Ariah Park - NSW

Ariah Park (pronounced 'area') likes to describe itself as a town of 'bowsers, wowsers and peppercorn trees'. There is something delightfully timeless about the town: the wide main street with the tree-lined median strip; the old shops with their verandas; the quietness and peacefulness. The town is listed by the National Trust as a Conservation Area.

Origin of Name
There are a number of explanations for the name but the most persuasive is that 'ariah' is derived from the anglicisation of the Wiradjuri (local Aboriginal language) word "narriyar", meaning "hot". In 1850 an early settler, John Richard Hardy, named his property Ariah Station. In 1883 another settler named Samuel Harrison moved to the south eastern corner of Ariah Station and named his holding Ariah Park. That name was adopted by the local pub and the village that grew up in the area.

The district produces sheep and wheat. New South Wales Government Railways launched its first bulk-wheat loading operation in the town in 1916.

A free 32 page booklet provides the history and stories of buildings within the village, the story of the original settlement at Broken Dam and explains the connection of Dame Mary Gilmore to the area. The bronze wheat lumper statue erected in 2016 is a tribute to the hardworking men who lumped and stacked bags of wheat until the advent of bulk grain handling in 1916.

Nearby Ingalba National Forest, Mandamah and Yarranjerry State Forests, nature reserves and Mirrool Creek walking trail provide walking tracks for bushwalkers and birdwatchers.