The town of Richmond was to become "one of the most English looking towns in the colony".
.), the Aboriginal people encountered by the earliest European explorers of the Hawkesbury River spoke a different language to the Aboriginal people inhabiting the Cumberland Plains (from the Georges River at Liverpool through to Parramatta and Blacktown).
The people of the Cumberland Plains belonged to the Dharug (pronounced Tharoog) tribe; while those clans occupying "the mountain catchment of
the branches of the Hawkesbury River below Warragamba, from the Hawkesbury floodplain to the Hunter River floodplain in the north" are Darkiñung (pronounced Darkinyung). The name Darug, however, is commonly used.
The Darug people passed on their language and stories orally. One of the earliest collections of the Darug language was collected by William Dawes, an officer of the British Marines, who had a close relationship with a Darug woman named Patyegarang (Grey Kangaroo). Dawes did not just write down words. He also jotted down bits of conversations, which effectively helps
transport us back to the culture and the people of the time.
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| ABORIGINAL POT-HOLES. These were made for collecting water on solid rock in theHawkesbury River country. Note the tiny channels leading into them. Sydney Mail (NSW : 1912 - 1938), Wednesday 23 October 1935 |
Aboriginal people across the Australian continent had been isolated genetically and culturally from the rest of humanity for 50,000 years until the arrival of the British. And the meeting between people who were very different in technology, beliefs and land use ultimately led to great upheaval and change.
With the subsequent expansion of European settlement, fighting developed between settlers and Aboriginal people, which ultimately led to Indigenous dispossession and displacement: with the loss of land,
culture and community. Aboriginal people also had no immunity to diseases that had plagued humanity for thousands of years. Despite this, the Darug story is ultimately one of adaptation, survival and resilience.
The party found and navigated the lower reaches of the Hawkesbury River as far as Dangar Island (near Brooklyn), as well as Broken Bay, Brisbane Water and Cowan Creek.
In June-July 1789, other
exploration parties returned to the Hawkesbury River, which Phillip
named in honour of Lord Hawkesbury, the president of the Board of Trade in Britain. Though the Aboriginal name for the Hawkesbury River is Deerubbin, which may mean "wide, deep water".
In July 1789, the third British expedition went as far as the Colo River and Richmond Hill. During these voyages, Captain John Hunter made the first surveys and maps of the Hawkesbury.
Soon, European settlers began to move into
this area.
1791
Governor Philip met the Aboriginal leaders Gomberee and Yarramundi at Pitt Town Bottoms in 1791.
To live a hunter-gatherer lifestyle requires very large areas of land, special knowledge and skills, and populations are highly mobile, constructing temporary shelters as clans move about according season and food availability.
To Europeans, the land looked unused and belonging to no one, and so began a clash of land management values. The loss of Aboriginal land, water sources and impacts on game availability led Aboriginal people to spear stock animals as a replacement.
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| Portrait of Captain Arthur Phillip RN |
In February 1794, Aboriginal people attacked, robbed and beat some of the settlers’ wives, stripping one woman of clothing.
In the following months, there was an escalation of hostilities, and by the following year, David Collins, Judge Advocate in charge of the Marine detachment, wrote that there was "an open war", between the settlers and the Aboriginals, who would carry off the ripe corn in blankets and nets.
In June 1795, Lieutenant Abbott and sixty soldiers were sent to the Hawkesbury “for the purpose of driving the natives away”.
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| A scene by moonlight, circa 1797, Dayes, Edward, 1763-1804 |
The journey to and from the Hawkesbury region to Sydney Heads was a perilous one, requiring boat travel along the Hawkesbury River, past Lion Island and
out to sea, to follow the coast down to Sydney Heads.
1795
One of the earliest land grants was awarded to William Rowe, registered at Richmond Hill on 15 May 1795. Rowe was an ex-convict, born in Cornwall, England, who was transported for stealing a canvas bag.
