The discovery of gold helped the village to grow bigger. The first post office was opened in 1856 and the first school was opened in 1861. The first Anglican church was built in 1876 and the first bank was also opened in 1876. The first hotel, "The Commerical Hotel", was built in 1878 and the first court house was built in 1881. Barraba was officially called a village in 1885. The hospital was built in 1891 and the Methodist church was built in 1898.