The first white explorer to encounter the Darling River was Charles Sturt in 1828 who named it after Sir Ralph Darling, Governor of NSW. Having struck the region during an intense drought and a low river, Sturt dismissed the area as largely uninhabitable and short of any features necessary for establishing reliable industry on the land.

It was not until the mid-1800s following a visit by colonial surveyor Sir Thomas Mitchell in 1835 that settlement of the area began.

Following is an account by Mitchell of his meeting with Aboriginal people.

Following tensions with the local Ngemba people Mitchell built a small stockade to protect his men and named it Fort Bourke after the Governor. This first crude structure became the foundation for a fledgling community with a small number of agricultural and livestock farms established in the region shortly afterwards. 

The history of the district changed in 1859 when Captain W. R. Randall sailed the Gemini up the Darling from South Australia. Bourke and Brewarrina became important inland ports. The area started to flourish when its location on the Darling River had it recognised as a key trade centre, linking the nearby outback agricultural industries with the east coast trade routes via the Darling River.

Bourke was surveyed for a town in 1869 and soon established itself as the outback trade hub of the colony with several transportation industries setting up branches in the town. By the 1880s Bourke was hosting a Cobb & Co Coach Terminus, several paddle boat companies running the River and a bridge to allow for road transportation into the town.

Opened on 4 May 1883, the North Bourke Bridge was modified in 1895 and again in 1903. The 1895 modifications led to improved designs for subsequent lift-span bridges. The bridge is the oldest moveable-span bridge in Australia and is the sole survivor of its type in NSW. It served for 114 years before being bypassed in 1997 when a new bridge carrying the Mitchell Highway was opened just downstream.

By the late 1880s Bourke had become the transport centre for south west Queensland and western New South Wales. At its peak 40,000 bales of wool were being shipped down the Darling annually.

By 1885 Bourke was accessible by rail, confirming its position as a major inland transport hub. Like many outback Australian townships, Bourke would come to rely on camels for overland transport, and the area supported a large Afghan community that had been imported to drive the teams. A small Afghan mosque that dates back to the 1900s can be found within Bourke cemetery.  Following are a couple of photos that caught my eye at the Back O Bourke Centre.

As trade moved away from river transport routes, Bourke’s hold on the inland trade industry began to loosen. By 1931 the river cargo trade had stopped. By 1975 passenger services on the railway had been cancelled. The line was eventually closed in 1989.

In 1993 noted eye surgeon and humanitarian, Fred Hollows, was buried in the Bourke cemetery. His brother is also buried there.