[Riverina Institute]]|access-date=2 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070613150651/http://www.rit.tafensw.edu.au/wagga/default.aspx|archive-date=13 June 2007}}</ref> The Primary Industries Centre, at North Wagga Wagga is set on 250 hectares and runs courses on agriculture and horticulture.<ref name="WaggaAg">{{cite web|url=http://www.rit.tafensw.edu.au/PIC/default.aspx|title=Primary Industries Centre|publisher=[[Riverina Institute]]|access-date=2 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070614024009/http://www.rit.tafensw.edu.au/pic/default.aspx|archive-date=14 June 2007}}</ref> The National Aerospace Training Centre of Excellence, at [[RAAF Base Wagga]] provides training support to the [[Australian Defence Force]] [[aerospace]] traineeship program. The commercial contract with the ADF is the largest technical training contract in Australia.<ref name="NATCOE">{{cite web|url=http://www.rit.tafensw.edu.au/NATCOE/default.aspx|title=National Aerospace Training Centre of Excellence|publisher=[[Riverina Institute]]|access-date=2 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070613145255/http://www.rit.tafensw.edu.au/natcoe/default.aspx|archive-date=13 June 2007}}</ref> In addition Wagga Wagga is home to eight secondary schools and 22 primary schools.
===Government===
[[File:Wagga-courthouse-2.jpg|thumb|Wagga Wagga Court House]]
Wagga Wagga is the largest city in the [[Australian House of Representatives]] electorate of [[Division of Riverina|Riverina]]
==
[[File:Aerial view of the Kapooka Bridge.jpg|thumb|The Kapooka Bridge is part of the [[Olympic Highway]]; a major arterial road into Wagga Wagga. Visible below is the [[Main Southern railway line, New South Wales|Main Southern railway line]]]]
[[Busabout Wagga Wagga]] provides bus services from most Wagga Wagga suburbs to the CBD 365 days a year, including public holidays.
Allen's Coaches of Coolamon and Junee Buses provide weekday connections to Coolamon (routes 1W, 2W and 3W) and Junee (routes 21–25) respectively.
Wagga Radio Cabs run taxis 24/7 in the city with taxi ranks at Station Place, Forsyth Street, Gurwood Street, [[Wagga Wagga Base Hospital]] and Kooringal Mall.
Baylis Street in the CBD was a thoroughfare for the [[Olympic Highway]] until the Gobbagombalin Bridge (referred to locally as the ''Gobba Bridge'' and is believed to be the longest continuous-span viaduct in New South Wales) about 6 km northwest of the CBD was opened on 26 July 1997.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.riverinamediagroup.com.au/Home/news.asp?publication=The%20Daily%20Advertiser&articleType=Local&ArticleID=19263|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928071112/http://www.riverinamediagroup.com.au/Home/news.asp?publication=The%20Daily%20Advertiser&articleType=Local&ArticleID=19263|archive-date=28 September 2007|title=Bridge has gone far for Wagga|work=The Daily Advertiser|access-date=2 August 2007}}</ref> The [[Sturt Highway]] passes through the centre of Wagga Wagga.
==
[[File:Wagga Wagga Railway Station viewed from Station Place (1).jpg|thumb|[[Wagga Wagga railway station]]]]
[[Wagga Wagga railway station]] is located on the [[Main Southern railway line]] with twice daily [[XPT (Train)|XPT]] rail services provided by [[NSW TrainLink]], the state owned passenger rail service.
===Airport===
[[Wagga Wagga Airport]] at [[Forest Hill, New South Wales|Forest Hill]] has scheduled daily flights to Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane operated by two carriers, [[Rex Airlines]] and [[QantasLink]] bringing approximately 210,000 passengers through the region every year. Coupled with Rex's major maintenance base and the Australian Airline Pilot Academy (AAPA), the Airport is one of the busiest in regional Australia. The airport itself is owned by the [[Royal Australian Air Force]] and the civil side is leased by the Wagga Wagga City Council. The sealed runway can cater for aircraft up to [[Boeing 737-800]] and [[Airbus A321]].<ref name="Airport">{{cite web|url=http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/index.aspx?item=biz&sub=airport|title=Airport|work=Business and Development|publisher=[[City of Wagga Wagga]]|access-date=1 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070310202518/http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/index.aspx?item=biz&sub=airport|archive-date=10 March 2007}}</ref>
==Sport==
[[File:Aerial view of Robertson Oval in Wagga Wagga.jpg|thumb|[[Robertson Oval]]]]
[[File:The Range function centre, Wagga Wagga.jpg|thumb|"The Range" function centre]]
Wagga's ___location approximately midway between Melbourne and Sydney on the "[[Barassi Line]]" contributes to high levels of football participation in all codes: [[Australian rules football]], [[Rugby league]], [[Rugby union]] and [[Soccer]]. Other popular sports in Wagga include [[cricket]], [[tennis]], and [[lawn bowls]].
