Although the Bethungra district by 1862 had only a few people, it was soon to benefit from the overland telegraph line from Bowning to Wagga, which passed through and on to Jewnee (Old Junee) along the Sydney Road, now the Old Sydney Road.
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Petitions for the provision of a Post Office in 1869, 1874 and 1875 resulted in success in 1875. Before that, Cobb & Co delivered mail to the Poundkeeper, or Innkeeper, for distribution as recipients called. Post Office locations varied over the years until 1912. Contracts for mail deliveries to Mitta Mitta, Yammatree, Ferndale and Ironbong operated for many years. A police presence was recorded from the mid 1860s.
The first purpose built store was in about 1873 with another about 1876. Other businesses such as butcher, baker, blacksmith, carriers, agents and even a Chinese market garden were established to cater for an increase in demand for service as the Great Southern railway line approached Bethungra in 1875. Extremely hard rock north of Bethungra caused substantial delays in the line reaching the village, but the new station was opened on April 11, 1878.
The railway allowed quick passenger access to and from Sydney and cheap and rapid freight service, as well as employment for line maintenance and station staff and gatekeepers, as gates on roads across the line were closed manually. Water for locomotives came from two wells near the village but when the line reached Junee later in 1878, the need for quality water in large volumes led to construction of Bethungra Dam, which was commissioned in 1897. That water was soon found to be unsuitable and water was eventually piped from Tenandra to Junee.
Bethungra Dam has since remained as a little known attraction and was recently subjected to a major strengthening to meet modern safety standards.
In 1876, the first Bethungra school opened after community fundraising with the later government school serving the district until its forced closure in 1995. A Catholic school operated between 1910 and 1946.
A big but temporary boost to the Bethungra district came when duplication of the railway commenced in 1941. Construction camps from the village along the line to the north were set up. Because the “up line” grades (to Sydney) were too steep, a loop or spiral was cut around the hill between Bethungra and Stoney Creek. The work included two tunnels and much very hard rock, which delayed completion until 1946.
The villagers and families of the Bethungra district had a spirit of unity in community and sporting groups over many years.
