Belgenny Farm, Historic Camden Park Estate, NSW

Camden Park House is one of Australia's most important Georgian Houses. Designed by Architect John Verge and completed in 1835
John Macarthur, who introduced merino sheep into Australia  in 1797 and founded the Australian wool industry, along with his wife Elizabeth, was born in 1767 near Plymouth, in Devonshire, England.

Interestingly, John Macarthur's father, was the sole survivor of seven brothers who fought at Culloden for Bonnie Prince Charlie.

John, who had joined the NSW Corp., was sent to serve as a Lieutenant on the Second Fleet in the newly established convict settlement founded under Governor Phillip in 1788.

In a document dated February 28, 1793, MacArthur was granted land on the Parramatta River, which he called “Elizabeth Farm,” in honour of his wife. (Elizabeth farm is open to visitors)

After a duel with his commanding officer, William Paterson, John MacArthur was sent to England in 1801. But powerful friends ensured he was not court-martialled. Instead, he returned to Sydney in 1805 with a large land grant that would become Camden Park. 
John Macarthur (1767-1834)
The first structure built at Camden Park was a slab and bark hut, referred to as the "miserable hut" by Governor Macquarie.

Elizabeth and John were very devoted to each other, and John respected his wife's skills as she managed and expanded the sheep, farms and business.

It is said that Australia was "built on the sheep's back", as this was the foundation of the prosperity we enjoy today.

In January 1808, John Macarthur’s role in the military overthrow of Governor Bligh (“rum rebellion”) led to him being sent to England again, this time for eight years.

John resigned his commission in the early 1800s, to concentrate on his pastoral interests.

Governor Darling said of John, "[he] is a man of strong passions, and observes no medium in anything. He is equally ardent in his desire to serve as he is to injure".

John was volatile, aloof, egotistical and scheming, and yet, he had many achievements, was shrewd and resourceful and was loyal to his wife and family.

One of the first commercial vineyards in Australia was established on the Camden Park Estate in 1820.

In 1821, the Macarthur's built Belgenny Farm House, known as the "Camden Park Home Farm", one of the oldest surviving farm structures in Australia.
Park Estate, NSW, Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1871 - 1912), Wednesday 22 February 190

However, John, who may have had bipolar disorder, was rapidly losing his reason. 

“John Macarthur … for these three months last past, (has) been so depressed of his reason and understanding that he is altogether unfit and unable to govern himself or to manage his own affairs.”
Elizabeth Macarthur (nee Veale) 1766 - 1850
John died in April 1834, aged 65, and was buried at Camden Park.
Camden Park's annual open weekend, is held on the second last full weekend of September.

The gardens surrounding Camden Park are the largest and most intact early colonial garden in Australia.

Located on the traditional lands of the Dharawal people.

Around Camden Park Estate

Belgenny Farm was established by John and Elizabeth Macarthur in 1805 and contains the earliest collection of colonial farm buildings in Australia
The main stables were built in the 1820s and are among the oldest surviving farm buildings in Australia (Belgenny Farm House, known as the "Camden Park Home Farm")
Belgenny cottage, Camden Park Estate, NSW

Places To Go

(02) 4655 8466
Elizabeth Macarthur Ave, Camden South, NSW

Elizabeth Farm, home of wool pioneers John and Elizabeth Macarthur

Elizabeth Farm  was built in 1793 for  John and Elizabeth Macarthur and their family
Elizabeth Farm, home of wool pioneers John and Elizabeth Macarthur, Australia's oldest homestead, is located at 70 Alice Street, Rosehill, Sydney, NSW.
The Governor' s House at Rose Hill, NSW — From an Early Sketch
The Macarthur's arrived at Port Jackson in June 1790, with the Second Fleet.

On arrival, John MacArthur was appointed commandant to Parramatta, and in 1793, he was granted 100 acres at Rose Hill.

