100 Years of
Murray Shire
Council
1906 - 2006
1906 - 1986
1986 - 2000
2000 - Current
Brief History of
Murray Shire
Murray Shire came into being as a result of the New South
Wales Local Government (Shires) Act of 1905, which divided
the State into Local Government Areas (LGAs).
For the first time, many towns like Mathoura were in
charge of their own destinies.
Although municipalities existed prior to this (Moama was
proclaimed a municipality in 1890; Deniliquin had been one
since 1865) most of the State’s rural districts were governed
by Land Boards.
Mathoura’s affairs came under the jurisdiction of the
Deniliquin Lands Board, on which the town had a
representative, Charles Opitz, who was destined to become
the first president of the Murray Shire.
The Act of 1905 gave the shires the power to levy rates
and made them responsible for regulating traffic, street
and road lighting, bush fire preventions, flood relief and
the construction and maintenance of streets. The Act fixed
the rates to be charged at not more than two pence and
not less than a penny in the pound, based on unimproved
capital value.
Deniliquin soon found itself surrounded by the Shires of
Conargo, Murray and Windouran.
There was a close bond between these three Shires. At its
first meeting, Murray Shire Council agreed to hold talks with
the others to consider a proposal that the three share one
engineer. As a result, Mr AC Fitz-Nead became the Engineer
for all three, each shire paying a third of his salary.
The first meeting of the elected Council took place on
5 December 1906.
Prior to this there had been an interim appointed
Council, which was responsible for making preparations
for the first election and smoothing the transition to Local
Government.
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Mr W Matthews remained briefly as the Shire Clerk but
was soon replaced by Rupert Treatt.
The first Council consisted of Councillors EP Berryman, WR
Clarke, D Glenn, RW Holmes, CB Opitz and AL Weymouth.
The Council’s first act was to elect a president to chair
their meetings. Crs Berryman and Opitz were nominated,
but the six member vote was split three-all. As a result, the
representative of the Riverine Herald was invited to draw a
name out of a hat and in this
manner Cr Opitz came to be
the Shire’s first President.
The first meeting,
according to the Shire’s
minute books, was held in
the Court House, which then
operated in a large house
owned by Cr Opitz in what
is now the southern part of
Mathoura. At that time it was
known as the Mill End because
Opitz’s Mill, the town’s main
employer, was located
there.
T h i s
v e n u e
evidently
proved
unsatisfactory, perhaps
Cr CB Optiz
because of Opitz’s
ownership. The new President
and the Clerk were deputised to meet with Mr James Farrell,
then proprietor of the Pastoral Hotel (which was still referred
to by its old name of the Railway Hotel) to arrange alternative
accommodation for the Shire Office. The Hotel, or an adjacent
building, seems to be where the Council met until the
completion of the present Shire Hall.
The Council seems to have settled nicely into the rooms
either in or attached to the Hotel. Their second and
subsequent meetings were held there until the Shire Hall
was opened in 1910. Their landlord, James J Farrell, himself
became a Councillor in 1917 and Shire President in 1919.
2
Rupert Treatt and Mr Fitz-Nead
The Shire’s first efforts were directed at building roads
and maintaining bridges throughout its area. However, it
was not long before Council assumed responsibility for bush
fire prevention, noxious weed control and the provision of
services like water and electricity.
In 1909, Council authorised the acquisition of land on
which it soon built a Hall and Offices, still the home of the
Murray Shire.
By 1928 the Shire was involved in road safety issues. During
that year several citizens were prosecuted for riding bicycles
after dark without a light.
The Shire’s watchdog role was extended that year too
when Cr WP Coppinger alerted the Council that possums in the
district were being killed with cyanide, presumably for their
fur. He successfully moved that the Chief Secretary’s
Department be told and urged to appoint
extra rangers “to assist the police in apprehending
offenders.” Successful proscutions eventuated and the
practice was stamped out.
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Water Supply
From 1876 a few homes in Mathoura had been supplied with
water from the Deniliquin and Moama (D&M) Railway’s
Water Tower, which still stands near the centre of the town.
Those without a water main connection carted water in
Furphy tanks from the same source.
At the 8 March 1921 meeting, the Council was told by
Mr Darbyshire, manager of the D&M, that the company was
supplying water to 43 local households at a loss. Its locomotives
needed 6,000 gallons of water a week, which should cost 25
shillings ($2.50) to pump. Instead, the pumping costs were
25 pounds ($50) a month. He suggested that either the
Shire should take over the water supply or allow the D&M
to charge more.
