The vineyards from the lookouts above the town

Griffith (including Hanwood, Bilbul, Beelbangara, Lake Wyangan, Yenda and Cocoparra National Park)
Major town in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area and service centre for the surrounding orchards and vineyards.
Located 613 km west of Sydney via the Great and Mid Western Highways and 131 m above sea-level Griffith, like Leeton, is a town which emerged out of the construction of the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area (MIA) early this century. With a population of 25,000 it is the third-largest population centre in the Riverina.

The first European to pass through the area was John Oxley who explored the district in 1817. He was unimpressed with what he saw: 'the soil a light red sand parched with drought, a perfect level plain overrun with acacia scrub...there is a uniformity of barren desolation of this country which wearies one more than I am able to express...I am the first white man to see it and I think I will be undoubtedly the last.'

He was wrong. Charles Sturt passed through the area leaving similarly negative reports concerning: 'the dreariness of the view ... the plains are open to the horizon, but here and there a stunted gum tree or a gloomy cypress seems placed by Nature as mourners over the surrounding desolation. Neither bird nor beast inhabits this lonely and inhospitable region, over which the silence of the grave seems to reign.'

Inhabiting the area at the time were the Wiradjuri peoples. They regarded the white presence as threatening and unwelcome and killed one of Oxley's party. Their fears proved well-founded. Smallpox quickly wiped out around 60 per cent of the population and traditional food sources were soon displaced by European stock. Increasingly harassed they appear to have decided to make an all-out effort to drive the invaders away in 1839. A war ensued in which massacres and atrocities occurred. Warangesda Mission was set up at Darlington Point (see entry on Darlington Point) but even proved short-lived.

The area around Griffith was once part of the Cuba and Benerembah sheep stations. Circumstances changed when Samuel McCaughey's success developing an irrigation system at Yanco (see entry on Leeton) convinced the government to undertake the construction of the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area in 1906, which transformed the barren plains into a fertile agricultural oasis. It is now the richest tract of agricultural country in Australia.

The waters of the Murrumbidgee are harnessed by the Burrinjuck Dam, near Yass, and Blowering Dam, on the Tumut River. The two have a combined storage capacity of 2 654 000 megalitres. The water passes through Berembed Weir and is diverted into the main canal, which is 159 km long with a flow capacity of 6500 megalitres per day. Altogether there are 2010 km of supply channels which operate by gravity flow, and another 1391 km of drainage channels servicing some 2500 farms in an area that covers 182 000 ha.

Local settlement started with makeshift accommodation for the men who were building the canal 5 km south-east of the present townsite. This site became known as 'Bagtown', after the old canvas cement bags which were used for the workers' tents. Facilities were soon added. There was a general store, a co-op, an eating house, a barber, butcher, baker and blacksmith.

Tango Joe's cordials had a sign outside saying 'Free Drinks Tomorrow'. Of course, tomorrow never comes. However, according to legend, a man came along and insisted his name was Morrow and Tango kept his word, furnishing him with free drinks.

3 km south of Griffith Bagtown cemetery can still be visited. Head along Hanwood Rd and watch for the signposted turnoff to the left.

Griffith, like Leeton and Canberra, was designed by American architect Walter Burley Griffin according to a radial design, with wide, tree-lined streets, ring roads and parks, although the plan was not strictly adhered to.

Shopkeepers shunned the three concentric circles he laid down for the city centre and set up premises along the present main street, largely due to the fact that these blocks were cheaper and closer to the railway station. A technical college and the shire offices are now in the hub with an industrial area in the circles. The town was proclaimed in 1916, the year the railway arrived, and named after Arthur Griffith, then state minister of public works.

The first farms were made available in 1912. Many of the workers were among the first settlers. The residents of Bagtown were initially reluctant to move. However, after World War I, many returned servicemen settled on the new farms and there were many Italian migrants, attracted by the similarity of the landscape to that of their home country. They brought with them their traditions of viticulture and market gardening to the immense benefit of the district. They capitalised on and greatly enhanced a winemaking industry which began in 1913 when J.J. McWilliam planted 40 000 grape cuttings on his block at Hanwood. He built the Hanwood Barrel Winery in 1917 to process his grapes.

Today the surrounding wineries produce 80 per cent of NSW's and 20 per cent of Australia's wine grapes. 110 000 tonnes were harvested by 500 growers in 1996, with semillon and shiraz accounting for the bulk of the production.

Harvesting rice in the Riverina near Griffith

The rice industry was founded in 1924. A milling co-op was formed in 1950 as local producers were unhappy with the returns from private millers. There are now six mills in the Riverina. The three irrigation areas of NSW produce about 1.4 million tonnes of rice a year which is virtually the entire Australian output, most of which (around 90 per cent) is exported.

