The Billagoe (Mount Drysdale) Cultural Landscape was officially listed on the NSW State Heritage Register last week, recognising the long and diverse history of the spiritual and cultural landscape located 40 kilometres north of Cobar. 

Recognised as a place created and inhabited by Baime, the creator in Indigenous Culture, the landscape holds evidence of his journey, including his footprint and a rock hole made as he thrust his spear into the rocks to obtain water. 

Heritage NSW Executive Director Sam Kidman said that the new status will offer increased protection for the Ngemba-Ngiyampaa-Wangaaybuwan-Wayilwan land. 

“Under the Heritage Act 1977, it provides a very strong level of protection…basically it provides a very public protection from any development,” Mr Kidman said. 

Heritage Minister James Griffin said he was proud to list Billagoe on the NSW State Heritage Register. 

“The listing of Billagoe (Mount Drysdale) Cultural Landscape celebrates and helps to protect unique and culturally important aspects of the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal history of NSW,” Mr Griffin said. 

The location holds not only rich Indigenous cultural value in its formation, but also demonstrates the technology used in European occupation of the landscape, still boasting an intact cypress pine Government Tank caretaker’s cottage, built in 1895. The cottage is a rare example of late 19th-early 20th century gold mining infrastructure. 

The site forms part of the Baiame cycle of creation stories and is linked to other significant places such as Cobar, Gundabooka National Park, Byrock Rockholes Aboriginal Place and the nationally and state listed Ngunnhu (Brewarrina Fishtraps).

Ngiyampaa Mayi Traditional owner and Elder Elaine Ohlsen said that she couldn’t have been happier with the listing as a way of protecting the land. 

“So much of this area around here has been destroyed by mining and development. You only have to look back and imagine what it was like before all this…it was beautiful. To see all this destroyed, it’s heartbreaking,” Ms Ohlsen said. 

While the Heritage listing is important to Ms Ohlsen and the local Aboriginal community, she said there’s much more land she’d like to see protected.

“It’s really hard when you’ve got young ones coming into the future and you haven’t got anything there to show them. There’s nothing left to show them who they are, where they come from, and where they belong,” she said. 

Mr Kidman said that walking around the property last week during the official listing of the land, the significance it held was obvious. 

“There are Aborginal artefacts all over the place, as well as a whole lot of colonial ruins,” Mr Kidman said. 

Nominated for the heritage listing in 2021, there was a series of public consultations before the site was approved, following an enormous amount of support from the local Indigenous community and property owner Michael Mitchell. 

“This is of huge value to the Aborignal community to have their culture protected, and I think for Michael Mitchell, he is very proud of the fact that he had worked hard to see the site protected, celebrated, recognised, and now it’s on the state Heritage Register,” Mr Kidman said.