NSWFarming
Tenterfield
Grazing country with a place in the Federation story.
1851Township gazetted
WHAT STARTED IT
Tenterfield developed around pastoral properties and the overland route through northern New England. The nearby Tenterfield Station gave the settlement its name, and a gazetted township provided services for a growing district.
WHAT SUSTAINED IT
Land sales followed gazettal, while nearby gold discoveries added trade. The railway reached Tenterfield in 1886. Henry Parkes delivered his famous appeal for federation at the School of Arts in 1889, giving the rural town a national political association.
TURNING POINTS
1851The township is gazetted.
1886The railway opens to Tenterfield.
1889Parkes delivers the Tenterfield Oration.
WHAT IT DOES NOW
A high-country service and visitor town with pastoral properties, preserved buildings and museums. Its railway precinct records a transport role that faded as the coastal route became more important.