The Shire eventually took over the supply in 1956, by which
time the D&M Railway was part of the Victorian Railways
Network.
It was not until 1965 that a filtration plant was opened
and water mains installed throughout the town.
Mathoura’s early water system with the D&M Railway
Water Tower in the background.
Only a few homes had reticulated water.
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Electricity Supply
The Official History of the Shire, “Galleries of Pink Galahs”
notes the Shire installed an electric generator at the Shire Hall
in 1918 to replace the gas street lights which had previously
served the town. However, this seems to have been only
to supply lighting for the Hall and perhaps the immediate
surrounds and used storage batteries.
More widespread use of electricity came in 1937 when
Council accepted an offer from Deniliquin to supply the
northern half of the Shire, including Mathoura, from its
generating plant.
One of the early users was Douglas’s Sawmill. It is part of
Deniliquin folklore that when the main motor at the Mill was
switched on it dimmed the lights of Deniliquin.
The southern part of the Shire was supplied by the Moama
Municipality, which purchased SEC power from Victoria.
However, in 1957, the Council granted the Municipality of
Deniliquin a franchise to supply all of the Shire of Murray.
This arrangement remained in place until the advent of the
Murray River County Council in 1958.
Weighbridges
Another of the Shire’s activities was the provision
of public weighbridges at railway sidings. They were
important to the rural ratepayers as they provided
the Shire’s considerable number of grain growers with
a record of grain delivered, mostly to their nearest
railway station or siding. The Mathoura Weighbridge seems
to have been in existence quite early.
When the Victorian Railways took over the D&M Railway in
1923, it announced plans to build a branch line to Balranald. As
a result, weighbridges were built at Womboota, Thyra Crossing,
Bunnaloo, Tantonan and Caldwell. At this time, a
weighbridge was also built at Southdown near Deniliquin,
following representations from farmers in the north of the
Shire.
The weighbridges were then leased and operated by local
residents.
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MURRAY SHIRE COUNCILLORS
1906 – 2006
Councillor
BERRYMAN, EP
CLARKE, WR
GLENN, David
OPITZ, Charles
HOLMES, RW
WEYMOUTH, AL
SANTILLA, John
DALY, Anthony
HOWAT, George Jnr
BOWTELL, William
FARRELL, JJ
CLARK, John
ANDERSON, James D
LEITCH, AD
COPPINGER, WP
BLYTH, DF
GLENN, William
ADAMS, Robert J
LEITCH, Jim P
KILPATRICK, LM
LEETHAM, F
BAYLISS, GT
McKINDLAY, JR
ANDERSON, W
WHITE, Thomas F
BEER, Wilson GJ
COOPER, ER
DOLAN, BTL
COCKAYNE, LA
LEA, Harry C
DUDLEY, CR
LAWRY, Walter JD
Term
1906-1914
1906-1931
1906-16/1920-31
1906-1911
1906-1908
1906-1911
1908-1919
1911-1926
1911-1919
1915-1919
1917-1922
1919-1922
1920-1925
1922-25/1928-31
1922-31/1934-47
1925-28/1931-34
1925-1931
1926-1935
1931-37/1947-50
1931-1934
1931-1944
1931-1944
1934-1949
1934
1936-1947
1937-1947
1944-1949
1947-1956
1947-1950
1947-1965
1950-1959
1953-1956
6
EDDY, AJ
COPPINGER, Henry T
GRANT, EJ
LOVE, JE
HOLSCHIER, Harry G
NICHOLAS, LT
REID, BK
HAM, Ivor R
BREMNER, Lance A
GOVE, David B
MOLE, GA
MURPHY, Arthur E
GRAHAM, Greg C
HICKEY, Jim T
ANDERSON, D Stuart
BERRYMAN, Keith E
REID, Burnes K
SELLECK, Rick G
LOVE, Jack E
MURPHY, John S
WATSON, John D
POLGLASE, Warren J
BRIGHT, Jack R
CRACK, Robert L
WILD, Geoff G
GRANT, Jim L
MOON, Ian W
POCKLINGTON, John W
BURRELL, HJP
