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Wagga Wagga

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Wagga Wagga (pronounced wogga wogga, informally called Wagga) is a city in New South Wales, Australia.

Wagga Wagga
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File:Baylis street.jpg
Looking down Baylis Street
Population44,272[1] (28th)
Established1829 (explored)
1849 (surveyed)
1849 (village)
1870 (municipality)
1946 (city)
Postcode(s)2650
Elevation147 m (482 ft)
Time zoneAEST (UTC+10)
 • Summer (DST)AEDT (UTC+11)
Location
LGA(s)City of Wagga Wagga
CountyWynyard & Clarendon
State electorate(s)Wagga Wagga
Federal division(s)Riverina
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall
22.0 °C
72 °F		 9.0 °C
48 °F		 557.5 mm
21.9 in

Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, Wagga with an urban population of 44,272 people, is the state's largest and the country's fifth largest inland city, as well as an important agricultural, military, educational and transport hub of Australia.

It is home to 22 primary schools, eight secondary schools, a regional Institute of TAFE with 18 campuses and one of the four main campuses of Charles Sturt University, as well as Wagga Wagga Base Hospital, the Army Recruit Training Centre and a separate RAAF base, adjoining the Wagga Airport.

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 has a large catchment population as it is the administrative centre of the Riverina. Due its important industry and education base the city draws commercial and recreational visitors from around Australia. From a regional perspective, residents from nearby towns and villages as far afield as Griffith, Narrandera, Lockhart, Henty, Holbrook, Tumbarumba,Tumut, Gundagai, Cootamundra, and Temora regularly visit due to sporting and recreational interests.

The city is part of the City of Wagga Wagga Local Government Area.

Geography

Wagga Wagga is located at the eastern end of the Riverina region where the slopes of the Great Dividing Range flatten and form the Riverina plain. The city straddles the Murrumbidgee River, one of the great rivers of the Murray-Darling Basin and the city centre itself is located on the southern bank, protected by a levee from potential flooding.

The city sits almost midway between the largest cities in Australia being 452 kilometres south west of Sydney and and 456 kilometres north east of Melbourne with the Sydney-Melbourne railway line passing through.[2] The Sturt Highway, part of Australia's National Highway network, also passes through the city 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 the major transport routes in the nation has made Wagga Wagga an important heavy truck depot for a number of companies including Toll Holdings. Wagga Wagga itself is the major regional centre for the Riverina and for much of the South West Slopes regions, providing education, health and other services to a region extending as far as Griffith to the west, Cootamundra to the north and Tumut to the east.

File:Northwestwaggapan.jpg
Wagga Wagga, looking northwest from Willans Hill

Landform and salinity

Wagga Wagga is located upstream from the Riverina plain in the mid-catchment range of the Murrumbidgee River in an alluvial valley confined by low bedrock hills.[3] Much of Wagga Wagga is situated on heavy clay soils in a large drainage basin with a small catchment discharge point. Groundwater is therefore unable to leave easily leading to Wagga Wagga having a problem with waterlogged soil and salinity. Urban salination in Wagga Wagga is now the subject of a large multi-pronged approach to prevent further salination and reclaim salt affected areas.[4]

City and suburbs

 
Wagga CBD in 1897
Main article: List of Wagga Wagga suburbs and localities

The ___location of Wagga's Central business district was already well established by the late 1800s and remains 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. The Wollundry Lagoon is the water focus of the city centre and has been a key element in the development and separation of the north (older) and south (newer) parts of the city centre. 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 North Wagga Wagga and the university suburb of Estella. Major industrial areas of Wagga Wagga include the northern suburb of Bomen.

Climate

At an elevation of 147 metres above sea level, Wagga Wagga has four distinct seasons. Winters can be cold by Australian standards with the mean maximum temperature falling in July to 12.9 degrees Celsius and a mean minimum of 2.7. The lowest temperature recorded at Wagga was -6.3 degrees Celsius on 21 August 1982. Fog and heavy frosts are common in the winter whilst snow is a very rare occurrence.[5]

By contrast, summers in Wagga Wagga are warm to hot, with mean maximum temperatures ranging between 29 and 32 degrees Celsius. The hottest temperature on record was 44.8 degrees Celsius on 23 January 2001. Relative humidity is low in the summer months with a 3pm average of around 30%.[5]

Wagga Wagga has a mean annual rainfall of 557.5 millimetres per year. This rainfall is distributed fairly equally over the 12 months.[5]

