Batemans Bay, New South Wales

Infobox Australian Place
type = town
name = Batemans Bay
state = nsw


imagesize = 270
caption = Location of Batemans Bay in New South Wales (red)
pop = 10,845
pop_footnotes = Census 2006 AUS|id=UCL105400|name=Batemans Bay (Urban Centre/Locality)|quick=on|accessdate=2007-11-20]
poprank =
density =
density_footnotes =
est = 1885
postcode = 2536
coordinates = coord|35|42|S|150|11|E|type:town_region:AU-NSW|display=inline,title
elevation =
elevation_footnotes=
area =
area_footnotes =
timezone = AEST
utc = +10
timezone-dst = AEDT
utc-dst = +11
propval =
mayor =
dist1 = 280
dir1 = SSW
location1 = Sydney
dist2 = 762
dir2 = ENE
location2 = Melbourne
dist3 = 151
dir3 = ESE
location3 = Canberra
lga = Eurobodalla Shire
region = South Coast
county =
parish =
stategov = Bega
fedgov = Gilmore
maxtemp = 24.1
mintemp = 5.9
rainfall = 956.8
near-n =
near-ne =
near-e =
near-se =
near-s =
near-sw =
near-w =
near-nw =

Batemans Bay is a town and a bay in the South Coast region of the state of New South Wales, Australia. Batemans Bay is administered by the Eurobodalla Shire council. The town is located on the Princes Highway (Highway 1) about convert|280|km|mi|lk=on from Sydney, convert|760|km|mi|abbr=on from Melbourne and convert|151|km|mi|abbr=on from Canberra via the Kings Highway. At the 2006 census it had a population of 10,845. The Clyde River empties here into the Tasman Sea.

It is the closest seaside town to the city of Canberra, making Batemans Bay a popular holiday destination for residents of Australia's national capital. It is also a popular retiree haven, but has begun to attract young families seeking affordable housing and a relaxed seaside lifestyle. Other local industries include a sawmill, oyster farming, forestry, eco-tourism and retail services.

History

Captain Cook named the bay on 22nd April 1770 after Nathaniel Bateman. Nathaniel Bateman was Captain of Lord Colvill's ship HMS "Northumberland" (the 3rd ship of that name), at the time when Captain Cook was serving as her master from 1760-62.

Indigenous Australians in the area attacked the crew of the ship the "Fly",a colonial vessel, in 1808 after being driven into Bateman's Bay by bad weather [cite book | last = Mann | first = David Dickenson | authorlink = | title = The Present Picture of New South Wales | origyear = 1811 | url = http://www.gutenberg.org/files/15533/15533.txt |format = text | accessdate = 2008-02-29 | edition = | date = 2005 | publisher = Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation | location = London | pages = | chapter = Chapter II ]

In 1821 Robert Johnson entered the bay and explored the lower reaches of the Clyde River on board the cutter "Snapper". cite web | last = Moore | first = Dennis | year = 2002 | url = http://www.southcoast.com.au/batemansbay/bassinlet/index.html | title = The Inlet That Eluded Bass, Batemans Bay - South Coast NSW | publisher = Morningside Internet | accessdate = 2006-06-14] Snapper Island within the bay is named after Johnson's boat. Johnson returned with Alexander Berry and Hamilton Hume and they traced the river to its source.

When the district was surveyed in 1828, a deserted hut and stockyards were found. Cedar getters and land clearers were in the district in the 1820s. From the 1820s through to the 1840s, the area to the Moruya River was the southernmost official "limit of location" for the colony of New South Wales.

The Illawarra and South Coast Steam Navigation Co found the Clyde River to be navigable in 1854. Regular services by the company in the 1860s and 1870s contributed to growth of the district.

The village of Batemans Bay was surveyed in 1859. Oyster farming commenced in 1860. By 1870, there was a fleet of 40 oyster boats. A sawmill was erected in 1870. The port was proclaimed in 1885. A ferry service across the Clyde ran from 1891 until the bridge was opened in 1956.

In 1942 during World War II, a trawler was attacked by a Japanese submarine between Batemans Bay and Moruya.

The population of the town in 1881 was 266; 1183 in 1961; 4924 in 1981 and 16000 in 2005. Fact|date=May 2008

Facilities

The majority of shops with the local town are aimed mainly at the tourist industry. Stockland Batemans Bay is the largest shopping complex in the town. During the major holidays the population swells to around 30,000. Fact|date=May 2008

Batemans Bay is home to the Catalina Country Club golf course, a 27-hole layout consisting of 3 nine-hole loops.

Climate

The climate of Bateman's Bay is moderated by the sea, with warm summers and mild sunny winters. Nights can be cold in winter. Thunderstorms can occur between November and March, with rainfall maximums in summer. A colder than average winter has been seen in Batemans Bay as of late.

Radio Stations

*East Coast Radio 2EC (commercial)
*POWERFM NSW South Coast (commercial)
*Eurobodalla Community Radio
*ABC South-East
*Radio National
*ABC Classic FM
*Triple J - (from the adjacent Illawarra region). A local service from Mt. Wandera is planned, subject to the clearance of local analogue television stations.

References

* [http://www.gutenberg.org/files/15533/15533-h/15533-h.htm The Project Gutenberg EBook of "The Present Picture of New South Wales" (1811), by David Dickinson Mann]
* [http://www.ffp.csiro.au/nfm/mdp/bbproj/intro2.htm CSIRO information about the Batemans Bay region]
*cite web
author=John Robson
year=2005
url=http://pages.quicksilver.net.nz/jcr/eaglepeople
title=People associated with Cook in the Royal Navy between 1755 and 1762 (includes Nathaniel Bateman)
format=
work=
publisher=John Robson
accessdate=2006-01-25
accessyear=

External links

* [http://www.southcoastsecrets.com.au/BatemansBay/BatemansBayNSW2536.cfm South Coast Secrets - Batemans Bay]