Barraba, New South Wales

**Barraba** is a village in New South Wales, Australia. This village is in the New England region and it is in the local government area of Tamworth Regional Council. This village is also in the Bundarra-Barraba Important Bird Area. This area is for the conservation of an endangered bird, the Regent Honeyeater (*Anthochaera phrygia*).

Barraba is 477 kilometres (296 miles) north-west from Sydney and 548 kilometres (341 miles) south-west from Brisbane. Barraba is 90 kilometres (56 miles) north from Tamworth, which is the nearest city. The Manilla River flows next to Barraba. This village is on a road called *Fossickers Way* and it is in a mountain range called the Nandewar Range at an altitude of 500 metres (1,640 feet) above sea level.

## History 
Indigenous Australians called the Kamilaroi lived in the district before the European people arrived. The first European in the district was an explorer and botanist named Allan Cunningham, who came there in 1827. The first farm in the district, *Barraba Station*, began in 1837 or 1838. The site of the village was surveyed in 1852.

The discovery of gold helped the village to grow bigger. and the first school was opened in 1861. however the last train went to Barraba in 1983 and the line closed in 1987. The Connors Creek Dam was built in 1933. This copper mine was the biggest copper mine in New South Wales in 1903 and the little village had 300 people living there. The mine was closed in the 1930s, and the post office was closed in 1966.

A television report in 2008 described the growing worry that the remaining asbestos could harm the health for the people who live in Barraba and for the people who visit the village. A foundation, *The Asbestos Diseases Foundation of Australia*, demanded that the mine should be cleaned up. This foundation also demanded that people must not be allowed to go to the mine. A public dirt road crossed the mine site but that road was closed in 2013. The little village was abandoned.

The government health service, *Hunter-New England Health*, did an urgent study about the possible harm to the health of the people of Barraba, but that study has not been published.

File:Woodsreef.JPG|the asbestos mine at Woodsreef
File:Chrysotile 1.jpg|asbestos
File:Heat-resistant asbestos fabric.jpg|cloth made from asbestos
File:Early Asbestosis in a Retired Pipe Fitter.jpg|asbestosis, a disease caused by asbestos

### Diatomite 
Diatomite, or diatomaceous earth, is a mineral made from the fossils of diatoms. This mineral is used to make explosives, filters, abrasives, insecticide, thermal materials, catalysis support, and in farming, and construction. A mine was started near Barraba in 1982.

### Jewels and Fossils 
Pyrites, jasper, garnets, zeolite, and red, yellow, and brown quartz can be found around Barraba. Searching for these jewels is called fossicking. People can also find fossils around Barraba.

File:2793M-pyrite2.jpg|pyrite
File:Jasper.pebble.600pix.jpg|red jasper
File:Garnet cut.JPG|garnet
File:ZeolitesUSGOV.jpg|zeolite

## Farming 
The farms in the district have cattle for beef, merino sheep for wool and mutton, and they can also grow wheat.

File:Img polled Herefords grazing Fall Grazing Herefords.JPG| cattle for beef
File:Gruppe Schafe.JPG| Merino sheep
File:Wheat close-up.JPG| wheat

## Climate 
The summers in Barraba are hot and humid, and the winters here are cold and dry. The highest recorded temperature is 41.8° Celsius (107° Fahrenheit) and the lowest recorded temperature is -9.4° Celsius (15° Fahrenheit). The average yearly rainfall is 688.7 millimetres (27 inches) and the most rain that fell in one day is 194.3 millimetres (7.5 inches) which fell on February 25, 1955.

## Water 
Before Split Rock Dam was built, the people in Barraba got their water from the Manilla River, Barraba Creek, and Connors Creek Dam. When these sources were almost empty, the people got their water from emergency wells.

The Split Rock Dam was built in 1988 and a pipeline from that dam to Barraba was built in 2015.

## Photographs 

File:BarrabaMainStreet.JPG|Queen Street is the main street of Barraba
File:BarrabaCourtHouse.JPG|the court house, Barraba
File:BarrabaCommercialHotel.JPG|the Commercial Hotel, Barraba
File:BarrabaAnglicanChurch.JPG|the Anglican church, Barraba
File:BarrabaUnitingChurch.JPG|the Methodist (now Uniting) church, Barraba
File:BarrabaRomanCatholicChurch.JPG|the Catholic church, Barraba
File:BarrabaClockTower.JPG|the clock tower, Barraba
File:BarrabaNABBank.JPG|the first bank, Barraba

## References 
## Other websites 
* Barraba's webpage 
* Barraba's webpage on Facebook
* the "Frost over Barraba" arts festival 
* Barraba's festival
* from the website of the Tamworth Regional Council
* from the website of the *Fossickers Way* 
* video: Connors Creek Dam
* video: the asbestos mine at Woodsreef
* video: Split Rock Dam
* Barraba at Wikivoyage