Source: Averages for WAGGA WAGGA AMO, 1941 - 2007, Bureau of Meteorology
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Temperatures (°C)
Mean daily maximum 31.5 30.9 27.6 22.4 17.2 13.8 12.6 14.4 17.5 21.2 25.5 29.4 22.0
Highest recorded maximum 44.8
(23rd 2001) 		44.6
(1st 1968) 		39.5
(7th 1983) 		35.4
(4th 1986) 		27.4
(4th 1988) 		23.2
(1st 1994) 		23.2
(29th 1975) 		26.6
(30th 1982) 		31.8
(26th 1965) 		36.3
(13th 2006) 		42.8
(26th 1997) 		43.2
(21st 1953)
Mean daily minimum 16.1 16.3 13.3 9.1 5.9 3.7 2.7 3.6 5.2 7.7 10.6 13.7 9.0
Lowest recorded minimum 3.4
(13th 1975) 		2.3
(27th 1985) 		2.6
(28th 1984) 		−2.1
(22nd 2006) 		−4.4
(25th 1957) 		−5.2
(18th 1974) 		−6.3
(21st 1982) 		−5.4
(6th 1974) 		−3.8
(6th 1966) 		−2.0
(28th 1998) 		−0.2
(3rd 2003) 		3.4
(31st 1970)


Precipitation (millimetres)
Mean total rainfall 40.3 39.1 41.0 41.6 52.1 50.3 55.5 52.3 50.8 59.4 43.4 43.9 557.5
Highest recorded total 174.4
(1984) 		157.5
(1955) 		249.2
(1956) 		216.9
(1974) 		190.3
(1942) 		138.8
(1991) 		130.0
(1993) 		101.4
(1983) 		128.0
(1978) 		181.7
(1974) 		142.4
(1970) 		213.4
(1988)
Lowest recorded total 0.0
(1957) 		0.0
(1968) 		0.0
(1995) 		0.5
(1967) 		4.6
(2006) 		0.8
(1984) 		1.8
(1982) 		6.4
(1982) 		4.1
(1946) 		0.6
(2002) 		0.0
(1946) 		0.5
(1967)
Notes: Temperatures are in degrees Celsius. Precipitation is in millimetres. Wagga Wagga Airport Latitude: -35.1583S Longitude: 147.4573E Elevation: 212m ASL

History

The original Aboriginal inhabitants of the Wagga Wagga region were the Wiradjuri people and the term "Wagga" and derivatives of that word in the Wiradjuri aboriginal language is thought to mean crow. To create the plural, the Wiradjuri repeat a word, thus 'Wagga Wagga' translates to 'the place of many crows'. Other translations have also attributed the word 'wagga' to meaning, 'reeling (a sick man or a dizzy man); to dance, slide or grind'.[6] Wiradjuri people have maintained a relationship with the Wagga Wagga area to this day.

European exploration and settlement

The first European explorer to pass over the future site of Wagga Wagga was Captain Charles Sturt and his men in 1829 during his expedition along the Murrumbidgee River. Sturt was aided by Wiradjuri guides who handed the explorers to different Aboriginal guides downstream.[7] The first settler in the Wagga Wagga area was Charles Tompson, an emancipated convict who along with his family established the Eunonyhareenyha 'run' on the north bank of the river in 1832. Soon after another ex-convict George Best established the Wagga Wagga 'run' on the south bank, named for the Aboriginal term for the waterhole on the property where crows congregated. Other settlers followed, all of them squatting on the land illegally. By 1836 the colonial government regulated their tenure and established a licensing scheme.[8]

The continuing encroachment by Europeans on Wiradjuri lands made conflict inevitable. Aboriginal groups attempted to drive off the squatters' stock and attacked shepherds and hutkeepers. The white residents retaliated, at first in relation to specific grievances, later fighting became more general. The ruthlessness of the settlers, combined with the effect of diseases such as tuberculosis, smallpox and influenza eventually defeated the Wiradjuri, who while retaining much of their culture lost their land and lifestyle.[9]

As the number of settlers in the area grew, so did demand for a local bench of magistrates as the nearest ones were 100-200 miles away in Tumut and Binalong. In April 1847 it was announced that Wagga Wagga was to be a place for holding petty sessions, dispensing justice and maintaining law and order over an area up to 100 miles away.[10] The courthouse was located with the beginnings of a village formed near the ford used by most traffic passing through the area. The village included a crude blacksmith's shop and hotel. A post office was established in January 1849 and later that year the town was marked out by surveyor Thomas Townshend and formally gazetted as a village on 23 November 1849.[11]

