Overview
Situated in the middle of the Old Man Plain beneath some well-established peppercorn trees, the remarkable Royal Mail Hotel constitutes the historical, social, physical and even genealogical centre of the small community of Booroorban.
The Royal Mail Hotel was built by Samuel Porter in 1868 and remained in the Porter family until 1910. The hotel was extensively refurbished in the 1980 and 1990's but the character and charm of the building has been retained.
The Royal Mail Hotel remains the hub of social life on the Old Man Plain although there was some concern by the local community when the licence was sold off during the Sydney Olympics and a lengthy struggle took place before another licence could be obtained.
History
Originally known as Pine Ridge, Booroorban's origins are tied to the Royal Mail Hotel, which was a staging post on the Cobb & Co run between Hay and Deniliquin. It is the last remaining coaching inn on that route. Passengers disembarked to refresh themselves while the horses were exchanged for a fresh team kept in the stables, still intact, at the rear of the hotel.
The village of Booroorban was proclaimed in 1885. In its hey-day it consisted of two hotels, a wine house, school, post office, hall, general store, 20 houses and a population of 200.
The hotel's Headless Horseman Bar, with its painting of the subject, is named after a legend associated with the area. Drovers around Black Swamp in the middle of the 19th century told of a horseman who appeared suddenly at a campsite, mounted on a trotting cob, a cloak about his shoulders but with no head, spooking the animals and causing stampedes. It was said to be the ghost of a drover who died at the swamp.
One story has it that a Moulamein butcher took advantage of the tale. Dressing himself in a cloak thrown over a wooden frame on his shoulders, which gave the appearance of headlessness, he is said to have hived off small numbers of others' cattle for his own profit.
Other versions depict stampedes, mass theft and the droving of the booty across the border for sale in Victoria. One version has him shot and killed; another has him never caught. A Cobb & Co. driver claims he carried the wounded thief to the hospital where he died and that he later saw the headless body of the same man on his horse. It thus seems unclear whether the thief took advantage of an existing myth or whether the myth arose from his activities.
Contradictions abound. Whatever the substance of the legend, there is no doubt that it exists and the story is told on a Long Paddock interpretive panel at the Black Swamp, a few kilometres south of Booroorban.
Attractions
The area surrounding the hotel comprises two tennis courts, a grassed barbeque area overlooking a lake, and a playground. A Caravan Park is situated at the rear of the hotel. Nearby is a cemetery, cricket ground and community hall.
AccommodationGenuine country hospitality is available in the historic Booroorban Royal Mail Hotel Phone (02) 6993 0694
Visitor Information
- Conargo Shire Council
- 122 End Street
- Deniliquin NSW 2710
- Ph: (03) 5880 1200
- Fax: (03) 5881 2568
- www.conargo.nsw.gov.au