Ben Lomond New South Wales |
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Ben Lomond Church with The Brothers Mountain to the right
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Coordinates | 30°01′S 151°39′E / 30.017°S 151.650°ECoordinates: 30°01′S 151°39′E / 30.017°S 151.650°E |
Population | 436 (2011 census) |
Postcode(s) | 2365 |
Elevation | 1,400 m (4,593 ft) |
Location |
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LGA(s) | Armidale Regional Council |
County | Hardinge |
State electorate(s) | Northern Tablelands |
Federal Division(s) | New England |
Ben Lomond is a village on the Northern Tablelands in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. The village is situated 6 km off the New England Highway between Armidale and Glen Innes. It was located in the Guyra Shire local government area until that council was amalgamated into the Armidale Regional Council on 12 May 2016, with parts of the surrounding district in Glen Innes Severn Shire and Inverell Shire. It is primarily a farming area, with most of the residents involved in sheep, cattle and grain farming.
Ben Lomond Village is at 1,370 m elevation, making it the highest village in northern New South Wales. As such, even though it is located only a few hours' drive from the Queensland border, it receives occasional falls of snow in Winter. Overlooking the village are mountains known as "The Two Brothers", which have a peak elevation of 1,508 metres.
The name Ben Lomond originated from Ben Lomond in Scotland.
In 1848, the Manooan run of 17,000 acres (69 km2) had the Ben Lomond Range as its southern boundary. In the 1860s there was a station named Ben Lomond which had been robbed by Captain Thunderbolt, who frequented the region. The slow climb and timber on the Ben Lomond Range proved an ideal place for the robbery of coaches and travellers.
The Dumaresq to Glen Innes section of the Main North railway Line, which included Ben Lomond, opened on 19 August 1884. At 1,363 metres (4,472 ft), Ben Lomond railway station was the highest railway station in New South Wales until the Skitube opened in 1987. Ben Lomond railway station closed on 10 December 1985, followed by the Dumaresq-Glen Innes section on 3 October 1993.