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Mullumbimby

Coordinates: 28°33′S 153°30′E / 28.550°S 153.500°E / -28.550; 153.500
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For the 2013 novel, see Mullumbimby (novel).

Mullumbimby
New South Wales
Burringbar Street—Mullumbimby's main street
Mullumbimby is located in New South Wales
Mullumbimby
Mullumbimby
Coordinates28°33′S 153°30′E / 28.550°S 153.500°E / -28.550; 153.500
Population3,589 (2021 census)[1]
Postcode(s)2482[2]
Elevation6 m (20 ft)
Location
LGA(s)Byron Shire
State electorate(s)Ballina[3]
Federal division(s)Richmond[4]
Welcome sign in Mullumbimby

Mullumbimby, locally nicknamed Mullum, is a town in the Byron Shire in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia. It promotes itself as "The Biggest Little Town in Australia".[5] The town lies at the foot of Mount Chincogan in the Brunswick Valley about 9 kilometres (5.5 miles) by road from the coast. At the 2021 census, Mullumbimby and the surrounding area had a population of 3,589 people.[1] It is known for its hippie subculture, and it has been referred to as "Australia's anti-vaxxer capital".[6]

The Bundjalung people were the first people who lived in the area of Mullumbimby before the arrival of Europeans and remain the traditional owners of this place.[7][8]

History

[edit]

The first European to explore the area was Captain Henry Rous in 1828.[9][10]

The area was used for dairy farming and fruit growing.[11]

In 2022, the town was affected by floods.[12]

Origins and name

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Old Bank of New South Wales building[13]

In the 1850s Europeans had established a camp site at the junction of two arms of the Brunswick River. This grew to become a village and later the township of Mullumbimby. Mullumbimby was originally a centre for the timber industry. Notably, red cedar was collected in great quantities from around the area, a part of the far northern New South Wales' "Big Scrub".[14]

The town was a logical site for settlement by the timber hunters, as the Brunswick River is tidal in the town and navigable to that point, allowing logs to be floated down the river to its mouth at Brunswick Heads. The town's central location gave access to most of the catchment area, and it provided the best position for bullock teams to cross the river with their wagons loaded with timber. At low tide it is still possible to see the shallow region where the bullocks made the crossing of the Brunswick River, under the current "Federation Bridge" on Murwillumbah Road.[citation needed]

Aerial perspective of Mullumbimby taken autumn 2018
Aerial panorama of Mullumbimby taken autumn 2018

The name "Mullumbimby", meaning "small round hill", was given to the district by Aboriginal people. The name is derived from the Bandjalung-Yugambeh dialect mulubinba (possibly also pertaining to a native fern which grew in the vicinity).[15] Although some sources claim this is because of the proximity of Mount Chincogan, Chincogan is probably too prominent in the landscape to fit the name.[16] An alternative theory is that it refers to another smaller and rounder hill. Suggestions include a medium hill to the north of Left Bank road, on which the towns water tower is located, or a smaller hill on Coolamon Scenic Drive, situated on the Daly Family Farm, near the current golf course. This latter hill is possibly supported by the abundant grass flats which surrounded it, known as Mullumbimby Grass. These naturally open grass flats, presumably hunting grounds for the local Bundjalung tribes, were later used by early European timber hunters to graze their bullock teams.[14] The significance of this area lay not only in the feed it provided, but that some grasses in the naturally cleared area aided bullocks which had swallowed salt water when dragging timber into the surf for collection by nearby ships.