MURPHY, Terry W
DAY, Eileen M
CALDWELL, Robert MT
McDONALD, Stuart
MURPHY, Betty M
SHARP, Brian M
MURPHY, Arthur W
NEWMAN, Paula A
TEASDALE, Judy G
STEPHENSON, Wayne J
1953-1974
1956-1959
1956-1971
1956-1959
1959-1974
1959-1965
1959-1965
1959-1971
1965-1974
1965-1980
1965-1974
1965-1974
1971-1983
1971-1986
1974-2004
1974-1999
1974-1977
1974-1977
1974-1976
1976-1986
1977-1991
1980-1987
1983-1996
1983-1987
1983-1995
1983-1983
1986-1995
1986-1995
1987-1991
1987-1991
1991-1993
1991-PRESENT
1991-1994
1993-PRESENT
1994-PRESENT
1995-PRESENT
1995-2004
1995-2004
1996-1996
7
McKINDLAY, Lachlan N
WEYRICH, Thomas E
SHIELLS, Graeme F
HYETT, Richard B
MACFARLANE, Dianne M
GRAY, Helen M
1998-2006
1999-PRESENT
2004-PRESENT
2004-PRESENT
2004-PRESENT
2006-PRESENT
MURRAY SHIRE PRESIDENTS
1906 - 2006
Councillor
OPITZ, Charles
BERRYMAN, EP
CLARKE, WR
GLENN, David
HOWAT, George Jnr
DALY, Anthony
SANTILLA, John
BOWTELL, William
FARRELL, JJ
CLARK, John
ANDERSON, James D
COPPINGER, WP
GLENN, William
BLYTH, DF
ADAMS, Robert J
KILPATRICK, LM
LEITCH, Jim P
BAYLISS, GT
LEETHAM, F
McKINDLAY, JR
WHITE, Thomas F
Term
1907
1908
1909, 1911, 1912, 1918, 1922, 1923, 1929
1910, 1914, 1927, 1931
1913
1915, 1920, 1925
1916
1917
1919
1921
1924
1926, 1930, 1940, 1946
1928
1932
1933
1934
1935
1936, 1941
1937, 1943
1938, 1939, 1945
1938, 1944
8
BEER, Wilson GJ
COOPER, ER
DOLAN, BTL
BREMNER, AT
LAWRY, Walter JO
DUDLEY, CR
LEA, Harry C
EDDY, AJ
GRANT, EJ
HOLSCHIER, Harry G
BREMNER, Lance A
GRAHAM, Greg C
ANDERSON, D Stuart
MURPHY, John S
WATSON, John D
BERRYMAN, Keith E
WILD, Geoff G
1942
1947, 1948
1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953
1954, 1958
1955
1956
1957, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963
1959
1964, 1965, 1966
1967, 1968
1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974
1974-75, 1975-76, 1976-77, 1977-78
1978-79
1979-80, 1980-81, 1981-82, 1982-83, 1984-85
1983-84, 1987-88
1985-86, 1986-87, 1988-89, 1989-90, 1990-91
1991-92, 1992-93, 1993
MURRAY SHIRE MAYORS
ANDERSON, D Stuart
SHARP, Brian M
1993-94, 1994-95, 1995-96
1996-97, 1997-98, 1998-99, 1999-00, 2000-01, 2001-02, 2002-03, 2003-04, 2004-05, 2005-06, 2006-07
9
10
Councillors and their senior staff outside the new Shire Hall in 1910
The Amalgamation of
Murray and Moama
Prior to the amalgamation of the Murray Shire and the
Municipality of Moama in 1953, there had been other
attempts to unite the two Local Government Areas.
Rural ratepayers had requested an amalgamation during
the first 10 years of the Shire’s existence, but the move had
been blocked by the Department of Local Government.
In 1920, following the introduction of a new Act, the rural
rate payers tried again.
A deputation, which addressed the monthly meeting
of the Shire on 4 May 1920, said that a previous attempt
at amalgamation had been considered a couple of years
earlier but had been prevented by the Department of
Local Government. Recent legislation however, improved
the chance of success.
Rural ratepayers claimed that although the rural
portion of the Municipality paid 520 pounds of the
Municipality’s 624 pounds income from rates, only one eighth
of the amount was spent on rural roads. They felt they would
be more fairly treated by the Murray Shire. Needless to say
the town faction objected strenuously to the move . The
same meeting of 4 May 1920 also heard from Mr AE Bartlett
representing the townspeople of Moama, who asked the
Shire not to make any decision until the town had a chance
to review the situation. Murray Shire agreed to take no
immediate action.
