Table of Contents
Armidale is a city in the Northern Tablelands, New South Wales, Australia. [ 2 ] Armidale had a population of 24,504 as at June 2018. [ 1 ] It is the administrative concentrate for the Northern Tablelands region. It is approximately halfway between Sydney and Brisbane at the junction of the New England Highway and Waterfall Way. The traditional owners of the estate of Armidale are the Gumbaynggirr Peoples .
geography [edit ]
Armidale is on the banks of Dumaresq Creek, in the Northern Tablelands in the New England region about halfway between Sydney and Brisbane at an altitude ( 980 meter AHD ) [ 3 ] ranging from 970 metres at the valley ‘s floor to 1,110 metres above ocean level at the crests of the hills. A short outdistance to the east of Armidale are heavily forested exorbitant gorges dropping down to the eastern coastal plain. bombastic parts of the highlands are covered by Palaeozoic aged metamorphosed sedimentary rocks. Intruding into these meta-sediments are granite plutons which decompose to form flaxen territory, slightly insufficient in nutrients. There are besides basalt flows which are more prolific for the dirt substrates. Those areas away from the cryptic gorge country tend to display gently undulating terrain chiefly used for pastures and where granites occur the areas are normally covered in bushland.
Reading: Armidale – Wikipedia
The area contains a issue of places of great natural beauty and scientific interest vitamin a well as several World Heritage national parks including the New England National Park and the Oxley Wild Rivers National Park. To the west is Mount Yarrowyck Nature Reserve. The coastal plain can be reached immediately at Coffs Harbour via Waterfall Way to Dorrigo and Bellingen on the Bellinger River, a two-hour drive .
Woodsmoke contamination, Armidale, 27 May 2011 During winter there is a trouble with some air quality reduction caused by the use of solid fuel domestic wood heaters. [ 4 ] A peer-reviewed analyze carried out by the University of New England in 2007 found winter woodsmoke causes 8.8 extra visits per day to GPs in Armidale for respiratory complaints, i.e., about 750 extra visits per year. [ 5 ] Another peer-reviewed study estimated the manipulation of woodwind heaters in Armidale was creditworthy for about 11.5 premature deaths per class with estimated annual health cost of $ 14.95 million – about $ 4720 per year for every woodheater in the city. [ 6 ] A local anesthetic retired doctor ( now Associate Professor at the UNE Medical school ) said he is therefore concerned by the wood smoke position, he urges people with respiratory problems to leave town. [ 7 ]
climate [edit ]
Armidale has a subtropical highland climate ( Köppen : Cfb [ 8 ] ). Armidale ‘s natural elevation gives it a milder climate than most of northern New South Wales, but the summers are hush very quick. Winters are hanker and cool, with many crisp nights. Snowfall is rare, on average only one day in every three years .
Rologas Fields during Autumn In Armidale, the presence of four clear-cut seasons makes it climatically unlike much of inland Australia ; hence, the “ New England ” nickname and the fall colours are celebrated features of the city. Summers are characterised by warm to identical warm days followed about always by cool, sometimes cold, nights. Thunderstorms frequently produce heavy falls of rain and occasionally hail in the afternoons and early evenings, besides bringing a sudden drop in temperature. Unlike nearby coastal areas, Armidale does not normally experience high humidity levels making most of the summer days quite comfortable. Temperatures exceed 30 °C or 86 °F on an average of 13 afternoons per year, but rarely reach higher than 35 °C or 95 °F. [ 9 ] The highest temperature recorded at Armidale Airport was 37.1 °C ( 98.8 °F ), recorded in February 2017. As the leaves turn yellow and fall, day temperatures are largely hush warm, particularly in March and April. Days are cheery, the thunderstorm season is over, and rain becomes more sporadic. Nights become cold, and residents frequently awake to a compact fog blanketing the Armidale valley, but by 9 am fogs have cleared to be followed by a brilliantly cheery day. The class ‘s first frosts normally occur in April, but they are not severe. Winters are cold ; overnight temperatures drop below −5 °C or 23 °F with frost on the establish ; at the Tree Group Nursery post a read american samoa low as −11.2 °C or 11.8 °F was record on 30 June 2010, whilst the older post at Radio 2AD recorded −9.3 °C or 15.3 °F on 15 July 1970. [ 10 ] These cold frosty mornings are normally followed by cheery days. Day temperatures may make it adenine senior high school as 16 °C or 60.8 °F, but sometimes may not climb beyond 10 °C or 50 °F. [ 9 ] These are typical Northern Tablelands winter days with westerly winds, bleak grey clouds, and showers of rain and very occasionally snow. rain during the winter months is not infrequent but is normally light. In give temperatures are affectionate, although occasional dawn frosts distillery can continue well into October. September is normally a pleasantly mild but blowy calendar month, and by late October with increasing heat and humidity the thunderstorm season is starting with increasing rainfalls. The spring months produce the most variable star upwind of the year. A workweek of very warm cheery weather can be followed by respective balmy days with temperatures right back at winter levels before gradually warming up again. This bicycle frequently repeats itself many times until the startle of summer.