The city has eight Australian rules football clubs, including: [[Mangoplah Football Club|Mangoplah–Cookardinia United-Eastlakes]], [[Wagga Tigers]], Collingullie–Wagga and Turvey Park in the [[Riverina Football League]] and East Wagga-Kooringal, North Wagga and Rivcoll (CSU) in the [[Farrer Football League]].
There are four Rugby union teams which include: CSU Reddies, Wagga Agricultural College, Wagga City and Wagga Waratahs in the [[Southern Inland Rugby Union]].
Four soccer teams based in the city include: Henwood Park, Wagga United, Tolland and Lake Albert, with the first grade competition for men being the ''Pascoe Cup'' and for women the ''Leonard Cup''.
Three local rugby league teams compete in the [[Group 9 Rugby League]] competition and include Wagga Brothers, South City and Wagga Kangaroos. National Rugby League games played in Wagga Wagga are held at McDonald's Park. The city also hosts the Group 9 [[grand final]], a major event.
The ''Wagga Wagga Gold Cup'', said to be Australia's second oldest [[thoroughbred]] [[Thoroughbred racing in Australia|horse race]], is held in the first week of May.<ref name="MTC">{{cite web|url=http://www.mtcwagga.com.au/|title=Murrumbidgee Turf Club|publisher=Murrumbidgee Turf Club|access-date=25 April 2007}}</ref><ref name="Travelmate">{{cite web|url=http://www.travelmate.com.au/Places/Places.asp?TownName=Wagga+Wagga_%5C_NSW|title=Wagga Wagga New South Wales|publisher=Travelmate|access-date=25 April 2007}}</ref>
East Wagga is home to the Wagga Wagga Gun Club and the Australian Clay Target Association, which has an Olympic-standard [[clay target shooting]] range and "The Range" function centre, at 308 Copland Street. The centre, which opened in October 2018, was made possible through a NSW Government grant of $5.5 million.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.dailyadvertiser.com.au/story/5724310/waggas-premiere-shooting-range-officially-opened/|newspaper=The Daily Advertiser (Wagga Wagga)|title=Wagga shooting club opens nation's largest range on Copland Street|date=26 October 2018|author=Emma Horn|access-date=4 February 2023}}</ref>
==="Wagga Effect"===
The "Wagga Effect" is a term that has been used frequently in the Australian media to describe the disproportionately large number of elite sportsmen and women that originate from the city.<ref name="effect">{{cite news|first=Edwina|last=Farley|url=http://www.abc.net.au/rural/nt/content/2005/s1504753.htm|title=Sports stars more likely to come from the bush|work=ABC Rural|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|date=11 November 2005|access-date=20 January 2007}}</ref> It is speculated that the phenomenon may arise in rural areas where the population is large enough to sustain the presence of a large number of sporting codes, but small enough to ensure that talented individuals are exposed to adult-level competition at an earlier age.<ref name="effect"/>
Notable sportspeople from Wagga include:
* [[Australian rules football]] – [[Wayne Carey]],<ref>[https://www.dailyadvertiser.com.au/story/7891839/carey-to-return-home-for-good-blokes-society-function/ Wagga's Wayne Carey to return home for Good Blokes Society's Wagga Members Dinner] by Matt Malone 6 September 2022</ref> [[Paul Hawke]],<ref>[https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/paul-hawke/ Paul Hawke – Collingwood forever]</ref> [[Paul Kelly (Australian rules footballer)|Paul Kelly]],<ref name="Kelly">{{cite web|url=https://museumriverina.com.au/about-us/collections/sporting-hall-of-fame/kelly,-paul|title=Kelly, Paul|work=Sporting Hall of Fame|publisher=[[Museum of the Riverina]]|access-date=2024-08-02}}</ref> [[Bill