Citrus fruit is the other major local product. 230 000 tonnes are harvested in the MIA each year, with valencia oranges the largest crop. Stone fruits, vegetables, wheat, cotton, sheep, wool, eggs and canola are also produced in quantity. All of the gherkins used by McDonald's are also grown here. There is, moreover, an engineering works, a cannery, a rice mill, a distillery, a brickworks, fruit and vegetable packing, the production of fruit juice and Australia's largest egg and poultry plant, with 60 000 hens being processed each week. Griffith also has, or had, strong associations with marijuana growing and the activities of the 'Griffith mafioso', which entailed the disappearance of anti-drug campaigner Donald Mackay.

Griffith's central feature is the broad, attractive main street with a wide median strip and a flourishing park. One of the principal annual celebrations in town is La Festa, held at Easter.

Things to see:  

The War Memorials in Banna Street

Self Drive Tour
If you wish you can follow a set of blue arrows on a self-drive tour through town, starting at the visitor's centre, at the corner of Banna and Jondaryan Avenues. Adjacent, on a tall column, is a Fairy Firefly Fighter Bomber. It is intended as a tribute to those of the district who served in World War II. The nearby Dethridge Wheel is a memorial to the MIA pioneers. This device measures the volume of water which a given farm draws from the MIA canal.

If you head west along Banna Ave to the central hub you will pass, on your right, the Regional Art Gallery, CWA Park, then, at the roundabout, the attractive courthouse (1928). It is in Memorial Park, where you will also find the Griffith War Memorial. Once you reach the nucleus you will see, in the garden surrounding the Shire offices, a brass statue of a woman which is a memorial to the district's pioneer women, and, in Neville Place, the Regional Theatre, which contains a soft sculptured curtain featuring a panorama of Griffith. It was created by 300 local women. There is also a collection of historic photographs. The curtain can be inspected at 11, 2.30 and 4 on weekdays and at 10.30 on Saturdays.

The memorial to the district's pioneer women

At the eastern end of town are Griffith Cottage Gallery at 1434 Bridge Rd, Koala Gourmet Foods at 4 Whybrow St, and the rather interesting cemetery with its family mausoleums and elaborate headstones. The latter lies at the corner of Banna Ave and Wakaden St.

Scenic Hill and Pioneer Village Museum
2 km north-east of town, via Remembrance Driveway, is Scenic Hill, a spur of the McPherson range. There you will find the Pioneer Village Museum, situated on 18 ha of pleasant bushland. The complex consists of an array of about 40 old and replicated buildings from the Riverina area. The souvenir shop is housed within the former Bynya Homestead (1879), with largely original timbers. There is an old school, church and shearing shed, large collections of horse-drawn vehicles, steam-powered machines and antiquated examples of working engines, farm machinery and newspaper printing machines. There is a replica pub, post office, blacksmith's, stable and shop of the late nineteenth century, a chemist's dispensary of the early 20th century, an original coach house made of river gum slabs, a transportable type of gaol much used in the early settlements, recreated sections of the commercial and residential districts of old Griffith, a recreation of Bagtown, a drop-log saddler's shop, 'Fairview' cottage (1880) with its home-made nails and timbers dressed with broad axe and adze, Griffith's first hospital, Goolgowi railway station, aboriginal canoe trees, a mini-lake and a picnic area. The complex is open 8.30-4.30 daily (02 6962 4196).

Lookouts and Walks
There are a number of walking tracks around the hill, outlined in a pamphlet obtainable from the visitor's centre. They take in the reservoir, Pioneer Park Museum, Rotary Lookout, the Stepping Stones, the lagoons, two barbecue sites and Hermit's Cave.

If you head north along Remembrance Driveway it will take you to the golf club, Dalton Park and the aerodrome. 1.5 km north-east along Scenic Drive is Rotary Lookout. Further along Scenic Drive is Sir Dudley DeChair's Lookout, a natural rock formation which affords an interesting birdseye view of the way agriculture has developed around the town. Griffith is totally surrounded by orchards and vineyards. From here, or via the Narinari Loop Walking Track from Scenic Hill, it is possible to visit the fascinating Hermit's Cave.

The Hermit's Cave

Hermit's Cave
The cave was built by a colourful character named Valerio Recitti, an Italian migrant who arrived in Australia in 1916, aged 17. He immediately went to work at Broken Hill but soon began drifting. At one point he departed for Adelaide with a year's timber-cutting wages in his pocket. There he visited a brothel. Upon leaving he found that he had left his wallet behind and that the bouncer wouldn't allow him back in. After hurling a rock through a window, he was chased and ended up in Adelaide gaol. After his release he left for Melbourne where he intended to pawn his one remaining possession, a coat. Unfortunately he was duped by a passer-by who said he would pawn it for him and never returned.

