Moruya

Moruya is a town located on the far south coast of New South Wales, Australia, situated on the Moruya River.

Moruya is a town located on the far south coast of New South Wales, Australia, situated on the Moruya River. The Princes Highway runs through the town that is approximately 305 kilometres (190 mi) south of Sydney and 175 kilometres (109 mi) from Canberra. At the 2016 census, Moruya had a population of 3982. Its built up area had a population of 2,525. The town relies predominantly on agriculture, aquaculture, and tourism.Moruya is administered by the Eurobodalla Shire Council and the shire chambers are located in the town.

Rural areas around Moruya were affected by the 2019–20 Australian bushfire season.

The South Coast region of New South Wales is the traditional home of the Yuin People, with the area in and around Moruya home to the Bugelli-Manji clan.

The name Moruya is derived from an Aboriginal Tharawal word (Tharawal pronunciation [mherroyah]) believed to mean "home of the black swan", although this is not probable and not verifiable. Black swans can be seen in the lakes and rivers around Moruya, and the black swan is used locally as an emblem.

European settlement commenced in the 1820s following the extension of the limits of location in 1829, although the coast from Bateman's Bay to Moruya was surveyed the previous year by Surveyor Thomas Florance. The first European settler was Francis Flanagan, a tailor from Ireland who was granted title to four square miles on the north bank of the river at Shannon View in 1829. In 1830, the next settler, John Hawdon, set up a squat at Bergalia but being beyond the limits, could not gain title to the land. However, in 1831 he was granted land on the north bank of the river, upstream from Flanagan. He called the property Kiora and it also occupied four square miles. A village named after the property soon grew.

In 1835, across the river from Flanagan, William Morris, squatted a block he called Gundary. William Campbell took up as a manager there and eventually bought the place himself in 1845. The town centre was surveyed in 1850 by surveyor Parkinson and the town gazetted in 1851. It centred about the track opposite where the road from Broulee terminated at the river bank, the two being linked by a punt. As there was a blacksmith on that track, it was named Vulcan Street. Campbell Street owed its name to the squatter, Queen Street to patriotism and Church Street to the Catholic Church's presence there. Land sales commenced in 1852.Moruya was proclaimed a municipality in 1891. Local industries were timber getting, gold mining, dairying and quarrying for granite. The first bridge across the Moruya River was erected in 1876 though frequent flooding saw new bridges erected in 1900 and 1945 and, most recently, in 1966.

During World War II Moruya aerodrome was used as an advanced operational base. The trawler Dureenbee was attacked offshore between Moruya and Batemans Bay by a Japanese submarine on 3 August 1942. On 25 December 1944 the US liberty ship SS Robert J. Walker was torpedoed off Moruya by the German submarine U-862, sinking the next day between Moruya and Bega. Casualties were 2 dead and 67 survivors.

Moruya Airport (code MYA) is located on the north side of Moruya Heads. The strip adjoins the beachfront, and flights to Moruya offer a slow and picturesque descent along the coastline. Regional Express (REX) flies mostly Saab 340B aircraft from Moruya to Sydney and Moruya to Merimbula, with connecting flights to Melbourne.