Bendemeer, New South Wales
Town in New South Wales, Australia From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bendemeer (30°53′S 151°09′E) is a village of 485 people[1] on the Macdonald River in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. It is situated at the junction of the New England and Oxley Highways.
| Bendemeer New South Wales | |
|---|---|
 The two bridges across the Macdonald River at Bendemeer | |
  Bendemeer | |
| Coordinates | 30°53′S 151°09′E |
| Population | 485 (2006 census)[1] |
| Postcode(s) | 2355 |
| Elevation | 815 m (2,674 ft) |
| Location | |
| LGA(s) | Tamworth Regional Council |
| County | Inglis |
| State electorate(s) | |
| Federal division(s) | New England |
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The original inhabitants of the land were Indigenous Australians of the Kamilaroi clan. The first European settlement was in 1834, with the establishment of a sheep station at a river crossing on what would become the McDonald River.[2] By 1851 a small village had grown around the station, which was known as McDonald River.[2]
In 1854 the village was renamed Bendemeer after a line in the 1817 poem Lalla-Rookh by Thomas Moore:
There's a bower of roses by Bendemeer's stream; And the nightingale sings round it all day long."[3]
Moore was referring to a stream that ran through the ruined city of Persepolis in modern-day Iran.[4] The word "bendemeer" is a loose translation of the Persian bund (embankment) and amir (a local ruler). It was proposed as the village name by Thomas Perry, a local farmer whose grandfather had maintained a friendship with both Moore and the first New South Wales Surveyor General, Thomas Mitchell.[3]
In 1864 the bushranger Captain Thunderbolt carried out one of his first armed robberies by holding up the northern mail as it passed through Bendemeer.[2]
The first bridge over the McDonald River was constructed in 1874, and the steel and timber truss bridge was opened on 29 September 1905. A historic engineering marker was erected near this bridge in 2005. The bridge now in use through the village is a low level concrete structure.
The Macdonald River Road Bridge and Bendemeer Public Cemetery, Bendemeer Watsons Creek Rd, have been placed on the Register of the National Estate.[5]
Tamworth Buslines operates a bus service between Bendemeer and Tamworth.[6]
The population of Bendemeer is overwhelmingly Christian (83%) and Australian-born (90%). The average age of 41 years is slightly older than the Australian average of 37. A third of Bendemeer residents are over the age of 55, compared to a national average of 24%.[1]
Bendemeer is principally a business hub for local sheep and cattle graziers. The town also hosts a range of arts festivals and craft markets,[2] as well as a triennial Tractor Muster.[7] Town services include a general shop, a hotel and restaurant, caravan park and camping ground, and Catholic and Presbyterian churches.[8]
The Bendemeer Public School caters for 33 students and is a recipient of annual funding via the Disadvantaged Schools Program administered by the New South Wales Department of Education and Training.[9]
On 10 September 2012, Bendemeer became one of the first Australian villages where National Broadband Network 12 Mbit/s dedicated wireless broadband services can be purchased.[10]
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