Editing Narrandera (section)

==Narrandera today==
The town of Narrandera is located adjacent to the Murrumbidgee River, at the intersection of the Newell Highway and the Sturt Highway at the centre of a diversely productive agricultural region. Its attractive tree-lined streets contrast with the open plains that surround it.

Narrandera now marks the transition between an extensive dry-land area devoted to cereal crops and sheep and wool production to the east, and, to the west, the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area (MIA) fed by water from the [[Burrinjuck Dam]]. The MIA is a region where irrigation has opened the way to a diversity of enterprise, from the growing of rice and other cereals under irrigation to the production of citrus, wine grapes, potatoes, and increasingly, cotton and nuts.

The Narrandera Memorial Gardens include the unusual Hankinson Fountain.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://monumentaustralia.org.au/monument_display.php?id=22467&image=0|title=Monument Australia website|access-date=21 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110226124840/http://monumentaustralia.org.au/monument_display.php?id=22467&image=0|archive-date=26 February 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> Manufactured by the [[Royal Doulton]] Company of England, the ceramic fountain is one of only two known to be in existence, the other located in Pakistan. It was given to the people of Narrandera by Alderman and Mrs Hankinson in 1922 in honour of locals who served in World War I.

Narrandera is known for its waterways described below, but in particular for the Lake Talbot Water Park. The waterpark is set in an amphitheatre of shaded lawns. The Water Park features a 50-metre pool, a large children's pool, an infants pool and a water playground as well two giant water-slides. It adjoins Lake Talbot, which is fed by the Bundidgerry Creek. The Lake is used by swimmers water-skiers and canoeists.

The Narrandera Flora and Fauna reserve is home to a Koala Regeneration Reserve. The reserve was set up in the 1970s to return Koalas to the town as they had been wiped out in the region by 1950 through accidental poisoning and through the fur export industry. There are now several hundred healthy Koala in the Reserve and they have bred and spread for many kilometres beyond Narrandera. Kangaroos are also well represented in the Reserve.

Narrandera's immediate surrounds feature a number of waterways, the major waterway being the Murrumbidgee River. Others include Lake Talbot, the Narrandera Wetlands, Bundidgerry Creek, and the ephemeral Lake Coolah.

The town also has number of historic features, such as a [[fig tree]] on the corner of King and Cadell Streets, which is thought to be 150 years old; and the Mon Repos, a residence built in a Queen Anne-style, which was built in the 1890s. The Oakbank Brewery Tower located beside the Murrumbidgee on Oakbank Road is a prominent feature, once owned by Lincolns brewers, then by Oakbank Brewery. Its last productive days were as a cordial (soft drink) factory owned by the Webster family of Narrandera.<ref>{{cite web|title=History of Narrandera |url=http://www.narrandera.nsw.gov.au/about/1012/1033.html |publisher=Narrandera Shire Council |access-date=24 March 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927200634/http://www.narrandera.nsw.gov.au/about/1012/1033.html |archive-date=27 September 2007 |url-status=dead |df=dmy }}</ref>

Narrandera Parkside Museum houses a cloak made from the first bale of Merino wool sent back to England by the MacArthur family.

The Irrigation Canal which flows through the town carries water to the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area to Narrandera's west. It originates {{convert|34|km|mi}} east at Berembed Weir where water is diverted from the Murrumbidgee River. The canal follows the natural bed of Bundidgerry Creek and in places spreads wide and has no levee banks. Lake Talbot was formed in 1924 when the bank of the Irrigation Canal gave way, flooding the river flat between the canal and Bundidgerry Hill. The shallow body of water was allowed to remain and became an important recreational feature of the town. A wetland has been created off Lizard Drive, only {{convert|300|m|ft}} from the Murrumbidgee River. The Wetland acts as a collection point for storm water run-off from the town.