In the same month (May 1795), Aboriginal people attacked the new settlers. Rowe and his child,
were killed. Rowe's wife, seriously wounded, "crawled down the bank [of the river] and concealed herself amongst some reeds half immersed in the river, where she remained a considerable time without assistance". Mrs Rowe "as 'Roe" was taken to Parramatta hospital where she slowly recovered.
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| "Night Attack by Blacks", painting depicting two settlers defending their bark hut against an attack by Aborigines |
After this, Colonel Paterson sent 60 soldiers from the New South Wales Corps to the area, where they were ordered: "to destroy as many as they could meet of the wood tribe (Be-dia-gal); and in the hope of striking terror, to erect gibbets in different places, whereon the bodies of all they might kill were to be hung".
Elizabeth Macarthur wrote on 1 September 1795, referring to
a visit to the Hawkesbury three days before:
"I could have spent more time here (Richmond Hill) but we were not without apprehension of being interrupted by the natives, as about that time they were very troublesome and had killed many white people on the banks of the river. The soil in the valley of the river is most productive and greatly superior to any that has been tilled in this country, which has induced numbers to settle here; but there being no vessels there is at present much difficulty in transporting the produce to Sydney."
In 1796, Australia's first bushranger John Caesar, nicknamed "Black Caesar", who was of African descent, was shot and killed by John Wimbow for a reward of five gallons of rum. Caesar was notorious in
the colony as he attacked and cracked the skull of the Aboriginal warrior Pemulwuy.
John Wilson (Bun-bo-è) and William Knight, an escaped convict, joined "the natives at the river" and showed them that English muskets, after being fired, are useless until reloaded.
A road, little more than a track, was soon established by Lieutenant-General Francis Grose. It reportedly took 8 to 9 hours to walk from Sydney to Green Hills (Windsor). After Governor Hunter's visit to the Hawkesbury in 1796, great improvements were made to the road.
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| Lachlan Macquarie attributed to John Opie (1761-1807) |
One of the advantages of the Richmond Valley was the fact that food grown in the region could be transported to Sydney by boats along the river. However, relations with Aboriginal people
were not going well.
A Government store was established in the region in 1798, with William Baker in charge. His name is remembered in Baker Street, Windsor, and Baker's Lagoon, near Richmond. In time, Windsor became the administrative centre of the Hawkesbury area, and Richmond became
more residential.
An outbreak of smallpox, one of humanity's deadliest diseases, occurred in Sydney in 1789 and killed thousands of Aboriginal people.
1800s
By 1801, the Hawkesbury-Nepean region was supplying most of the grain for the colony, bringing food security. The Hawkesbury River, at this time, was busy with boats and commerce.
The French explorers Nicolas Baudin and Fancois Peron proposed invading Australia by way of the Hawkesbury River in 1802. Read
here
Whilst a punt allowed the crossing of the Hawkesbury River, Andrew Thompson built the first bridge over South Creek in 1802, which allowed easier access to Green Hills village (Windsor). Governor Hunter also permitted Thompson
to operate a store.
The shipbuilder, John Grono at Pitt Town, built about twelve vessels from 1804 to 1833.
Jonathon Griffiths' shipyard
was situated on the banks of the Hawkesbury approximately a mile and a quarter downstream from the North Richmond bridge. By 1804 his boat
Speedy, had carried two cargoes of grain from the Hawkesbury to Sydney and one from Newcastle with coals.
The town of Richmond was one of five that was named by Governor Macquarie in 1810. Macquarie selected the location “on a very beautiful elevated Bank and overlooking Pugh’s Lagoon and adjoining rich lowlands”.
The first school/church opened in 1810.
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| Several fresh accounts of depredations committed by the natives have been received during the week. In one instance an unfortunate woman on the farm of Mr. Blaxland was stripped of her cloathing, and left in a most deplorable condition with an unhappy infant with which she had only lain in four days. A man was stopped with a cart on the Hawkesbury road, and robbed of a keg containing ten gallons of spirits, a bag of sugar, and a basket of Brazil tobacco, and a pursuit was shortly after undertaken, but the plunderers were beyond the reach of danger, and this valuable property was of consequence totally lost.—We are at the same time happy to reflect, that they confine themselves to plunder, and have not aggravated their offences by acts of wanton cruelty, which heretofore have marked their savage animosity; and which it is much to be hoped, they may not by any rash or un-justifiable act be provoked to. Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1803 - 1842), Sunday 10 September 1809 |
On 8 January 1811, the Governor and Mrs Macquarie, along with a surveyor, marked out "The Great Square" and the major streets of the new township of Richmond.