Climate data for Armidale Airport (AWS, 1993-2020) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 37.0 (98.6) |
37.1 (98.8) |
32.4 (90.3) |
27.7 (81.9) |
23.3 (73.9) |
21.7 (71.1) |
19.9 (67.8) |
26.8 (80.2) |
28.2 (82.8) |
31.6 (88.9) |
35.0 (95.0) |
33.7 (92.7) |
37.1 (98.8) |
Average high °C (°F) | 26.4 (79.5) |
25.2 (77.4) |
23.2 (73.8) |
19.9 (67.8) |
15.8 (60.4) |
12.7 (54.9) |
12.2 (54.0) |
14 (57) |
17.7 (63.9) |
20.6 (69.1) |
22.9 (73.2) |
25.1 (77.2) |
19.6 (67.3) |
Average low °C (°F) | 13.6 (56.5) |
13.2 (55.8) |
11.5 (52.7) |
7.9 (46.2) |
4.3 (39.7) |
2.5 (36.5) |
1.3 (34.3) |
1.7 (35.1) |
4.7 (40.5) |
7.4 (45.3) |
10.1 (50.2) |
12.1 (53.8) |
7.5 (45.5) |
Record low °C (°F) | 4.5 (40.1) |
4.1 (39.4) |
1.1 (34.0) |
−3.3 (26.1) |
−5.9 (21.4) |
−6.0 (21.2) |
−7.0 (19.4) |
−6.6 (20.1) |
−4.9 (23.2) |
−3.1 (26.4) |
−1.6 (29.1) |
1.3 (34.3) |
−7.0 (19.4) |
Average rainfall mm (inches) | 94.0 (3.70) |
93.0 (3.66) |
61.7 (2.43) |
35.5 (1.40) |
39.7 (1.56) |
48.4 (1.91) |
40.8 (1.61) |
43.2 (1.70) |
50.2 (1.98) |
70.9 (2.79) |
95.6 (3.76) |
94.8 (3.73) |
767.8 (30.23) |
Average rainy days ( ≥ 0.2mm ) | 11.8 | 12.6 | 12.2 | 10.9 | 11.8 | 15.1 | 12.9 | 9.6 | 9.8 | 10.9 | 12.5 | 13.0 | 143.1 |
Source: Bureau of Meteorology[9] |
Climate data for Armidale (Tree Group Nursery, 1997-2020) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 37.4 (99.3) |
37.6 (99.7) |
33.8 (92.8) |
28.0 (82.4) |
24.8 (76.6) |
22.3 (72.1) |
21.2 (70.2) |
27.4 (81.3) |
28.7 (83.7) |
32.4 (90.3) |
35.6 (96.1) |
37.8 (100.0) |
37.8 (100.0) |
Average high °C (°F) | 27.3 (81.1) |
25.9 (78.6) |
24.0 (75.2) |
20.5 (68.9) |
16.6 (61.9) |
13.6 (56.5) |
13.2 (55.8) |
14.9 (58.8) |
18.7 (65.7) |
21.5 (70.7) |
23.6 (74.5) |
25.8 (78.4) |
20.5 (68.9) |
Average low °C (°F) | 13.1 (55.6) |
12.7 (54.9) |
10.7 (51.3) |
6.8 (44.2) |
2.1 (35.8) |
0.8 (33.4) |
−0.4 (31.3) |
−0.4 (31.3) |
2.7 (36.9) |
5.9 (42.6) |
9.2 (48.6) |
11.4 (52.5) |
6.2 (43.2) |
Record low °C (°F) | 2.6 (36.7) |
2.5 (36.5) |
−1.7 (28.9) |
−5.8 (21.6) |
−7.9 (17.8) |
−11.2 (11.8) |
−10.8 (12.6) |
−8.6 (16.5) |
−6.2 (20.8) |
−3.5 (25.7) |
−3.0 (26.6) |
−0.5 (31.1) |
−11.2 (11.8) |
Average rainfall mm (inches) | 91.2 (3.59) |
95.2 (3.75) |
67.5 (2.66) |
37.7 (1.48) |
30.8 (1.21) |
41.2 (1.62) |
37.4 (1.47) |
43.3 (1.70) |
44.3 (1.74) |
65.7 (2.59) |
93.2 (3.67) |
84.6 (3.33) |
732.1 (28.81) |
Average rainy days ( ≥ 0.2mm ) | 10.9 | 11.3 | 10.4 | 8.0 | 7.6 | 10.8 | 9.3 | 7.9 | 7.9 | 9.7 | 11.4 | 11.2 | 116.4 |
Source: Bureau of Meteorology[11] |
weather [edit ]
