Guide to Gilgandra Area New South Wales Australia

Gilgandra welcomes you to our friendly town located half way between Melbourne and Brisbane and established on the banks of the Castlereagh River. The Aboriginal name means “long water hole”. Gilgandra lies at the junction of the Newell, Oxley and Castlereagh Highways, so is easily accessible by road. It is the southern gateway to the spectacular Warrumbungle Mountains, which are in the Shire.

Known as the “Town of Windmills”, Gilgandra once had a skyline dotted with windmills. As there was no reticulated town water supply until 1966 most residents supplied their own water needs from individual windmills, drawing water from the sub-artesian basin. By the 1950s there were over 300 wind mills pumping water.

Gilgandra is a strong rural centre, farming cereals such as wheat, barley, oats, rye and sorghum; oil seed crops including canola, safflower, some sunflower and linseed; and legume crops such as chick peas, field peas, faba beans, cow peas and lab lab. Sheep have been grazed for wool production since 1830 and there are now a significant number of cattle. Other agricultural enterprises include pigs, poultry, aquaculture, emus, olives and buffaloes.

Take time to discover all that Gilgandra and district has to offer. We hope you enjoy your time here.