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History and timeline
From the beginning of European settlement in Yass the development of the district has been tied to national and even international events. Since the late 1830s the main route from Sydney south to Melbourne, passed through the town ensuring its importance as a place of commerce and as the centre of the extensive Catholic and Anglican parishes. Yass became the place where families and friends from outlying areas assembled for the big events in life - baptisms, marriages and funerals in the local churches. Passing travellers
and overlanders stopped seeking food, shelter and water before continuing
their journeys - some travelling as far as Victoria and South Australia.
Settlers from the outer districts came to Yass once or twice a year
for their supplies. Their stay in the town added to the coffers of the
makeshift stores and the inns, whose owners in time prospered and built
permanent premises - some of these are still part of the Yass For many years the economic wellbeing of the district rested squarely on the back of the fine wool industry but in recent years diverse agricultural and farming endeavours as well as light industries have gained in importance. It's proximity to Canberra has contributed to the expansion of the town and the villages as commuters seek an alternative lifestyle. Yass, once heavily promoted as the most desirable site for the national capital, can be said to have the best of both worlds - a rural town with all the benefits of the National Capital!
A work in progress is a timeline that will give a broad overview of the history of the Yass district set against that of our nation's wider history.
Further reading The following is a list of publications that relate to the Yass district and its inhabitants. Some publications are long out of print but are available from libraries through the inter-library loan system. Those that the society have available for purchase, are listed on our Publications page. 'a decent
set of girls'; the Irish Famine Orphans of the Thomas Arbuthnot 1849-1850.
Binalong:
Beyond the limits Boorowa: over
160 years of White Settlement Currency
Lad: the story of Hamilton Hume and the Explorers Echoes of
Irish Australia: Rebellion to Republic Far Away
Days, a history of the Murrumbateman, Jeir and Nanima districts From a little
acorn, a history and genealogy of the Davis family of Gounyan Irish Gold:
a tale of two pioneer families Lang's Creek
Anglican Cemetery, Boorowa NSW 1845-1988 Memories of
Yass Mission: St Augustine's Parish, Yass NSW Sesquicentenary 1838-1988 Mount Carmel
Centenary 1875-1975 My Dear Mother:
a letter from a soldier after Gallipoli Reids Flat:
on the banks of the Lachlan St Andrew's
Church, Yass, Centenary 2006 St Clementine's
Anglican Women of Yass 1838-1988 Talks with
a Fork, 'The Explorers'
Country Kitchen 'The very
dawn of settlement' surveyed from Galong Cemetery 'We have not
forgotten': Yass and district's war 1914-1918 Where were
they and what were they doing in 1872: a story of the Hannan, Kelleher,
Madigan, Yass Municipal
Centenary History All images on this website are the property of the Yass & District Historical Society Inc and must not be used for any purpose without the express permission of the Society. This page last updated:3 January 2010 |
