Walla Walla, New South Wales

Walla Walla had a population of 581 people in 2006 and has the largest Lutheran church in New South Wales. Walla Walla has an elevation of above sea level. In summer Walla Walla has an average high of and a low of , and during winter it has a high of and a low of , although maximum temperatures can reach the mid 40s °C (mid 110s °F) and the area often experiences frosts during winter. Until 2016 it was the home of the Walla Walla Football Club which played as a stand alone team in the Hume Football League until having to merge with Rand & Walbundrie due to lack of players. Walla Walla has many other sports available such as tennis, lawn bowls, croquet, cricket and a local swimming pool. Walla Walla is also the home of St Paul's College, the only Lutheran secondary school in NSW. The school offers an equine program, with many students keeping horses in the adjacent equine centre, as well as agricultural studies. Boarding students are drawn from communities within the Greater Hume Shire, the Riverina, North Eastern Victoria and further afield from the cities of Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne.

The Walla Walla area was home to the Wiradjuri Aboriginal people who inhabited this area for many thousands of years prior to European settlement. During the 1860s the bushranger Dan "Mad Dog" Morgan frequented the area holding up the Round Hill Station at nearby Morven. He also established a lookout at a granite outcrop 6 km north of Walla Walla adjacent to the Walla Walla Station and Billabong Creek. Walla Walla was established in 1869 when 56 settlers of German extraction moved from their home in the Barossa Valley of South Australia in the search for farming land. In all, 56 people made the trek in 14 covered wagons and 2 spring carts, leaving their hometown of Ebenezer in October 1868. This group was led by Father Klemke and it comprised the families of Michael Wenke, Andreas Mickan and Andreas Lieschke; as well as two Klemke families, the Fischer, Terlich and Hennersdorf families and two single men in Ferdinand Schmidt and Wilhelm Luhrs. Ethnically, most of these families belonged to a minority group known as Wends or Sorbs and some had only recently emigrated from the North Eastern German States. The Walla Walla Hotel was opened in the early 20th century by Mr Fredrick Voss, the original publican. At the turn of the twentieth century, Walla Walla was charactered by its close knit community which contributed to its preservation of the German language and the old ways. Although the First World War fostered a sense of nationalism (albeit strongly allied to the British Empire)
this period was a challenging time for the Walla Walla community due to its ethnicity and the political issues of conscription and disenfranchisement from the electoral roll. In all, four local residents, including two Justices of the Peace and members of the Culcairn Shire Council were interned in the Holsworthy Concentration Camp. Tellingly, the honour board at the Walla Walla Soldiers Memorial Hall describes the war as one against 'Prussian Militarism' rather than Germany. In the 1930s the desire of the local community for Christian secondary education led to the establishment of St Paul's College. Mr Werner Hebart, the founding headmaster, was previously a senior master at The Friend's School, Hobart (Tasmania). St Paul's commenced in 1948 with 28 foundation students, including thirteen boarders who resided with local families. St Paul's moved onto its current premises, from its temporary location in Zion church in 1950. and it is most obvious with street names such as Scholz Street, Jacob Wenke Circuit, Klemke Avenue and Hermann Street. Less obviously, this cultural aspect of the town is also seen through the Lutheran influence by way of Zion Lutheran Church and St Paul's College. An account of the journey of the original German settlers, together with artefacts of their journey (including some of the original wagons) is on display in the Jindera Pioneer Museum. Morgans LookoutMorgans Lookout is a white granite outcrop located next to Billabong Creek, which is the longest creek in the Southern hemisphere. Due to its elevation, this local geological feature was used by the bushranger Dan "Mad Dog" Morgan as a lookout for police parties. Local folklore tells of Morgan hiding his horses in deep crevices within the rocks when the police came nearby. Morgans Lookout was also used as a lookout for fires in the late 1800s, a concern that was heightened by the fear of arson due to an industrial dispute between graziers and shearers. Zion Lutheran ChurchThe original Lutheran church was built from white granite in 1872. The present Zion Lutheran Church was built in 1924 and it is the largest Lutheran Church in New South Wales, with seating for almost 600 people. The church is characterised by its stained glass windows and its massive pipe organ. Nearby, the schoolhouse built in 1883 by the Zion congregation This area is home to Aboriginal heritage sites, local flora and fauna, including at least 128 species of birdlife.