Cobar

The Cobar area is part of the traditional territory of the Wongaibon people (within the Ngiyampaa language group associated with the arid plains and rocky hill country of the Central West area of NSW bordered by the Lachlan, Darling-Barwon and Bogan rivers). The name ‘Cobar’ is derived from a Ngiyampaa word – variously transcribed as kubbur, kuparr, gubarr or cuburra – for a water-hole and quarry where pigments of ochre, kaolin and blue and green copper minerals were mined for ceremonial use.{{cite web|url= http://www.celticcouncil.org.au/cornish/nsw/Towns%20A-C/COBGIL/kubbur.htm |title= Cobar Founding Fathers: Excepts from the book of this title by William Clelland |website= Celtic Council of Australia |publisher= CCA Inc. |access-date=2 April 2021 }}{{cite report |author=EMM Sydney (for Peak Gold Mines Pty Ltd) |date=December 2020 |title= New Cobar Complex Project State Significant Development (SSD-10419): Statement of Heritage Impact |publisher=EMM Consulting Pty Ltd|id=J190278 RP13 |url= https://majorprojects.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/prweb/PRRestService/mp/01/getContent?AttachRef=SSD-10419%2120210212T073544.189%20GMT |access-date=2 April 2021}} Other sources claim the Aboriginal word means ‘red earth’ or ‘burnt earth’ (the ochre used for ceremonial body paint).{{cite book |last=Donaldson |first=Tamsin |chapter=Ngiyampaa |title=Macquarie Aboriginal Words |location=Sydney |publisher=Macquarie Library |page=38}}{{cite book |last=Reed |first= A.W |title=Aboriginal Place Names |location=Sydney 1967 |publisher=Reed New Holland |page=26}}

The Mount Grenfell Historic Site located north-west of Cobar is an important traditional meeting place with ceremonial significance. Extensive rock art at the site contains ochre and kaolin paintings of human and animal figures as well as hand stencils.{{cite web|url= https://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/visit-a-park/parks/mount-grenfell-historic-site/learn-more |title= Learn more about why this park is special |website= Mount Grenfell Historic Site |publisher= NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service |access-date=2 April 2021 }}

To the pastoralists who had taken up runs along the Darling River during the 1850s the Cobar area was a waterless region between rivers. As pastoral stations became more established, tanks and wells were constructed to allow stock to be grazed in areas away from permanent watercourses (known as ‘back stations). By the mid-1860s back stations such as ‘Booroomugga’ and ‘Buckwaroon’ had been established in the Cobar locality (within the Warrego Pastoral District).[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/225253193/12590297 Accepted Tenders for Runs], New South Wales Government Gazette, 27 October 1865 (Issue No. 229), page 229.

Image:Cobar mining.jpg

In September 1870 three contract well-sinkers, Charles Campbell, Thomas Hartman and George Gibb, were traveling south from Bourke to the Lachlan River. They had engaged two Aboriginal men, Frank and Boney, to guide them via the permanent watering places in the dry country between the rivers. Along the way they camped beside the Kubbur waterhole. The men noted the green and blue staining at the waterhole and collected some rock samples. On their journey further south the well-sinkers stopped at a shanty operated by Henry Kruge (near to the future site of Gilgunnia). Kruge’s wife, Sidwell, was from Cornwall and her family had emigrated to South Australia in the late-1840s and mined copper ore at Burra. She was able to identify the rock as containing copper. Sidwell Kruge's assessment was confirmed when her husband smelted some of the ore samples in his blacksmith's forge. The three men then returned to Bourke, intending to secure the ground around the Kubbur waterhole.{{cite book |last=Burgess |first=Neville |date=2006 |title=The Great Cobar |publisher= The Great Cobar Heritage Centre|location=Cobar |isbn=0646457969}}

