Retford Park - Bowral - New South Wales
Retford Park is located on Gundungurra Country and has a European history extending back to land grants made to Edward Riley Snr by Governor Macquarie in 1821. The grand house was built in 1887 by merchant and stockbreeder, Samuel Hordern and his wife Jane nee Booth, and designed by Sydney architect, Albert Bond.
In 1964, James Fairfax AC, former chairman of John Fairfax Ltd (later known as Fairfax Media), bought Retford Park and transformed the agricultural property into a gentleman’s estate. Mr Fairfax was a well-known champion of the arts and generous philanthropist. He always believed that Retford Park should be preserved for the enjoyment and benefit of future generations and in 2016 he gifted his historic home and its magnificent gardens to the National Trust (NSW).
Retford Park, a stunningly beautiful grand Victorian Italianate mansion, designed by Albert Bond, was built by Samuel Hordern (of the well-known retailing family) in 1887, for use as a cattle stud, breeding Jersey and Ayrshire cattle.
1 Exploration Hamilton Hume claimed in 1826 that he and his brother had discovered the country later referred to as the County of Argyll when they travelled through the Bargo Brush to the area around Sutton Forest and Bong Bong in 1814. Being only 17 years old in 1814 Hume was most probably in the company of his uncle, John Kennedy, after whom Kennedy's Brush was named. In Governor Macquarie's view, Kennedy was the first white person to traverse the area. In the following years Hume became associated with most major expeditions in the area and with its general exploration.¹ The 1812-1816 drought catalysed occupation of the region. The County of Cumberland was under the pressure of population growth (due to increased immigration and transportation after the close of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815) and of declining yields from exhausted soils. The effects of drought and caterpillar plagues exacerbated the pressure on land in this period, thus the expansion of settlement was recognised as a necessity and a decision regarding the utilisation of the wild cattle rather than merely protecting them and their grazing lands was imperative. In 1816 John Oxley had obtained permission from Macquarie to send stock to Wingecarribee near the site of the present town of Bowral. He moved 500 head of stock from the Bargo district, becoming the pioneer settler of the region.2 Between 1816 and 1830 exploration intensified: in 1816 Hume further explored the district; in 1817 Throsby, Hume and Wild travelled from the Cow Pastures to the west of Sutton Forest; and in 1818 James Meehan, Charles Throsby, Hamilton Hume and Joseph Wild passed through the Berrima District, splitting into two parties Throsby travelled to the coast via Kangaroo Valley while Meehan and Hume travelled to the Goulburn Plains, in the process the Bargo, Moss Vale, Bundanoon, Marulan, Meryla Pass, Kangaroo Valley and Jervis Bay Districts were traversed. In 1819 Throsby and Wild pioneered the route from Bong Bong to the Bathurst District. Joseph Wild explored the Burragawang area in 1820.3
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J. Jervis,`The Wingecarribee and Southern Highlands District', Journal of the Royal Australian Historical Society, Vol.XXIII, Pt. IV, Sydney, 1937, p. 247; D.N. Jeans, An Historical Geography of New South Wales to 1901, Reed Education, Sydney, 1972, p. 38; J. Jervis, A History of the Berrima District 1798 - 1973, Library of Australian History in association with Wingecarribee Shire Council, 1986, North Sydney, p.9. J. Jervis, `The Wingecarribee ...', pp. 251 - 252. J. Jervis, `The Wingecarribee ...', p. 247; Conservation Planning Issues: A Discussion Paper ... Throsby Park Historic Site, National Parks and Wildlife Service, 1982; D.W. Holland, A History Of The Parish Of Robertson, 1976, p. 23.
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2 European Occupation 1 Macquarie rewarded Throsby's exploration with a grant of 1000 acres selected from within the explored area. To encourage further settlement in the area Macquarie made other grants. Throsby and five other free settlers took up lands in the Berrima District at Sutton Forest and were victualled from the Commissariat at Liverpool. Throsby was responsible for the construction of the first road from Stonequarry Creek to beyond the Cookbundoon Range which commenced with Wild as overseer. Oxley was promised 2,400 acres in the Parish of Bendooley.4 These initial grants and, more importantly, the establishment of a road into the region marked the areas opening up for settlement. The ten years from 1820 were pioneering years in the region, but settlement was slow and despite its proximity to Sydney, isolated. In 1820 Macquarie selected a site for a village to service the Sutton Forest settlers that was to be called Bong Bong. The district of Sutton Forest was also named by Macquarie at this time and wheat was under cultivation by the settlers. By 1821 James Atkinson had stock at Oldbury, near Berrima.5 In that year James Macarthur noted of the 'new country': I never saw a country more suitable to cattle but it is too wet for sheep. The extent is trifling, perhaps 20,000 acres. Of this Dr. Throsby occupies one half with 800 herds of horned cattle. He has established himself near the river and backed himself in to the Westward by six farms to ninety acres each, the proprietors of which all ran away with the exception of two.
