Tenterfield information

Tenterfield is a town and Local Government Area (see Tenterfield Shire Council), in New South Wales, Australia. It is located in the New England region of northern New South Wales, at the intersection of the The New England and Bruxner Highways. Tenterfield is a 3 hour drive from Brisbane, 2.5 hours from Byron Bay, 2 hours from Armidale and 10 hours from Sydney. The town sits in a valley astride the Great Dividing Range at an alititude of 880m. At the 2001 census, Tenterfield had a population of 3,172.
Tenterfield's proximity to many regional centres and its position on the route between Sydney and Brisbane led to it being a centre for the promotion of Federation of the Australian states.
Sir Henry Parkes delivered his Federation Speech here in 1889 while en route from Brisbane to Sydney, via the new Main North railway opened to Tenterfield and nearby Wallangarra on the Queensland border in the previous year, connecting Sydney and Brisbane, with a break-of-gauge at Wallangarra. The speech is credited with re-igniting the debate that ultimately leading to Federation on 1 January 1901. The railway was subsequently bypassed by the fully standard gauge North Coast line between Sydney and Brisbane, completed in 1932. The Main North line is now closed north of Armidale. (...) more....

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