File:Great Cobar Copper Mining Syndicate's Refinery, Lithgow.jpg

In partnership with Bourke businessman Joseph Becker, Campbell, Hartman and Gibb took up a mineral conditional purchase of 40 acres at the locality. Shortly afterwards the Cobar Copper Mining Company was formed, and the lease of the mine was transferred to the company.[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/70615038 The Late Mr. Joseph Becker], Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney), 27 April 1878, page 13. In May 1871 it was reported that there had been “a call for tenders for drawing in copper ore from Cobar”.[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/18754313 Bourke], Maitland Mercury and Hunter River General Advertiser, 25 May 1871, page 3. In July 1871 a meeting was held in Bourke “of gentlemen interested in the Cobar copper mine” and shares were “eagerly bought at £15 per share”.[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/18755609 Bourke], Maitland Mercury and Hunter River General Advertiser, 13 July 1871, page 4. By the following November it was reported that “the affairs of the Cobar Copper Mine Company are in a flourishing condition, shares having rushed up from £15 to £70 and £80 per share”.[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/245695545 Notes from Fort Bourke], The Herald (Melbourne), 30 November 1871, page 3.

In December 1871 a correspondent visited “the new Cobar copper mine” in company with Captain Lean, the newly-appointed mining manager. The mine had been in operation for the previous four months. It was situated “on a Pine ridge, and throughout the whole length of the ridge (about half-a-mile) indications of ore are apparent”. The ore was varied, “consisting of blue and red carbonate, red and black oxide, and is of very high quality”. The writer was of the opinion the Cobar mine “promises to be one of the richest copper mines Australia has yet produced”.[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/28415354 New Copper Mine], Sydney Morning Herald, 13 December 1871, page 6.

The South Cobar Mining Company built a furnace at Cobar and in May 1875 commenced smelting operations. Soon afterwards two additional furnaces and a refinery were built. In December 1875 the Cobar Copper Mining Company amalgamated with the South Cobar Mining Company to form the Great Cobar Copper Mining Company Ltd.[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/43002311 Mining Intelligence], South Australian Register (Adelaide), 18 May 1876, page 7. It and subsequent companies operated a number of light railwaysShoebridge, J.W. The Railways of The Great Cobar, Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, September 1969 pp. 189-218 carrying ore and similar material, as well as timber for mine supports. Cobar and many mining outskirts accommodated the miners who travelled to the area in the late 1880s. The overwhelming majority of these were of Cornish Australian stock at the time.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wgoFxfSTfYAC&q=australia+first+fleet+cornwall&pg=PA227|title=The Australian People: An Encyclopedia of the Nation, Its People and Their Origins|first1=James|last1=Jupp|first2=Director Centre for Immigration and Multicultural Studies James|last2=Jupp|date=1 October 2001|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9780521807890|access-date=15 September 2018|via=Google Books|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181028123143/https://books.google.com/books?id=wgoFxfSTfYAC&pg=PA227&lpg=PA227&dq=australia+first+fleet+cornwall&source=bl&ots=pQ8ZsDZmGb&sig=TfiFNvZO2PtZBgpAQUgjeTEuoqw&hl=en&ei=-YAHTYaRHsKYhQfXyLnuBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&sqi=2&ved=0CBoQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=australia+first+fleet+cornwall&f=false|archive-date=28 October 2018|url-status=live}}

Although Cobar is best known as a copper mining area, it has also been a significant goldfield. The first significant gold producing mine at Cobar was the Chesney Mine. The New Occidental Mine is regarded as having been the most productive gold mine in New South Wales. Gold was also produced by refining the copper smelted from copper ores, this was first done in the Great Cobar electrolytic copper refinery at Lithgow.{{Cite web|date=February 2007|title=PRIMEFACT (No. 555) - Cobar's mining history|url=http://www.resourcesandenergy.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/109192/cobars-mining-history.pdf|url-status=live|publisher=N.S.W. Department of Primary Industry|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140623081920/http://www.resourcesandenergy.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/109192/cobars-mining-history.pdf |archive-date=23 June 2014 }}