Early years

After some early setbacks including an exodus to the Victorian goldfields in 1851 and disastrous floods in 1852 and 1853, Wagga Wagga grew quickly with a population of 627 in 1861 and 3,975 by 1881.[12][13] From the 1860s a number of hotels and stores opened, providing a wide range of goods. Professional services such as banks, solicitors, doctors and dentists followed soon after. Newspapers were established including the Wagga Wagga Advertiser in 1868, still published today as the The Daily Advertiser. A sizeable Chinese community had developed numbering about 5% of the population by 1883 and then dwindling thereafter. The floods encouraged the building of a bridge over Wollundry Lagoon and the development of the "Newtown" area to the south. Further development of particularly flood prone areas, such as North Wagga Wagga was limited.[12]

Until the 1860s pastoralists were required to transport wool to markets on Sydney or Melbourne by bullock wagon, purchasing supplies for the return journey. Soon after, the arrival of faster, cheaper and more reliable riverboats allowed most pastoralists to send their wool downstream, first to Goolwa in South Australia and then railed to Port Elliot for export, and from 1864 to Echuca and then to Melbourne along the newly constructed railway line. Steamboats such as the Victoria also allowed importation of fragile items such as glass and crockery. To recapture this lost trade for Sydney the New South Wales government extended the railway line to North Wagga Wagga in 1878 and across the river to Wagga Wagga itself in 1881.[14]

As the town grew, industrial development began. Industries such as blacksmiths, flour mills and saddlers were soon established. Winemaking and brewing followed soon after, with several breweries established by the turn of the century. Local dairy farmers established the Wagga Cooperative Dairy Company in 1894, producing butter and by 1896 capable of dealing with 1,500 gallons of milk daily. Builders and brickmakers started operations from the 1850s to cater to the growing demand for housing in the town. By the early 1900s, several secondary industries were firmly established in Wagga Wagga, employing many skilled tradesmen and labourers.[15]

On 15 March 1850, Wagga Wagga was incorporated as a municipality. Elections were held to appoint Aldermen to the newly formed Council and George Forsyth was chosen as the first Mayor of Wagga Wagga. The Council immediately undertook works to improve the town streets through realignment and stump removal. Gas lighting was installed throughout the streets of Wagga Wagga in 1881, although once again North Wagga was neglected. By 1885, a town waterworks and reservoir was established although water quality remained a problem. Poor sanitation caused a horrific stench in the town and was blamed for a large increase in infectious diseases such as typhoid fever in the 1890s and early 1900s. In 1908 the Council approved a sewerage scheme and by 1914 most of the main streets were sewered. A free public library was opened in 1875 and the Council began to establish parkland such as Bolton Park and the Town Hall Gardens.[16]

A river crossing

In September 1859 local residents formed a committee for the construction of a bridge over the Murrumbidgee River. A number of proposals were examined in December 1859 and a pontoon bridge, submitted by Fowler Boyd Price, was in favour. The committee planned to establish a Pontoon Bridge Company with a capital of £4,000 in 200 shares of £20 but the engineering experts from the Roads Branch of the New South Wales Department of Public Works objected to the pontoon bridge. The local committee agree to build a pile bridge which was recommended by New South Wales Department of Public Works. After the New South Wales Government refused to support this type of bridge the committee decided to finance it themselves.

 
Hampden Bridge

On 23 August 1860 a joint stock company was formed to complete and maintain the bridge between Crampton and Travers Streets as well as to make a proper road to the bridge from existing streets. On 5 December 1861 the New South Wales Parliament enacted a bill to form the Wagga Wagga Company Bridge to build a bridge not less than 25 feet wide and 7 feet in height. The Act gave the Company authority to receive a toll, not exceeding £5 for most persons using the bridge. The Company's directors had to raise loans because the shares were not readily purchased as many people feared the bridge would be washed away by floods. 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 for the public for £9,804. Tolls were ceased on 29 February 1884 at noon. In the 1890s use of the bridge increased. It's timbers were decaying and the bridge was in danger of collapse. The local Member of Parliament, James Gormly, appealed to the Department of Public Works to replace the bridge. The Wagga Wagga Company Bridge served the public for 33 years and was demolished in 1895.[17]