21 December 2006 hailstorm Armidale has been prone to severe hailstorms and experienced three such storms over the ten-year period from 1996 to 2006. On 29 September 1996 hail of up to 80 millimetres ( 3.1 in ) in diameter and southerly winds of up to 150 kilometres per hour ( 93 miles per hour ) were reported at the airport weather station. The area was declared a disaster zone and State Emergency Service crews were brought in from across the state. damage was estimated to be in overindulgence of A $ 200 million. [ 12 ] On 1 January 2000 many homes were damaged by extreme point upwind conditions which brought big hail stones, strong winds and flash deluge. [ 13 ] On 21 December 2006 hail stones, high winds and flaunt flood damaged more than 1,000 homes and destroyed the Armidale Livestock Exhibition Centre which collapsed entirely under the weight of accrued hail. The city was declared a state of emergency by New South Wales Premier Morris Iemma the follow day. [ 14 ] [ 15 ] On the night of 14 October 2021 at 10pm, an intense storm produced a crack causing across-the-board damage. It tore away ceiling and turned vehicles top down. [ 16 ] [ 17 ]
transportation [edit ]
Armidale railroad track post opened in 1883. The Armidale railway post is on the Main North railway cable and is served by casual passenger trains to and from Sydney. Armidale ‘s airport has five daily scheduled flights to and from Sydney with Qantaslink. Regional airline Fly Corporate operates a schedule air service with flights to and from Brisbane. [ 18 ] Armidale Airport, at 1,084 metres ( 3,556 foot ), is the highest accredited airport in New South Wales. The city is linked far north by casual coach to Tenterfield provided by NSW TrainLink. other bus companies such as Greyhound besides provide numerous daily services. Local city services are provided on six different routes by Edwards Coaches and Armidale is serviced by 16 taxis. Although the hills to the north and the confederacy can be a challenge, cycle is an choice to get around Armidale. A cycleway exists from the University of New England through the city to the residential areas on the easterly side of city. This cycleway snakes back towards Ben Venue School. The passage through the city provides easy access for cyclists to the denounce centres. bicycle racks are in strategic locations around the city kernel, including at The Armidale Food Emporium, The Armidale Plaza, and Centro Armidale. Places are besides provided outside the Armidale Dumeresq War Memorial Library, and at either end of the Mall. A tangle of scar cycleways on the shoulder of the roads in the city ‘s southern residential areas allows cyclists to safely ride on the roads. There are besides divide cycleways from the Armidale Arboretum along Kellys Plains Road to the south and from the north of the city along Rockvale Road to the Armidale State forest ( known as the Pine Forest by locals ) .