From there Recitti went to work on the Murray River paddlesteamers. He is said to have taken refuge in the cave while he was passing through in the 1920s and decided to stay. He believed himself to be the only Italian in the area and kept entirely to himself, whereas in fact old compatriots from Broken Hill had settled nearby and increasing numbers of Italian migrants were arriving.

Recitti decided to construct a private utopia. He cleared and decorated the caves, creating massive stone galleries and pathways, cliffside gardens and floral painted rock walls. So as to remain unseen he worked at night and early in the morning, moving hundreds of tons of rock. Eventually he fell and injured himself and was taken to the hospital when found by a passing swagman. There he became a celebrity when the enormity of his work was discovered and much marvelled at. He was reunited with his old friends and went to work for them although he continued to live in his cave.

When security people became convinced he was a spy Recitti was interned with his fellow countrymen at Hay during World War II. He was put to work building roads and instructed his captors on how to improve their road-building methods. When released he was re-employed by his old friends in Griffith. Troubled by visions and obsessions, largely associated with his cave, he returned to Italy when his health began to fail him in 1952 and he died there six months later.

Wineries
There are a number of wineries in the area which are open for tasting and some conduct guided tours. In Griffith itself are Cranswick Estate in Walla Ave (02 6962 4133), Riverina Wines in Hillston Rd (02 6962 4122), Miranda Wines at 57 Jondaryan Ave, with a tour each Wednesday at 2.15 (02 6962 4033) and West End Wines at 1283 Brayne Rd with tours upon request. All three are open seven days a week except the latter which is only open weekdays, though it has a play, picnic and barbecue area (02 6964 1506).

In the surrounding district are McWilliam's Wines open 9-5 Monday to Saturday with a tour available each Friday at 2. It is on Jack McWilliam Rd, Hanwood (02 6963 0001). There is an outdoor museum with old winery equipment housed in an enormous wine bottle and tastings are held inside an enormous wine barrel with a mural out the front. There are also barbecue and children's play facilities. De Bortoli Wines, one of Australia's largest wineries, is open Monday to Saturday from 9-5.30 and Sundays from 9-4 with tours on Tuesdays at 2. They are located on De Bortoli Rd, Bilbul (02-6964 9444). St Peter's Winery and Distillery are on the Whitton Stock Route at Yenda, established by Count Sissoli of the House of Buton in Italy. They are open Monday to Friday from 8.30-5 (02-6968 1303).

The Roman Catholic section of the Griffith Cemetery

Festivals and Gardens
The local Wine and Food Festival is held annually at Easter and features a street parade, street carnival, ball, family fun day, street theatre, rodeo, grape treading competition, fun run and the Venetian Carnival on the main canal. In October there are the Agricultural Show and the Festival of Gardens which opens up a number of outstanding private gardens for viewing. The Belle Amour Garden is open year round by appointment. It can be found in MacGraith Place north of Griffith. Head out of town on Wyangan Avenue, turn left into Mallinson Rd and then turn into MacGraith Place.

8 km north via Wyangan Ave/Boorga Rd is Lake Wyangan, an ideal spot for camping, picnics, barbecues, fishing, sailing and boating. There is also a wading pool, a playground and animal enclosures. It is well-signposted from Banna Ave.

Cocoparra National Park
North-east of town is 8356-ha Cocoparra National Park. Here a low mountain range rises above the plain, several of the peaks being named by John Oxley in 1817. On the slopes are dry sclerophyll forest with clumps of ironbark and cypress pine. There are tea tree on the forest floor and a range of acacia throughout the park. Colourful wildflowers are profuse in springtime. There are a number of scenic gullies, one of which, Ladysmith Glen, is a highlight. This is a narrow gorge, 33 m deep, which has been cut into the rock by Jack's Creek. The park is a nesting place for the peregrine falcon and the wedge-tailed eagle. There are also plenty of parrots, thornbills, honeyeaters, grey kangaroos and possums plus echidnae, marsupial mice and bats.

The park is 25 km from Griffith via the road which heads east through Yenda and on to Barellan and Ardlethan. Cross the railway line about 3 km past Yenda and then head along Barry Scenic Drive or Whitton Stock Route. A side road leads to the top of Mt Bingar which affords fine views of the area. The stock route was heavily used in the late nineteenth century by Cobb & Co. coaches in transit from Melbourne to Queensland.