In 1895 Hampden Bridge, a truss bridge was built across the Murrumbidgee River at Wagga. The bridge is regarded as being of heritage significance.[18][19] On 16 August 2006 Hampden Bridge was closed and fenced off to the public due to the bridge being declared a safety risk after one of the trusses failed and demolishment of the landmark is being discussed.[20][21]

Law and order

With increasing prosperity and population Wagga and surrounding district became a place of interest to several infamous bushrangers. Notoriously the Wagga police magistrate Henry Baylis was bailed up by Mad Dog Morgan in 1863. Later when Baylis and some police officers tracked Morgan to where he was camping, the magistrate was shot and wounded.[22]

Captain Moonlite after being released from gaol in 1879 for a robbery committed at Egerton, near Ballarat arrived on November 15, 1879 looking for work at Wantabadgery Station which is situated about 38 km east of Wagga. When work was refused, Moonlite and his band of 5 others returned and held up all 39 people at the station. Later one of the hostages escaped and three mounted police from Wagga arrived to be engaged by the gang in a shoot out. When the police retreated, Moonlite and his gang escaped only to be captured at another nearby property when police from the neighbouring townships of Gundagai and Adelong arrived. Moonlite was later hung for his crimes.[22]

Ned Kelly's younger brother James Kelly, initially following in the footsteps of his elder sibling, and having just completed four years of imprisonmnet for cattle theft, was sentenced in 1877 at the Wagga courthouse to ten years gaol for stealing two horses from Wagga hoteliers. Unlike his older brother, when released he led a respectable life and lived until 1946.[22]

War and depression

At end of the nineteenth century, Wagga Wagga, like most of rural Australia, was proud of its ties to Imperial Britain and volunteers from Wagga Wagga enlisted in military units sent to imperial conflicts such as the Mahdist War in Sudan in 1885 and later in 1899 the Second Boer War in South Africa. Notwithstanding the strength of these ties, demonstrated by the enthusiastic celebrations of Queen Victoria's jubilee in 1897, national sentiment was rising in Wagga Wagga.[23]

Along with most of the Riverina region, the majority of Wagga Wagga residents supported the federation of the Australian colonies, in large part due to the prospect of free trade across colonial borders. Many addresses by visiting politicians supporting Federation were held in front of large crowds in Wagga Wagga, often from the balconies of various hotels. From 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.[24]

The start of World War I once again lead to many men from Wagga Wagga and the surrounding area volunteering to serve King and country. 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 where groups of recruits would march toward Sydney and appeal to men in the towns along the route to join them and enlist in the 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, who later won the Victoria Cross for his actions in the Battle of the Hindenburg Line in 1918.[25] Along the way, the march stopped in towns such as Junee, Cootamundra, Murrumburrah and Yass and finished at Campbelltown with over 220 recruits.[26][25] The local Rugby league football team, Wagga Kangaroos, chose its name in commemoration of the march.[27] The two bitter conscription referenda debates in 1916 and 1917 exposed deep divisions in Wagga Wagga society with the respectable and mostly Protestant farmers, graziers, businessmen, and professionals generally in favour of conscription while the anti-conscriptionist tended to be Catholic and working class. Both referenda were narrowly defeated nationally, with Wagga Wagga voting for conscription in 1916 and against in 1917.[28]

The soldiers returning from the war in Europe brought with them the "Spanish flu" epidemic that was sweeping the world, for a while bringing the town to a standstill. Some of the area around Wagga Wagga was designated for 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. After some controversy , the Victory Memorial Gardens were established in 1927 by Wollundry Lagoon to honour those who served.[29]

Throughout the 1920s the NSW State Government improved both the road and rail links in the region. Wagga Wagga was part of a new telephone link between Melbourne and Sydney and a new Post and Telegraph office was constructed to house the repeating centre, one of the largest in regional Australia

Demographics

Wagga Wagga is the major city of the Riverina and the largest inland city in New South Wales.[1] In 2006 the urban centre of Wagga Wagga was home to a population of 44,272[1] and the city is continuing to grow with population growth of 0.8% for the period 2001 to 2006.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.[30]

The population is reasonably homogenous with only 6.4% of the population born outside of Australia as opposed to 21.9% for Australia as a whole and 93.8% of households in Wagga Wagga only speaking English at home. Wagga Wagga is home to small numbers of migrants from England, New Zealand, Scotland, the Netherlands and Germany. Wagga Wagga is also home to a sizable indigenous population; at the 2001 census, Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders made up 3.4% of the city's population.[31]

