Names
Australian Placenames of German Background
Empire Vale / German Creek, NSW
The post office at Empire Vale, in northern NSW
The Empire Vale area, on the bank of the Richmond River, located about 830 km north of Sydney, and not far from Ballina, was originally called Pimlico. A school was established there in 1878, and in 1895 the name was changed to German Creek, due to the number of Germans living there. German Creek was already the name of the creek that flows into the Richmond River near the school.
This envelope, posted in 1897, shows the postmark of German Creek, NSW.
Image courtesy of 21st Century Auctions, <www.21stcenturyauctions.com.au>
During World War I everything German was out of favour, and the German Creek Post Office was renamed Empire Vale P.O. on 1/5/1915.
A gravestone in the Wardell Cemetery, 10 km from Empire Vale, bears witness to the time when the place was called German Creek. Thomas Cordwell died on 1/01/1899.
The inscription on this gravestone at Wardell Cemetery includes the name German Creek.
Empire Vale Public School is still operating in the 21st century.
◀ Placenames in New South Wales...
♦ References:
Richmond-Tweed Regional Library. & Richmond River Historical Society. (1983). Place names of the Richmond region. Lismore [N.S.W.] : Richmond-Tweed Regional Library. p.22
A publication presenting the schools of the Ballina Inspectorate during Education Week, 1959 - and their origins.