In March 1881 the settlement at Cobar was described as “large and scattered, as mining towns generally are, composed chiefly of huts and cottages, which lie about in all directions and cover an extensive area of ground”. The population was estimated to number 2,500 consisting “principally of miners and their families”. The township was “divided into three portions”, described as “the Government Township, the Private Township (or that upon the land taken up by or belonging to the company working the mine), and Cornish Town”, with “the mine and its appurtenances in the centre”. Most of the houses, places of business and public buildings were located in the Private Township. In the surveyed Government Township there were “very few houses indeed”. Cornish Town was described as “pretty thickly populated”. The “want of water” was described as “the great drawback to the comfort of the inhabitants of Cobar” and on a number of occasions “the people have been upon the verge of a water famine”. Government-constructed tanks relying on rainfall was the principal means of household supply and the watering of stock, supplemented by “small tanks sunk in the ground” beside many of the houses.[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/13485295 The Industries of the Colony: XXXII. – Cobar and Its Copper Mine], Sydney Morning Herald, 10 March 1881, page 7.

A description of Cobar published in April 1888 noted that “the houses generally are substantially built; many of them being of brick”, with a number of “weather-board and iron buildings and some adobe or clay houses” scattered throughout the town. The courthouse was described as “a handsome brick structure in Barton-street” with a gaol next to it. The township had nine hotels, “the principal ones being the Cobar and the Commercial”, and two banks, “the Commercial and the Joint Stock”. The writer was of the opinion that “Cobar owes its existence as a town largely to the Great Cobar Copper Mine, although the pastoral properties have also contributed in a great measure to make it a fairly prosperous inland settlement”.[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/71096861/5096392 In the Cobar District], Australian Town and Country Journal, 28 April 1888, page 30.

Several fine heritage buildings from the late 1880s/early 1900s settlement are still in existence, including the Great Western Hotel (1898), claimed to have the longest verandah (at 91 metres) in New South Wales,{{Cite NSW HD|1350061|Great Western Hotel|access-date=14 April 2019}} the Cobar Post Office (1885), the Cobar Court House (1887) and Court House Hotel (1895) in Barton Street, as well as the Cobar Heritage and Visitor Information Centre, located in the former Mines Office (1910). On Hillston Road southeast out of town is Fort Bourke Hill, which affords a view of the town, as well as the historic Towser's Huts, a series of stone miners' cottages dating back as early as the 1890s, possibly even the 1870s, and built by an Italian miner by the name of Antonio Tozzi.

