Lockhart  New South Wales

The small town of Lockhart, 65km south-west of Wagga Wagga, began as Green’s Gunya on account of the well-known shanty (gunya) built by a bloke called Green on the Brookong Creek side of the Narrandera Road.

Today the township’s past lives on in the wide, distinctive verandahs that shade the main street shops - a streetscape protected by a National trust listing.

Travellers to Lockhart should set aside time for visits to the Galore Hill Nature Reserve and the Aurora Clydesdale Stud to the north of the township.

Folklore has it that 379m Galore Hill is indebted to early settler Henry Osbourne for its unusual name. It is said that, after climbing to the top, Osbourne shouted to the world: There’s land enough and galore for me.

Clydesdales still work on Pioneer Farm which also operates its own smithy, cuts chaff in the traditional way and cooks its own damper.

The Pioneer Memorial Gates, which guard then entrance to the showground, are another unusual town feature. The gates are mounted on replica wool bales, each of which is stencilled with the name of one of the area's original sheep stations.