The first church services were conducted at Richmond in 1808 by Brother Youl. A chaplain, Reverend Robert Cartwright, was appointed to the Church of England in the Hawkesbury in 1810. The graveyard of St. Peters Anglican Church at Richmond contains several first fleeters, pioneers and other prominent people from the early period of Hawkesbury settlement.
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| Historic St. Peter's Church, Richmond, NSW, Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954) |
A Township Develops
In 1811 the township was surveyed by James Meehan, also an ex-convict, who was born in Ireland and sentenced
to transportation for taking part in the Irish rebellion of 1798.
Also, in 1811, William Cox was appointed, along with Rev. B. Cartwright and Dr James Mileham, to form a special weekly bench of magistrates
to decide cases from the whole district. About this time, Cox built "Clarendon House" on his estate between Windsor and Richmond, a portion of which was still standing in 1915.
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| William Cox, J.P. of Clarendon, Richmond, NSW, Land (Sydney, NSW : 1911 - 1954) |
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| Clarendon House a late Georgian homestead, built by William Cox in the early 1800s on Dight street in Richmond. It fell into disrepair and was demolished in 1924 |
Thompson's bridge was replaced in 1813, but floods continued to cause great damage to the structure. Between 1799 to 1819, there were ten major floods, many of which were very severe and sudden.
In 1814, a tollroad was built from Parramatta Bridge to Rouse Hill, but Old Windsor Road remained the main thoroughfare for carting goods and was preferred to the more perilous
journey to Sydney by water.
Land for the town of Richmond was bought from Mr Bailey, who was given another 200 acres as compensation, and a small part of Bowman's farm was also taken with compensation.
"The Black Horse Prince" was the first inn licensed at Richmond in 1819. It later became known as the "Black Horse."
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The Black Horse Hotel, Richmond,'N.S.W. Tlic first license was granted, in 1819. Sir Henry Parkes spent his honeymoon at this hotel, Northern Star (Lismore, NSW : 1876 - 1954) |
1820s
Commissioner Bigge in 1820 reported that "some of the proprietors of land ... have begun to build small tenements and from thence to superintend the cultivation of their farms".
A coach service ran from Parramatta to Windsor in 1824, but within a decade, the terrible quality of the road put a stop to the service.
In 1827, there were about 40 buildings at Richmond. Richmond's main park was once the Market Place.
There were traditional enmities, raids and conflicts between different Aboriginal clans, often due to
diversity and difference and perhaps, competition for resources. For example, Lieutenant George Bowen, who resided at Berambing close to Mount Tomah in 1829, recalled raids by Blue Mountains Aboriginal tribes on Hawkesbury tribes to kidnap their women.
In 1833, two flour mills were operating at Richmond, run by George Howell and William Bowman.
Richmond's population was 982 in 1837.
The newspaper the
Hawkesbury Courier was first published in 1844.
In 1848, there were 746 people living at Richmond.
1850s
Although
the rich alluvial soils at Richmond were suitable for growing crops for the struggling colony (mostly wheat and corn), destructive flooding caused huge damage at regular intervals. In 1857, a young scientist named Stanley Jevons wrote of the area:
"The plains are formed of a rich and exceedingly deep natural earth which seems to require nothing but the sowing of the seed to bring forth corn or anything else without further preparation. No wonder that this narrow strip of land has been greedily seized upon, divided up and cultivated as closely as in any English model farm, while 20 or 30 miles of busy and woody country between it and Sydney lie comparatively uncleared and wild."
1860s
Public education began at Richmond in 1860 when the National School opened in West market Street. Before this, various religious and private schools operated. Later the public school moved to Windsor Street.
