Harden, New South Wales

Harden–Murrumburrah is a township and community in the Hilltops Region and is located in the South West Slopes of New South Wales in Australia and is adjacent to both the Canberra region of the Australian Capital Territory and the Riverina Region in the southwest area of NSW. The town is a twin town between Harden and Murrumburrah (which is noted as one of the earliest settlements in the southwest of New South Wales).

Harden
New South Wales
Harden
Coordinates34°33′11″S 148°21′46″E
Population2,030 (2016 census)[1]
Postcode(s)2587
Elevation431 m (1,414 ft)
LGA(s)Hilltops Council
State electorate(s)Cootamundra
Federal Division(s)Riverina
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall
21.7 °C
71 °F		 7.4 °C
45 °F		 609.1 mm
24 in
Main street
Harden railway station

The town is traversed by the Burley Griffin Way, the major link from and between the Riverina and the Hume Highway near Yass, and ultimately Sydney, Canberra and the coast. Cunningham Creek runs along the edge of the town.

The Olympic Highway traverses the western end of the shire and is the major link through the central west to the Blue Mountains and from there to the Sydney region.

Harden is 3½ hours away by road from Sydney, and 1½ hours from Canberra and Wagga Wagga.

History

Before European settlement the Harden area was inhabited by the Wiradjuri people. Hume and Hovell passed nearby in 1824. In the late 1820s, the 'Murrumburra' was established. Its superintendent, James Kennedy, established an inn on the townsite in the late 1840s. Gold was found in the area in the 1850s.[2]

Harden railway station was opened one km east of Murrumburrah on the Main Southern line in 1877 as Murrumburrah, but changed its name to Harden a year after the opening of a new station in Murrumburrah in 1879. Harden has remained as the main station and, as a result, became the main town.[3]

Harden Post Office opened on 1 January 1870.[4] The first Australian Lighthorse was also founded in Harden–Murrumburrah, with the Lighthorse festival occurring annually.

From 1906 until 2016 Harden–Murrumburrah was the seat of its own local council, but was amalgamated in 2016 to form Hilltops Council. The town's rugby league team competed for the Maher Cup.

Heritage listings

Harden has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

Population

According to the 2016 census of Population, there were 2,030 people in Harden.

  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 8.4% of the population.
  • 86.5% of people were born in Australia and 91.9% of people only spoke English at home.
  • The most common responses for religion were Catholic 35.5%, Anglican 31.0% and No Religion 13.3%.[1]

Transport

The Main Southern railway line passes through Harden. It became an important railway town with the line to Blayney branching off a few kilometres beyond Harden at Demondrille. Harden railway station is served by two daily NSW TrainLink XPT services between Melbourne and Sydney in each direction and the twice weekly Xplorer service between Griffith and Sydney.[6] NSW TrainLink trial road coach services 703 and 704 between Wagga Wagga and Canberra via Cootamundra pass through Harden, but as at September 2019 do not pick up or drop off passengers there.[7] Busabout Wagga Wagga have a depot in the town.[8]

  • Harden National Australia Bank
  • Harden Mechanics Institute
  • Harden Post office
  • Royal Hotel
  • Grand Hotel Harden
  • Harden Doncaster Hotel
  • Harden Carrington Hotel
  • Former Harden Methodist Church
  • Harden Catholic Church
  • Harden Trinity Centre
  • Hilltops Council Office

See also

Notes
  1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "2016 Community Profiles: Harden". 2016 Census of Population and Housing. Material was copied from this source, which is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
  2. "Harden". Walkabout, John Fairfax. Archived from the original on 3 October 2006. Retrieved 25 January 2007.
  3. "Harden Railway Station". www.nswrail.net. Retrieved 25 January 2007.
  4. Premier Postal History. "Post Office List". Premier Postal Auctions. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  5. "Harden Railway Station and yard group". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Office of Environment and Heritage. H01165. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  6. "Southern timetable". NSW Trainlink. 7 September 2019.
  7. Wagga Wagga to Canberra NSW Trainlink
  8. Harden Depot School Bus Services Busabout Wagga Wagga

Media related to Harden, New South Wales at Wikimedia Commons

Preceding station NSW TrainLink Following station
Cootamundra
toward Griffith or Melbourne
 NSW TrainLink Southern Line
Griffith Xplorer
Melbourne XPT
 Yass Junction
toward Sydney
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