At the next Shire meeting, another deputation, headed
by the Mayor GT Barber and including Mr Bartlett, warned
that Moama was prepared to fight the proposal. The
Municipality had sought the advice of the Department of
Local Government and was told there was nothing in the
Act preventing them using ratepayers’ funds to finance
legal action. The Department even provided a list of
solicitors it considered might be useful if Moama
11
wanted to pursue the matter. Mr Barber said Moama
townspeople “would leave no stone unturned to
retain their identity.” Mr Bartlett added that if
severance took place, the town would be left in an impossible
position and unable to carry on.
The issue seemed to be put to rest by Mr J Wall, who
had been a member of the deputation of secessionists at
the previous meeting. On behalf of his group he told the
meeting he “would respectfully request that no further action
be taken at present.”
The Murray Shire was prepared to let matters rest, but in
September 1922 the Council was told of a circular letter
which had been sent to Murray Shire ratepayers in “A” Riding
(the southern part of the Shire) seemingly proposing that they
amalgamate with Moama. The Council carried the motion
of Cr JJ Farrell that a copy of the letter and a protest be sent
to members of parliament.
No copy of the offending circular was found, but another
letter,
in
the
Moama
Municipality
correspondence file, dated 23 May 1923, invited
several unnamed ratepayers of “A” Riding to a “round
table” conference at which the possibilities of
amalgamation with Moama would be discussed. A
subsequent notice advised that the meeting was postponed
and there the matter seems to have rested.
By 1951, Moama was struggling to make ends meet and
the Department of Local Government recommended that
the southern part of the Murray Shire be added to Moama
to give that town a better rate base. A Commissioner held
an enquiry at Moama to look into the proposal.
This time it was Mathoura’s turn to object. It lodged a
counter-proposal that Moama instead be amalgamated
into Murray Shire.
At its meeting on 10 March 1952, the Council resolved to
submit a written statement to the enquiry “setting out its
policy and attitude and any relevant facts in regard to the
proposal to unite the Shire of Murray with the Municipality
of Moama.”
“The Council of the Shire of Murray did not, on its own
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initiative, seek the union of the Shire and Municipal area and
has never at any time expressed any real desire for such a
union,” the statement said.
Council was “strongly influenced and guided by the
advice of the Department of Local Government which, in a letter
dated 6 July 1951, advised the Council as follows:- ‘In the
Department’s view, the Municipality (of
Moama) is an uneconomic area which, as at
present constituted, cannot reasonably be
expected to progress or to be provided with works and
services adequate to meet the needs of citizens in the
area’.”
At the meeting of 13 October 1952, the President reported
on a decision for the union of Murray Shire and Moama
Municipality.
By 10 November, decisions were being made as a result of the
impending amalgamation. Town improvement funds and street
lighting schemes for both towns were being combined for
funding out of the following year’s estimates.
The first meeting of the provisional Council, which
consisted of Councillors HB Berryman, AT Bremner, BTL Dolan,
CR Dudley, EJ Glenn, HC Lea (all from existing Murray Shire)
and WJ Lawry and AJ Eddy (from Moama Council) was held
on 17 December 1952.
In hindsight, the amalgamation was a
success for both parties. It is doubtful if the
Murray Shire could have survived without its
southern half and until the tourism-led boom brought
prosperity to Moama
it
too would have
struggled to meet the expectations of its
ratepayers.
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Highlights of the First 100 Years of Murray Shire
1906 First meeting of elected Council held in Mathoura
Court House, 5 December.
1909 3 August. Council approved purchase of land in
Conargo St for Shire Offices.
1910 Shire Hall and Offices opened.
1915 Shire assists Mathoura Bush Fire Brigade by
purchasing equipment and making part of depot
available for storage.
1920 Approach to Shire by disgruntled Moama rural
ratepayers to join Murray Shire failed.
1926 New bridge across Edward River and considerable
work on forest road to Tocumwal.
1928 Soldiers Memorial Gardens, established 1921 by
Returned Soldiers Association, handed over to
trusteeship of Murray Shire.
1939 New bridge over Gulpa Creek (Polly’s Bridge).
1953 Murray Shire amalgamation with Moama
Municipality.
1937 Electricity supplied to Mathoura from Deniliquin
Municipality. Southern part of Shire eventually
supplied from Moama, which purchased power from
Victoria.