The Hawkesbury Bridge at Richmond was built by private subscription in 1860 but sold to the state in 1876 for £7,000.
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| Waugh's Australian almanac. (1861) |
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| New South Wales Government Gazette (Sydney, NSW : 1832 - 1900), Friday 12 December 1862 |
In 1864 the rail arrived when a branch line was built out to Windsor and Richmond.
Richmond School of Arts opened in 1866.
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| The Royal Hotel at Richmond, NSW, was the first licensed in 1865 |
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| Richmond School of Arts, Richmond NSW, opened in 1866 |
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| Illawarra Mercury (Wollongong, NSW : 1856 - 1950), Tuesday 9 February 1869 |
1870s
On 23 December 1874 strong winds in the region became almost hurricane-like by 1pm. A Destructive fires broke out in Windsor.
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| Matthew Hughes School, old Church of England school Richmond, NSW, began in 1810, ca. 1870-1872. State Library of New South Wales |
The Richmond Court House and associated police station was built in 1878.
1880s
In 1881 the population of Richmond was at 1239.
The
Windsor and Richmond Gazette first published in 1888, later published as the Hawkesbury Gazette.
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| Windsor and Richmond Gazette 21 july 1888 |
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| The Royal Hotel. Richmond, NSW, in 1887 |
An Aboriginal Reserve was established at Sackville NSW in 1889.
1890s
Hawkesbury Agricultural College based in Richmond was established in 1891, and amalgamated into the University of Western Sydney in 1989.
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| Windsor and Richmond Gazette (NSW : 1888 - 1965), Saturday 11 April 1891 |
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| Richmond Flats in Flood, Tyrrell Photographic Collection, Powerhouse Museum, n.d. |
Various artists have visited Richmond to paint, including Julian Ashton, Arthur Streeton and Charles Conder.
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Arthur Streeton - "The purple noon's transparent might", an 1896 oil on canvas landscape painting by Australian artist Arthur Streeton. The painting depicts the Hawkesbury River in New South Wales, looking toward the Blue Mountains
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1900s
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| A bullock team dragging a ripper plough in Windsor Street, Richmond, in 1901, NSW, Windsor and Richmond Gazette (NSW : 1888 - 1965) |
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| Windsor and Richmond Gazette (NSW : 1888 - 1965), Saturday 8 June 1901 |
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| Windsor and Richmond Gazette (NSW : 1888 - 1965), Saturday 8 June 1901 |
The Hawkesbury Herald newspaper began in 1902.
An iron and concrete bridge was constructed in 1904.
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| Main Street of Richmond, NSW, Australasian (Melbourne, Vic. : 1864 - 1946), Saturday 21 January 1905 |
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| Reaping the Richmond Bottoms, Evening News (Sydney, NSW : 1869 - 1931), Saturday 25 February 1905 |
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| Black Horse Hotel, Richmond. Situated in tho pretty little town of Richmond is the Black Horse Hotel, made famous both in song and story throughout Australia. This hostelry was first licensed in 1819, and was for many years familiarly called "The Honeymoon Inn," for in these days it was the favorite resort of honeymoon parties, who journeyed from all parts of the colony. In the hotel register, which is still in existence, are included the names of many eminent people who have been identified with the wealth and progress of New South Wales, who spent their honeymoon at the famous "Black Horse”. Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1907), Wednesday 17 October 1906 |
By 1911, the population had fallen to 1860.
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| The State Premier, accompanied by the Minister for Works, and several other members of Parliament, paid avisit to Richmond for the purpose of opening a new flood-proof bridge over the Hawkesbury. Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1871 - 1912), Wednesday 13 September 1905 |
The Bridge Opens
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| The new bridge over the Hawkesbury at Richmond, NSW, Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1871 - 1912), Wednesday 20 January 1904 |
Ham Common, which is located on Windsor Road between Richmond and Clarendon was used as an airfield from 1911. After WWI, the N.S.W. Government established a School of Aviation on 37 acres of the land, which became Richmond RAAF base in 1925.