Mohr]],<ref>[https://museumriverina.com.au/about-us/collections/sporting-hall-of-fame/mohr,-wilbur-bill Museum of the Riverina Sporting Hall of Fame – Bill Mohr]</ref> [[Cameron Mooney]],<ref>[https://museumriverina.com.au/about-us/collections/sporting-hall-of-fame/cameron-mooney Museum of the Riverina Sporting Hall of Fame – Cameron Mooney]</ref> [[John Pitura]],<ref>[https://www.footyalmanac.com.au/almanac-footy-history-the-john-pitura-trade/ Almanac Footy History: The John Pitura trade] from Footy Almanac 12 November 2023</ref> [[Adam Schneider]],<ref>[https://www.bordermail.com.au/story/7949666/from-the-bush-to-five-afl-grand-finals-adam-schneider-tells-his-story/ Adam Schneider reflects on his career in the AFL and country football] by Steve Tervet for Border Mail 21 October 2022</ref> [[Matt Suckling]],<ref>[https://www.dailyadvertiser.com.au/story/8188955/suckling-to-make-popular-return-to-gumly-oval/ Matt Suckling will make a guest appearance for junior club East Wagga-Kooringal next month and conduct a sportsman's night with former teammate Luke Breust] By Matt Malone 17 June 2024</ref> [[Isaac Smith (footballer)|Isaac Smith]],<ref>[https://newellmediagroup.com/wp/?p=499 No wayward route for former New South Wales boy and now Hawks 100 gamer] by Jodie Newell Vaucluse, Sydney Australia 19 July 2015</ref> [[Harry Cunningham (footballer)|Harry Cunningham]],<ref>[https://www.dailyadvertiser.com.au/story/8699719/sydney-swan-harry-cunningham-reaches-200-afl-games-milestone/ 'A bit of a battler': Wagga's own Swan reflects on journey to AFL milestone] By Matt Malone 19 July 2024</ref> [[Dougal Howard]],<ref>[https://www.dailyadvertiser.com.au/story/2728585/waggas-dougal-howard-snapped-up-by-port-adelaide-in-afl-draft-photos-video/ Wagga's Dougal Howard snapped up by Port Adelaide in AFL draft] By Matt Malone 28 November 2014</ref> [[Harry Himmelberg]],<ref>[https://www.news-mail.com.au/news/harry-in-the-company-of-aussie-rules-legends/3224371/ Harry in the company of Aussie rules legends]</ref> [[Gabrielle Colvin]]<ref>[https://www.dailyadvertiser.com.au/story/7679258/waggas-colvin-ready-to-make-aflw-history-at-mcg/ "If feels like our game is being taken seriously": Colvin to be part of AFLW history at MCG] By Jon Tuxworth for the Daily Advertiser 30 March 2022</ref> and [[Ally Morphett]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=Honest talks spark morphed Swan, what is barrel racing?|url=https://www.afl.com.au/aflw/video/1024575/honest-talks-spark-morphed-swan-what-is-barrel-racing|access-date=2023-11-30|publisher=AFL Media|language=en}}</ref>
* [[Cricket]] – [[Geoff Lawson (cricketer)|Geoff Lawson]], [[Michael Slater]], and [[Mark Taylor (cricketer)|Mark Taylor]]
* Golf – US [[PGA Championship]] winner [[Steve Elkington]]
* [[Horse racing]] – jockey [[Scobie Breasley]]
* [[Rugby league]] – [[Greg Brentnall]], [[Ben Cross (rugby league)|Ben Cross]], [[Marc Glanville]], [[Chris Mortimer]], [[Peter Mortimer (rugby league)|Peter Mortimer]], [[Steve Mortimer]], [[Jamie Soward]], and [[Peter Sterling (rugby league commentator)|Peter Sterling]]
* [[Rugby union]] – [[Nathan Hines]] and [[Nathan Sharpe]]
* [[Rugby sevens]] – [[Alicia Quirk]]
* [[Soccer]] – [[Australia women's national soccer team]] representative [[Sally Shipard]]
* [[Tennis]] – [[Tony Roche]], 1966 [[French Open (tennis)|French Open]] champion, and later a coach, is from [[Tarcutta]] near Wagga
* [[Triathlon]] – [[Brad Kahlefeldt]], Commonwealth Games Gold Medallist, Olympian, and World Champion
* [[Snooker]] – [[Quinten Hann]], former Elite 'Top 16' player and world championship quarter-finalist.
