Barellan, New South Wales

Barellan is a small town in Narrandera Shire in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. On Census night 2011, Barellan had a population of 328. It is a quiet Riverina wheat town on the Burley Griffin Way, with characteristic silos, and functions primarily as a service centre for the surrounding agricultural area.HistoryThe railway reached Barellan in 1908 and a post office was opened on 1 April 1909.The Commercial Hotel, "a typically large and rather gracious hotel with an impressive upper verandah", was built in 1924.Barellan was also the first town to have a Country Women's Association (CWA) rest house; built in 1924, the same year as the hotel.In 2009, Barellan celebrated its centenary.DemographyUnlike many rural localities in the area, the population level has fluctuated over a number of years, evidenced as follows:Note : The data covers just the urban locality of Barellan, while the 2006 and 2011 data covers the urban locality and surrounding rural properties.Evonne GoolagongBarellan is notable as the childhood home of the tennis-player, Evonne Goolagong (now Evonne Cawley). There is a small plaque honouring her in the main street. Evonne Goolagong was born in nearby Griffith on 31 July 1951 and attended Barellan Primary School. Although Aboriginal people faced widespread discrimination in rural Australia at this time, Evonne was able to play tennis in Barellan from childhood thanks to a kindly resident, Bill Kurtzman, who saw her peering through the fence at the local courts and encouraged her to come in and play. Goolagong left Barellan to attend Willoughby Girls High School in Sydney where she was able to further develop her tennis-playing skills.