Tamworth - Historic By Day, Country By Night
Illawarra Mercury
Saturday November 11, 2000
ANDREW THURTELL strapped on his boots, grabbed his guitar and headed for inland NSW to find Tamworth's hidden secrets.
IN 1973, the city of Tamworth hosted the first Australian Country Music Awards. They were so successful, they quickly became one of the most popular events of any kind in Australia and the centrepiece of Tamworth's annual Country Music Festival.
Few places could be more fitting to host such a spectacle. Located by the beautiful Peel River and surrounded by the rolling hills and fertile plains of New England, Tamworth moves to the rhythm of twanging guitars and the tap of cowboy boots. It's the city that's more than a little bit country.
Tamworth's most famous landmark is the 12m-high Golden Guitar. A giant replica of the Golden Guitars bestowed on Country Music Award winners, it is a larger-than-life welcome to the city.
It stands outside the Gallery Of Stars Wax Museum, an odd assortment of 20 wax figures of Australian country music greats.
From Slim Dusty to Smokey Dawson to Graeme Connors, they're all here dressed in their own clothes and displayed in individual settings significant to some aspect of their career. The Gallery Of Stars also features Australia's country music souvenir gift shop.
Country music has left a big impression on Tamworth, literally.
Each year, selected artists are invited to leave their handprints as part of the Hands Of Fame Park. Wander around and compare your handprint with the likes of Pixie, Gina Jeffreys or Jimmy Little before heading over to the Tattersalls Hotel on Peel St to take a look at the Noses Of Fame.
The country sights don't stop there, either. The Heritage Hall displays the largest collection of Australian country music memorabilia ever assembled.
The Winners' Walkway in Treloar's Arcade commemorates the Golden Guitar award, and the Australian Country Music Roll Of Renown is dedicated to the artists who have made major contributions to Australia's musical heritage. Even the Tourist Information Office is shaped like a guitar.
If you fancy yourself as the next Tania Kernaghan or John Williamson, Tamworth has four recording studios where you can put your voice on CD for all the world to hear.
BUT there is more to Tamworth than golden guitars and singing stars. In fact, Tamworth was switched on well before country music was even dreamt of.
In 1888, the city's streets were the first in the southern hemisphere to be electrically lit. The Power Station Museum tells the story of the development of electric street lighting and the changeover from gas. It also has one of the biggest arrays of electrical appliances ever assembled.
Today, wonderfully ornate street lamps line the Peel St Mall in the city centre.
This is the vibrant heart of Tamworth and any given day sees bustling crowds enjoying the relaxed atmosphere shopping or unwinding at one of the many sidewalk cafes and restaurants.
The mall is dominated by the grand post office, completed in 1888. Complementing it is a series of historic buildings that have become important stops on Tamworth's Heritage Walk.
Each point on this two-hour tour is designed to showcase the development of one of Australia's oldest cities, first settled in 1827.
Among them are some of Tamworth's superb parks and gardens, including Bicentennial Park and Anzac Park. Not surprisingly, Bicentennial Park features tributes to songwriters and singers, this time in stone and bronze, not wax or concrete.
CALALA Cottage was built in 1875 and is now part of a group of restored historic buildings. Munro's Mill (1863) was the region's first commercial flour mill but now is one of the largest antique dealerships outside Sydney, specialising in Victorian, Edwardian and colonial antique pieces.
Throughout the year Tamworth City Gallery presents a continuous program of exhibitions that underscore Tamworth's cultural diversity. These include touring shows from major public galleries, group exhibitions and workshops. European paintings, Australian landscapes and contemporary tapestries and fibre art feature prominently.
At the foot of the mountains behind the city, Oxley Marsupial Park is the ideal place for a family picnic. Plenty of kangaroos, emus and tame peacocks roam the grounds of this free park, which is open every day.
Up higher, Oxley Lookout affords the best view of the city and the surrounding landscape made famous by the rich and growing legacy of artists and the crowds that descend upon the city each year in droves to see them.
FOR two weeks up to the Australia Day long weekend, the population of Tamworth doubles for the Country Music Festival.
By day, country music lovers soak up the atmosphere at the many venues throughout the city and buskers converge on Peel St in the hope of being seen and earning a few dollars for their trouble.
At night the best of Australian talent is on show at the festival, which launched the careers of our country music stars. With about 1000 events and performances, there is a wealth of entertainment to choose from, culminating on the night of nights when those Golden Guitars are handed out.
WAY TO GO
Tamworth is 390km north-west of Sydney via the New England Highway.
With a population of 30,000, Tamworth is the largest city in the region and is well serviced with five daily flights to Sydney on Tamair, daily flights to Brisbane on Impulse and daily rail connections to Sydney.
Attractions
Gallery Of Stars Wax Museum is open daily and costs $4. Entry to the Heritage Hall, near Tamworth Shopping World, is $5.
Admission to the Winners Walkway, Hands Of Fame, Oxley Marsupial Park and Powerstation Museum is free.
Information
Tamworth Visitors Information Centre, cnr Peel & Murray Sts, Tamworth NSW 2340. Ph (02)67554300
Accommodation
Note: Book many months in advance for the Australian Country Music Festival.
Powerhouse Boutique Hotel, Armidale Rd, Tamworth, $116-$121 per double. Ph: 1800028865
Alandale, New England Hwy, Tamworth, $82-$98 per double. Ph: 1800678815
Austin Tourist Park, 581 Armidale Rd, Tamworth, Powered sites $19.50. Ph: (02)67662380
© 2000 Illawarra Mercury