1955 Mathoura Community Project Film Group. Council
assisted by purchasing seats and rewiring projection
box.
Municipality of Deniliquin’s electricity franchise
extended to entire Shire area.
1956 Shire takes over Mathoura water supply from
Victorian Railways.
1957 Murray Shire War Memorial baby health centre and
meeting rooms opened.
1958 Murray River County Council formed and takes over
electricity franchise.
1965 Water supply scheme for Mathoura. Officially
opened by Hon. David Hughes MLA, Minister for
Public Works.
1968 Moama sewerage scheme completed.
1970 Remodelled and extended Shire Offices opened at
Mathoura.
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Highlights of the First 100 Years of Murray Shire
1975 Gravel sheeting program commenced on roads
1976 Central Murray Flood Mitigation formed with Murray,
Berrigan, Conargo, Wakool and Windouran Shires
following disastrous floods in 1973, 1974 and 1975.
1977 Moama Community Sporting Complex opened and
old School of Arts Hall demolished.
1978 Central Murray County Council for Noxious Weeds
established.
1980 Bunnaloo Community Centre built. Shire contribution
$30,000.
Interior of Shire Hall refurbished with timber paneling.
1984 Moama Community Retirement Village opened. Built
in conjunction with Moama Lions Club.
1987 Landscaping of Livingstone St, Mathoura
commenced as a Bicentennial Project. Cost approx.
$80,000. Other Bicentennial Projects included
Horseshoe Lagoon beautification at Moama, Bird
Hide and Walk at reed beds near Mathoura and
publication of Galleries of Pink Galahs.
1991 Ridings abolished because Moama growth upset
statutory population requirements.
1992 Murray Shire responds to introduction of poker
machines in Victoria by combining with local clubs
to promote regional tourism.
1993 Sewerage scheme opened at Mathoura.
1997 Great Mathoura Land Giveaway. The first such
scheme on the eastern seaboard, resulting in 20 new
houses being built at Mathoura.
2003 Mathoura Rural Transaction Centre opened.
2004 Long Paddock (Cobb Highway) tourism project
launched in conjunction with Municipality of
Deniliquin and Conargo, Hay and Central Darling
Shires.
2006 Centenary of Murray Shire celebrated in Shire Hall at
Mathoura with re-enactment of first presidential
election provided by Bunnaloo Public School
students.
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Keith Berryman (left), a third-generation Murray Shire
councillor joins present Mayor, Cr Brian Sharp, to cut
the Murray Shire’s centenary birthday cake during the
celebrations to mark 100 years of Local Government in
Murray Shire at the Mathoura Shire Hall on
3 November 2006.
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Centenary Celebration
The Centenary of Local Government in the Murray Shire
was celebrated on 3 November 2006. Fittingly, it took place in
the Shire Hall, the Shire’s home since it opened in1910.
A display of Shire memorabilia covered the walls and
several display stands within the Hall.
A good crowd of approximately 200 guests, which
included
several
representatives
of
neighbouring councils, along with past and present
councillors (and/or their families) and staff, attended the
function and were welcomed by Mayor, Cr Brian Sharp.
Local history enthusiast, Mr David Joss, gave a brief
account of the founding of Mathoura and events leading up
to the election in 1906 of the first Murray Shire Council.
Students from Bunnaloo Public School then re-enacted the
election of the first Shire president, Cr Charles Opitz, at the first
meeting of the new shire.
Long-serving councillor, Mr Keith Berryman, gave an
entertaining outline of his involvement with the Murray Shire.
Mr Berryman’s grandfather, Mr EP Berryman, was a member
of the original council and its second president. He recalled
the days when road building was done with nothing more
sophisticated than a horse, cart and shovel and related
how he and his father had built up the first formation along
Centre Road using a grader supplied by the Shire. Despite their
protests they were given culvert pipes to lay under a
causeway. After torrential rain, the pipes were washed into
an adjacent paddock. “You need local knowledge in these
areas,” he commented wryly.
The New South Wales Government was represented by
Member for Murray-Darling, Mr Peter Black OAM MP, who
congratulated the Shire on reaching its Centenary and told of
the pioneering efforts of some of the early Borough councils.
The finale was the cutting of a birthday cake by Cr Sharp
and Mr Berryman, pieces of which were distributed to those in
attendance.