At its peak, Cobar had a population of 10,000. It also became the regional centre for nearby mining villages, such as Elouera, Illewong, Wrightville, Dapville, and The Peak, and some further away such as Canbelego, Mount Drysdale, Nymagee and Shuttleton. However, mining operations in the area had virtually ceased by the early 1920s. In March 1919, the vast Great Cobar mine, Cobar's main employer, closed.{{Cite news |date=1919-03-19 |title=COBAR THREATENED WITH EXTINCTION. |pages=17 |work=Sydney Mail |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article159656796 |access-date=2023-01-04}} The Chesney Mine had used the Great Cobar's smelters, and it too closed in March 1919.{{Cite journal |last=McKillop |first=Bob |date=October 2004 |title=Mining Railways of Cobar - 7. Other Mines, 1871-1922 |url=http://media.lrrsa.org.au/code179/Light_Railways_179.pdf |journal=Light Railways |publisher=Light Railway Research Society of Australia Inc. |issue=179 |pages=4, 5, 6}} Then came the unexpected closure, due to an underground fire, of the C.S.A. Mine, located to the north of the Cobar township, at Elouera, in March 1920.{{Cite news |date=1920-07-16 |title=FIRE IN C.S.A. MINE. |pages=9 |work=Sydney Morning Herald |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article15898051 |access-date=2023-01-16}} The Gladstone Mine, at Wrightville closed, around May 1920, because it was reliant upon the copper smelters at the CSA Mine, which closed at that time.{{Cite news |date=1920-04-22 |title=N.S.W. MINING NEWS. |pages=20 |work=Australian Worker |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article146174775 |access-date=2023-01-17}}{{Cite news |date=1920-08-27 |title=Mining News. |pages=2 |work=Western Age |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article136903134 |access-date=2023-01-17}} The Occidental gold mine, at Wrightville, closed in July 1921.{{Cite news |date=1921-07-29 |title=The Occidental Gold Mine. |pages=3 |work=Western Age |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article137166648 |access-date=2023-01-04}}{{Cite news |date=1921-08-18 |title=NEW SOUTH WALES MINING NEWS. |pages=14 |work=Australian Worker |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article145774553 |access-date=2023-01-04}}{{Cite news |date=1921-09-05 |title=OCCIDENTAL CONSOLIDATED, N.L. |pages=11 |work=Sydney Morning Herald |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article15961536 |access-date=2023-01-04}} Last, in September 1921, hard rock mining ceased at the Mount Boppy Gold Mine, further away at Canbelego,{{Cite news |date=1921-09-06 |title=TOWNSHIP DOOMED |work=Daily Telegraph (Sydney) |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article239703553 |access-date=2023-08-31}} and the remaining surface operations closed during 1922. In less than four years, all the major mines in the Cobar region had closed. The town was saved by the reopening of the old Occidental gold mine, in 1933, thereafter known as the New Occidental mine,{{Cite news |date=1935-08-08 |title=COBAR GOLD MINE REOPENED |pages=15 |work=Courier-Mail |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article36768989 |access-date=2023-01-23}} and the Chesney Mine in 1937.{{Cite news |date=1937-05-18 |title=New Occidental's Chesney Mine |pages=4 |work=Sun |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article229410110 |access-date=2023-01-04}} These mines both closed in 1952.{{Cite news |date=1952-10-13 |title=NEW OCCIDENTAL MINE AT COBAR TO CLOSE |pages=1 |work=Barrier Daily Truth |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article141446347 |access-date=2023-01-04}}{{Cite news |date=1953-09-29 |title=New Occidental Loss |pages=7 |work=Kalgoorlie Miner|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article256941677 |access-date=2023-01-04}}

By the 1930s the town's population had dropped to little over 1,000, only to rise again and stabilise at around 3,500 through the 1970s and early 1980s. Copper mining was intermittent until 1965 when full-time operations resumed.{{cite web|url=http://www.csamine.com.au/about-us/|title=About Us - CSA|website=www.csamine.com.au|access-date=15 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180330055024/http://www.csamine.com.au/about-us/|archive-date=30 March 2018|url-status=live}} In the 1980s, gold, silver, lead and zinc were discovered in the area, which led to a further population increase. The town's current positive economic development is due to the affluence of the mining boom. Three important mining belts are operational in the Cobar area: the Cobar belt, the Canbelego belt and the Girilambone belt. Visits to mine sites may be arranged through the Cobar Heritage and Visitor Information Centre overlooking the open cut mine. The Festival of the Miners' Ghost, held during the last weekend in October, is a festival celebrating the spirits of the old miners.

The area of Cobar also includes the now empty sites of the former villages of Wrightville and Dapville,{{Cite web |title=Map of the village of Dapville [cartographic material] : Parish of Cobar, County of Robinson, the Land District of Cobar, NSW 1902 |url=https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-233311138 |access-date=2023-01-09 |website=Trove |language=en}} and the informal settlement of Cornish Town.{{Cite web |title=Appendix L - New Cobar Complex Project State Significant Development (SSD-10419) |url=https://majorprojects.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/prweb/PRRestService/mp/01/getContent?AttachRef=SSD-10419%2120210212T073544.189%20GMT |pages=27, 28, 29}} Further away, but at locations now within the area of Cobar, are the empty sites of two other former mining settlements, Illewong and Elouera.{{Cite web |last=Johnson |first=R.S |date=1908 |title=Map of the town of Elouera : Parish of Kaloogleguy, County of Robinson, Land District of Cobar, Western Division N.S.W. |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/34791705 |access-date=2023-01-14 |website=trove.nla.gov.au |publisher=Department of Lands, Sydney, N.S.W.}} There was also a village site at The Peak, proclaimed in 1897.{{Cite news |date=1897-01-09 |title=Government Gazette Proclamations and Legislation |pages=127 |work=New South Wales Government Gazette |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article224338015 |access-date=2023-01-19}}{{Cite news |date=1971-07-30 |title=CANCELLATION OF THE DESIGN OF THE VILLAGE OF THE PEAK, PARISH OF COBAR, COUNTY OF ROBINSON, SHIRE OF COBAR |pages=2826 |work=Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article220133597 |access-date=2023-01-19}}

