Narrabri

Narrabri is a locality and seat of Narrabri Shire local government area in the North West Slopes, New South Wales, Australia on the Namoi River, 521 kilometres (324 mi) northwest of Sydney.

Narrabri is a locality and seat of Narrabri Shire local government area in the North West Slopes, New South Wales, Australia on the Namoi River, 521 kilometres (324 mi) northwest of Sydney. It sits on the junction of the Kamilaroi Highway and the Newell Highway. At the 2016 census, the town of Narrabri had a population of 5,903.Because of the geography of Narrabri and the surrounding areas, Narrabri township was quite prone to flooding and fire. Recently, changes have been made to the river flow to improve overall safety.

It is the centre of a major cotton-growing industry. Other agricultural industries in the area include wheat, beef and lamb.Nearby attractions are Mount Kaputar National Park, the Australia Telescope Compact Array at the Paul Wild Observatory and a number of agricultural centres. Just to the south of town is the Pilliga Forest, the largest remnant temperate forest in Eastern Australia. Narrabri also has The Crossing Theatre, a 1,000-seat auditorium and cinema complex.

Before the arrival of the Europeans in the early 19th century, Narrabri was the home of the Gamilaroi people, who still constitute a significant part of the local population. Narrabri derives its name from an early property in the district called the Narrabry Run. The name Narrabri is aboriginal in origin and has several possible meanings which include 'snake place', 'big creek' or 'Forked Sticks'.In 1860, Narrabri was proclaimed a town and a year later, on 1 June 1861, Narrabri Post Office opened. Other buildings followed, with the hospital and the first courthouse (1864–65), the school (1868), the police station (1878–79) and post office (1879). During the 1880s the gaol and the second courthouse were built.

Over the years, Narrabri has had a number of weather stations run by the Bureau of Meteorology or other government agencies. Narrabri West Post Office made rainfall observations from the late 1800s. From June 1960 until August 2002, it observed and reported other weather elements such as temperature and wind speed. Since then it only reports rainfall. The current weather station for Narrabri is Narrabri Airport Automatic Weather Station, which began observations in 2001.

On 4 January 1902 a severe thunderstorm, with large hail and destructive winds, struck the town, with many buildings either damaged or destroyed. The storm, which lasted only five minutes, was described as a 'cyclone'. One man died after being struck by lightning and another two people were injured by the storm. Damage caused by the storm was estimated to be around £3,000.