In 1993, the [[City of Wagga Wagga]] instituted a Sporting Hall of Fame as part of the [[Museum of the Riverina]] dedicated to the elite sportspeople from Wagga Wagga and the surrounding area.<ref name="HallofFame">{{cite web|url=http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/www/html/492-introduction.asp|title=Introduction|work=Sporting Hall of Fame|publisher=[[Museum of the Riverina]]|access-date=26 April 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070831163448/http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/www/html/492-introduction.asp|archive-date=31 August 2007}} and {{cite web|url=http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/www/html/493-inductees.asp|title=Inductees|work=Sporting Hall of Fame|publisher=Museum of the Riverina|access-date=17 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070831213626/http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/www/html/493-inductees.asp|archive-date=31 August 2007}}</ref>
===5 o'clock wave===
According to the local urban myth, at precisely 5 o'clock a giant wave moves down the Murrumbidgee River, a result of water being released from the [[Blowering Dam|Blowering]] and [[Burrinjuck Dam|Burrinjuck]] Dams. The wave is said to continue down river at high speed, and visitors are told it is so powerful that surfers can ride it along the meandering river until it reaches the town of [[Narrandera]].<ref name="Morris"/>
==Recreation and culture==
===Recreation===
[[Image:
The [[Murrumbidgee River]] at Wagga Wagga
[[
Wollundry Lagoon, [[Lake Albert
===Culture===
[[
The main cultural precinct for Wagga Wagga can be found in central Wagga Wagga, at the Wagga Wagga Civic Centre on the banks of Wollundry Lagoon.
The Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre was officially opened in 1963 at a cost of [[Australian pound|
[[File:National Art Glass Gallery (cropped).jpg|thumb|180x180px|The [[National Art Glass Gallery]]]]
The [[Wagga Wagga
The [[Museum of the Riverina]] was established in 1967 by the Wagga Wagga and District Historical Society. Wagga Wagga City Council took over its operations in the late 1990s and it now operates at two sites. The Historic Council Chambers site on the corner of Baylis and Morrow streets in central Wagga, hosts travelling exhibitions and the main site at the Botanic Gardens is home to the main collection including the Wagga Wagga Sporting Hall of Fame. The museum has an important collection of memorabilia about the [[Tichborne Case]], including a set of four rare plaster figurines depicting characters from the trial, a complete set of hard-bound court transcripts and a monumental painting entitled ''The Tichborne Trial'' painted in 1874 by Nathan Hughes, which hangs in the city's council chambers.<ref>{{cite news|first=James|last=Cockington|url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/money/heir-apparent/2005/08/22/1124562796029.html|title=Heir apparent|series=Business / Money|work=The Age|___location=Australia|page=12|date=23 August 2005|access-date=23 June 2006}}</ref>
The [[Wagga Wagga Jazz Festival]] was established in 1995 and has featured a range of Australian and international musicians.<ref name="Program">{{cite web|url=http://www.waggajazz.org.au/program.htm|title=Program 2007|publisher=Wagga Wagga Jazz inc|access-date=6 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070210041720/http://www.waggajazz.org.au/program.htm|archive-date=10 February 2007}}</ref> Established in 1976 as the Riverina Trucking Company and renamed in 1983, the Riverina Theatre Company is one of Australia's longest running regional theatre companies and runs a full program of events each year at the Riverina Playhouse, which is located on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River and owned by Charles Sturt University.<ref name="RTC">{{cite news|title=University to revamp Riverina Playhouse|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/08/02/1994763.htm|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120719080005/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/08/02/1994763.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 July 2012|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|date=2 August 2007|access-date=17 September 2007}}</ref>
Notable artists and performers from Wagga Wagga include poet [[Order of the British Empire|Dame]] [[Mary Gilmore]], who is featured on the [[Australian ten-dollar note]] and veteran actor [[Bill Kerr]].<ref name="Gilmore">{{cite Australian Dictionary of Biography|last=Wilde|first=W. H.|year=1983|id=A090015b|title=Gilmore, Dame Mary Jean (1865–1962) , Online Edition|access-date=27 April 2007}}</ref><ref name="Kerr">{{cite web|last=Rheinberger|first=Joel|year=2005|url=http://www.abc.net.au/riverina/stories/s1348698.htm|title=Bill Kerr: the boy from Wagga Wagga|publisher=ABC Riverina|access-date=27 April 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060527221016/http://www.abc.net.au/riverina/stories/s1348698.htm|archive-date=27 May 2006}}</ref> Former Yellow [[Wiggles|Wiggle]], [[Sam Moran]], is from Wagga Wagga, having replaced the original Yellow Wiggle, [[Greg Page (musician)|Greg Page]], in November 2006.<ref name="wiggle">{{cite news|first=Adam|last=Gartrell|title=Moran ready to fill yellow skivvy|url=http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/printpage/0,5942,20847833,00.html|work=The Australian|date=30 November 2006|access-date=3 May 2007}}{{dead link|date=March 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} </ref> The fictional creation of satirist [[Barry Humphries]], [[Dame Edna Everage]] was said to have been born in Wagga Wagga.
