Nimmitabel, New South Wales

Nimmitabel is a small town in the Monaro region in southeast New South Wales, Australia, in the Snowy Monaro Regional Council local government area. At the, Nimmitabel had a population of 320.The town is 37km south of Cooma and 75km west of Bega. Nimmitabel is on a stretch of highway shared between the Snowy Mountains Highway (HWY B72) and the Monaro Highway (HWY B23).It is on the southern end of the Great Dividing Range, at the west of the Monaro Range, and lies 20km west of the Wadbilliga National Park.Nimmitabel means "the place where many waters start or divide" in the local Aboriginal language. Many various spellings were adopted for the town, including: Nimmitybelle, Nimithybale, Nimitybell, Nimity Belle and Nimmitabel.The area around Nimmitabel has the only true chernozem soil in Australia, a very rich, fertile and dark colored soil.History 1840 Locals started calling the village Nimoitebool 1845 Appears on Townsend's map as Nimmitabel 1858 Church was built 1857 Renewal of licence for hotel 1858 Post office arrives 1861 Bell's Store 1863 Separate Courthouse built 1865 Geldmacher builds windmill 1866 Cameron's Store opens 1869 Nimmitabel Public School opens 1912 Railway arrives 1921 Area's first saw-mill opens 1959 Used as location for multi-Oscar nominated film The Sundowners 1986 Railway closes