Burragorang or Burragorang Valley is a locality in the Macarthur Region of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, Australia, in Wollondilly Shire. It is home to Lake Burragorang, which is impounded by Warragamba Dam. It is located within the

Blue Mountains National Park The Blue Mountains National Park is a protected national park that is located in the Blue Mountains region of New South Wales, in eastern Australia. The national park is situated approximately west of Sydney, and the park boundary is quite i ...

– specifically the Nattai National Park.

History

In 1827, the town of ''Burragorang'' was established as a mining town and up to the 1960s was a major supplier of coal. Moreover, lead and silver had also been mined in the valley until about 1927. With the boom of Sydney's population after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Warragamba Dam was constructed between 1948 and 1960 on the Warragamba River, inundating the Burragorang Valley, creating Lake Burragorang. Consequently, the town of Burragorang and others like it in the valley were lost under water. The area around Burragorang and

Nattai The Nattai National Park is a protected national park that is located in the Macarthur and Southern Highlands regions of New South Wales, in eastern Australia. It is situated approximately southwest of the Sydney central business district ...

had been home to numerous collieries from the 1920s to the 1990s, such as the Nattai-Bulli, Oakleigh, Wollondlly, Nattai North and Valley collieries. It is estimated 72 million tonnes of coal was mined in the Burragorang-Nattai region. The area also had deposits of

oil shale Oil shale is an organic-rich fine-grained sedimentary rock containing kerogen (a solid mixture of organic chemical compounds) from which liquid hydrocarbons can be produced. In addition to kerogen, general composition of oil shales constitu ...

, and some mining of shale occurred. The ABC programme ''A Drowned Valley'' by ABC Open producer Sean O'Brien documents former residents' memories of living in the valley before its inundation.

Attractions

The Burragorang Valley has some scenic lookouts over the valley and lake. IMG-20200714-WA0027

Etymology

Burragorang is said to derive from the words ''burro'' (meaning ''kangaroo'') or ''booroon'' (''small animal'') and the word ''gang'' (meaning ''to hunt''). Therefore, Burragorang is believed to mean ''place to hunt kangaroo'' or ''place to hunt small animals''.

References

External link

*{{commonscatinline Localities in New South Wales Wollondilly Shire Resumed localities in Australia