Cobar has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

• Nyngan–Cobar railway: Cobar railway station{{cite NSW SHR|5011972|Cobar Railway Station and yard|hr=01114|fn=EF14/4565|access-date=18 May 2018}}
• 47 Linsley Street: Cobar Post Office{{cite AHD|106178|Cobar Post Office|fn=1/03/226/0024|access-date=15 September 2018}}
• Nyngan Road (Barrier Highway): Cobar Visitor's Centre / Great Cobar Heritage Centre (also known as Cobar Pastoral & Mining Museum; Mining Administration Offices, Great Cobar Mines){{Cite NSW HD|1350020|Great Cobar Heritage Centre & Cobar Miners Heritage Park |access-date=2 May 2019}}
• Nyngan Road (Barrier Highway): Mines Office (former){{Cite AHD|534|Mines Office (former), Nyngan Rd, Cobar, NSW, Australia |access-date=2 May 2019}}

The New Occidental Hotel was a pub located on the edge of town and was built in 1879;{{cite web |last1=Wilson |first1=Cameron |title=Old miners' pub destroyed by fire in country NSW |url=https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/archived/bushtelegraph/iconic-pub-burns-down/5694344 |website=ABC Radio National |date=26 August 2014 |publisher=ABC |access-date=7 August 2019}} it was known as the Star Hotel at that time. It became a significant local spot for miners as well as a common meeting place for groups and clubs in the area. In August 2014 a fire engulfed the building and resulted in the death of a firefighter who died of his injuries at Dubbo Base Hospital.{{cite news |title=Firefighter killed while fighting pub blaze in Cobar |url=https://www.northernstar.com.au/news/Firefighter-killed-while-fighting-pub-blaze-in-Cob/2354220/ |newspaper=Daily Telegraph |date=17 August 2014 |publisher=News Corp Australia |access-date=7 August 2019}}

{{Historical populations

|type= Australia

|1921|1437

|1933|1163

|1947|2039

|1954|2224

|1961|2178

|1966|2350

|1971|3756

|1976|3339

|1981|3583

|1986|4287

|1991|4138

|1996|4524

|2001|4105

|2006|4128

|2011|3817

|2016|3748

|2021|3369

|source=Australian Bureau of Statistics data.{{cite web |title=Statistics by Catalogue Number |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/ViewContent?readform&view=ProductsbyCatalogue&Action=Expand&Num=2.2 |access-date=8 January 2024}}{{cite web |title=Search Census data |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/search-by-area |access-date=8 January 2024}}

}}

According to the 2021 census of Population, there were 3,369 people in Cobar.

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 14.7% of the population.
• 70.8% of people were born in Australia and 79.4% of people only spoke English at home.
• The most common responses for religion were Catholic 28.9%, No Religion 28.0% and Anglican 13.2%.

The Cobar economy relies heavily on trade with the local mines and their employees, and consequently on world metal prices and hence is subject to great fluctuations. During 2008, after a fall of 75% in world zinc prices, one local mine cut 540 of its 655 jobs, with flow-on effects felt by many other businesses. Over the course of that year Cobar's workforce reduced by 10%.{{cite web |title=Error |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |url=http://www.smh.com.au/text/articles/2009/01/23/1232471590783.html}} The town has increasing benefit from being the seat of the local government area. Cobar has two primary schools, a high school, an activities youth centre and a 31-bed hospital for acute care.

