New
England
Towns
ARMIDALE
One of
largest
towns
in the
New England
Area,
Armidale
is known
as a university
city,
with the
University
of New
England,
several
higher
education
colleges
and a
number
of private
schools.
Surrounded
by exhilarating
mountain
scenery
the town
is almost
10% parkland
and has
a number
of impressive
public
buildings
including
the majestic
Catholic
Cathedral
of St
Mary which
towers
over Central
Park.
The
modern
New
England
Regional
Art
Museum
is regarded
as the
best
provincial
collection
of Australian
art.
The
folk
Museum,
housed
in an
old
building
dating
back
to 1863
is also
worth
visiting.
GLEN
INNES
Situated
high
in the
tablelands
at 1070m
Glen
Innes
is at
the
centre
of farming
area
known
as the
"Land
of the
Beardies",
named
after
two
pioneers.
This
region
is well
known
for
producing
the
best
sapphires
in NSW
and
other
gemstones
which
are
extracted
commercially
as well
as being
found
by the
amateur
fossicker.
The
town
also
has
some
beautiful
parks,
some
of which
line
the
willow
bordered
Rocky
Ponds
Creek
and
some
well-cared
for
19th
century
buildings,
one
of which
contains
the
Land
of the
Beardies
Folk
Museum.
GUNNEDAH
85km
north-west
of Tamworth
on the
Namoi
River,
Gunnedah
is one
of the
largest
centres
for
wheat
and
stock
sales
in Australia.
Cumbo
Gunnerah,
the
respected
leader
of the
Gunnedarr
people,
immortalised
in Ion
Idreiss'
book
"The
Red
Chief",
was
burried
here
in the
late
1700s.
In 1984
a bronze
sculpture
was
erected
in his
memory.
TAMWORTH
The
first
rural
community
in NSW
to be
lit
by electricity
(in
1881),
Tamworth
is regarded
as the
country
music
capital
of Australia,
hosting
a annual
country
music
festival
in January
which
attracts
thousands
of fans
to hundreds
of different
performances
and
the
presentation
of the
national
awards.
The
town
also
has
many
attractions
which
include-
The
Gallery
of Stars
(waxworks);
The
Hands
of Stone
Corner
Stone
(hand
prints);
Tamworth
Art
Gallery
which
houses
a good
collection
of paintings,
Australian
silver,
and
ivory
figurines;
and
the
Pyramid
Planetarium
north
of town,
where
the
solar
system
is reproduced
in miniature
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