Frank Ottenson wrote a song ''Wagga Wagga'' about the city in 1942, calling it a 'Riverina paradise'. It was recorded by Tom Davidson and his Orchestra.<ref>National Film and Sound Archive: [http://nfsa.gov.au/collection/sound/sounds-australia/songs-about-towns-and-places/#WaggaWagga/ Does your town have its own song?]</ref>
Wagga has strong cultural ties with three international sister cities which form part of a [[Town twinning|twinning]] program. Wagga's sister cities are [[Leavenworth, Kansas]] in the United States, which was established in 1962; [[Nördlingen]] in Germany, established in 1967; and [[Kunming]] in China, mutually established in 1988.<ref name="WillamE">{{Citation|last=Ellis|first=William|title=The Street Names of Wagga Wagga|publisher=Wagga Wagga City Council|year=1990}}</ref><ref name="SisterCities">{{cite web|url=http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/index.aspx?item=home&sub=aboutww&sub2=sister|title=Sister Cities|work=About Wagga Wagga|publisher=[[City of Wagga Wagga]]|access-date=26 April 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070325064402/http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/index.aspx?item=home&sub=aboutww&sub2=sister|archive-date=25 March 2007}}</ref>
In April 2020, The Wagga council voted to cut ties with China's Kunming city. A week later they voted again, rejoining Kunming as a sister city.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-04-15/wagga-council-cuts-china-sister-city-ties-due-to-covid-19/12149664|title=City council severs China relations over 'death and destruction across the world with COVID-19'|publisher=ABC News|___location=Australia|date=15 April 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-04-15|title=Wagga Wagga severs ties with Chinese sister city over 'death and destruction' from coronavirus|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/15/wagga-wagga-severs-ties-with-chinese-sister-city-over-death-and-destruction-from-coronavirus|access-date=2023-01-11|website=The Guardian|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-04-22/coronavirus-wagga-rescinds-vote-to-cut-with-china/12173476|title=Wagga council reverses controversial decision to cut ties with Chinese sister city|publisher=ABC News|___location=Australia|date=22 April 2020}}</ref>
<gallery>
File:Henry's Tunnel, Wagga Wagga.jpg|"Henry's Tunnel" on the [[Willans Hill Miniature Railway]]
File:Wagga Wagga Historic Council Chambers on the corner of Baylis St (Trimmed).jpg|The former Council Chambers
Image:Rotary Peace Monument.jpg|The Wagga Rotary Peace Monument
</gallery>
===Literary links===
Wagga has captured the interest of
Humourist [[Spike Milligan]] was quite taken with the double-barrelled names of Australian towns, and presented a show called "Australia: From Woy Woy to Wagga Wagga".<ref name="Show">{{cite web|url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/499582/credits.html|title=ScreenOnline – Spike Milligan|access-date=28 July 2008}}</ref>
In other cases the town's name has been directly referred to as part of the content of songs and novels. For example, the song ''Don't call Wagga Wagga Wagga'', written by [[Australian country music]] artists [[Greg Champion]] and [[Jim Haynes (writer)|Jim Haynes]], was a minor hit on the Australian country charts and is a light-hearted take on the habit of Australians to refer to double named towns by one name only.