history [edit ]
The Catholic Cathedral of St Mary and St Joseph, Armidale Before the british colonial village of New South Wales, the autochthonal Anaiwan tribe occupied the area that encompasses current day Armidale. british pastoralists first entered the region in the early 1830s, following the earlier exploration of the sphere by John Oxley. Oxley recommended the region for browse, and soon squatters established big leaseholds in the vicinity. Armidale was initially founded in 1839 by George James MacDonald who was the Commissioner of Crown Lands and head of the local Border Police detachment in the New England zone. MacDonald established his barracks on the site and named it after Armadale on the Isle of Skye in Scotland which was the ancestral home of the MacDonald kin. [ 19 ] The James Barnet -designed heritage-listed Armidale Post Office opened on 1 April 1843. [ 20 ] [ 21 ] The town, which was surveyed in 1848 and gazetted in 1849, was established to provide a market and administration for the farms, but soon after gold was discovered at nearby Rocky River and Gara Gorges, and a aureate bang ensued, enlarging the town quickly in the 1850s. The gold mine settlement of Hillgrove about 40 km east of Armidale was supplied by electricity from Australia ‘s first hydro-electric outline, the Gara River Hydro-Electric Scheme, remains of which are distillery visible on the Gara River below the Blue Hole at Castle Doyle. The nearby town of Uralla holds the grave of the celebrated Captain Thunderbolt – lawless Fred Ward – who caused trouble in the area in the 1860s. As with Ned Kelly, the locals have adopted him as a larrikin hero and make the most of him as a tourist attraction. Armidale became a municipality in 1863 [ 22 ] and was proclaimed a city in 1885. Although it does not lie between the two major cities of Sydney and Melbourne, a site just to the south of Armidale was, in the early 1900s, considered as a potential site for Australia ‘s federal capital. Some saw its northerly location as better suited to all three eastern mainland states, including Queensland. [ 23 ] [ 24 ] [ 25 ] Later, peculiarly in the 1920s and 1930s, Armidale was one of the centres of separatist agitation by the New England New State Movement. Local politician, David Drummond, a strong support of the movement, successfully lobbied for Armidale to have the second teachers ‘ college in New South Wales, [ 26 ] and later a university, [ 27 ] positioning the township as a potential country capital.
population [edit ]
St Peter ‘s Cathedral According to the 2016 census, there were 26,552 people in the Armidale meaning urban area .
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 7.2% of the population.
- 78.3% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were England 2.0%, China 1.2%, New Zealand 1.1%, India 0.7% and Nepal 0.6%.
- 83.3% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Arabic 1.3%, Mandarin 1.2% and Nepali 0.7%.
- The most common responses for religion were No Religion 29.1%, Anglican 20.8% and Catholic 20.0%.[28]
City of Armidale [edit ]
The early Armidale Courthouse
Armidale Post Office Armidale is a cathedral city, being the seat of the Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops of Armidale. St Peter ‘s Anglican Cathedral, which replaced the original St Peter ‘s Church, was designed by the canadian architect John Horbury Hunt, who besides designed Booloominbah at the University of New England. St Peter ‘s Cathedral opened for idolize in 1875 and the tugboat was added in 1938. The Catholic Cathedral of St Mary and St Joseph was dedicated on 12 December 1919. The city center is laid out in a power system of streets. The main street is called Beardy Street, named for two of the establish settlers who had beards. [ 29 ] The court firm was built in the 1850s and is still a outstanding sport of the central district. much of the remainder of the city is residential. The australian Wool Fashion Awards, which showcases the use of Merino wool by manner designers, are hosted by Armidale in March each year. The Autumn Festival is a popular annual consequence of April in Armidale. The festival features a street parade, stalls and celebrations throughout the city. It is a regular function of the city ‘s attractions, frequently promoting Armidale ‘s divers culture ( for example, posters set up by council undertake to attract tourists with the motto “ Foodies Thrive in Armidale ” ) and fall colours. During May the annual New England Wool Expo is staged to display wool fashions, handicrafts, demonstrations, shearing competitions, yard frump trials and demonstrations, a wool bale rolling competition and other activities .