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| Horse parade at Hawkesbury Agricultural College, Richmond, N.S.W. circa 1913 |
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| This coach drove the late Albert Duke of Clarence (died 1892) and the Duke of York, later King George V around the Windsor district, NSW, Daily Telegraph (Sydney, NSW : 1883 - 1930), Saturday 18 July 1914 |
WWI
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Men who recently completed their course at the State Aviation School at Richmond, NSW. They are the second batch to qualify as pilots, Sydney Mail (NSW : 1912 - 1938), Wednesday 20 June 1917 |
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Bridge over the Hawkesbury at North Richmond, Sydney Mail (NSW : 1912 - 1938), Wednesday 24 July 1918
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| Students at the Hawkesbury Agricultural College, Richmond, NSW, Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1871 - 1912), Saturday 17 August 1901 |
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| Hawkesbury Agricultural College, Richmond, NSW, n.d. |
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| Premier of NSW, James McGowen (on right) on Diploma Day at Hawkesbury Agricultural College, Richmond, N.S.W. - 1913, Aussie~mobs |
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| Students planting in the orchard. Hawkesbury Agricultural College, NSW, circa 1914 |
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| Imperial Hotel Richmond, was built on the site of the Horse and Jockey Hotel Richmond NSW corner of East Market Street, it was demolished in 1971 |
1920s
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| Celebrations Richmond's Municipal Jubilee , NSW,Sydney Mail (NSW : 1912 - 1938), Wednesday 7 June 1922, |
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At the offical opening of the Hawkesbury Show, Sydney Mail (NSW : 1912 - 1938), Wednesday 9 May 1923
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| The flooded Hawkesbury at Richmond, NSW, Sydney Mail (NSW : 1912 - 1938), Wednesday 20 May 1925 |
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| Seagull III Richmond, NSW, 1928 AWM |
1930s
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The sandstone caves of the Hawkesbury, NSW, and its scores of tidal tributaries and mangrove-belted inlets,are rich in [A]boriginal carvings, yet very few of Sydney's pleasure- seekers know where they are.Sun (Sydney, NSW : 1910 - 1954), Sunday 20 November 1932, |
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| Windsor and Richmond Gazette (NSW : 1888 - 1965), Friday 25 November 1932 |
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Members of the Royal Australian Air Force are engaged this week in their annual gunnery course at Richmond aerodrome, NSW. Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), Wednesday 10 August 1932 |
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Mr. Aubrey Halloran unveiled an obelisk at St. Peter's Church, Richmond, NSW, on Saturday, made from bricks of the first church school erected in 1810. Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), Monday 11 December 1933 |
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| Windsor Street, Richmond, New South Wales - circa 1930 |
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| Black Horse Service Station, Windsor Street, Richmond, New South Wales, ca. 1935, Edward Searle. NLA |
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| Squadron RAAF Seagulls at Richmond, NSW, 1938 |
1940s
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| Sun (Sydney, NSW : 1910 - 1954), Tuesday 16 July 1940 |
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| RAAF crew working on newly arrived Lockheed aircraft at Richmond, Sydney, 1940, State Library of New South Wales |
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| FRIENDS are entertained at "Comrades' Corner/' headquarters of Richmond branch (NSW) of the Communist Party. Tribune (Sydney, NSW : 1939 - 1991), Tuesday 2 October 1945 |
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| RICHMOND: Flooded farms between Richmond and Windsor, where the Nepean River, NSW, Southern Sentinel (Mount Barker, WA : 1934 - 1954), Thursday 30 June 1949 |
1950s
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| Headquarters of the Richmond CWA, NSW, Land (Sydney, NSW : 1911 - 1954), Friday 8 January 1954 |
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| Windsor Street the Main Street of Richmond, NSW, Land (Sydney, NSW : 1911 - 1954), Friday 8 January 1954 |
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ST. PETER'S' CHURCH OF ENGLAND was consecrated by the first andonly' Bishop of Australia, Right Rev. ,W. G. Broughton, in July, 1841 Land (Sydney, NSW : 1911 - 1954), Friday 8 January 1954 |
Sewerage works were established at Richmond in 1962.
