The Royal Hotel

Mendooran
Tiny township on the Castlereagh River
Mendooran is located 396 kilometres west of Sydney via Newcastle. It is east of Gilgandra and west of Dunedoo. The town is reputedly the oldest settlement on the Castlereagh River being an important crossing point as early as the 1830s. By the 1840s it was a popular stopping point and land was being bought and sold by 1856. It was around this time that John Cameron settled in the area. His descendants still live near Mendooran. The town was all but destroyed by a flood in 1874.

The town received an honourable mention in Banjo Paterson's poem 'The Travelling Post Office' when he wrote:

The roving breezes come and go, the reed beds sweep and sway,
The sleepy river murmurs low, and loiters on its way,
It is the land of lots o' time along the Castlereagh.
The old man's son had left the farm, he found it dull and slow,
He drifted to the great north-west where all the rovers go.
"He's gone so long," the old man said, "he's dropped right out of mind,
But if you'd write a line to him I'd take it very kind
He's shearing here and fencing there, a kind of waif and stray,
He's droving now with Conroy's sheep along the Castlereagh.
The sheep are travelling for the grass, and travelling very slow:
They may be at Mundooran now, or past the Overflow

Today Mendooran (the spelling has changed since Paterson wrote the poem) is small and sleepy. It is a convenient stopover for people heading towards the Warrumbungles.

Things to see:  

Tourist Information and Town Murals
Castlereagh Country Stores and Woolshed Coffee Stop, 59 Bundulla St, tel: (02) 6886 1118.

Karin Duce at Castlereagh Stores has painted eight historical, woolshed and bushland murals relating to Mendooran on the walls of buildings in the main street which features a number of attractive Art Deco buildings and has recently undergone a beautification scheme.

Mendooran Yarn Spinners Cottage Craft Shop
Located at 74 Bundulla Street it has a good collection of local crafts including jams, pottery and locally made homespun wool. The shop is open from 9.30 a.m. - 4.00 p.m. on weekdays and 9.30 a.m. - 12.30 p.m. on Saturdays.

Gemstones and Herbs
Located at 100 Bundulla Street is a shop specialising in herbs and gemstones. It is open seven days a week for both inspection and purchase of the goods. There is excellent gemstone fossicking in the area. If you want good recommendations speak to Gwen who runs the shop. Contact (02) 6886 1354.

Beni Crossing
Located 12 km east of Mendooran Beni Crossing is a pleasant picnic spot beside the Castlereagh River - an attractive sandy inland river with almost mythological connotations for the shearers and drovers who worked in the area at the end of the nineteenth century.

Mendooran - Dubbo Forest Road
Experience the flora of the area by travelling along this interesting road which is exceptionally beautiful in spring when the wildflowers abound. There are impressive stands of ironbark which for decades were cut and used as railway sleepers.

Picnic Spots
The Mendooran Camping Area is near the Manusu Bridge at the western end of town. The Memorial Park is in Bundulla St. There are barbeques and childrens' play facilities.

Mungrambie Inn
The oldest surviving building on the Castlereagh is located 5 km west of Mendooran along the road to Gilgandra. Mungrambie Inn, or 'Closeburn', is a slab construction built in 1854 by John Cameron and Tom Digges. It originally had a shingle or bark roof and earthen floor. Although structurally sound it is in need of restoration. For further information ring Karin Duce on (02) 6886 1118.

	Hotels
	Royal Hotel 15 Bundulla St Mendooran NSW 2842 Telephone: (02) 6886 1051