MERIMBULA

Merimbula was originally a private village that was established in 1855 by the Twofold Bay Pastoral Association. It built a wharf adjacent to the town in the same year.

Allotments of land went on sale in 1860.

In 1867, Matthew Munn, a Scottish immigrant, turned an existing flour mill into a business producing cornflour which he called “Munn’s Maizena”. This became acclaimed worldwide and his factory became the major employer in the areas until about 1917.

In 1922 his cornflour works were converted into a bacon processing factory.

Meanwhile, Merimbula became an important, regular port of call for vessels operated from Sydney by the Illawarra and South Coast Steam Navigation Company. These services continued until 1952.

By the 1950s, with improvements to the Princes Highway north from Melbourne and south from Sydney, Merimbula had become a popular holiday resort. It now also supports a thriving oyster farming industry that began in the area in the years following World War I.

(A more comprehensive history of Merimbula will supersede the above - hopefully in the not-too-distant future!)