Casino (Bundjalungic:Djanangmum) is a town in theNorthern Rivers area ofNew South Wales, Australia, with a population of 12,298 people at the2021 census.[1] It lies on the banks of theRichmond River and is situated at the junction of theBruxner Highway and theSummerland Way.
| Casino New South Wales | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Walker Street shopping precinct in Casino | |||||||||
  Casino | |||||||||
| Coordinates | 28°52′0″S153°03′0″E / 28.86667°S 153.05000°E /-28.86667; 153.05000 | ||||||||
| Population | 9,968 (2021 census)[1] | ||||||||
| Postcode(s) | 2470 | ||||||||
| Elevation | 26 m (85 ft)[2] | ||||||||
| Location | |||||||||
| LGA(s) | Richmond Valley Council | ||||||||
| State electorate(s) | Clarence | ||||||||
| Federal division(s) | Page | ||||||||
| |||||||||
It is located 726 km (451 mi) north ofSydney and 228 km (142 mi) south ofBrisbane.
Overview
editCasino is the seat of theRichmond Valley Council, alocal government area.
Settlement of the area began in 1840 whenpastoral squatters George Robert Stapleton and his business partner, Mr. Clay, set up a cattle station which they initially called Cassino afterCassino (nearMonte Cassino) in Italy.[3][4][5] The town now has asister city agreement with the Italian village.[6][7]
Casino is among Australia's largest beef centres. It is the regional hub of a very largecattle industry and positions itself as the "Beef Capital" of Australia,[8][9] although the city ofRockhampton also claims this title. In addition it is the service centre for a rich agricultural area.
Each year the town celebrates Casino Beef Week. It was not held in 2007 but since that year, has continued to be held and celebrated with the exception of 2020. The 2024 event took place from 18 to 26 May.[10]
The Richmond River runs through the town separating South Casino from the rest of the town.
Climate
editCasino experiences ahumid subtropical climate (Köppen:Cfa,Trewartha:Cfal), with hot, humid summers and mild, relatively dry winters.[11]
| Climate data for Casino Airport AWS (28º53'S, 153º04'E, 21 m AMSL) (1995–2024 normals and extremes) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 43.2 (109.8) | 45.7 (114.3) | 39.6 (103.3) | 34.3 (93.7) | 31.8 (89.2) | 31.0 (87.8) | 28.8 (83.8) | 36.5 (97.7) | 40.2 (104.4) | 40.7 (105.3) | 44.1 (111.4) | 42.5 (108.5) | 45.7 (114.3) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 30.6 (87.1) | 29.8 (85.6) | 28.4 (83.1) | 26.0 (78.8) | 23.1 (73.6) | 20.8 (69.4) | 20.8 (69.4) | 22.7 (72.9) | 25.8 (78.4) | 27.6 (81.7) | 29.0 (84.2) | 30.2 (86.4) | 26.2 (79.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 19.1 (66.4) | 18.9 (66.0) | 17.7 (63.9) | 14.1 (57.4) | 10.6 (51.1) | 8.2 (46.8) | 6.6 (43.9) | 7.1 (44.8) | 10.3 (50.5) | 13.4 (56.1) | 15.8 (60.4) | 17.8 (64.0) | 13.3 (55.9) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 11.4 (52.5) | 11.0 (51.8) | 9.0 (48.2) | 4.4 (39.9) | 0.6 (33.1) | −0.7 (30.7) | −2.2 (28.0) | −3.5 (25.7) | −1.1 (30.0) | 4.3 (39.7) | 6.0 (42.8) | 9.0 (48.2) | −3.5 (25.7) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 128.0 (5.04) | 156.3 (6.15) | 144.5 (5.69) | 66.8 (2.63) | 80.6 (3.17) | 70.5 (2.78) | 32.2 (1.27) | 40.9 (1.61) | 33.8 (1.33) | 68.0 (2.68) | 104.5 (4.11) | 131.1 (5.16) | 1,060.1 (41.74) |
| Average rainy days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 9.2 | 9.9 | 11.5 | 8.4 | 7.4 | 6.2 | 4.8 | 4.3 | 4.7 | 7.2 | 8.7 | 9.7 | 92 |
| Average afternoonrelative humidity (%) | 54 | 58 | 57 | 53 | 54 | 53 | 46 | 41 | 41 | 44 | 50 | 50 | 50 |
| Averagedew point °C (°F) | 17.8 (64.0) | 18.3 (64.9) | 16.8 (62.2) | 14.5 (58.1) | 11.2 (52.2) | 9.1 (48.4) | 6.6 (43.9) | 6.1 (43.0) | 8.8 (47.8) | 11.2 (52.2) | 14.2 (57.6) | 16.2 (61.2) | 12.6 (54.6) |
| Source:Bureau of Meteorology (1995-2024 normals and extremes)[12] | |||||||||||||
Demographics
edit| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1921 | 3,455 | — |
| 1933 | 5,287 | +53.0% |
| 1947 | 6,698 | +26.7% |
| 1954 | 7,844 | +17.1% |
| 1961 | 8,091 | +3.1% |
| 1966 | 8,507 | +5.1% |
| 1971 | 9,064 | +6.5% |
| 1976 | 9,456 | +4.3% |
| 1981 | 9,743 | +3.0% |
| 1986 | 10,067 | +3.3% |
| 1991 | 10,164 | +1.0% |
| 1996 | 9,990 | −1.7% |
| 2001 | 9,150 | −8.4% |
| 2006 | 9,400 | +2.7% |
| 2011 | 9,629 | +2.4% |
| 2016 | 9,982 | +3.7% |
| 2021 | 9,968 | −0.1% |