1970s
In the 1970s, Richmond was used as a location in a Hollywood movie, a type of "convict Western", called Adam’s Woman, starring Beau Bridges.
2000s
The Sydney Polo Club at Richmond featured in Baz Luhrmann’s film The Great Gatsby in 2009 and University of Western Sydney Hawkesbury campus swimming pool was used in the film, The Black Balloon in 2008.
In 2016, a war drama film directed by Mel Gibson, called
Hacksaw Ridge used Richmond as a location.
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Windsor Street in Richmond, NSW, prepares for the filming of Mel Gibson blockbuster, Hacksaw Ridge
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Some Notable Places and People
James Blackman and FamilyJames Blackman, his wife Elizabeth, four sons and a daughter arrived in Australia from England in December 1801. James became the local constable and later, the grave-digger and sexton. The land granted to him, however, proved to be flood-prone, but despite the struggles, James built Bowman's Cottage, which was later extended by John Bowman.
The colonial Georgian house, now called Bowman's Cottage, has brick nogged walls, where bricks fill the spaces in the wooden frame. The house was constructed between 1815 and 1818. But James Blackman was forced to sell the property to George Bowman due to financial difficulties.
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| Bowman's Cottage, 368-370 Windsor Street, Richmond, NSW 2753, constructed between 1815 and 1818. Bowman Cottage in Richmond has a twin located 23 kilometres from Dunedoo in Warrumbungle Shire: the Merotherie Homestead, which George Bowman bought and extended throughout the nineteenth century in the same style as his house in Richmond |
The Bowman Family
A well known Richmond family was that of John Bowman (1751-1813), who arrived with his wife, two sons and a daughter on the "Farwell" in 1798. They were among the early free settlers on the Hawkesbury and supporters of Governor Bligh. The
family farm at Richmond was called "Archerfield." Some of John's descendants were Robert, who became a doctor and practised in Richmond until his death in 1872 and George, who became an M.L.A. and Richmond's first Mayor in 1872.
John Bowman's brother William and family also emigrated to Australia, arriving by ship, the "Nile", in 1801. In 1841, William Bowman of Richmond purchased two allotments, "being desirous to favour and promote the body of Christians residing within the Police district of Windsor aforesaid adhering to the Presbyterian form of Church Government and worship as contained in the Westminster Confession of Faith and
other Standards of the Church of Scotland". The year before, George Bowman had built a Presbyterian church in Richmond at his own expense.
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| The tate Mr. George Bowman, J.P., Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1907), Saturday 7 September 1878 |
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| Mrs, W. Bowman of Richmond, NSW, Illustrated Sydney News (NSW : 1881 - 1894), Saturday 19 December 1885 |
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| William and Elizabeth Bowman built "Toxana" in c1842 on land in Richmond, NSW, granted to John Bowman.. It was the headquarters of the third regiment and later, housed students from the Hawkesbury Agricultural College |
Hobartville
An impressive heritage home at Richmond is "Hobartville" at Kurrajong Road. The property is made up of a grant of 400 acres to Surgeon Luttrell in 1804, and part of a grant to James Blackman in 1802. William Cox Junior obtained both properties in 1816, and in 1828 built the house.
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| A sandstock brick mansion built by William M. Cox junior, son of William M. Cox who built the first road over the Blue Mountains. The present homestead Hobartville, Richmond, NSW, was completed in 1828 |
Hobartville, at Richmond, NSW, has a number of historic outbuildings and cottages
Margaret Catchpole (1762-1819)
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| Portrait of Margaret Catchpole / by an unknown artist, Dixson Library, State Library of New South Wales |
Born in Suffolk, England, Margaret Catchpole was a rebel who worked as a servant and was convicted of horse stealing. Her death sentence was commuted to transportation to Australia for seven years. In the interim, she was sent to Ipswich Gaol.
