Adaminaby facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Adaminaby New South Wales
Main street of Adaminaby, New South Wales
Adaminaby Location in New South Wales
Population	301 (2016 census)
Postcode(s)	2629
Elevation	1,017 m (3,337 ft)
Location	402 km (250 mi) from Sydney 140 km (87 mi) from Canberra 52 km (32 mi) from Cooma
LGA(s)	Snowy Monaro Regional Council
County	Wallace
Parish	Seymour
State electorate(s)	Monaro
Federal Division(s)	Eden-Monaro
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall  ? ? 687.5 mm 27.1 in
Localities around Adaminaby: Kosciuszko NP Yaouk Shannons Flat Providence Portal Adaminaby Dry Plain Old Adaminaby Buckenderra Frying Pan

Adaminaby is a small town in New South Wales, Australia. It's located near the Snowy Mountains, north-west of Cooma. About 300 people live here.

Adaminaby is known for trout fishing and winter sports. It sits high up, about 1,017 meters (3,337 feet) above sea level. The town's economy relies on tourism and farming. It's a key spot for visitors heading to Selwyn Snowfields and other ski areas.

People also come to Adaminaby for horse riding, bushwalking, and water sports. It's a great place to explore the Snowy Mountains Scheme. Adaminaby is one of Australia's highest towns, often getting heavy snow in winter. The famous poem The Man From Snowy River by Banjo Paterson might have been inspired by a local stockman, Charlie McKeahnie.

The original town of Adaminaby had to be moved in 1957. This was because Lake Eucumbene was being built nearby. During dry times, you can sometimes see parts of the old town reappear from under the lake's waters. Today, Adaminaby is on the Snowy Mountains Highway. It's famous for the "Big Trout" sculpture and the Snowy Scheme Museum.

Adaminaby's Interesting History

Ancient Aboriginal History

For thousands of years, the Snowy Mountains area was a special meeting place for Aboriginal people. Different tribes would gather here in summer. Up to a thousand people would come to feast on Bogong Moths. This tradition continued until around 1865.

Stockmen, Gold, and Skiing Adventures

Adaminaby first grew because of farming. Later, the discovery of gold at Kiandra and the start of skiing brought new chances for the town. Many famous Australian writers have found ideas for their stories in the Adaminaby area.

The Man From Snowy River's Country

Charlie McKeahnie's grave at Old Adaminaby cemetery. Some say he inspired The Man From Snowy River.

Europeans started settling in the area in the late 1820s. Adaminaby began as a farming center in the 1830s. Sheep and cattle became very important for the town's economy.

Some historians believe that Banjo Paterson's famous poem, "The Man From Snowy River", was inspired by a local stockman named Charlie McKeahnie. McKeahnie died in a riding accident in 1895. He is buried in the Old Adaminaby Cemetery, near Lake Eucumbene. The character in the poem is probably a mix of different people. They were involved in wild horse hunts, like those that happened in the Adaminaby area.

Paterson wasn't the only writer inspired by Adaminaby. The poet Barcroft Boake also wrote about McKeahnie's ride. His poem, "On the Range," describes McKeahnie chasing a valuable horse that had joined a mob of wild horses.

Later, Nobel Prize-winning author Patrick White worked on a farm called Bolaro Station in Adaminaby in the 1930s. His first successful novel, Happy Valley, was inspired by his time and the people he met in Adaminaby. This book won him an important award in 1941.

Gold Rush and Early Skiing

Start of championship "snow shoe" races at Kiandra in 1900. Adaminaby is a main service town for the Northern NSW ski areas.

The town's future changed when gold was found at nearby Kiandra in 1859. Skiing also started in the area around 1861. Scandinavian gold miners are thought to have strapped fence posts to their boots. They slid down the snowy hills because the ground was too frozen for mining.

For about 100 years, Kiandra was Australia's highest town and a base for skiers. The last people left Kiandra after the Snowy Mountains Scheme was finished. Kiandra's ski facilities moved to Selwyn Snowfields in 1978. Adaminaby is still the main service town for the Northern ski areas of New South Wales. This is one of the oldest places in the world for recreational skiing.

Early farmers used the high country above Adaminaby for summer grazing. This area became a National Park in 1906, now called Kosciuszko National Park. Today, it's famous for its historic huts and beautiful wilderness.

The Snowy Mountains Scheme

The creation of Lake Eucumbene meant the original town of Adaminaby had to be moved.

Moving the Original Town

The biggest event in Adaminaby's history was the building of the Snowy Mountains Scheme. This huge project of tunnels and dams started near Adaminaby in 1949. A large lake, Lake Eucumbene, was created. It was nine times bigger than Sydney Harbour. This lake flooded the valley where the original town was.

During a long dry period in 2007, the old town's ruins started to appear from under the water. This attracted attention from around the world. People even compared it to the mythical city of Atlantis.