| Source:Australian Bureau of Statistics data.[13][14] | ||
According to the2021 census of Population, there were 9,968 people in Casino.
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 11.5% of the population.
- 84.2% of people were born in Australia. The next most common country of birth was England at 1.5%.
- 87.5% of people spoke only English at home.
- The most common responses for religion were No Religion 32.6%, Catholic 20.9% and Anglican 17.8%.[1]
Transport
editCasino railway station is situated on the mainNorth Coast railway line betweenSydney andBrisbane, north ofGrafton. A branch line ran viaLismore toMurwillumbah; that line has since been closed, although lobbying is taking place to re-open it.[15][16] Casino railway station is the terminus of the daily Casino XPT from Sydney and there is a daily service to and from Brisbane via the Brisbane XPT.
In the 1920s, a never completed railway branch line toBonalbo was started. A line was also proposed from Casino via Tabulam[17] and even a line all the way to Tenterfield.[18]
A Miniature Railway is situated next to the Casino Golf Club. The railway operates on Sundays between 10am and 4pm on a 2.5 km stretch of track, with a museum at the end. A round trip is usually 25 minutes however on busier days it can vary.
Casino was serviced byLismore Airport with several daily flights to Sydney until Rex Airlines discontinued its service between Sydney and Lismore, ending its longstanding operation with the final flight operating in June 2022.[19]
Northern Rivers Buslines operates rural services to Lismore (670) and Kyogle (675) each weekday, with one return service to Tenterfield available on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Casino Bus Service operates local town loops, including a loop service to Gays Hill.
Education
edit- Casino High School
- Casino Public School
- Casino West Public School
- St. Mary's Primary School
- St. Mary's Catholic College School
- Casino Christian Community School
Heritage listings
editCasino has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
- 102 Barker Street:Casino Post Office[20]
- Casino-Murwillumbah railway:Old Casino railway station[21]
- North Coast railway:Casino railway station[22]
Location for filming
editThe 2014 drama seriesThe Gods of Wheat Street was set and partly filmed in Casino.
A 2018Coca-Cola television advertisement was filmed at the Richmond Dairies factory on Dyraaba Street and a general store on the corner of Colches Street and Barker Street.
Notable people
edit- Ian Callinan (born 1937), High Court judge
- Stan Coster (1930−1997), singer-songwriter
- Guy Creighton (born 1949), equestrian
- Pat Darling (1913−2007), nurse and author
- John Elford (1947−2024), rugby league player
- Keith Ellis (1927−1989), rugby union player
- Jeff Fatt (born 1953), musician and actor, one ofThe Wiggles
- Eric Ferguson (born 1955), rugby league player
- Doug Ford (born 1945), musician
- Thomas George (born 1949), politician
- Tony Glynn (1926−1994), missionary priest
- Neil Hancock (born 1976) , cricketer
- Paul Henderson (born 1971), sprinter
- Clark Irving (1808−1865), early settler (pastoralist) and politician[23]
- Ben Kennedy (born 1974), rugby league player
- Matt King (born 1980), rugby league player
- Katie Kelly (born 1975), paratriathlete
- Tess Mallos (1933−2012), food journalist and author
- Jordan Martin (born 2000), rugby league player
- Mark McGowan (born 1967), politician
- Chris Munce (born 1969), horse racingjockey
- Mark Pearson (born 1959), politician
- Brian Pezzutti (born 1947), politician and army officer
- Beverley Raphael (1934−2018) , psychiatrist
- Michael Robotham (born 1960), crime novelist
- Justin Rowsell (born 1971), boxer
- David Russell, (born 1982), racing driver
- Doug Shedden (1937−2020), politician
- Paul Stenhouse, (1935−2019), priest
- Douglas G. Stuart (1931−2019), neuroscientist
- Albert Torrens (born 1976), rugby league player
- Cody Walker (born 1990), rugby league player
- Henry Wallace Browning (born 1928), lawn bowler, IBD World Champion 2007 Guinness World Record 2008
- Damien Wright (born 1975), cricket player
- Clive Andrew Williams (1915−1980), Aboriginal activist
- Richard Zann (1944−2009), ornithologist
See also
edit- The song "I've Been Everywhere" references Casino in its second verse.