The local council supports a local currency called Cobar Quid. Established in 2003{{cite web |title=ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT |url=http://www.cobar.nsw.gov.au/17-economy |website=Cobar Shire Council |access-date=7 August 2019}} by the Cobar Business Association Inc. (CBA), Cobar Quid is a currency that encourages its residents to shop locally. This local currency is a minted medallion that can be exchanged for goods and services with accepting local businesses.

The CBA sells the coins to the local business in values of $5, $10, $20 and $50 values, and the medallions are minted by the Royal Australian Mint.

Business can redeem the medallions for cash which is controlled by the Cobar Shire Council.

Cobar has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen: BSh) with long, very hot summers and short, cool winters, with low rainfall that is spread rather evenly across the year. Seasonal range is considerable in both maximum and minimum temperatures. It is very sunny, with 156.1 clear days and 3,297.6 hours of sunshine annually. The highest temperature recorded at Cobar was {{convert|47.8|C|}} on 26 February 1889 and again on 11 January 1939, while the lowest recorded was {{convert|-6.7|C|}} on 28 July 1881.http://www.bom.gov.au/weather/nsw/cobar/climate.shtml {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081030072841/http://www.bom.gov.au/weather/nsw/cobar/climate.shtml |date=30 October 2008 }} Climate of Cobar, Retrieved 24 January 2009{{cite web | url = http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/cw_048027_All.shtml | title = BOM - Cobar weather statistics | access-date = 1 January 2020 }}

{{Weather box

|location = Cobar (31º32'S 145º48'E, 218−260 AMSL) (1993−2024, extremes to 1881, sunshine 1978−2010)

