The Yass Valley has traditionally been inhabited by the Aboriginal Ngunnawal and Wiradjuri tribes and both are recognised as traditional owners of the land in and around the Valley. 

White settlers first came to the Murrumbateman area to graze cattle in 1926 on land named 'Murrumbateman Station'. The area was later used for gold mining and sheep farming and although farming is still prominent, the area is mostly known as a premier cool climate wine district.

It always seems conventional that a milestone is a great chance to remember exceptional qualities of a person and place. On March 20, 1885 the area was officially declared a village, what more of a reason to boast of its great history and celebrate with its  4000 residents. 

Murrumbateman as a village has never celebrated its birthday.

The Murrumbateman School opened its doors on May 31, 1869. The Yass Historical Society produced a booklet titled 'Murrumbateman Centenary' which celebrated 100 years of the Murrumbateman Primary School on May 31, 1969.

The Murrumbateman Post Office opened in 1873, the first land sale was in 1876 and the Sawyer's Arms Inn was opened in 1833. 

The formation of the Murrumbateman Branch of the Agricultural Bureau of NSW occurred in 1936 (now the MPA). 

The first commercial wine grape vineyards were planted in 1971 and the first Murrumbateman Field Days was held in 1979. The first Cool Climate Wine Show was held in 1999.

Local resident Pat Pither said that it was a beautiful place to live. Beth Buckingham said that her favourite part of Murrumbateman were the fetes.

“Those of us who had push bikes used to spend hours decorating them to see who could win the prize for best decorated bike then we used to take our animals and enter them in the different categories,” Ms Buckingham said.

The celebration sponsored by the Murrumbateman Progress Association, of all things Murrumbateman, will be held in conjunction with the Murrumbateman Farmers Markets tomorrow, from 9am until 1pm. 

The markets has been growing over several years and will host a record number of stall holders on the day.

The Murrumbateman history group have pulled together a range of historical displays including: information; memorabilia from the district; antique machinery and fire engines; WW1 lighthouse display; Ngunawal history artefacts and basket weaving workshops, puppet show and historical cooking along with rapier and archery demos. They are part of the "past and present" theme to showcase interest groups in Murrumbateman today.