<ref name="Song">{{cite web|url=http://www.jimhaynes.net/html/body_bio.html|title=Bio- Jim Haynes|publisher=Singabout Australia|access-date=7 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051001041152/http://www.jimhaynes.net/html/body_bio.html|archive-date=1 October 2005}}</ref> Other examples include the ''[[Harry Potter]]'' series of fantasy novels, where the character [[Gilderoy Lockhart]] claimed to have defeated the "Wagga Wagga Werewolf",<ref name="HarryPotter">{{cite web|url=http://www.hp-lexicon.org/wizards/wizards-nosurname.html|title=Wizards with no Surname|publisher=The Harry Potter lexicon|access-date=7 May 2007}}</ref> the [[Bryce Courtenay]] book ''[[The Power of One (novel)|The Power of One]]'', where the main character Peekay is said to have a cousin Lenny from Wagga Wagga Australia,<ref name="Courtenay">{{cite book|author=Courtenay, Bryce|title=The Power of One|publisher=Penguin Books Australia|year=1989|isbn=0-14-027291-7}}</ref> the [[Bryce Courtenay]] book ''[[Jessica (novel)|Jessica]]'' has several passages that take place in Wagga Wagga, including the judgement of Billy Simple,<ref>{{cite book|author=Courtenay, Bryce|title=Jessica|publisher=Viking Australia|year=1998|isbn=0-670-88351-4}}</ref> and the [[Robert G. Barrett]] novel, ''"Mud Crab Boogie"'' which is partially set in Wagga Wagga.<ref name="MudCrabBoogie">{{cite web|url=http://www.harpercollins.com.au/robertgbarrett/books/mudcrab_boogie.htm|title=Mud Crab Boogie|publisher=Robert G. Barrett|access-date=10 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070424145024/http://harpercollins.com.au/robertgbarrett/books/mudcrab_boogie.htm|archive-date=24 April 2007}}</ref>
==
As a regional centre for the [[Riverina]] and [[South Western Slopes|South West Slopes]], Wagga Wagga is home to a number of regional media outlets.
[[File:Southern Cross Austereo studios on Forsyth St (3).jpg|thumb|The [[2WG]] studios on Forsyth Street]]
The commercial networks' main channels are [[Seven Network]] from Seven Regional (formerly Prime7 and Prime Television), [[Nine Network]] from [[WIN Television]] (formerly carried by [[Southern Cross Austereo]]) and [[Network 10|Network Ten]] from [[Network 10]] (formerly carried by WIN Television and Southern Cross Austereo) and the commercial networks' multi channels [[7two]], [[7mate]], [[7Bravo]] (stylised as 7bravo in the logo) and [[7flix]] from Seven Regional (formerly Prime7 and Prime Television), [[9Go!]], [[9Gem]] and [[9Life]] from WIN Television (formerly carried by Southern Cross Austereo) and [[Sky News Australia#Sky News Regional|Sky News Regional]], [[10 Drama]] (formerly [[One (Australian TV channel)|One]], [[One HD (Australia)|One HD]], [[10 Boss]] and 10 Bold), [[10 Comedy]] (formerly 10 Peach and [[Eleven (Australian TV channel)|Eleven]]) and [[Nickelodeon (Australian TV channel)|Nickelodeon]] from Network 10 (formerly carried by WIN Television and Southern Cross Austereo).
Of the three main commercial networks:
[[Image:Mayor Kerry Pascoe.jpg|thumb|Prime News interviewing Wagga Wagga Mayor Kerry Pascoe]]
*[[Seven News]] (formerly [[Prime7 News]] and Prime News) produces a half-hour local news bulletin for the [[Riverina]], airing each weeknight at 6pm. It is produced from a local newsroom in Wagga Wagga and broadcast from studios in [[Canberra]].
*[[Network 10]] (formerly [[10 (Southern Cross Austereo)|Southern Cross 10]]) airs short local news updates throughout the day, broadcast from studios in Hobart. Previously, a regional New South Wales edition of ''[[Nine News]]'' from Sydney each weeknight at 6pm, featuring opt-outs for Wagga Wagga and the Riverina when the station was affiliated with the Nine Network.