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| Sun (Sydney, NSW : 1910 - 1954), Wednesday 12 July 1911 |
Three years later, Catchpole escaped from the gaol, was captured again, then sentenced to death again. However, the sentence was again reduced, and she arrived in Sydney on the "Nile" on 15 December 1801.
Later, Catchpole became the overseer of a farm and kept a small store at Richmond, acting as midwife and nurse and helping others. Her letters of 8 October 1806 and 8 October 1809 are the only known eyewitness accounts of the Hawkesbury River floods that occurred at that time. She also described in vivid detail
the countryside, the Aboriginal people and the brutality of those times.
Catchpole was buried at St Peter's church at Richmond. A ward in the Hawkesbury Private Hospital proudly bears her name: The Margaret Catchpole Maternity Ward.
Belmont Park
St John of God Hospital at North Richmond occupies the grand mansion of "Belmont Park" built by Philip Charley in 1892.
It also occupies the central portion of the major grazing property called "Belmont", developed by Archibald Bell between 1807 and 1837. Philip Charley bought the house in 1889. Within three years, Charley had commissioned paintings of old Belmont, demolished the house and built a grandiose mansion nearby.
A time capsule was ceremoniously buried during the laying of the building’s foundation stone on February 29, 1892. It was dug up in 2018 from its sub-floor position between the mansion’s bearers and joists. Coins From around the world were found in the capsule and a scroll with details about the building.
Governor Macquarie and his wife, Elizabeth, visited Mrs Bell at "Belmont" in 1810. Mrs Bell's husband was in England, serving as a witness at the "Rum Rebellion" Court Martial.
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| Belmont Park, Richmond, NSW, built by Philip Charley in 1892 on land which had been developed by Archibald Bell between 1807 and 1837. A memorial garden was established here for the battle fought here between the Darug people and the New South Wales Corps, which also included several armed settlers. It is considered to be the first recorded battle between Aboriginals and settlers |
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| Belmont Park, Richmond, NSW, built by Philip Charley in 1892 on land which had been developed by Archibald Bell between 1807 and 1837 |
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| Belmont Park, Richmond, NSW, built by Philip Charley in 1892 on land which had been developed by Archibald Bell between 1807 and 1837 |
Around Richmond
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| This house was constructed circa 1827. William Price arrived in NSW as a convict aboard the "Ocean’" in 1816. He married Ann Cooper 21 September 1818 at Richmond and in 1822, he bought one acre of land from William Bowman and by 1827, had constructed this two storey dwelling where he resided with his wife and several children. Price also ran a post office and an undertakers business from this site. He died on 28 May 1877 aged 85 years |
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"Josieville" built by Joseph Onus in the late 1830's. He was transported on the “Glatton “
In 1803. In the 1950's this house was used to house teachers from Richmond High School
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| Onus Family Grave, St Peters Cemetery at Richmond NSW |
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| "Susannah Green who departed this life March 7 1807 Aged 37 years" "View the stone as you pass by For as you are : so once was I And as I am so you must be Prepare yourself to follow me". Peter's Anglican Church, Richmond NSW |
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| In 1893 Benjamin Richards built a two storey Victorian house in Windsor Street, Richmond, NSW, called "Kamilaroi". The house was demolished in late 1955 and some timber from the house was used to build Richmond Scouts Hall in Bourke Street |
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Seymours House, at 24 Bosworth Street, Richmond, was built c. 1840s. It is named after a family who had owned the property |
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| This house at 126 Windsor Street, Richmond, NSW belonged to John Town , who became a miller and publican . He is associated with the King’s Head Inn and later, George the Fourth Inn, at George-street, Richmond. John Town (1773-1846) was apprenticed to a Lincolnshire tailor when he was sentenced to life imprisonment at Warwick, England, in 1796; he arrived in Sydney on board the Royal Admiral in the year 1800 |
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"Eltham’" circa 1898. Windsor St, Richmond NSW. Thomas Eather opened an inn known as the Union Inn on this site the 1830s. The first owner of this allotment was William Prestnell in 1841. Owners of the property between 1843 and late 1880s included Thomas Tebbutt, John Tebbutt, George Guest and Andrew Town. In 1888 Town sold the building to the Australian Joint Stock bank. In 1892 it became Dr Helsham's surgery. alter became the home of George Wood and family
