History

Leeton is located in the country of the Wiradjuri nation.

Leeton, unlike most country towns, did not develop around a local pub, supply store or railway station. It was purposely built as part of the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Scheme.

The Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area (MIA) was developed through the foresight of the Water Conservation and Irrigation Conference, which was chaired by Charles Alfred Lee in 1905 and initiated the construction of Burrinjuck Dam.

The first buildings to be erected in Leeton in 1911/12 were the offices of the employees of the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Trust (with control later transferred to the Water Conservation and Irrigation Commission). Many businesses were created during the 1920’s and 30’s which has left the Shire with a legacy of many beautiful Art Deco style buildings.

After World War II there was an increase in Italian immigration to Australia. Many of the newcomers were experienced farmers so were drawn to the Leeton area. Those that prospered were able to sponsor family and friends to migrate, resulting in a high population of people with Italian heritage in Leeton.

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A railway siding opened on North Yanco Pastoral Station as Yanko on 1 March 1882 for pastoral uses. The spelling changed to Yanco in 1889. The village of Yanco began with the development of the MIA in 1912. Prior to that it was a pastoral station.

Yanco is the home of the 'Father of Irrigation', Sir Samuel McCaughey, who demonstrated the viability of irrigation in the region. On his 'North Yanko' farm, 16,187 hectares were irrigated using around 320km of channels drawing from the Murrumbidgee River with steam driven pumps.

It wasn’t until the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Scheme was proposed that the town began to take shape. The Yanco Experiment Farm, now called Yanco Agricultural Institute, was developed in 1908 to determine what could be grown in the area.

The historic village of Whitton was established on 1 September 1881, on the South Western Railway from Junee to Hay to connect the valuable western Riverina wool trade to Sydney.

Opened as ‘Hulong’, after the Parish, the Railway Station was renamed in 1883 by the State Rail Authority. They predicted that the future town to grow would become an important regional centre and the new name a good way to remember John Whitton, the Chief Engineer of Railways NSW since 1857.

During 1880s-1900s Whitton Railway Station received wool and wheat from Pastoral Stations north towards the Lachlan River mainly around Cargelligo and Euabalong. Copper ingots were also carried to Whitton Station by horse or bullock teams from Mt. Hope until 1910. Whitton was the main town for selectors on Nth Kooba, Ballandry, Merool Creek, Nth Benerembah and Nth Bringagee Pastoral Stations from 1881 until c1918. ‘Whitton District’ extended from Mt. Ida (Tabbita), Jondaryon (Griffith), Rankin’s Springs and Binya until railways reached those areas.

People from this wide area depended on Whitton for the Railway Station (wheat, wool, copper ingots, livestock, passengers, mail and shop supplies), A.J.S Bank (1889-1910), Postal and Telegraphic services, a variety of shops, hotels and a Rabbit Meat Canning Factory (1897-1906). Whitton also hosted community groups such as the Farmers and Settlers Association and the Riverine Carrier’s Union during its colonial era, with members coming from Whitton District and village.

A series of fires from 1892-1927 destroyed many of the original Colonial style wooden buildings. Art Deco style buildings replaced these, some of which remain today.

Researched and written by a Whitton Museum volunteer, 2022. References for the information above include NSW Government Gazettes, historic newspapers via Trove.nla.gov.au, The Story of the South Western Line by Neville Pollard and NSW Post Office Commercial Directories.