*[[WIN Television]] aired a half-hour local bulletin until the closure of its Wagga Wagga newsroom in June 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-06-20/win-news-job-cuts-in-regional-nsw-and-queensland/11226820|title=WIN News to cut four commercial TV newsrooms in Orange, Wagga Wagga, Albury and Bundaberg|last=King|first=Rosie|date=20 June 2019|publisher=ABC News|___location=Australia|access-date=24 June 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Duke|first=Jennifer|date=19 June 2019|title=WIN shuts down five newsrooms as regional broadcasters struggle|url=https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/win-shuts-down-five-newsrooms-as-regional-broadcasters-struggle-20190619-p51zdz.html|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|___location=Sydney|access-date=24 June 2019}}</ref> Between June 2019 and June 2021 the station produced short news updates throughout the day from its [[Wollongong]] studios. From July 2021, the Wagga Wagga newsroom was reopened, with the stories now inserted into a statewide bulletin which airs across the broadcast area on the network.
Local radio stations broadcasting from Wagga Wagga include [[ABC Riverina]], [[AM broadcasting|AM radio]] commercial station [[Triple M Riverina]] (callsign [[2WG]], 1152{{nbsp}}kHz), [[FM broadcasting|FM radio]] commercial station [[2WZD|Hit93.1 Riverina]], racing and sports station [[Sky Sports Radio]] and a rebroadcast from radio reading service [[Radio 1RPH]]. Other local stations include [[Christian radio]] station [[Life FM (Wagga Wagga)|Life FM]] and the community station [[2AAA]] FM. The ABC's national stations [[Radio National|ABC Radio National]], [[ABC Classic FM]], [[ABC NewsRadio]] and [[Triple J]] and the multicultural network [[SBS Radio]] are broadcast into Wagga Wagga.
''[[The Daily Advertiser (Wagga Wagga)|The Daily Advertiser]]'', published Monday to Friday and its sister publication, ''the Weekend Advertiser'', service Wagga and much of the surrounding region. The newspaper was established by two wealthy local pastoralists, Auber George Jones and Thomas Darlow<ref name="Newspapers">Morris, p. 62.</ref> and first printed on 10 December 1868 by editor Frank Hutchison, an [[Oxford University|Oxford]] graduate. Originally printed bi-weekly, by 1880 it was tri-weekly and became 'daily' in December 1910. In 1962 the newspaper reduced in size from a [[broadsheet]] to a [[Tabloid (newspaper format)|tabloid]] format.<ref name="DailyAdvertiser">{{cite web|last=Doubleday|first=Wayne|url=http://www.csu.edu.au/research/archives/records/agencies/dailyadv.htm|title=The Wagga Daily Advertiser Pty Ltd. (1868–)|work=Regional Records On-Line Guide|publisher=[[Charles Sturt University]]|access-date=2 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060824164341/http://www.csu.edu.au/research/archives/records/agencies/dailyadv.htm|archive-date=24 August 2006}}</ref> ''The Riverina Leader'', the local free community newspaper was launched in May 1979.<ref name="Leader">{{cite web|url=http://www.riverinamediagroup.com.au/home/common/publications.asp?publication=The%20Daily%20Advertiser|title=Riverina Media Group Publications|publisher=Riverina Media Group|access-date=2 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070830000604/http://www.riverinamediagroup.com.au/home/common/publications.asp?publication=The%20Daily%20Advertiser|archive-date=30 August 2007}}</ref>
==Notable people==
[[File:Sam and Lyn Moran.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Sam Moran]] and wife [[Lyn Moran]] at [[Australia Day]] 2009 Celebrations in Wagga Wagga]]
{{Main|List of people from Wagga Wagga}}
*[[Sharna Burgess]] ([[Dancing with the Stars]] professional dancer)
*[[Wayne Carey]] [[Australian rules football|AFL]] (North Melbourne FC and 2x Premiership player)
*[[Dame Edna Everage]] (Satirical figure)
*[[Carmel Kaine]] (Classical violinist)
*[[Paul Kelly (Australian rules footballer)|Paul Kelly]] (Former [[Australian rules football]]er, [[Brownlow Medal]] winner and captain of the [[Sydney Swans]] for ten seasons)
*[[Bill Kerr]] (Australian actor and co-star of the [[BBC]] radio comedy [[Hancock's Half Hour]])
