A short history of Shamballa

The land of Shamballa was selected by white settlers in the early 1900s. First the Jordan brothers made several selections between 1906 and 1909, while two other men selected the back block.

In 1923 the main piece of land was allocated to Charles “Doc” Danzey, father of Eric (“EC”) Danzey. Charles bought the back block in 1935 to expand his farm. Eric bought the back block from his mother when he married in 1949, and when he moved to town in the late 1950s he sold it to James Kimber, who later sold it to the early Shamballans in 1974.

Meanwhile the front block was still owned by Charles' wife (and Eric's mother) Ellen Danzey. Shortly after she died it was sold to Shamballa Co-op in 1978.

Eric “EC” Danzey kindly supplied a great deal of information about his family, the dairy farm and its operations, and the land-use history of the neighbourhood - the Danzey story runs from the original farmhouse and dairy herd through Doc's unexpected death in the 1940s, the sale of the herd, a cyclone, and the end of the farm between 1955 and 1978.

The idea of getting a property came out of our frustrations at being moved around at the whim of venal landlords, and a general “Back to the Land” movement that had grown up in the US and UK in the late 60s and early 70s.

In late 1971 I was living in a share house in Turramurra when an old school friend, Geoff Thomas, returned from travels in Europe and looked me up. Both about to become homeless again, we rented a house together at Meadowbank and set up with our girlfriends. Soon we were a mini urban co-op, sharing food costs, cars and everything else.

At the end of 1972 the household joined others at Opossum Gully, which became home to our group for years. At the start of '73 there were seven members in the Freedom Road group and we incorporated as Jacona Holdings Pty Ltd. We started looking for a property on the North and Far North Coast of NSW - Mullumbimby, Nimbin, and, after hearing about it at the Aquarius Festival, Bellingen.

While I was overseas I received a postcard from Gerry telling me we had bought 447 acres of “beautiful” land in Bellingen for $17,000. Arriving home in mid '74 I went straight up to Boggy Creek and found the old Danzey shack surrounded by six-metre lantana, with Gerry, Pam and others hacking away at the jungle.

Later the adjoining property, another 158 acres, came up for sale. More people were brought in, more money was raised, and the two properties were joined. The company was changed to a co-operative and became “Shamballa Co-operative Ltd”.

The word Shamballa (there are various spellings) comes from the Sanskrit for a mythical Himalayan spiritual kingdom. Founded with some 1970s idealism, over time we have become more down to earth and pragmatic in our approach to community living - while keeping a strong sense of community and respect for each other and our environment.

Shamballa is now a co-operative society formed to provide a rural setting for the benefit of its members. We currently have 26 members - aged from their mid-20s to some original members now in their 70s - living in 17 houses on 632 acres of subtropical land near Bellingen.

All residents pay an annual levy that supports the community's needs, such as roadworks and shared equipment. Seven directors meet regularly to discuss community matters, and an annual general meeting and dinner elects office bearers and settles the bigger questions.