Nowra on the
NSW South Coast is the main commercial and administrative centre of Shoalhaven City, 160km south of Sydney. It was declared a government town in 1852, but didn’t really go ahead until the nearby town of Terara was devastated by floods in 1870.
The name Nowra comes from an Aboriginal word meaning camping place or black cockatoo. The reverse spelling of Nowra, of course, gave the 1978 winner of the Melbourne Cup, Arwon, its name.
Motels, hotels, caravan parks, a guest house provide a wide cross-section of accommodation.
The old Shoalhaven River Bridge was erected in 1881. Constructed of wrought iron, it was prefabricated in Delaware, USA and shipped to Australia for assembly. A second bridge was built in 1980 to cope with the heavy volume of traffic.
Set on the southern shore of the Shoalhaven River opposite the twin town of Bomaderry, Nowra is a staging post for day-trips or camping holidays to the dozens of coastal and riverside fishing and villages and resorts in the Shoalhaven-Jervis Bay region.
Built in 1885, Meroogal is a heritage-rich timber home whose surviving household furnishings and implements were collected by four generations of women of the Thorburn and McGregor families. The home is open to the public on weekends and most public holidays.
Nearby is Bundanon, a spectacularly beautiful property which provided the inspiration for many of Arthur Boyd's paintings. Boyd gave Bundanon to the nation, to be used as a retreat for artists. It is open to visitors on the first Sunday of each month.
Find out more about the
NSW South Coast region.