*[[Nina Las Vegas]] (DJ)
*[[Geoff Lawson (cricketer)|Geoff Lawson]] (Cricketer)
*[[Jack Littlejohn]] (Rugby league player)
*[[Lex Marinos]] (Actor)
*[[Steve Martin (rugby league)|Steve Martin]] (Rugby league player)
*[[Jada Mathyssen-Whyman]] (Soccer player for the [[Australia women's national soccer team|Australia national team]])
*[[Michael McCormack (Australian politician)|Michael McCormack]] (18th [[Deputy Prime Minister of Australia]])
*[[Sam Moran]] (former member of the children's musical group [[The Wiggles]])
*[[William Monks]] (Architect)
*[[Chris Mortimer]] (Rugby league player)
*[[Peter Mortimer (rugby league)|Peter Mortimer]] (Rugby league player)
*[[Tichborne Case|Arthur Orton]] ([[Imposter]] of the late 19th century)<ref name = "Twain"/>
*[[Alicia Quirk]] ([[Australia women's national rugby sevens team|Australian Women's Rugby sevens]] player and [[2016 Summer Olympics]] gold medal winner)
*[[Tony Roche]] ([[1966 French Championships – Men's Singles|1966 French Open]] tennis champion)
*[[Nathan Sharpe]] ([[Rugby union]] player)
*[[Michael Slater]] (Cricketer)
*[[Peter Sterling (rugby league commentator)|Peter Sterling]] (Rugby League player and TV commentator)<ref>[http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/www/html/1283-sterling-peter.asp?intSiteID=1] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091003092146/http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/www/html/1283-sterling-peter.asp?intSiteID=1|date=3 October 2009}}</ref>
*[[Mark Taylor (cricketer)|Mark Taylor]] (Australian [[cricket]] captain)
==See also==
{{Portal|New South Wales}}
* [[Bee Gees|The Bee Gees]] – who wrote "Morning of My Life" at the Wagga Police Boys Club
* [[Chiko Roll]] – first sold in 1951 at the Wagga Wagga show
* [[Eric Weissel Oval]]
* [[Eurythmics]] – who formed in Wagga Wagga<ref>{{cite news|title=Eurythmics began in Wagga, says Dave Stewart|url=http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/eurythmics-began-in-wagga-says-dave-stewart-20131105-2wy1k.html|access-date=5 November 2013|newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald|date=5 November 2013}}</ref>
*{{HMAS|Wagga}}
*[[List of reduplicated Australian place names]]
*[[List of people from Wagga Wagga]]
*[[List of Wagga Wagga suburbs and localities]]
*[[Mortimer family]]
*[[Murrumbidgee Co-operative Milling]]
*[[Pulletop bushfire]]
*[[Wagga Wagga War Cemetery]]
*[[Wagga Wagga Leagues Club]]
==Notes==
{{Reflist}}
==
*{{Cite book|last=Morris|first=Sherry|url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/5460404|title=Wagga Wagga, a history|year=1999|publisher=Bobby Graham Publishers|___location=Wagga Wagga|isbn=1-875247-12-2}}
==Further reading==
*{{Cite book|author=Swan, Keith|title=A history of Wagga Wagga|publication-date=1970|publisher=City of Wagga Wagga|url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/21919952}}
==External links==
{{Sister project links| wikt=yes | commons=Category:Wagga Wagga | b=no | n=no | q=no | s=1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Wagga-Wagga | v=no | voy=Wagga Wagga | species=no | d=no | display=Wagga Wagga}}
* Official Guides
** [http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/ Wagga Wagga City Council Homepage]
* Culture
** [http://www.
** [http://www.
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20160303201828/http://www.riverinatheatrecompany.com.au/ Riverina Theatre Company]
** [http://www.wagga.nsw.gov.au/museum
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20070706004510/http://www.waggajazz.org.au/ Jazz Festival]
* Climate
** [http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/dwo/IDCJDW2139.latest.shtml Wagga Wagga Weather (Bureau of Meteorology)]
* Imagery
**[http://www.wikimapia.org/#y=-35120000&x=147350000&z=13&l=1&m=a WikiSatellite view of Wagga Wagga at WikiMapia]
** [
{{Wagga Wagga City}}
{{Riverina}}
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[[Category:1849 establishments in Australia]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1849]]
[[Category:Towns in the Riverina]]
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