In religion, Wagga Wagga is predominantly Christian, with the major religious denominations being Catholic (34.0%) and Anglican (26.3%). 15.5% of the population professed no religion. The main sources of employment in Wagga Wagga include Education, Retailing, Health and Defence.[31]

Industry

Commercial

 
Wagga Wagga Court House

Wagga attracts people from all over the Riverina and south western New South Wales to its shopping facilities. 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 new South City Shopping Centre in Glenfield Park, the Lake Village Shopping Centre, Lake Albert, the Tolland Shopping Centre and Kooringal Mall in Kooringal. Wagga also has a large Home Base located on the Sturt Highway. Wagga's central business district, with both Baylis and Fitzmaurice Streets and other surrounding streets, offers hundreds of specialty retailers including national chains such as Big W, Myer and Target Country.

Defence forces

The Australian Army base at Kapooka includes the Army Recruit Training Centre, where non-commissioned members of the Australian Regular Army undertake their initial 80 day training.[32] The barracks at Kapooka are named after World War II military commander Sir Thomas Blamey, born at Lake Albert Wagga Wagga and Australia's only Field Marshal.[33][22] 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.[34][35]

There is a separate Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) base at 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 HMAS Albatross are based at RAAF Base Wagga as a Aircraft Maintenance and Flight Trials Unit (AMAFTU).[36] RAAF Base Wagga is also the home of the Wagga Wagga RAAF Museum.

Education

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. The university was established on 1 July 1989[37] following the enactment of The Charles Sturt University Act, 1989 and involved the merger of several existing separately-administered 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 C.D. Blake OAM who at the time was the principal of the Riverina College.[37]

The Riverina Institute, a collection of TAFE institute campuses has its headquarters in Wagga Wagga and Wagga is home to three campuses. The main campus, offering training in building, engineering, tourism, hospitality and health and beauty is located on Coleman St.[38] The Primary Industries Centre, at North Wagga Wagga is set on 250 hectares and runs courses on agriculture and horticulture.[39] 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.[40] In addition Wagga Wagga is home to eight secondary schools and 22 primary schools.

Government

Local Government for the city is provided by the Wagga Wagga City Council. As well as Wagga Wagga itself the City Council area includes the outlying towns of Tarcutta, Ladysmith, Mangoplah, Collingullie and Uranquinty covering an area of 4,824km2.[41]. The local government area was formed as a result of the amalgamation of the Wagga Wagga municipality with the Mitchell and Kyeamba Shires in 1981. The council itself consists of 14 councillors elected for a four year term and from these a mayor and deputy mayor is elected each year by the council.[42]

Wagga Wagga is the largest city in the Australian House of Representatives electorate of Riverina and currently represented by Kay Hull of the National Party. At the state level, the city is represented in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly by Daryl Maguire, of the Liberal Party, member for the Electoral district of Wagga Wagga.

Amenities

Transport

 
The Gobbagombalin Bridge

Fearnes runs bus services from most Wagga Wagga suburbs to the CBD from Mondays to Saturdays with no services on Sunday. Wagga Radio Cabs run taxis 24/7 in the city with Taxi Ranks located at Station Place, Forsyth Street, Gurwood Street, Wagga Wagga Base Hospital and Kooringal Mall.

The Olympic Highway used to run through the CBD until the Gobbagombalin Bridge (referred to locally as the Gobba Bridge) located about 6km northwest of the CBD was opened in July, 1997. The Sturt Highway is located in the centre of Wagga Wagga.

Wagga Wagga Railway Station is located on the Sydney-Melbourne railway line. with twice daily XPT fast rail services provided by CountryLink, the state owned passenger rail service.

Wagga Wagga Airport at Forest Hill has scheduled daily flights to Sydney and Melbourne through two carriers, Regional Express and QantasLink. The airport itself is owned by the Royal Australian Air Force and the civil side is leased by the City Council. The sealed runway can cater for aircraft weighing up to 30 tonnes. Since 2001, around 100,000 passengers use Wagga Wagga airport annually.[43]

Sport

Wagga's ___location approximately midway between Melbourne and Sydney on the "Barassi Line" contributes to high levels of participation in Rugby league, Rugby union and Australian rules football in the town. Other popular sports in Wagga include soccer, cricket, tennis and lawn bowls.

