Today

Set in gently undulating hills covered with wheat, Temora is 420 km south-west of Sydney. This charming, close-knit community of Country NSW calls itself the friendliest town in the State. Discover the town’s history at the Temora Rural Museum, where you can experience life as it was for early pioneers. Here, you can find the original family home of cricket legend Sir Donald Bradman as well as a replica of the 7.3-kg Mother Shipton gold nugget, vintage agricultural machinery and steam engines.

Take the kids to Temora Aviation Museum to see vintage military aircraft – plan your visit around the weekend when some of these rare planes are taken out for flights. Alternatively, take the Temora Air Show tour.

In nearby Ariah Park, you’ll find the 1920s Heritage Village, with its attractive, nostalgic feel. Here, you can marvel at beautiful old architecture and shop for antiques.

There is some delightful accommodation in town, or stay in one of the nearby towns in the Wagga Wagga and Riverina area.

Yesterday

Although already supporting a flourishing pastoral community by the 1860s, the township of Temora was not “established” until the gold rush of 1879, a decade after gold was first discovered. In the 1880s at the peak of the rush, Temora had a population of 20,000. In 1881 the highest yield from the Temora field was attained – an Impressive 35,228oz.

In more recent times, gold mining occurred at the Paragon Gold Mine at Gidginbung, 12 km north of the town, from 1986 to 1996. At the time is was the largest open cut gold mine in operation in NSW.

Although there is little evidence of the old mines, the Mother Shipton mine, located off Moroney’s Lane, is a site well worth visiting. Gold mining took place at Reefton, Springdale, Combaning and Sebastapol as well as at Gidginbung and Temora.

In the early 1880s Temora was the scene of a massive gold rush with some 20,000 miners and hopefuls descending on the field. Numerous large gold nuggets were unearthed over a period of several years and there were some who did very well. Others were less fortunate and had great difficulty in surviving.

The Mother Shipton Nugget

The most spectacular find was the Mother Shipton Nugget won from the Mother Shipton Mine which is still one of the historic reminders of Temora’s golden era. The nugget, which broke into three parts, as it was dug out, weighed in at 308.35 ounces.

In 1882 the nugget was valued at 4,300 pounds ($8300). There is a replica of the nugget at the Temora Rural Museum. The smallest piece of the nugget was presented to Queen Victoria and the largest section was displayed in the window of the Orient Steamship Co. in London.

While there the premises were broken into and the nugget was stolen and never recovered.