Suburbs [edit ]
- Acacia Park
- East Armidale
- West Armidale
- Ben Venue
- Bona Vista
- Commissioners Waters
- Dumaresq
- Duval
- Madgwick
- North Hill
- Newling
- Soudan Heights
- South Hill
- St. Patrick’s
- The Mission
education [edit ]
The city is home to a big count of education facilities, including the Armidale School ( 1894 ), New England Girls ‘ School ( 1895 ), presbyterian Ladies ‘ College ( PLC Armidale ) ( 1887 ), and the Armidale Waldorf School ( 1985 ), [ 30 ] schools of the australian independent education sector. O’Connor Catholic College ( 1975 ) and St Mary ‘s primary School are systemic Catholic schools. Armidale High School ( 1911 ) and Duval High School ( 1972 ) were government-funded secondary schools until their close up at the end of 2018. In 2019, the two schools were combined into one in the shape of Armidale Secondary College, which is located on what was the Armidale High School campus. It was previously located on the Duval High School campus as a placeholder while the Armidale High campus was partially demolished. approximately 27 % of Armidale ‘s total population is in the 10–24-year old age group, compared with an equivalent NSW design of 18 %. [ 28 ]
University of New England [edit ]
The university was founded in 1938, at first as a college of the University of Sydney, but then in its own right in 1954. The UNE contributes to Armidale ‘s status as a city of culture and diverseness, with a vibrant artistic and cultural component. The university has strong links to the rural community, and undertakes a batch of agrarian inquiry. There is besides a high-technology presence, adenine well as noteworthy humanities teaching. UNE hosts a wide-eyed crop of courses, and introduced a number of new courses in 2008, including a five-year Bachelor of Medical Science and Doctor of Medicine platform as region of a joint aesculapian program with the University of Newcastle. [ 31 ] The university is built around the historic sign of the zodiac Booloominbah, which is now used for administration and houses a restaurant. UNE is one of the city ‘s main employers .
retail [edit ]
Richardson ‘s arcade Armidale is a major regional retail center, housing three shopping malls :
central shopping complex in 2015
- Central Armidale. A A$49 million development[32][33] anchored by a Woolworths and 32 speciality stores.[34][35] It began trading under the name ‘Centro’ in late November 2007, and was rebranded ‘Central’ in 2014.
- Armidale Plaza, a A$70 million venture,[32] officially opened an extension, refurbishment and rebranding (formerly Kmart Plaza) in August 2007. Armidale Plaza is anchored by Kmart, IGA and 50 specialty stores. Bi-Lo was one of the anchor stores until it closed on 28 February 2010. IGA became an anchor store where it opened there on 8 November 2011. Target Country closed its store in the centre in March 2021.[36]
- The East Mall was constructed in 2002 and houses Coles Supermarket and 15 speciality stores.
plaza [edit ]
East Mall Armidale has a pedestrian plaza which stretches over three blocks of Beardy Street in the center of city. It features many shops and cafés with outdoor eating areas along with some celebrated architecture, including Tattersalls Hotel, built in the Art Deco style during the 1930s ; Armidale Courthouse ; the city ‘s main post office ; the early Commonwealth Bank and the New England Hotel. The promenade was opened in 1973 and was the first of its kind in regional Australia. [ 37 ] Armidale Dumaresq Council has been undertaking major upgrades to the promenade since 2003 as part of the Armidale CBD Streetscape Design Project which aims at easing traffic in the city center by creating an stress on the “ hoop road ” around the CBD with the aid of signage, elevation of roads using paving and the universe of one-way streets .
Sports [edit ]
The most popular sport in Armidale is rugby league. The city has two rugby league teams competing in Group 19, the Armidale Rams and the celebrated Aboriginal team, the Narwan Eels. The Rams are based at Rugby League Park on Dumaresq St in Central Armidale, whilst the Eels are based at Newling Oval on the southern outskirts of the city. other sports teams include the UNE New England Nomads ( University AFL team ) and Armidale Blues ( Rugby Union ) .
Media [edit ]
The city is serviced by one local newspaper, many radio receiver stations including four local outlets, and all major television stations. [ 38 ]
local urge [edit ]
- Armidale Express
- Armidale Express Extra
- Armidale Independent, closed November 2014
local radio [edit ]
National radio receiver [edit ]
television receiver stations [edit ]
Subscription Television services are provided by Foxtel .
Attractions [edit ]
heritage listings [edit ]
Armidale has a count of heritage-listed sites, including :
celebrated people [edit ]
The postdate celebrated people were either born in, presently live in or previously resided in Armidale
sister cities [edit ]
Masterton, New Zealand
References [edit ]
Armidale travel guide from Wikivoyage