Robertson Village
ROBERTSON
The village of Robertson was established in the 1860s, and was known as “Yarrawa”, from the “Yarrawa Brush”, a generic term used by the early settlers for the local rainforest which they had set out to clear. The clearing of the dense rainforest was necessary to enable them to farm the rich red basalt soil which lay beneath the Yarrawa Brush.
This rich soil, combined with high rainfall, is what makes Robertson so lush and green. It is the source of the productivity of Robertson’s potato growing and dairying farms, and the beef cattle industry.
Robertson sits above the top of Macquarie Pass and the Illawarra Escarpment. As such it is very different from the rest of the Wingecarribee Shire, and is known locally as the “Green Heart of the Highlands” Its main connections are with Wollongong, by car, and bus, More importantly, there are strong social connections with the Illawarra region, as people tend to work “down the hill”, and many former professionals and academics from Wollongong tend to retire to Robertson. So our ties are with the coast, more so than the rest of the Shire, who tend to link northwards, to Sydney.
Population
The population of the village is 1206 persons, but the district, including East Kangaloon and Mount Murray and down towards Carrington Falls, and Belmore Falls is 1901 persons.
The local population has slightly higher levels than the national average for income, education and professional status. This is probably skewed by the inclusion of the surrounding rural areas, with many original rural properties having been taken over for large rural residences.
Village services
There is a large rural primary school in the village, (Robertson Public School)
http://www.robertson-p.schools.nsw.edu.au/ Many locals elect to send their children to small local rural schools, or to private schools in Bowral and Moss Vale. The Moss Vale High School is the regarded as the local High School. There are school bus services for most of these schools.
There is a local Doctor’s surgery, Robertson Doctor which Bulk Bills its clients http://www.robertsondoctor.vpweb.com.au/default.html and the Robertson Village Pharmacy. http://www.pharmacies.com.au/robertson-village-pharmacy/
Shopping facilities
There is a Supermarket, a Newsagency, a Butcher, several restaurants and cafes, and gift shops, craft shops and a number of hair and beauty treatment salons. There is one Hotel, a Motel, A Guest House/Convention centre and several “B and Bs”.