There are camping facilities at Woolshed Flat and bush camping is permitted away from roads and picnic areas, of which there are several (The Pines, Jacks Creek, Iron Bark, Woolshed Flat, Store Creek, Spring Hill), all with facilities. The park is also ideal for bushwalking, photography and nature studies.

MIA Forest and River Drives
For those interested in driving, there are the MIA Forest and River drives, Binya State Forest Drive (22 km north-east, via Yenda), and river drives through Willbriggie State Forest, 38 km south via Darlington Point Rd.

If you would like a closer look at local farm life the visitor's centre can organise farm hosting and farm holidays. For a not so close look at the area contact Balloon Aloft Riverina for a hot-air balloon ride (02-6964 2322).GR

	Tourist Information
	Griffith Visitors Centre Cnr Banna & Jondyran Aves Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 4145 Facsimile: (02) 6962 7319
	Motels
	A-Line Motel 187 Wakaden St Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 1922 Facsimile: (02) 6964 1379 Rating: ***
	Acacia Motel 923 Irrigation Way Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 4422 Facsimile: (02) 6962 3284 Rating: ***1/2
	Bagtown Inn 2 Blumer Avenue Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 7166 Facsimile: (02) 6962 7981 Rating: ****
	Citrus Motel Jondaryan Avenue Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 6233 Facsimile: (02) 6964 1300 Rating: ***1/2
	Comfort Inn Gemini Motel 201 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 3833 Rating: ****
	Griffith Hotel Motel Kooyoo St Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 1011
	Griffith Motor Lodge 96 Banna Avenue Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 1800 Facsimile: (02) 6962 7074 Rating: ***
	Kidman Wayside Inn 54 Jondaryan Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6964 5666 Rating: ****
	MIA Motel Leeton Rd Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 1866 Facsimile: (02) 6962 1715 Rating: ***1/2
	Yambil Inn 155 Yambil St Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6964 1233 Facsimile: (02) 6964 1355 Rating: ****
	Hotels
	Area Hotel 208 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 1322
	Victoria Hotel 384 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 1299 Rating: ***
	Bed & Breakfast/Guesthouses
	Wilga Park Cottage 6 Condon Rd, Bilbul via Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6968 1661 Facsimile: (02) 6968 1815 Email: wilgapark@bigpond.com
	Apartments
	Griffith Northside Apartments 31 Edmondson Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6964 5416 Facsimile: (02) 6964 5417 Rating: ***1/2
	Mindon Serviced Apartments 41 Couch Rd Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 4488 Facsimile: (02) 6962 5845 Rating: ***1/2
	Cottages & Cabins
	Wilga Park Cottage 6 Condon Rd, Bilbul via Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6968 1661 Facsimile: (02) 6968 1815 Email: wilgapark@bigpond.com
	Ingleden Park Cottage Coghlan Rd Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6963 6527 Facsimile: (02) 6963 6527
	Farm & Eco Holidays
	Ingleden Park Cottage Coghlan Rd Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6963 6527 Facsimile: (02) 6963 6527 Email: farmstay@ingleden.com.au
	Linton Vale Farmstay O'Connell Griffith NSW 2795 Telephone: (02) 6337 5795 Facsimile: (02) 6336 5713
	Caravan Parks
	Griffith Caravan Village Leeton Rd Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 3785 Facsimile: (02) 6962 3785 Rating: ***
	Griffith Tourist Caravan Park 919 Willandra Avenue Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6964 2144 Facsimile: (02) 6964 1126 Rating: ****
	Restaurants
	Bagtown Inn Blumer Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 7166
	Belvedere Restaurant & Pizza 494 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 1488
	Catholic Club Yoogali Hebden St Yoogali Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 2519
	Griffith Ex - Servicemens Club Jondaryan Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 1211
	Griffith Golden Chopsticks 14 Probert Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 6629
	Griffith Motor Lodge 96 Banna Avenue Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 1800
	Hanwood Catholic Club Yarran St Hanwood Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6963 0488
	Happy Dragon Restaurant 424 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 5115
	Kidman Wayside Inn 54 Jondaryan Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6964 5666
	Kolours Restaurant 96 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 1800
	L'Oasis Cafe 150 Yambil St Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6964 5588
	La Scala Restaurant 455 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 4322
	Michelin 72 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6964 9006
	Picasso's Restaurant - Gemini Motel 201 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 3833
	Tango's Restaurant 4 Blumer Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6964 2455
	The Area Hotel Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 1322
	Cafés
	Cafe Beautiful 377 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 3190
	Chittery Bit 350 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6962 5999
	Il Corso Cafe 232 Banna Ave Griffith NSW 2680 Telephone: (02) 6964 4500