Coopernook is a small town in mid-north

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. It is located 24 kilometres north of

Taree Taree () is a city on the Mid North Coast, New South Wales, Australia. It and nearby Cundletown were settled in 1831 by William Wynter. Since then it has grown to a population of 26,381, and commands a significant agricultural district. Situ ...

and 11 kilometres west of Harrington and is administered by

Mid-Coast Council MidCoast Council is a local government area located in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. The council was formed on 12 May 2016 through a merger of the Gloucester Shire, Great Lakes and City of Greater Taree Councils. The ...

. At the 2021 census, Coopernook and the surrounding area had a population of 625 people, while the town itself had 430 inhabitants. It was formerly situated on the Pacific Highway, until 22 March 2006, when the Coopernook Bypass was opened. The old highway crossed the Lansdowne River on a narrow iron girder bridge.

History

The name "Coopernook" means "the elbow" in the local Aboriginal language, Biripi. This name refers to the bend in the Lansdowne River which looks like an elbow of an arm. Early settlers included Calvin, Rose, Eggins, Gillogilly, Longworth, Latham, Towers and Buchanan. A sandstone obelisk erected in 1997 commemorates the combatants in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

Population

In the 2021 Census, there were 430 people in Coopernook. 86.0% of people were born in Australia and 92.3% of people spoke only English at home. The most common responses for religion were No Religion 36.7%, Anglican 23.3% and Catholic 12.1%.

2021 flood

Extreme rainfall on the east coast of Australia beginning on 18 March 2021 led to widespread flooding in

, affecting regions from the

North Coast North Coast or Northcoast may refer to : Antigua and Barbuda * Major Division of North Coast, an urban area and major division in the parish of Saint John * North Coast, Barbuda, an administrative district of Barbuda Australia * New South Wa ...

to the

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

metropolitan area in the south. On 20 March 2021, the Lansdowne River broke its bank and flooded across low-lying areas of Coopernook, cutting the township off completely. The Coopernook Hotel flooded to a level up over the bartop and had to close business for a number of weeks afterwards to refurbish the establishment. Houses around the hotel and all but one along Wharf Road were devastated by the water which entered houses during the night. An evacuation centre was established in the United Church of Coopernook during the natural disaster to assist residents who had to leave their homes. The Australian government declared many parts of the east coast a natural disaster zone after the flooding rains forced 18,000 people to evacuate, in addition to over 1,000 flood rescues. The floods occurred less than 18 months after Australia was affected by the

Black Summer bushfires Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''Psy ...

, impacting many towns still recovering from that disaster.NSW flooding: disaster zones declared as 18,000 people evacuated in Sydney and mid-north coast
by Michael McGowan and Justine Landis-Hanley from The Guardian. 22 March 2021

References

{{authority control Mid North Coast Suburbs of Mid-Coast Council Towns in New South Wales

History

Population

2021 flood

See also

References