Overview
Booligal, in western New South Wales, was first sighted by explorer John Oxley on his journey down the Lachlan River. Its name, derived from the aboriginal language, means "windy place".
In the 1890's Booligal had a population of 500, now the township itself has a floating population of approximately 28, but the community it serves extends to include properties within a 60+ km radius.
The town consists of a general store providing supplies, fuel and gas refills and a post office agency and a newly renovated hotel - providing the obvious and the not so obvious, depending on whatever essential you've forgotten to throw in the car before you left home [just see Greg & Annemarie]. There is also a primary school, a river and a cricket oval including an electric & gas BBQ, playground and sand-pit, which is the site of the famous annual BOOLIGAL SHEEP RACES!
History
In the 1890s, Booligal consisted of a court house, post office, a school and two hotels, along with other essential stores and businesses. It then had a population of 500: now the township itself has a floating population of approximately 28, but the community it serves extends to include properties within a 60+ km radius.
Back in the days when it was an important stage post on the route of Cobb & Co., and squatters could acquire holdings of 100,000-acre sheep properties for a shilling [today's 10 cents] an acre, it was a two-day trip by horse and cart for the people living on outlying properties to travel to the township of Hay.
In 1967, a memorial consisting of a giant theodolite set into stone, was erected to John Oxley on the park corner.
Located between Hay and Booligal is the famous and historic One Tree Hotel. The hotel was built in 1862 by Alexander Finch and originally known as Finch Inn it was renamed to One Tree Hotel later when it was purchased by William Clark. It was named because of its location under one large gum tree growing on the clay pan, near a fresh water well. One Tree was a staging post for the Cobb & Co Coach. The One Tree Hotel now stands on the plains, a stark reminder of an era gone by.
Attractions
Booligal is a one hour trip from Hay by bitumen road across the great open plains of saltbush, where wedge-tail eagles and galahs soar and kangaroos and emus roam at will. The road is flanked by a stock route on which drovers are a common sight, grazing their mobs of sheep or cattle in the "long paddock."
In the distance you can catch glimpses of the groups of trees marking the position of the station homesteads and their outlying buildings, which mark the only relief to the curved line of the horizon.
Accommodation
Meals and accommodation can be found at the Duke of Edinburgh Hotel Phone (02) 6993 8123.
Visitor Information
- Hay Visitor Information Centre
- 407 Moppett St
- Hay NSW 2711
- Ph: 1300 30 70 90
- Fax: 02 6993 2069
- Email: haytouristcentre@bigpond.com
- www.visithay.com.au