The construction of Elizabeth Farm began in 1793. By 1794, the Macarthur's had 20 acres of wheat, 80 acres of corn and potatoes and livestock including horses, cows, goats, and pigs. In 1797, John Macarthur imported merino sheep (3 rams and 5 ewes) for Elizabeth Farm.

Elizabeth Farm  was built in 1793 for  John and Elizabeth Macarthur and their family, Land (Sydney, NSW : 1911 - 1954), Wednesday 20 October 1948,
Elizabeth Macarthur was integral to the establishment of the local wool industry, which lay the foundations of Australian prosperity. 

She managed the farm and the family during her husbands long absences oversea, from 1801 to 1805 and from 1809 to 1817 (John Macarthur was in England for his part in the Rum Rebellion)

In 1800, a sample of John Macarthur's wool was sent to England by Governor King.

John Macather wrote In 1810:

I am perfectly aware, my beloved wife, of the difficulties you have to contend with, and fully convinced that not one woman in a thousand, would have resolution and perseverance to contend with them all, much more to surmount them in the manner that you have so happily done. . . . I am grateful and delighted with your conduct.

Elizabeth was concerned with the welfare of women convicts and Aboriginal people but lost some of her sympathy with the growing toll of friends killed by the natives.
John Macarthur (1767?-1834)
Elizabeth Macarthur (1766-1850)
John Macarthur later lived between Elizabeth Farm and at Camden, where he had a residence.

John Macarther who had engaged in many feuds and vendettas, became mentally unwell. Elizabeth wrote that he “labours under a partial derangement of mind” (likely bipolar affective disorder). He died 11 April 1834.

Elizabeth continued to successfully run the enterprises until her death in 1850.

The Elizabeth Farm estate is managed by Sydney Living Museums and is open to the public.

Rose Hill is part of the traditional land of the Darug people.

Around Elizabeth Farm

Elizabeth Farm was built in 1793 for John and Elizabeth Macarthur and their family
Elizabeth Farm was built in 1793 for  John and Elizabeth Macarthur and their family
Elizabeth Farm  was uilt in 1793 for  John and Elizabeth Macarthur and their family
This early Victorian sun bonnet is a replica of a bonnet believed to have belonged to Elizabeth Macarthur. The original was made from unbleached linen, drawn over a series of 25 whalebone hoops 

Things to Do

Elizabeth Farm (70 Alice Street, Rosehill, NSW)

Elizabeth Macarthur journal and correspondence, 1789-1840 

Read:  Elizabeth Macarthur: A Life at the Edge of the World, by Michelle Scott Tucker

Elizabeth and John: The Macarthurs of Elizabeth Farm. By Alan Atkinson

Nielsen Park, Vaucluse: Greycliffe Estate and Fort

Greycliffe House, in the Sydney suburb of Vaucluse, NSW, was built in the neo-Gothic style and completed in 1851. 
John Reeve, a wealthy pastoralist from Gippsland, married Fanny Wentworth (1829–1893), the daughter of William Charles Wentworth, owner of nearby Vaucluse House, and had Greycliffe House built.

Reeve commissioned architect John Frederick Hilly to design the Shark Bay villa, with its stunning ocean views.

The property also has, a detached sandstone coach house with staff quarters in the attic and a small building called Gardener's Cottage.

Oddly enough, the Reeve's travelled to England in 1854, never to return, and so never lived in the house. 

Many prominent Sydney families later lived in the house. 
 
In February 1897, Greycliffe House was damaged by fire. 

In 1911, Greycliffe House was transferred to public ownership. In 1913, Greycliffe became the first babies' hospital.
Sydney Mail (NSW : 1912 - 1938), Wednesday 29 October 1913
A HOSPITAL FOR BABIES. Greycliffe, the former home of the Wentworth family, was purchased some years ago by the Government, and is now known as “The Lady Edeline Hospital. The Lone hand. New Series Vol. 7 No. 9 (1 August 1917) 
(Method of nursing an immature baby)At Greycliffe, where sick babies are admitted from .birth up to the age of two yearsSunday Times (Sydney, NSW : 1895 - 1930), Sunday 15 July 1917
In the Grounds of Lady Edeline Hospital, Greycliffe, Vaucluse., Sydney Mail (NSW : 1912 - 1938), Wednesday 2 October 1918

The Battery

In 1870 Britain withdrew its garrisons from Sydney, and part of the Greycliffe Estate was allocated for defence.

