Cobargo, NSW is 386km south of Sydney and located between Narooma and Bega on the far south coast via the Princes Highway. Cobargo's village is known for its quaint shop fronts, shops offering wooded craftwoods, leather goods, antiques, pottery, art galleries and English tea rooms serving scones and cream.
The main street features many turn of the century buildings that allows the Cobargo locals to combine their skills and crafts to make the village known as 'The Working Village'.
With a genuine Australian historic past this quaint village is a must-see so revive and take a browse around this wonderful town that has transformed itself from a sleeply village of the past into an orginal tourist town with an abundance of charm.
Take a short drive to Bermagui along the coast or to the historic town of Tilba Tilba to the north or explore the Wadbilliga National Park. Actitivies close by include fishing, whale watching, bushwalking and golf.
The town itself offers a heated swimming pool, sports ground, tennis court and much more. The Narira River is a good place to have a family picnic; the picnic area can be found near the town bridge.
In 1829, William Duggan Tarlinton was first white man to explore this district, he set out with a group of Aborigines to find new grazing land for farming.
In 1830, he returned selected some pastures and built some huts, officially applying for a squatters licence in 1837 for Bredatoura and in 1938 was granted a grazing licence.
Around this time other keen travellers settled, Alexander Imlay applied for a squatting licence for Cobargo around 1840 and in 1852 W.D.Tarlinton moved into Bredatoura.
In the 1860’s Cobargo was known as the Wattletown as the new settlers stripped and cut wattle bark and sent it to Sydney and Melbourne for the tanning industry, this process lasted till the mid 1960’s.
In 1870 the first public school was built, John OReilly was the first teacher and was opened in 1871, family names such as Nelsons, Tarlintons, Gillespies, Allens, Cullens, Motbeys, Salways, Wilsons and the Glugstones all sent their children there, 37 students were to attend. At this time Corbargo had a School, Church, Hotel, Post Office and several stores including a blacksmith. In the 1870’s butter ship in kegs were being transported to Sydney from Bermagui. Before any dairy factory existed in Corbargo W.D.Tarlinton produce and sold butter and cheese at his dairy farm.
In 1901, The Butter factory and Co-Operative was established. The factory was burnt down in 1926 and rebuilt in the same year; in 1975 it was the only specialist butter factory in NSW, 1980 saw its last production and the doors were closed due to production levels not being meet.
The first traffic bridge was opened by W.D.Tarlinton and named Cobargo Bridge in 1882, the Agricultural Society was formed in 1885, land was cleared for pens, rings and a pavilion was erected, the first ever Cobargo Show was held on April the 3rd and 4th in 1889, Local builder George Martin constructed the School of Arts in 1887, it was filled with newspapers, magazines and a library of books, today the local community use it as a function hall.
In 1893 on the 17th October W.D.Tarlinton died, his grave is clearly marked in the cemetery. A foundation stone was laid in 1896 with the new church being opened in 1898, the site was a gift from W.D.Tarlinton and his wife, and they both have memorial windows in the Catholic Church.
A branch of the Australian Joint Stock Bank Ltd opened in April 1882 and closed in 1897.
In1903 the Bank of NSW opened a branch, the first bank was built in 1917 and closed in 1997 as a Westpac Bank.
The Post Office (present) was built in 1890, in 1910 the telephone exchange open.