Cultural history

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A Mullumbimby bookstore
The Middle Pub

Mullumbimby was a separate municipality from 1908 until 1980 when it was forced to amalgamate with the Byron Shire. The Byron Shire Council offices were relocated to Mullumbimby in September 1996.[17]

Byron Shire, including Mullumbimby and nearby Byron Bay, became a centre of alternative or counter culture alongside the extant mainstream culture in the 1970s and 1980s, and remains so today. The male choir Dustyesky performs Russian-language folk songs and received major coverage on the Russian television broadcaster Channel One.[18]

Once the most notable specimens of the valuable timber trees had been collected (most notably red cedar, but also Australian Teak, Hoop Pine, Rosewood, Silky Oak and Black and Red Bean), the Big Scrub timber trade collapsed and Mullumbimby became primarily a farming community. Like many areas of the Big Scrub, allotments were given in Mullumbimby and the surrounding areas by the New South Wales government on the condition that the owner cleared the land for agricultural use.[19] Beef and dairy, along with bananas and sugar cane have traditionally been the notable products of the area. However, the subdivision of many of the larger farms and the emergence of numerous small scale farmers has led to a higher diversity of products. A weekly farmers' market has been developed to exhibit local produce.[20]

A static inverter plant of HVDC Directlink is located at Laverty's Gap near Mullumbimby. This inverter plant was previously the site of a 288 kW hydroelectric power scheme that powered Mullumbimby, Byron Bay and Bangalow from 1926, using water from a weir in nearby Wilsons Creek.[21][22] The scheme was the fourth hydro electric power station in NSW and only the fifth on mainland Australia.[23] Powering Mullumbimby for the first time in 1925, the scheme made Mullumbimby one of the first country towns in NSW to receive electricity.[23] Although decommissioned in 1990, it is now of state heritage significance.[23] The hydroelectric scheme was designed by William Corin (1867–1929).[24] The site is being considered for pumped-storage hydroelectricity.[25][26]

The Mullumbimby Star, which was published under a number of names over its history, was a newspaper published in the town from 1902 to 1982.[27][28]

Heritage listings

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Mullumbimby has several heritage-listed sites and the controversial Slater mounds have been nominated as local heritage. The best known heritage sites include:

Population

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Historical population
YearPop.±%
19211,329—    
19331,362+2.5%
19471,609+18.1%
19542,017+25.4%
19611,966−2.5%
19661,981+0.8%
19711,891−4.5%
19762,028+7.2%
19812,234+10.2%
19862,453+9.8%
19912,612+6.5%
19962,870+9.9%
20012,989+4.1%
20063,129+4.7%
20113,164+1.1%
20163,248+2.7%
20213,589+10.5%
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics data.[30][31]

In the 2021 Census, there were 3,589 people in Mullumbimby. 70.4% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were England at 5.9%, New Zealand at 1.9% and Germany at 1.6%. 81.0% of people spoke only English at home. The most common response for religion was No Religion at 59.2%, followed by Not stated 10.3%, Catholic 7.7%, Anglican 5.9% and Buddhism 2.9%.[1] Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people made up 1.8% of the population in 2016. English, Australian, Irish, Scottish and German are the most common ancestries.[1]

Geography

[edit]
Mount Chincogan

Mullumbimby is about 4 kilometres (2 mi) west of the Pacific Highway, near where the now closed Murwillumbah railway line crosses the Brunswick River. The line opened in 1894 and was closed in 2004 because of an argument over funding between federal and state politicians, despite community resistance across the region. Closure of the railway line between Murwillumbah and Casino has reduced transport options in the region.[citation needed]

The Brunswick River starts in Mullumbimby, at the meeting of Main Arm and Mullumbimby creeks.[citation needed]

Mullumbimby is close to the localities of Ocean Shores, Brunswick Heads and Wilsons Creek. Its hinterland area includes the locales of Goonengerry, Huonbrook, Koonyum Range, Main Arm, Montecollum, Palmwoods, Wanganui and Wilsons Creek and coincides with the postcode area of 2482[2] which has a diamond shape of around 35 km by 45 km.