A battery at Shark Point, now known as Steele Point, began construction in 1871, designed by colonial architect James Barnet.

In 1872, three 80-pounder rifled muzzle-loading guns were installed.

The battery was completed in 1874, and additional barracks were added in 1880.
Steel Point, Vaucluse, NSW, Illustrated Sydney News (NSW : 1881 - 1894), Thursday 4 April 1889
Steel Point Cottage, built in the 1880s as a gunner's barracks to protect Sydney Harbour, was linked by a tunnel to the adjacent 1871 battery. This building is now rented as accommodation.

The last version of the the battery had three sandstone gun emplacements or pits with embrasures for the guns to fire through. The pits were connected by open passages and covered passages that led into underground chambers that consisted of a gunpowder magazine, a shell and artillery store and two shell and lamp recesses built of stone. The site also had its own living quarters for staff.

In 1889, it was reported that the guns at Steel Point were "were quite useless, being choked with rust". (1.)

The remains of the battery are now located within Neilsen Park, at Greycliffe Avenue, Vaucluse, NSW.

Today, you can visit Greycliffe House and Garden or even get married there.

At Vaucluse Point on Bottle & Glass Rock there are the remnants of Aboriginal rock art on the traditional lands of the Birrabirragal people.

Around Greycliffe Estate and Fort

Greycliffe House: 6 Steele Point Rd, Vaucluse NSW 2030
Greycliffe House: 6 Steele Point Rd, Vaucluse NSW 2030
Greycliffe House: 6 Steele Point Rd, Vaucluse NSW 2030

Shark point batter,  Vaucluse NSW 2030.Adam.J.W.C..

Places To Go

Neilsen Park, Greycliffe Avenue, Vaucluse, NSW.

Sydney Botanic Gardens: Sydney's Oasis


The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney, NSW
The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney, is a 30-hectare (74-acre) botanical garden, located on Sydney Harbour near the Sydney Opera House.

The land on which the botanic gardens sits operated as a Government farm in 1788, with "six acres of wheat, eight of barley, and six acres of other grain".

The soil of farm cove was sandy and poor, and agriculture was moved out to Parramatta.

In 1816, Governor Lachlan Macquarie created the Royal Botanic Garden as part of the Governor's Domain. Ongoing efforts were made to improve the soil.

The Colonial Botanist, Charles Fraser, was instructed to collect “rare and new plants and seeds” for Governor Lachlan Macquarie, and it is believed that these established the Gardens.
Sydney Farm Cove and Gardens, NSW, Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1871 - 1912)
Between 1829 and 1838, the wine industry began with grape vines grown in the Gardens. The first vines came with the First Fleet (1788).

Richard Cunningham, the next Colonial Botanist, made a report in 1833 detailing the layout, proposal for pathways and improvements for the Gardens.

An old stone windmill used for grinding grain, once stood in the grounds of the Royal Botanical Garden. The mill was removed in 1835.
 
Charles Moore took on the job in 1848 with instructions for the Gardens to become a place of study, research and a “pleasant place of resort to the inhabitants of Sydney”. Much improvement happened under Moore's management, with soil improvements and securing water supply.

For the International Exhibition of 1879, the Garden Exhibition Palace was built near the Government House stables.

