The old entrance to Gunning - once it was full of trucks

Gunning
Quiet town servicing the surrounding sheep area
Gunning was once a very noisy town where every truck travelling between Sydney and Melbourne rumbled down the main street. Today, having been by-passed, it is sleepy and attractive.

Gunning is a small rural town of 535 people located 53 km west of Goulburn, just off the Hume Freeway, and 246 km south-west of Sydney. It is situated 578 m above sea-level in a shire which produces principally sheep, wool and cattle.

The town has undergone a face-lift since it was bypassed with a number of buildings undergoing restoration.

Noted colonial explorer Hamilton Hume had established a sheep property near Gunning by 1821, three years after he and James Meehan became the first known Europeans to set foot on the Goulburn Plains. In 1824 he set off from his property with William Hovell on their famous and ground-breaking expedition to Port Phillip Bay. A column by the roadside at Fish River, 5 km east of Gunning, marks the site from whence they departed.

Sheep and the rich countryside around Gunning

Plans for a town were approved in 1838. Cooper's Store was in existence by 1840 when Hume's brother, John Kennedy Hume, who also owned a property at Fish River, was shot dead by members of the Whitton gang while he was trying to help people who had been bailed up at the store (see entry on Crookwell for more on the Whitton gang). He had a wife and nine children.

By 1848 the town had 95 residents, the store and an hotel. The railway arrived in 1875 and Gunning became a busy rail terminus for some time. The Gunning Show is held in February.

Things to see:  

Tourist Information
There is no tourist information centre but you can ring the Gunning shire offices on (02) 4845 1312 or the Goulburn Visitors' Centre, tel: (02) 4823 0492.

Frankfield Guest House and Historic Walk
Maps outlining a walk of the town's historic buildings (3.5 km) are available from the Frankfield Guest House and Caxton Restaurant (cnr Warrataw and Grosvenor Sts). The guesthouse was built in 1870 as the Frankfield Hotel and greatly benefited from the arrival of the railway (just across the street).

The main street of Gunning

Stationmaster's Residence
If you turn left into Grosvenor St, the stationmaster's residence (c.1875) is along the road, to the right.

Pye Cottage
Turn left into Nelanglo St and proceed to the Yass St corner where you will find Pye Cottage (c.1860), a slab structure originally erected at Dalton (11 km to the north-west) and moved to Gunning in the early 1970s. It can be inspected if you enquire first at Frankfield guesthouse.

Gunning Public School
Turn left into Yass St. On the other side of the road is the public school (1871), an attractive little schoolhouse in Flemish bonded brick which contrasts nicely with the fretted bargeboards on the front gable, although there have been unsympathetic additions. The first Gunning show was held over the road in 1883.

Yass and Warrataw
Further along Yass St, near Warrataw St, is the post office (1880-81). The cenotaph dates from 1923. On the other side of the road is the old bank, now a private residence.

On the far side of Warrataw St is the courthouse (1879). To the rear is a gaolkeeper's residence (1872). Nearby is the Telegraph Hotel built in the 1880s with the second storey added in 1916.

Caxton House
Continue along Yass St. To the left are Caxton House and Caxton Cottage (1850). They were originally the one building.

London House
Over the road is London House (1881), a fine brick building with arched coach entrance which has served as both general store and hotel.

Old Hospital
Continue along Yass St, across Meadow Creek and take the first right into Gundaroo St. On the right, just past the turnoff to the Catholic Church, is the old maternity hospital (c.1890).

Catholic Church
Return the way you came and take the first right into Cullerin St where you will find the presbytery (1888) near St Francis Xavier Catholic Church.

Cemetery
At the end of Cullerin St turn right into Wombat St. To the left is the cemetery which contains the vault (near the entrance) of John Kennedy Hume who was shot to death by the Whitton gang while attempting to help those being bailed up at the local store in 1840. He had a wife and nine children. The tomb was erected by his brother, the famous explorer Hamilton Hume, who was the first European in the area and the first landholder. Whitton was later caught and hanged (see entry on Crookwell).

Police Barracks
Return along Wombat St to the Biala St intersection where you will find the town's oldest surviving building, the former police barracks, erected c.1842, which have two cells at ground level. It is now a private residence.

The sewerage works over the road occupies the site of the original police horse paddock where. Henry Dunckly is buried. He was murdered by his wife Lucretia and a servant 5 km from Gunning in 1841. The two were tried and convicted of murder at the courthouse in Berrima (where there is a major display on her trial). Lucretia has the honour of being the only woman hung at Berrima Gaol.

St Edmund's Anglican Church

Churches
Turn left into Biala St, following it to the weir. To cross the river and rejoin Biala St you can walk across the weir or, if that is not an attractive possibility, follow Wombat, Yass and Warrataw Sts back to the other side of Biala St.

At any rate, on the other side are the Anglican rectory and St Edmund's Anglican Church (both 1866). Further along, at Biala and Warrataw, is the Uniting Church, built as a Wesleyan church in 1876.

Other Historic Buildings
'Collingwood', 'Boureong' and 'Frankfield' are three historic homes in the Gunning area. The former dates back to the mid or late-1830s and was erected as the homestead of John Kennedy Hume and family. The first Christian service in the area was held here in 1838.

Antique and Art-and-Craft Shops
Coronation Theatre Antiques and Collectables is of interest. It is located at 82 Yass St, tel: (02) 4845 1554. Saskia's Gallery is at 93 Yass St, tel: (02) 4845 1577.

The main street of Gunning today

Hume and Hovell Track
Gunning is part of the fully-signposted, 370-km Hume and Hovell Walking Track which retraces a portion of the explorers' steps during the 1824 expedition to Port Phillip. You can, of course, walk any given sub-section. Details are available from the visitors' centre at Yass, tel: (02) 6226 2557 or the Department of Lands in Sydney, tel: (02) 9228 6111.

	Motels
	Gunning Motel Yass St Gunning NSW 2581 Telephone: (02) 4845 1191 Rating: ***
	Hotels
	Telegraph Hotel Yass St Gunning NSW 2581 Telephone: (02) 4845 1217
	Bed & Breakfast/Guesthouses
	Do Duck Inn Guesthouse 22 Hume Hwy Gunning NSW 2581 Telephone: (02) 4845 1207
	Frankfield Guesthouse 1-3 Warrataw St Gunning NSW 2581 Telephone: (02) 4845 1200 Rating: **
	Restaurants
	Golden Mountain Chinese Restaurant Yass St Gunning NSW 2581 Telephone: (02) 4845 1488
	Gunning Motel Restaurant Yass St Gunning NSW 2581 Telephone: (02) 4845 1191