The main geographical feature of Mullumbimby, Mount Chincogan, was a minor lava plug of the now extinct Tweed shield volcano. The nearby Mount Warning was the main plug.[citation needed]

Stone arrangement

[edit]

Reported stones arrangement on the Slater mounds on the western side of Saddle Ridge is thought by some to date back to the Paleolithic Age, and pre-dates Stonehenge.[32] The arrangements were communicated in the late 1930s by the Brunswick Heads headmaster to Mr Frederic Slater who attempted to make headlines across Australia with this as a highly significant Aboriginal site. Slater and some other researchers believe the inscriptions on the stones contain the earliest form of human language. Others regard this as pure pseudoscience. There is claimed to have been intentional destruction of the site and the 1930s-described stones have disappeared.[33]

Conspiracy theorism

[edit]

Mullumbimby is a hotspot for conspiracy theorists in Australia. Many locals are hippies or live alternative lifestyles. The town has low vaccination rates and many locals have protested against vaccines, 5G technology and water fluoridation amongst other causes.[34][35]

Health

[edit]

Mullumbimby is a hot spot for the anti-vaccination movement. As of 2013, the town's vaccination rate was the lowest in Australia, with only 46% to 49% of children aged one, two and five years old in the 2482 postcode fully immunised, in contrast with a state average in the low 90s. In Mullumbimby, between 2015 and 2016 only 52% of five year olds were fully vaccinated, compared to the national average at the time of 92.9%.[36] Richmond Valley, a region close to Mullumbimby, had the lowest overall vaccination rate, in part due to a high number of "conscientious objectors" to the practice. Health officials have cited education and timely reminders as key factors in improving the vaccination rate.[37][38]

The Byron Shire, in which Mullumbimby is situated, is also the only remaining local government area in the Northern Rivers region to reject fluoridation of its water supply.[39]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, despite state government-mandated restrictions, many businesses in Mullumbimby welcomed unvaccinated and unmasked individuals into their businesses, saying that the mandates imposed by the government were discriminatory.[34]

Sport and recreation

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The Mullumbimby Giants is the local rugby league club that competes in the Northern Rivers Regional Rugby League competition.[40][41]