The magnificent Palace attracted over one million visitors, with display products from the arts and industry, museum collections from the library of the Linnean Society (botany and natural sciences), and more.
The International Exhibition of 1879 at the Garden Palace, (one of the towers, Botanic Gardens, Sydney, NSW
GARDEN PALACE, Royal Botanic Gardens was built for the Sydney International Exhibition which opened on 17 September 1879, State Records
Sadly, a fire destroyed the Palace and its contents on the morning of 22 September 1882.

The Gardens centennial celebrations took place on 13 June 1916 under the director, Joseph Maiden, who instituted the colony's first herbarium, a museum, library and Sydney's first playground.
The Museum and National Herbarium in Sydney Botanic Gardens. NSW, Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1919), Saturday 16 March 1901
Sydney Botanic Gardens, NSW, Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1919), Wednesday 29 January 1908
In the Sydney Botanic Gardens, NSW, Sydney Mail (NSW : 1912 - 1938), Wednesday 20 November 1929
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II visited the Gardens on 13 February 1954.

And between 1970 and 1980, a new succulent and cacti garden was added to the gardens.

During the 1990s, Asian themed plants garden were added to the Lower Garden.
Shakespeare Place and Sydney Royal Botanic Gardens, NSW, 1956, Sydney of Sydney
Every year, about 3 million people stroll through the Gardens. Some take the free guided tours, available daily at 10.30am. Others may attend corporate events, get married at the Gardens, or sit under a tree and gaze around in wonder.

Around The Botanic Gardens

The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney , NSW
The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney , NSW
The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney , NSW
The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney , NSW
The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney , NSW
The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney , NSW
The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney , NSW


Location. Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, Mrs Macquaries Road, Sydney NSW.

The Australiana Pioneer Village at Wilberforce, NSW

The Australiana Pioneer Village, built from 1969 to 1970, is located on the bank of the Hawkesbury River at Wilberforce, NSW, on 27 acres

The Australiana Pioneer Village, built from 1969 to 1970, is located on the bank of the Hawkesbury River at Wilberforce, NSW, on 27 acres.

The setting of the pioneer village was formerly farmland, worked by the Rose family, and integral to the survival of the early colony.

Thomas and Jane Rose, from Dorset, England, were the first family of free settlers in NSW, arriving on the Bellona in 1793.

The Rose's home, located on their former farm, built from 1810 to 1820 by Thomas Rose, is Australia’s oldest known timber slab house.

For over 150 years, the land was occupied by the Rose family. 

Many of the buildings at the pioneer village were endangered heritage buildings from the district, moved to the site.

Buildings on the site include: Stable from the Black Horse Inn, Richmond (about 1860s), Samuel Paul's house and shop at Richmond. (1850s), Cartwright Cottage, East Kurrajong (1870s), The Bee House, McGrath's Hill (1879), and Rose Cottage, built from 1810 to 1820.

Visit this heritage-listed open-air museum at Rose Street, Wilberforce, City of Hawkesbury, NSW.

Around The Australiana Pioneer Village 


The Australiana Pioneer Village, built from 1969 to 1970, is located on the bank of the Hawkesbury River at Wilberforce, NSW, on 27 acres
The Australiana Pioneer Village, built from 1969 to 1970, is located on the bank of the Hawkesbury River at Wilberforce, NSW, on 27 acres
The Australiana Pioneer Village, built from 1969 to 1970, is located on the bank of the Hawkesbury River at Wilberforce, NSW, on 27 acres
The Australiana Pioneer Village, built from 1969 to 1970, is located on the bank of the Hawkesbury River at Wilberforce, NSW, on 27 acres
The Australiana Pioneer Village, built from 1969 to 1970, is located on the bank of the Hawkesbury River at Wilberforce, NSW, on 27 acres
The Australiana Pioneer Village, built from 1969 to 1970, is located on the bank of the Hawkesbury River at Wilberforce, NSW, on 27 acres

Things To Do

The Australiana Pioneer Village

10 Rose Street, Wilberforce, NSW, Australia, 2756

(02) 4575 1777

The lower Hawkesbury River is home to the Dharug people.
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