In my last post, I shared a history of the Tweed Valley region, you can read it here. Today, I’m going to write about Tweed Valley heritage places we visited during the weekend.

Bilambil and Terranora

We stayed in a village Bilambil, which name according to the Geographical Names Board of NSW derived from ‘bilang’, the Native She-oak tree (Casuarina cunninghamiana). The suffix -bil is plural for a large number of trees or for some topographical features. These oaks grew extensively in the creek areas there. The only information about a history of the village I could find is that there was a small mill that was closed probably in the 1880s when the Colonial Sugar Refining Company became a monopoly in the country and small crushing mills couldn’t compete.

Next to Bilambil there is a village Terranora which apparently was a place of a first camp site of timber cutters when they arrived in the 1840s. By researching this I found that the origins of the name are not clear: (1) Aboriginal. Terranora was never Taranora. Terranora was the anglicised name for the hill-lands spared for sugar blocks. (Richmond Tweed Regional Library. 1984); (2) small river. (McCarthy. 1963); (3) (coastal) small estuary. (M.Sharpe); (4) definitely not Aboriginal in origin. It was invented by Europeans. (Appleton; 1992).

Tumbulgum

Then we headed west and stopped in Tumbulgum for a breakfast. Tumbulgum is one of the early villages in the Tweed Valley originating in the 1860s. Originally known as Tweed Junction yet residents in 1880 requested a change of the name to Tumbulgum which meaning is also not clear – one version is “meeting of waters” (the confluence of the Rous and Tweed Rivers) and other states it is derived from ‘tumbul’ or ‘chumbul’ for a fig tree.

There are some historical buildings such as the oldest pub in the district – the Tumbulgum Tavern from 1887 (then known as the Metropolitan Hotel). Adjacent to the Tavern is a former St Peter’s Church of England. The original building was constructed in 1888 as the second Church of England in the Tweed. In 1943, the church was blown down and destroyed in a storm. The church was rebuilt some 11 years later and remained until 2012 when was decommissioned.

Chillingham

After leaving Tumbulgum we crossed back the Tweed river and then followed Rous river on the north bank. We stopped at fruit and veg roadside stall in Crystal Creek and had a nice chat with the owner.

Shortly after, we arrived in Chillingham a small town where the main spots are old Chillingham Store and a gallery in restored old Butcher Shop from the 1920s. The town originally known as Bean Tree Crossing from giant Black Bean trees lining the riverbank was renamed probably after Chillingham Village in Northumberland County England by selectors George Thompson, Henry Bashforth and Fred Lever.

Tyalgum

When we got to Tyalgum first buildings we saw were the Tyalgum Hotel opened in 1926 and Bartrim’s Garage – the former Norco Butter Factory built in 1913. We stopped for a lunch at the Flutterbies Cottage Cafe which was the town bakery back in 1926. The adjacent shop used to be a butcher shop opened in 1931.

The other interesting buildings in the town are the Tyalgum General Store and village post office opened in 1908 and the town hall built the same year. Now the hall is a home of the annual Tyalgum Festival of Classical Music.

The name of the town “is said to be derived from Aboriginal ‘daldal’ for a shrub and ‘gum’, the locality, or Tyalgum; tall timbers.”

Wollumbin National Park

We also visited Wollumbin National Park. As mentioned in the previous post the area about 20 million years ago was a huge shield volcano that stretched from Nerang to Byron Bay. The volcano attracted moist air from the sea (hence the Aboriginal name Wollumbin meaning “the Cloud Catcher”) and generated significant rainfall that washed away the lava, leaving large volcanic plug – Mt Warning (Wollumbin) and the semi-circular caldera basin.

Reserved for public recreation in 1928, Mount Warning was dedicated as a national park in 1967. Inclusion on the World Heritage Register in 1986 as part of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area ensures its protection for future generations. In 2009, Mt Warning National Park was renamed Wollumbin National Park. [nationalparks.nsw.gov.au]

Uki

The origins of the name of the village Uki similarly to other localities in the area is not clear. According to the official tourist information website, “the name (pronounced ‘yook-eye’) is believed to be derived from the Aboriginal name for a small water fern but some say that it evolved from the early days of timber-getting when the finest cedars were marked ‘U.K.1’ for export to the United Kingdom.” However the Geographical Names Register suggest that it might be derived from “from ‘yaguy’ meaning small lagoon or bandicoot”

Uki Public School was opened in 1895. Currently, many of the shops are in historical buildings from the town’s early days as a thriving dairy and timber centre. The old Norco Butter Factory was transformed into art and craft hub with galleries and art studios bookstore and an antique shop.

The historic Mt Warning Hotel was completely destroyed by a fire in 2013, but was rebuilt and is opened again from 2015.

Murwillumbah

The last point of the day was at Murwillumbah – the biggest town in the valley. According to the official website of the town, the name was first noted by pioneer settler Joshua Bray following a suggestion by Jonathon Harris and was the aboriginal name of the tribal lands between what is now the Tweed and Rous Rivers. The first maritime vessel navigated the Tweed River, surveying the present town of Murwillumbah in 1868. The opening of the rail line to Lismore in 1894 and the Murwillumbah Bridge in 1901 established the town as the major administrative and commercial centre of the Tweed Valley. Most of the central business district was destroyed by a fire in 1907, followed with floods in 1954, 1956 and 1974.

There are many art deco shop fronts and cafes in federation style buildings. We stopped at the Tweed Valley Regional Gallery where we had a coffee with a beautiful panoramic view of the valley and Mt Warning.