Australian rules football clubs in Wagga include the Eastern Hawks, Mangoplah-Cookardinia United-Eastlakes, Turvey Park and Wagga Tigers in the Riverina Football League and Collingullie-Ashmont-Kapooka, North Wagga and Rivcoll in the Farrer Football League. The local Rugby league teams play in the Group 9 Rugby League competition and include Wagga Brothers, South City and Wagga Kangaroos. The Group 9 grand final is a major sport event in Wagga Wagga. Rugby Union teams include Rivcoll, Wagga Agricultural College, Wagga City and Wagga Waratahs in the Southern Inland Rugby Union. The Wagga Wagga Gold Cup, said to be Australia's second oldest thoroughbred horse race is held in the first week of May.[44][45]

The "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.[46] 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.

Famous sportspeople from Wagga include Australian rules footballers, Wayne Carey and Paul Kelly, cricketers Mark Taylor, Michael Slater and Geoff Lawson, rugby league players Peter Sterling and the Mortimer brothers Chris, Peter and Steve and the rugby union player Nathan Sharpe. Tennis coach and 1966 French Open champion Tony Roche is from Wagga as are US PGA Championship winner Steve Elkington and world-famous jockey, Scobie Breasley. 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.[47]

Recreation and culture

Wagga Wagga has a range of high quality recreational and cultural facilities and institutions in line with its status as a major regional city.

Recreation

 
Wagga Beach - Murrumbidgee River

The Murrumbidgee River at Wagga Wagga supports a sandy beach, a popular ___location for picnics and barbeques in the summer months. Between 1977 and 1995 the beach played host to the Gumi Races[48] where people were encouraged to make rafts from inner tubing and sabotage their competition by throwing rotten eggs and flour at them. Those still nostalgic for the event can take a float down the river from "The Rocks" which are located some 600 metres upstream from the main beach area. River cruises also operate on the Murrumbidgee.

 
"The Rocks" on the Murrumbidgee River

Wollundry Lagoon, Lake Albert and various parks also provide recreational facilities. Sporting facilities include the Oasis Regional Aquatic Centre, with Australia's only wave ball.[49] Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre and the Forum 6 Cinemas provide entertainment venues. The Wagga Wagga Botanic Gardens are home to a music bowl, a small zoo with a walk through aviary, a tree chapel, Willans Hill Model Railway and a camellia garden. Located on the banks of the Wollundry lagoon, the Victory Memorial Gardens were established in 1925 as a tribute to those who fought and died in World War I and were designed by Thomas Kerr, the designer of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney.

Culture

 
The Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre, opened in 1963.

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 precinct includes the Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre, the Wagga Wagga Regional Art Gallery and the central branch of the Riverina Regional Library.

The Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre was officially opened in 1963 at a cost of ₤165,000. Prior to and after opening the theatre was was the subject of severe criticism as critics lamented the destruction of rose gardens removed to allow construction, the size of the orchestra pit and the seating (497 seats) as well as the design of the feature mural. A considerable refurbishment was carried out in the 1990s and now the theatre is regarded as one of the best in regional Australia, playing host to national and international touring acts.[50]

The Wagga Wagga Regional Art Gallery hosts local collections and travelling exhibitions and has space for an Artist in residence. The centrepiece of the collection is the National Art Glass Gallery, a nationally significant collection of studio art glass hosted in a separate, specially designed gallery. The collection was first established by the former director of the Wagga Wagga Regional Art Gallery, Judy Le Lievre in response to a request by the Australia Council for regional galleries to develop a specialised collection to avoid duplication and competition. The collection consists of around 400 works making it the largest studio glass collection in Australia.[51] 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 Riverina Sporting Hall of Fame. The musuem also 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.[52]

The Wagga Wagga Jazz Festival was established in 1995 and has featured a range of Australian and international musicians.[53] Established in 1976 as the Riverina Trucking Company and renamed in 1983, the Riverina Theatre Company is Australia's longest running regional theatre company and runs a full program of events each year at the Riverina Playhouse, located on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River and jointly owned by the theatre company and Charles Sturt University.

