The Robber Tree where bank robber Joseph Wells tried to hide

Cunnamulla
A pleasant service town just north of the New South Wales border.
Located 972 km west of Brisbane, 120 km north of the NSW border and 188 m above sea-level, Cunnamulla is the administrative centre for the vast Paroo Shire which covers 47 617 sq. km of South-West Queensland. With a population of 1600 Cunnamulla is significantly larger than the other three towns in the shire - Eulo, Yowah and Wyandra. In fact the rather makeshift mining town of Yowah is the shire's second-largest town with a floating population that rarely exceeds 150.

The area around Cunnamulla was first settled in the late 1840s after it had been explored by Sir Thomas Mitchell, who passed through the area in 1846 while searching for a route to the Gulf of Carpentaria. Mitchell discovered what he called the Victoria River, believing that it flowed north into the Gulf. After the party returned to Sydney, Mitchell's second-in-command, Edmund Kennedy, revisited the area when he led a return expedition aimed at investigating Mitchell's theory. In fact, the Victoria River turned out to be the Barcoo which flowed into Cooper Creek.

The township of Cunnamulla was created by Cobb & Co. who, on 3 September 1879, drove the first coach through from Bourke. Cunnamulla was one of many settlements which grew up in South-West Queensland as a result of the activities of Cobb & Co. but it is the only one to have survived. Tuen, Tego, Balbuna, Wooroorooka and Coongoola are now nothing more than a memory.

In the 1880s farmers moved into the area and found the open plains to be perfect for sheep grazing. Today over two million sheep graze in the region's pastures.

The survival of Cunnamulla was undoubtedly linked to the reliable water supply provided by the Warrego River (in fact the word 'Cunnamulla' is widely accepted to be an Aboriginal term meaning either 'big waterhole' or 'long stretch of water') and to the arrival of the railway in 1899. Today it is still an important rail head for the surrounding area, being the end of the branch line which runs south from Charleville.

While there is little to tempt the curious traveller in Cunnamulla the town has a distinct old world charm. The hotels in the main street have remained unchanged for over half a century, the shops still have a pre-supermarket feel to them, and the tree-lined streets evoke the world of the country town long past.

Things to see:  

Cunnamulla Historical Museum and the Robber's Tree
There is an historical museum in the shire hall at 49 Stockyard Street and, if you continue to the southern end of Stockyard Street, about two blocks beyond the council offices, there is a solitary tree on a sand dune where the bank robber Joseph Wells hid after making an armed withdrawal from the local bank. It has been suggested that Wells hid in the tree but, if that was the case, the tree has managed to grow over the hollow space which once existed. Wells' escape was short-lived. Irate locals, whose money he had stolen, chased and captured him.

Cunnamulla-Eulo Festival of Opals
In late August, the Cunnamulla-Eulo Festival of Opals is held. This week-long extravaganza includes a fair, arts and crafts, sports competitions, the Yowah opal fields safari and a ball. The highlight is the World Lizard Racing Championship, held at the Paroo Lizard Racetrack in Eulo (9 km distant).

	Tourist Information
	Cunnamulla Visitor Information Centre Centenary Park, Jane St Cunnamulla QLD 4490 Telephone: (07) 4655 2481
	Motels
	Corella Motor Inn Cnr Emma & Wicks Sts Cunnamulla QLD 4490 Telephone: (07) 4655 1593
	Hotels
	Billabong Hotel/Motel Murray St Cunnamulla QLD 4490 Telephone: (07) 4655 1225
	Club Hotel 15 Louise St Cunnamulla QLD 4490 Telephone: (07) 4655 1209
	Cunnamulla Hotel 24 Jane St Cunnamulla QLD 4490 Telephone: (07) 4655 1102
	Oxford Hotel/Motel 13 Bowra St Cunnamulla QLD 4490 Telephone: (07) 4655 1126
	Trappers Inn Hotel 16 Louise St Cunnamulla QLD 4490 Telephone: (07) 4655 1174
	Warrego Hotel 9 Louise St Cunnamulla QLD 4490 Telephone: (07) 4655 1737
	Caravan Parks
	Jack Tonkin Caravan Park Watson St Cunnamulla QLD 4490 Telephone: (07) 4655 1421 Rating: **