- List of never used railways
References
edit- ^abcAustralian Bureau of Statistics (28 June 2022)."Casino (Urban Centre/Locality)".2021 Census QuickStats. Retrieved23 January 2024.
Material was copied from this source, which is available under aCreative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. - ^"Casino".Climate Averages for Australian Sites.Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved24 November 2006.
- ^"Early Bay History".The Richmond River Herald And Northern Districts Advertiser. New South Wales, Australia. 19 November 1937. p. 7. Retrieved12 October 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^"Casino".Geographical Names Register (GNR) of NSW.Geographical Names Board of New South Wales.
- ^"Place Names".The Australian Women's Weekly. 13 May 1964. p. 61. Retrieved22 February 2011 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^"Minutes Ordinary Meeting"(PDF).Richmond Valley Council. 16 July 2002. p. 32. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 22 July 2005. Retrieved7 August 2008.
- ^"Minutes Ordinary Meeting"(PDF). Richmond Valley Council. 18 March 2003. p. 42. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 22 July 2005. Retrieved7 August 2008.
- ^George, Thomas (30 May 2000)."Northern Star Casino Beef Week 2000".Hansard.Parliament of New South Wales. Archived fromthe original on 10 September 2007. Retrieved10 August 2008.
I speak about Casino, the true beef capital of Australia
- ^"Casino Tourism". Casino Tourist Information Centre. Retrieved10 August 2008.
- ^Beef Week Beef Week
- ^"Casino climate: Average Temperature, weather by month, Casino weather averages - Climate-Data.org".en.climate-data.org. Retrieved7 May 2022.
- ^"Casino Airport Climate Statistics".Bureau of Meteorology. Retrieved23 June 2024.
- ^"Statistics by Catalogue Number". Australian Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved23 January 2024.
- ^"Search Census data". Australian Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved23 January 2024.
- ^"No plans to reopen line".Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived fromthe original on 9 November 2012. Retrieved25 May 2009.
- ^"State Nationals member lobbies to reopen line". Retrieved25 May 2009.
- ^"COUNTRY NEWS".Daily Mail. No. 5393. Brisbane. 2 January 1920. p. 2. Retrieved1 April 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^"Casino-Tenterfield Railway".The Richmond River Express and Casino Kyogle Advertiser. New South Wales. 17 December 1920. p. 4. Retrieved1 April 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^"Rex cuts five regional routes, two more under review - Executive Traveller".www.executivetraveller.com. 30 May 2022. Retrieved6 August 2024.
- ^"Casino Post Office".New South Wales State Heritage Register.Department of Planning & Environment. H01405. Retrieved18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) underCC BY 4.0licence.
- ^"Old Casino Railway Station".New South Wales State Heritage Register.Department of Planning & Environment. H01216. Retrieved18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) underCC BY 4.0licence.
- ^"Casino Railway Station and yard group".New South Wales State Heritage Register.Department of Planning & Environment. H01111. Retrieved18 May 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) underCC BY 4.0licence.
- ^Daley, Louise (1972)."Clark Irving (1808–1865)".Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 4. Canberra: National Centre of Biography,Australian National University.ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7.ISSN 1833-7538.OCLC 70677943. Retrieved7 March 2025.
External links
edit
| Preceding station |  NSW TrainLink | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kyogle towardsBrisbane | NSW TrainLink North Coast Line Brisbane XPT | Grafton towardsSydney | ||
| Terminus | NSW TrainLink North Coast Line Casino XPT | |||