Nabiac

Postcode: 2312

Nabiac is a small town on the Mid North Coast, New South Wales, Australia mainly in Great Lakes Council. A small part of the locality is in the City of Greater Taree: the border is defined by the Pacific Highway. It is north-west of Forster, and south of Taree.

Nabiac is the central town of the Wallamba Valley. As is typical of small North Coast towns, it developed in the second half of the 19th century as a small river port (later called Bullocks Wharf on the eastern edge of the town) for the hardwood-cutting (mainly Australian red cedar) trade. Later as the valley was cleared, small-scale dairying and corn-growing became dominant. At first milk was mainly bought by the dairy at Dyers Crossing (about 6 km west of Nabiac. Later fresh milk was also supplied to the Sydney market via the Sydney Milk Board. Prior to the mid 1950s, Nabiac was a relatively-isolated, but the relocation of the Pacific Highway at that time changed its nature and it has steadily become more of a highway service town and tourist stopping point.

The poet Les Murray was born in Nabiac, although his family lived in nearby Bunyah. He travelled to school in Nabiac for his primary and early high school education.

Consequently it stands as a memento of what towns on the Mid North Coast were like. The charming old St Paul's Church of England, the public school which dates back to 1884, the old timber shops, the wealth of timber houses (some have been beautifully preserved and restored, others are falling down) make this small village a worthwhile stopover and a sharp contrast to the modern development which has occurred to all the seaside towns.

However, modernity isn't too far away. A few kilometres north of Nabiac is the Shandy Kennel Pet Motel - a motel in miniature for pets to take a holiday from their owners. Nabiac was the birthplace, in 1938, of internationally famous Australian poet Les Murray who also went to school here. The Nabiac Festival Weekend, featuring the Food 'n' Music Fest and Fair, is held each year in September.

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