Official launch of the Snowy Mountains Scheme at Adaminaby in 1949. From left: Prime Minister Ben Chifley, Governor-General William McKell, and Minister Nelson Lemmon.

Lake Eucumbene covered the original town of Adaminaby, but it's now a popular place for tourists.

The amazing story of Adaminaby's move was made into a film in 1958 called "Operation Adaminaby." Another documentary in 2001, "Our Drowned Town," also told the story. Over 100 buildings, including houses and even a bank, were moved on the back of trucks to the new town site. Moving the first house took six days, even though it was only six miles away. Today, a small tourist village exists at Old Adaminaby, near the lake, with a few of the original buildings that weren't moved.

The current town of Adaminaby was a busy center during the building of the Snowy Scheme. Many buildings on the main street have a special 1950s style. This style was chosen for cost and engineering reasons at the time. A Snowy Scheme Museum is planned for the town.

Adaminaby is a good place to see different parts of the Snowy Scheme. You can visit Lake Eucumbene, Tantangara Dam, Tumut 2 Power Station, and Cabramurra, Australia's highest town. In September 2007, Adaminaby celebrated 50 years since its big move. This event remembered the challenges and the joy of the relocation.

Growth of Tourism

The Big Trout, Adaminaby's tribute to fishing in Lake Eucumbene.

After the Snowy Mountains Scheme was finished, tourism and farming became the main ways people earned money. Several tourist villages and camping spots have been built around Lake Eucumbene near Adaminaby. These include Anglers Reach and Providence Portal. Old Adaminaby has become a tourist village above the old town site. It still has a few of the original buildings.

Hotels and motels like the Snowgoose Hotel and Snowy Mountains Motel have long provided places for skiers and fishermen to stay. Farmstay resorts, lakeside cottages, and caravan parks have also been built. These places let visitors enjoy the beautiful nature around Adaminaby. The town also has a bowling club, a golf course, and a public swimming pool for locals and tourists.

The creation of Kosciuszko National Park limited farming in the high country. But it also protected large wilderness areas for wildlife and tourists. As Kiandra declined and Selwyn Snowfields grew, Adaminaby became important for ski hire and accommodation. You can find signs of early Australian history throughout the Adaminaby high country. These include mountain huts and the old town of Kiandra. These sites are now being restored and preserved.

Home of the Big Trout

The Snowy Scheme Museum was opened by the Governor General in 2011.

The town is a popular spot for fishing in Lake Eucumbene and nearby rivers. In the town center, there's a huge sculpture of a trout, which is 10 meters (33 feet) tall. It's known as the Big Trout. It was one of the first of Australia's Big Things. In 2006, the local business group used the Big Trout as a symbol for marketing the area. The Big Trout was built by Andy Lomnici. It was restored and repainted in 2007.

Snowy Scheme Museum

The Snowy Scheme Museum in Adaminaby tells the story of how the Snowy Mountains Scheme was built. It also shows what life was like for the workers. The museum has many important machines and tools used to build the Scheme. It focuses on the stories of the Snowy workers and how they helped shape Australia, especially its migration program.

Volunteers collected the museum's items over ten years. The museum officially opened to the public on October 17, 2011. The Governor General, Quentin Bryce, said that the museum helps "bring this powerful part of Australia's history into a museum, for people to come and learn the history of the Snowy, for it to be passed down to generations."

Adaminaby's Weather

Rainfall Information

The weather office doesn't have temperature data for Adaminaby. But it does have rainfall records. These records, from 1886, show that rain is highest in spring and lowest in autumn. Winter gets a lot of snow. Adaminaby's rainfall is most like Yass.

Another site, 20km north at Yaouk, gets much more rain. This is because it's higher up and closer to the mountains. This site's rainfall is more like Khancoban.

Adaminaby's Claims to Fame

Robert Mitchum in "The Sundowners", 1960.

• It's the resting place of Charlie McKeahnie. Some believe he was the real "Man From Snowy River".
• It's the gateway to the Northern NSW Snowfields and Mount Selwyn. This is Australia's oldest ski area, where skiing began in 1861.
• Nobel Prize-winning author Patrick White's first novel, Happy Valley, was inspired by his time in Adaminaby.
• The building of the Snowy Mountains Scheme started here in 1949.
• Adaminaby is one of a few Australian towns that were moved to make way for dams. Other towns include Jindabyne, Talbingo, and Tallangatta.
• In 1959, Hollywood came to Adaminaby. The movie "The Sundowners" was filmed at the race course. It starred Robert Mitchum, Peter Ustinov, and Deborah Kerr.
• In 1984, the Adaminaby Race Track was used as Mexico in the Australian horse movie "Phar Lap". It starred Tom Burlinson.
• It's home to the World's Largest Trout sculpture.
• It's the site of the Snowy Scheme Museum.
• The town also has the Adaminaby Bowling and Sports Club.