Notable people

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See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d Australian Bureau of Statistics (22 January 2024). [1]. 2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Australia Post postcode 2482". Australia Post.
  3. ^ "NSW Electoral District – Ballina". Electoral Commission NSW. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  4. ^ "Federal Division – Richmond". Australian Electoral Commission. 2007. Archived from the original on 22 August 2011. Retrieved 25 March 2008.
  5. ^ "Mullumbimby". Byron Bay Beaches. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
  6. ^ "Mullumbimby, NSW: Australia's 'anti-vaccination capital' doesn't deserve your hate". SMH.com.au. Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
  7. ^ "Arakwal People of Byron Bay". Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  8. ^ "Aboriginal Cultural Heritage". Byron Shire Council. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  9. ^ "Mullumbimby, NSW".
  10. ^ "Mullumbimby". The Sydney Morning Herald. 8 February 2004. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  11. ^ "About the profile areas | Mullumbimby | profile.id". profile.id.com.au. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  12. ^ "Australia's record-breaking year of rain — and the end is now in sight". ABC News. 30 December 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  13. ^ "Westpac Bank (Former) – NSW Environment & Heritage". www.environment.nsw.gov.au. 22 October 2019.
  14. ^ a b "more history".
  15. ^ "Mullumbimby". Geographical Names Register (GNR) of NSW. Geographical Names Board of New South Wales. Retrieved 26 October 2011. Edit this at Wikidata
  16. ^ "Byron Bay Hinterland". Australian Traveller. Archived from the original on 18 February 2011. Retrieved 11 May 2011.
  17. ^ Stubbs, Brett J (2006). "Byron Shire: thematic history (volume 2)" (PDF). Byron Shire Council. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  18. ^ "Vodka-swilling choir from Mullumbimby cracks the big time in Russia" by Joanne Shoebridge and Samantha Turnbull, ABC News, 30 May 2017
  19. ^ "Big Scrub: A cleared landscape in transition back to forest?".
  20. ^ "Mullumbimby Farmers Markets".
  21. ^ "Mullumbimby". The Sydney Morning Herald. 8 February 2004.
  22. ^ Touring The Hydro – Mullumbimby's Heritage Power Station (1 of 6) on YouTube
  23. ^ a b c "Mullumbimby Hydro-electric Power Station Complex". 22 October 2019.
  24. ^ Corbett, Arthur (1981). "William Corin (1867–1929)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 8. Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943.
  25. ^ "Pumped about hydro in Mullum". Byron Shire News. 27 September 2017. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
  26. ^ "Pumped-storage hydro potential for Mullumbimby". Echonetdaily. 28 September 2017. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
  27. ^ "Mullumbimby Star (NSW : 1906 - 1936)". Trove. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  28. ^ "Mullumbimby Star and Byron Bay-Bangalow Advocate (NSW : 1936)". Trove. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  29. ^ "Mullumbimby Hydro-electric Power Station Complex". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01926. Retrieved 18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
  30. ^ "Statistics by Catalogue Number". Australian Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  31. ^ "Search Census data". Australian Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  32. ^ Hoax or key to solving ancient mystery? The Courier Mail (subscription required)
  33. ^ "The photo that could rewrite history".
  34. ^ a b "COVID NSW: Pandemic sparks conflict in Australia's anti-vaxxer capitalts". amp.smh.com.au. 17 July 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  35. ^ "COVID conspiracies are just the latest theories in a history stretching back centuries - ABC News". amp.abc.net.au. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  36. ^ MacKenzie, Bruce (7 June 2018). "NSW urged to rethink no jab no play vaccination policy". ABC News. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
  37. ^ "Mullumbimby vaccination rate below 50 per cent". abc.net.au. ABC. 20 May 2013. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  38. ^ "Low vaccination rates make Northern Rivers most "dangerous" place to raise children: State Opposition". abc.net.au/local. ABC. 28 March 2014. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  39. ^ Broome, Hamish (31 December 2014). "Turbulent times in our patch". Northern Star. APN. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  40. ^ "Mullumbimby Giants". Mullumbimby Giants. 25 October 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  41. ^ "NRRRL: your ultimate guide to the 2023 season". The Daily Telegraph. 14 April 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  42. ^ "Vic Armbruster". National Rugby League Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  43. ^ Chambers, Geoff (22 August 2014). "The birth of Iggy Azalea: How a schoolgirl named Amethyst clung to a dream to become a rapper". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
  44. ^ Shand, Aslan (16 August 2017). "Recalling Bob Bellear, a man of firsts". Byron Shire Echo. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  45. ^ "His Honour Judge Bob Bellear (1944 – 2005)" (PDF). Bar News. 2005 (Winter): 72–73 – via AustLII.
  46. ^ Meredith, Brooke. "Renée Bargh | A Conscious Collection". Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  47. ^ Brodnik, Laura (12 May 2021). ""On my first day, Russell Crowe made it difficult," Stan's Renee Bargh on her wildest Hollywood moments". Mamamia. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  48. ^ "Renee Bargh - Biography". IMDb. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  49. ^ Mcraig (22 August 2014). "Former Mullum junior joins NRL big league with Wests Tigers". The Northern Star. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  50. ^ "Past - Trent Knobel (1999-2001)". BigFooty Forum. 23 January 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  51. ^ "Captain turns in Giant mowing performance for Mullumbimby". New South Wales Rugby League. 16 June 2022. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  52. ^ Harrison, Sharon. "Oldfield, Audrey (1925 - 2010)". The Encyclopedia of Women and Leadership in Twentieth-Century Australia. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  53. ^ Kent, Ange (27 September 2021). "Amyl and The Sniffers' frontwoman weapon". BayFM. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  54. ^ Waterhouse, Jonah (10 September 2021). "How Australian rock singer Amy Taylor became a fashion sensation". Vogue Australia. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  55. ^ "Mullumbimby Memorial Centre Petria Thomas Pool". NSW War Memorials Register. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  56. ^ "Joel Turner music, videos, stats, and photos". Last.fm. 4 March 2024. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  57. ^ "Edwin Wilson | Personal website of Edwin Wilson, Australian Poet and Painter". Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  58. ^ "Edwin Wilson FRAS". Royal Art Society of NSW. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  59. ^ "Cane Toads: The Conquest: Mark Lewis interview". SBS What's On. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  60. ^ Schembri, Jim (26 May 2011). "Misunderstood and a bit jumpy". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
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