Address:
13 River Street, Woolgoolga, New South Wales 2456 Australia
Phone: +61 2 6654 0010
History
The Guru Nanak Temple, opened in 3rd Jan 1970, is the most visible sign of Australia's largest regional Sikh population, a thriving pocket of India in the land of the Big Banana, 20 kilometers north of Coffs Harbour. Founded by Guru Nanak in the 15th century and based on his teachings and those of 10 subsequent gurus, Sikhism is the world's fifth-largest organized religion. In Woolgoolga, 300 families worship at the gurdwara (temple) and there are plans to build another nearby.
The first Sikh to buy a farm here in Woolgoolga was Booja Singh from village Malpur Arkan. He was brought to Australia as an adopted son of Udham Singh Arkan also from the village of Malpur Arkan.
Once word got out that there was good money to be made from bananas more and more Sikhs arrived. Some of the early Settlers families still reside in Woolgoolga and Coffs Harbour.
The first Sikh settlers came to Woolgooloa in the 1940s. Initially they worked as labourers on the banana plantations, but later acquired leasehold and freehold banana plantations. Sikh migrants from other parts of Australia were attracted to this area once they were aware of an established Sikh community and that good living was to be made in banana plantations. Today over 95% of Woolgoolga's banana industry and 10% of Coffs Harbour is owned and operated by Australians of Sikh ancestry.