Notable artists and performers from Wagga Wagga include poet Dame Mary Gilmore, who is featured on the Australian 10 dollar note and veteran actor Bill Kerr.[54][55] The Yellow Wiggle, Sam Moran, is also from Wagga Wagga, having replaced the original Yellow Wiggle, Greg Page, in November 2006.[56] The fictional creation of satirist, Barry Humphries, Dame Edna Everage was said to have been born in Wagga Wagga.[57]

Wagga also has strong cultural ties with three international sister cities which form part of a twinning program. Those sister cities are Leavenworth, in the United States; Nördlingen in Germany; and Kunming in China.[58]

Wagga has captured the interest of writers, novelists and songwriters over the years. Specifically the city's international notoriety surrounding Arthur Orton and the Tichborne Case attracted a visit from Mark Twain when he visited Australia in the 1890s.[59] In addition Wagga has been home to a number of famous Australian writers, including Frank Moorhouse who worked as a journalist on the city's daily newspaper, and the poets Mary Gilmore and Barcroft Boake.[22]

The song Don't call Wagga Wagga Wagga, a light-hearted take on the habit of Australians to refer to double named towns by one name only, written by Australian country music artists Greg Champion and Jim Haynes, was a minor hit on the Australian country charts.[60]

5 o'clock wave

The 5 o'clock wave is a tongue in cheek theory on the reasons for Wagga Wagga's sporting success. It arrives, according to the local legend, at precisely that time in the form of a giant wave which flushes a secret nutrient into the Murrumbidgee River following the release of water from the Blowering and Burrinjuck Dams. The wave is said to continue downriver at high speed and indeed, is so powerful that surfers can ride it along the meandering river until it reaches the town of Narrandera.[61]

Media

As a regional centre for the Riverina and South West Slopes, Wagga Wagga is home to a number of regional media outlets.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation provides two television channels, ABC TV and ABC2, broadcast on digital only. The other government broadcaster SBS provides programming that reflects Australia's multicultural society. Commercial broadcasters include Prime Television, WIN Television and Southern Cross Ten.

Radio stations broadcasting from Wagga Wagga include ABC stations ABC Riverina, Radio National, ABC Classic FM and Triple J. The major commercial stations include AM radio station 2WG and Star FM. Specialist interest stations include Christian radio station Life FM and the national multicultural broadcaster SBS FM. 2AAA FM is the local community radio station.

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[62] and first printed on December 10 1868 by editor Frank Hutchison, an Oxford graduate. Originally printed bi-weekly, by 1880 it was tri-weekly and finally became 'daily' on 31 December 1910. In 1962 the newspaper reduced in size from a broadsheet to a tabloid format.[63] The Riverina Leader, the local free community newspaper was launched in May 1979.[64]

