Willow Tree, New South Wales

Infobox Australian Place | type = town
name = Willow Tree
state = nsw
caption =
lga = Liverpool Plains Shire Council
county =
postcode = 2339
pop =
poprank =
est = 1870
elevation=
maxtemp =
mintemp =
rainfall =
stategov =
fedgov =
dist1 = 14
location1= Quirindi
dist2 =
location2=

Willow Tree (coord|31|39|S|150|44|E|type:city_region:AU-NSW) is a small village in New South Wales, Australia, in Liverpool Plains Shire. It is located 14 km south of Quirindi near the junction of the Kamilaroi and New England Highways. It is a service centre to the rural areas of Warrah and Mount Parry, and is situated at the north-eastern corner of the enormous Warrah grant which was made out to the Australian Agricultural Company in 1833.

An inn was established on the future townsite, at the junction of the roads north to Quirindi and north-east to Wallabadah in the mid-19th century. It was, however, the arrival of the railway in the 1870s that led to settlement. The village was surveyed when part of the Warrah grant was subdivided and sold in 1908.

Town

Willow Tree is only a small village of about 500 people. The town it's self is small but it extends south west out to the township of Warrah. Its facilities include an IGA shop (including post office) a roadhouse a pub a bowling club and a café with beauty saloon a park with amenities a train station a public and pre-school a multi purpose hall a battery shop and an antique shop. Other points of interest include a police station a bush fire brigade a truck depot, 2 churches, one Anglican and one Roman Catholic and two cemeteries.One cemetery, located on the main road, is the home to five generations of Barwicks, a major family in the area between Willow Tree and Quirindi. Almost all of the old families in the area have either had members marry into the Barwicks, or have been entirely absorbed by the Barwicks.

Transport

Willow Tree is located on the Main North railway line, 375 km from Sydney. The station opened in 1877 as Warrah, and was renamed Willow Tree in 1879. [ [http://www.nswrail.net/locations/show.php?name=NSW:Willow+Tree&line=NSW:main_north:0 Willow Tree Railway Station] . NSWrail.net. Accessed 1 april 2008.] It continues to be served by a daily rail service operated by a Countrylink Xplorer train to and from Sydney and Armidale/Moree.

References