Bourke, Australia

Bourke is a town and Local Government Area in the north of New South Wales, Australia. Bourke is located approximately 800 kilometers north-west of Sydney, on the south bank of the Darling River, which is known as the Barwon River upstream from Bourke. The site of Bourke was first reached by British settlers in the 1820s and the town was named after Governor Richard Bourke of New South Wales in the 1830s.

Bourke can be reached by the Mitchell Highway. It was also the terminus of the railway line which is now disused, and was formerly an important inland port for river shipping on the Darling River. The countryside around Bourke is used mainly for sheep farming with some irrigated fruit and cotton crops near the river.

Bourke is considered to represent the edge of the settled agricultural districts and the gateway to the Outback which lies north and west of Bourke. This is reflected in the traditional Australian expression "back o Bourke", referring to the Outback.