Notable people

Main article: List of notable people from Wagga Wagga, New South Wales

References and notes

  1. ^ a b c "2016.1 Census of Population and Housing: Selected Characteristics for Urban Centres and Localities, New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory" (Adobe Acrobat File). 2001 Census Data. Australian Bureau of Statistics. 2003. Retrieved 2007-05-01.
  2. ^ a b "Map Maker". Travel Mate. Retrieved 2007-04-07.
  3. ^ Page, K. "TL Chronology and stratigraphy of riverine source bordering sand dunes near Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia". Retrieved 2007-05-03. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ "Self Guided Salinity Tour". Wagga Wagga Urban Landcare Group. Retrieved 2007-05-03.
  5. ^ a b c "Climate of Wagga Wagga". Bureau of Meteorology (Australia). Retrieved 2007-04-28.
  6. ^ "Geographical Names Register Extract". Geographical Names Board of NSW. Retrieved 2007-04-25.
  7. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 15-16. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  8. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 17-20. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  9. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 21-26. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  10. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 33-34. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  11. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 34-36. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  12. ^ a b Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 56-64. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  13. ^ "History of Wagga Wagga". City of Wagga Wagga. Retrieved 2007-04-27.
  14. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 76. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  15. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 65-70. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  16. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 89-92. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  17. ^ Morris, S. (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 78. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  18. ^ "Hampden Bridge, Wagga Wagga" (pdf). Heritage. Institution of Engineers. Retrieved 2006-08-19. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  19. ^ "Hampden Bridge, Wagga Wagga, NSW" (html). Heritage. Timber Research Unit of the Department of Architecture at the University of Tasmania. Retrieved 2006-08-19. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  20. ^ "Council closes Hampden Bridge over sinking concerns" (html). Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 2006-08-17.
  21. ^ The Daily Advertiser Hampden Bridge is falling down - Page 3 - 17 August 2006
  22. ^ a b c d e "WEBPAGE". Fairfax Digital. Retrieved 2007-05-05.
  23. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 112. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  24. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 115. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  25. ^ a b Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 120-122. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  26. ^ "Kangaroos". Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 2007-05-05.
  27. ^ "Wagga Kangaroos - History". SportingPlus. Retrieved 2007-05-05.
  28. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 123-126. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  29. ^ Morris, Sherry (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Wagga Wagga: Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 134-140. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  30. ^ Rowe, Tim (2007-03-02). "Wagga is the leading sponge city". The Daily Advertiser. Retrieved 2007-04-27. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  31. ^ a b "Wagga Wagga (NSW) (Statistical District)". 2001 Census QuickStats. Australian Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 2007-04-28.
  32. ^ "Joining the Defence Forces". AusSpecialForces.com. Retrieved 2007-04-26.
  33. ^ Horner, D. M. (1993). "Blamey, Sir Thomas Albert (1884 - 1951)". Australian Dictionary of Biography, Online edition. Australian National University. Retrieved 2007-04-27.
  34. ^ "Joining instruction for the Australian Army's Recruit Training" (PDF). Australian Army. Retrieved 2007-04-26.
  35. ^ "A mother grieves for death of VC winner". Australian Government Department of Veterans' Affairs. Retrieved 2007-04-27.
  36. ^ "HMAS Albatross". Royal Australian Navy. Retrieved 2007-05-01.
  37. ^ a b Morris, S. (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 228. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  38. ^ "Wagga Wagga". Riverina Institute. Retrieved 2007-05-02.
  39. ^ "Primary Industries Centre". Riverina Institute. Retrieved 2007-05-02.
  40. ^ "National Aerospace Training Centre of Excellence". Riverina Institute. Retrieved 2007-05-02.
  41. ^ "Wagga Wagga City Council". Department of Local Government (New South Wales). Retrieved 2007-05-03.
  42. ^ "The Role of Council". City of Wagga Wagga. Retrieved 2007-05-03.
  43. ^ "Airport". Business and Development. City of Wagga Wagga. Retrieved 2007-05-01.
  44. ^ "Murrumbidgee Turf Club". Murrumbidgee Turf Club. Retrieved 2007-04-25.
  45. ^ "Wagga Wagga New South Wales". Travelmate. Retrieved 2007-04-25.
  46. ^ Edwina, Farley (2005-11-11). "Sports stars more likely to come from the bush". ABC Rural. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 2007-01-20. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  47. ^ "Introduction". Sporting Hall of Fame. Museum of the Riverina. Retrieved 2007-04-26.
  48. ^ Morris, S. (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 261. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  49. ^ "Oasis Regional Aquatic Centre". City of Wagga Wagga. Retrieved 2007-05-03.
  50. ^ Blackett, Dennis L. "History of the Civic Theatre". Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre. City of Wagga Wagga. Retrieved 2007-05-02.
  51. ^ "National Glass Collection". Wagga Wagga Art Gallery. City of Wagga Wagga. Retrieved 2007-05-02.
  52. ^ Cockington, James (2005-08-23). "Heir apparent". Business > Money. The Age. p. 12. Retrieved 2006-06-23. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  53. ^ "Program 2007". Wagga Wagga Jazz inc. Retrieved 2007-05-06.
  54. ^ Wilde, W. H. (1983). "Gilmore, Dame Mary Jean (1865 - 1962)". Australian Dictionary of Biography, Online Edition. Australian National University. Retrieved 2007-04-27.
  55. ^ Rheinberger, Joel (2005). "Bill Kerr: the boy from Wagga Wagga". ABC Riverina. Retrieved 2007-04-27.
  56. ^ Gartrell, Adam (2006-11-30). "Moran ready to fill yellow skivvy". The Australian. Retrieved 2007-05-03. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  57. ^ "Dame Edna Everage Biography". Biography Base. Retrieved 2007-05-02.
  58. ^ "Sister Cities". About Wagga Wagga. City of Wagga Wagga. Retrieved 2007-04-26.
  59. ^ a b Twain, Mark. "Chapter XV". Following the Equator. literaturecollection.com. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)
  60. ^ "Bio- Jim Haynes". Singabout Australia. Retrieved 2007-05-07.
  61. ^ Morris, S. (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 261. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  62. ^ Morris, S. (1999). Wagga Wagga, a history. Bobby Graham Publishers. pp. p 62. ISBN 1-875247-12-2. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  63. ^ Doubleday, Wayne. "The Wagga Daily Advertiser Pty Ltd. (1868 - )". Regional Records On-Line Guide. Charles Sturt University. Retrieved 2007-05-02.
  64. ^ "Riverina Media Group Publications". Riverina Media Group. Retrieved 2007-05-02.
  •  
    Fitzmaurice Street
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    Wagga Wagga Civic Centre
  •  
    "City of Wagga Wagga"

See also

 
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