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| Clear Oaks is a Colonial Georgian farmhouse located at 135 Francis Street, Richmond, NSW, It is also known as Moxey's Farm House |
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| "Eulabah", was the home of Rev James Cameron and his wife Eliza (Bowman) built in the late Victoian Jacobean style in 1881 by Sydney architects Mansfield Brothers |
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| The Pavilion at Richmond, NSW, was completed in 1884. Cricket had been played at this park since the 1840s |
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| Regent Theatre, located at 145 Windsor Street, Richmond, NSW, opened on 17th July 1935 |
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| Jerendine, 135 Windsor Street, Richmond, NSW, built about 1906 |
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The original St Monica's Church. Richmond, NSW, opened, on May 4 1859. A new church was built in 1982
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| Benson House, 61 Francis Street Richmond, NSW,. Built by the Benson Family, shipwrights Of the Hawkesbury |
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| Devonshire, Francis Street, Richmond, NSW, built about 1903 by Robert Marlin. The Marlin family were from Devon, England |
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| 179 Windsor Street, Richmond, NSW, built in about 1860 by John Ducker |
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| 294 Windsor street, Richmond, NSW, housed the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney which in 1982 merged with National Bank of Australasia to become the NAB |
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| House belonging to Andrew Town, built in 1850 at 122 Windsor street Richmond |
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| Former Commercial Hotel now RG McGees, at 193 Windsor Street, built in 1891 by George Cobcroft |
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| Old Post Office and Old Police Station in view, Richmond NSW |
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| Heritage-listed commercial building at 257-259 Windsor Street, Richmond, NSW, Collywolly |
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| Rutherglen, Richmond, NSW, was built in the 1830s, by a Mr Spencer who is believed to be the son of the Thomas Spencer, a member of the First Fleet who died in 1821. Note the irregular spacing of its 12-pane sash windows |
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| The Royal Hotel, Richmond. NSW, was the first licensed in 1865 |
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| St Andrews was built and paid for by George Bowman as a Presbyterian Church in 1845, Richmond NSW |
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| The former Wheelwrights Shop, Richmond, NSW. Wheelwright, Bob Eggleton was living here in 1868 with his wife Elizabeth and family |
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| The Bank of NSW was changed in October 1982 to Westpac, built in 1938, Maksym Kozlenko |
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| Richmond, NSW, Maksym Kozlenko |
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| 126 Windsor Street, Richmond, New South Wales is listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register. Collywolly |
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| Returned Services League building, Richmond, NSW, West Market Street. (Nadiatalent) 24 Market Street Richmond, was originally the Presbyterian School, but became the National School in July 1860. Was purchased from the Department of Education and became the Masonic Lodge in 1929 |
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| "1878. Erected to the memory of Andrew R. Cameron M.D. by the people of this district to testify their deep sense of his intellectual ability professional skill and amiable character", Richmond NSW, Nadiatalent |
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| New Inn 49-51 Bosworth Street Richmond, NSW is listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register, was built from 1827 to 1927. Collywolly |
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| Richmond Park, NSW. War memorial and canons. Lucy Moore |
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| Richmond railway station building, Richmond, NSW. Abesty |
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| Clear Oaks or Moxey’s Farm, Francis Street Richmond, built by the Onus Family, before 1819 |
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Seymours House, at 24 Bosworth Street, Richmond, was built c. 1840s. It is named after a family who had owned the property
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| St Peter's Cemetery, Richmond, NSW |
Things To Do and Places To Go
Hawkesbury Valley Walking Tours - Richmond
Richmond park Precinct
Hawkesbury Heritage and Culture
Hawkesbury Regional Museum
Analemmatic Sundial at Beaumont Ave, North Richmond NSW 2754, Australia
Kurrajong Radio Museum
Australiana Pioneer Village
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