|metric first = Yes

|single line = Yes

|humidity colour = green

|Jan record high C = 47.8

|Feb record high C = 47.8

|Mar record high C = 43.3

|Apr record high C = 41.1

|May record high C = 34.4

|Jun record high C = 30.0

|Jul record high C = 28.3

|Aug record high C = 32.6

|Sep record high C = 38.4

|Oct record high C = 43.9

|Nov record high C = 45.7

|Dec record high C = 47.2

|Jan high C = 35.7

|Feb high C = 33.8

|Mar high C = 30.6

|Apr high C = 25.8

|May high C = 20.5

|Jun high C = 17.0

|Jul high C = 16.4

|Aug high C = 18.9

|Sep high C = 23.1

|Oct high C = 26.8

|Nov high C = 30.3

|Dec high C = 33.5

|Jan low C = 21.0

|Feb low C = 19.9

|Mar low C = 16.6

|Apr low C = 11.5

|May low C = 6.7

|Jun low C = 4.7

|Jul low C = 3.2

|Aug low C = 4.2

|Sep low C = 7.8

|Oct low C = 11.6

|Nov low C = 15.6

|Dec low C = 18.2

|Jan record low C = 7.8

|Feb record low C = 7.2

|Mar record low C = 0.6

|Apr record low C = 0.0

|May record low C = -3.4

|Jun record low C = -4.8

|Jul record low C = -6.7

|Aug record low C = -5.3

|Sep record low C = -2.3

|Oct record low C = 0.6

|Nov record low C = 3.9

|Dec record low C = 4.4

|rain colour = green

|Jan rain mm = 36.5

|Feb rain mm = 37.2

|Mar rain mm = 30.2

|Apr rain mm = 21.8

|May rain mm = 26.1

|Jun rain mm = 33.0

|Jul rain mm = 21.2

|Aug rain mm = 19.2

|Sep rain mm = 28.7

|Oct rain mm = 31.9

|Nov rain mm = 37.2

|Dec rain mm = 25.8

|year rain mm = 350.4

|unit rain days = 1.0 mm

|Jan rain days = 3.7

|Feb rain days = 3.4

|Mar rain days = 3.1

|Apr rain days = 2.3

|May rain days = 3.2

|Jun rain days = 4.2

|Jul rain days = 3.3

|Aug rain days = 2.8

|Sep rain days = 3.4

|Oct rain days = 3.8

|Nov rain days = 4.2

|Dec rain days = 3.2

|Jan afthumidity = 24

|Feb afthumidity = 31

|Mar afthumidity = 30

|Apr afthumidity = 33

|May afthumidity = 43

|Jun afthumidity = 51

|Jul afthumidity = 50

|Aug afthumidity = 38

|Sep afthumidity = 34

|Oct afthumidity = 29

|Nov afthumidity = 28

|Dec afthumidity = 23

|Jan dew point C = 8.1

|Feb dew point C = 9.9

|Mar dew point C = 8.4

|Apr dew point C = 6.2

|May dew point C = 5.8

|Jun dew point C = 5.6

|Jul dew point C = 4.3

|Aug dew point C = 2.6

|Sep dew point C = 3.8

|Oct dew point C = 3.2

|Nov dew point C = 5.9

|Dec dew point C = 5.3

|Jan sun = 334.8

|Feb sun = 291.0

|Mar sun = 297.6

|Apr sun = 267.0

|May sun = 229.4

|Jun sun = 192.0

|Jul sun = 217.0

|Aug sun = 260.4

|Sep sun = 273.0

|Oct sun = 303.8

|Nov sun = 303.0

|Dec sun = 328.6

|Jan percentsun = 78

|Feb percentsun = 78

|Mar percentsun = 78

|Apr percentsun = 79

|May percentsun = 70

|Jun percentsun = 63

|Jul percentsun = 68

|Aug percentsun = 76

|Sep percentsun = 76

|Oct percentsun = 76

|Nov percentsun = 74

|Dec percentsun = 75

|source 1 = Bureau of Meteorology (means 1993−2024 [Airport AWS], extremes to 1881 [Post Office], sunshine 1978−2010 [MO]){{cite web

|url = http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/cw_048237_All.shtml

|title = Cobar Airport Climate Statistics (1993-2024)

|publisher = Bureau of Meteorology

|access-date= June 30, 2024}}{{cite web

|url = http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/cw_048027_All.shtml

|title = Cobar Mo Climate Statistics (1962-2024)

|publisher = Bureau of Meteorology

|access-date= June 30, 2024}}{{cite web

|url = http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/cw_048027_All.shtml

|title = Cobar Post Office Climate Statistics (1881-1965)

|publisher = Bureau of Meteorology

|access-date= June 30, 2024}}

}}

• Lilliane Brady, mayor for over 20 years and the longest-serving female mayor in NSW history
• Nik Kosef, former professional rugby league footballer for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles, 1996 premiership player, NSW & Australia representative
• Robert William Rankin, commander of HMAS Yarra (U77) in 1942, namesake of HMAS Rankin (SSG 78) commissioned in 2003.
• Ernie Toshack, cricketer, member of Bradman's Invincibles
• Dora Birtles, novelist and writer.
• Muriel O'Malley, opera singer and musical theatre actress

File:Cobar statue.JPG|Miners Heritage Park, Cobar

File:Cobar NSW Rock containing Copper Ore.jpg|Rock with copper ore

File:Cobar battery.JPG|Battery

File:Elevator.JPG|Elevator

File:Cobar monument.JPG|Monument to the miners who lost their lives

File:Cobar Sound Chapel, exterior view looking west.jpg|Cobar Sound Chapel

Cobar Police Station 002.JPG|Cobar Police station in Barton St, with St Laurence O’Toole Catholic Church in the background

Cobar Police Station 001.JPG|Cobar Police station

File:Aerial view of Cobar,New South Wales, 2009-03-06.jpg|Aerial view 2009

NSW TrainLink operates a coach service from Dubbo. The train line through Cobar is today used primarily for industrial train services.

See Cobar railway line.

Cobar Airport is a small, local airport located 5.6 km southwest of town.

{{Reflist}}

• {{Wikivoyage inline|Cobar}}
• {{Commons category-inline|Cobar, New South Wales}}
• [http://www.cobar.nsw.gov.au Cobar Shire Council]

{{Cobar Shire}}

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Category:Mining towns in New South Wales

Category:Populated places established in 1870

Category:Cobar Shire

Category:1870 establishments in Australia