The Milton and Ulladulla district is on the NSW
South Coast, being part of the district of
Shoalhaven. Captain Cook first saw aboriginals on
the local beaches in 1770. The first white
Settler was Rev Thomas Kendall who arrived in
1828. He later started a cedar cutting project at
Narrawallee Creek near Milton. Ulladulla was
first known as Nulladulla - meaning safe
harbour.
Satirists John Doyle and Greg Pickhaver used a
fictionalised version of Ulladulla as the setting
for the popular radio comedy monologue "This is
the South Coast News". Performed by journalist
Paul Murphy it was a regular segment for several
years in the late 1980s and early 1990s in the
weekly radio comedy 'This Sporting Life'. The
scripts were later published in book form by the
ABC (Australian Broadcating Corporation).
On the Northern Headland at Ulladulla (via
Dolphin Street) is a two kilometre "One Track for
All" trail developed with the help of the
Budawang Aboriginal Landcare Group. The trail
provides lookouts giving spectacular views of the
coast and harbour. Paintings and signs by local
aboriginal, Noel Butler and various carvings
beside the track attempt to describe both local
aboriginal and non-aboriginal history from an
aboriginal perspective. Butler sees them as a
'tool for linking indigenous culture with white
history'.
Much of the information on this page was taken
from the official Ulladulla website which is
acknowledged here.
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Ulladulla Harbour (right and below) is
a minor port administered by New South Wales
Department of Lands. A wooden jetty was built in
1859 so as to retain the services of the
Illawarra Steam Navigation Company; the company
had informed the farmers that would not call
again at Ulladulla unless better mooring
facilities were provided. After seven years the
jetty was replaced by a stone pier built by the
government on the natural reef. The company built
a store on the harbour foreshores for the
receiving of produce for shipment to and from
Sydney. There was a weekly cargo service to
Ulladulla until the mid 1950s.
The harbour is the home port of the largest
commercial fishing fleet on the South Coast of
New South Wales.As a result of the influence of
Italian fishing families in the area, each Easter
a "Blessing of the Fleet" ceremony occurs,
although in 2004 and 2005 the accompanying
celebration was cancelled due to a sharp rise in
the public liability premium. The long-term
future of this event is doubtful.
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