John Oxley was instructed to survey the area onwards from Bargo and through the County of Argyll as far as the Cookbundoon River in 1823. The surveyors played a crucial part in the settlement of the region. After the surveys, title could be given and land taken up with some security of tenure. Bong Bong was the first village surveyed and formed in the region, the first structure being for police use. The cart track to Bong Bong and beyond over the Cookbundoon Range had been completed in 1821. It was the intention of Governor Macquarie that Bong Bong would be developed as the capital of the County of Camden. But the Macarthurs had other ideas, and were to promote Camden as the gateway to the southern highlands. In 1822, Harper surveyed the Mittagong area, the Bong Bong area and then Sutton Forest.7 In 1829 Major Thomas Mitchell, Surveyor-General of New South Wales, selected the site of Berrima whilst planning a new route south; the original road over the Mittagong Range being too steep for horse and bullock drawn traffic. Mitchell believed that the site of Berrima was superior to that of Bong Bong. At any rate, Bong Bong had an uncertain water supply. The area was still isolated and settlement scattered, rugged bushland also provided refuge for escaped convicts and those inclined toward highway robbery. The area, enroute to the south, within a reasonable distance from Sydney, however, was becoming increasingly settled. At this time cattle were the chief stock; being easily driven to the Sydney market. Farms were a mixture of small holdings owned by eхconvicts and large holdings owned by free settlers or ex-members of the administration. Elementary processing of primary produce commenced with the establishment, by 1827, of a post windmill for milling flour at Atkinson's property, Oldbury.9 Between 1850 and 1870 Berrima emerged as the main town in the region, followed in importance by Mittagong and Bowral, these latter more appropriately being called villages. There were also a number of small settlements established in the region and it was the coming of the railway and its specific route that determined those that flourished in these years and those that did not. The establishment of villages was also the result of the occupation of land by selectors after the passage of the Robertson Land Act in 1861: towns were needed to service farming districts. 10 The establishment of the railway marked the beginning of the district's recognition as a tourist resort focussed on Moss Vale and Bowral. It was noted in the Sydney Morning Herald that during 1868: many of the gentry from Sydney coming to the township on a visit and from the salubrity of the climate here induce many to erect country residences, which has already been done by a few. 11
By 1870, the population distribution and general focus of development of the area had shifted from the old road through Berrima to the towns of Bowral, Mittagong and Moss Vale which were on the railway. The resort potential of the southern highlands was recognised as Sydney residents sought relief in the area from the summer heat and the 'miasmas' associated with city living. County residences and holiday accommodation were in demand: boarding houses were built in Moss Vale and Sutton Forest from 1870-71 while country holiday homes began to be built in Bowral from the late 1870s (Bowral was to attract most tourist business from the 1880s).12 The area was drawn into the leisure/resort industry and promoted as the 'Sanatorium of the South'.
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4 Conservation Planning Issues ....; J. Jervis, `The Wingecarribee ...', pp. 252-253. 5 J.Revitt, Historic Berrima, Anvill Press, Narara, 1979, p. 6; Conservation Planning Issues ....; R. Roxburgh, A Brief History of Berrima, Berrima Village Trust. 6 Citted in J. Jervis, The Wingecarribee ..., p. 253. 7 J. Jervis, `The Wingecarribee ...', p. 257; 261 - 262; J. Cavanough, et. al.,988, p. 23; 'Camden Park Conservation Plan', History Report.
8 S.O. Wrightson, Notes on Early History of Berrima Village, Berrima Village Trust, 1968; J.Revitt, op. cit., р. 6. 9 D.N. Jeans, op. cit., p. 103; Conservation Planning Issues.... 10 P. Ashton with K. Blackmore, On The Land: A Photographic History of Farming in Australia, Kangaroo Press, Sydney, 1987, pp. 25-26; 28. 11 J. Jervis,`The Wingecarribee ...', pp. 277. 12 J. Jervis, The Wingecarribee ...', p. 247; R. Ralph, Hillview, Berrima District Historical Society, 1986, pp 10 - 11; J. Jervis, A History of the Berrima District, pp. 164-170. 13 14 15 SRNSW: Primary Application Packet 5638 at 10/26540. Grant to George Robert Nichols in Trust. SRNSW: Surveyor General, Surveyors' Field Books, No. 185, Harper, SZ968, R. 2624 SRNSW: Surveyor General, Letters Received from Surveyors, Larmer, 2/1594. R. 3073; Colonial Secretary, Letters Received Re: Land, 2/7958, R.1176; Supreme Court, Equity Division, No 2923 at 3/3867.
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3.1 Edward Riley, the elder Edward Riley, the elder, was a merchant and pastoralist who had begun his colonial career as a merchant in Calcutta, trading between Calcutta and Canton and the Australian colonies. Edward was the younger brother of Alexander Riley who arrived in NSW as a free settler in 1804. Alexander involved himself in farming, trade and various official positions. He began raising sheep on his farm Raby near Liverpool. His mercantile partnership with Richard Jones saw him begin to prosper, and he was able to draw on his brother Edward's connections. Edward immigrated to New South Wales in 1816, having remarried after the death of his first wife. He had a mercurial temperament and suffered frequent bouts of depression. However, by 1817 Alexander had become disillusioned with colonial life and trading conditions and returned to England, leaving his affairs in the hands of Edward. Back in the United Kingdom, Alexander began to realise the potential value of his property, Raby and to develop an understanding of efficient methods of wool production. Collaborating with Edward, they imported into New South Wales a flock of Saxon Merino sheep, chartering the Sir George Osburn to do so; the sheep were reputedly better accommodated than many of the human passengers. They arrived in excellent condition under the supervision Edward Riley, the younger, Alexander's nephew and Edward, senior's son. But Edward Riley, the elder, committed suicide in February 1825 and the flock arrived in December of that year and were left in the inexperienced care of Edward, the younger. The sheep according to Jill Ker Conway were the foundation of the 'most important strain in the development of the Australian merino and their importance to the Australian pastoral industry is probably greater than any other single flock'. 16 They were grazed at Raby and Cavan on the Murrumbidgee, near Yass Plains. 17
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16 J. Ker, 'Riley, Alexander', (1778?-1833), Australian Dictionary of Biography, Vol.2 Melbourne University Press, 1967, pp.379-381; Sydney Gazette, 19 December 1825, p.2. 17 The Sydney Herald, 7 August 1834.
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3.2 George Riley Bloomfield remained relatively undeveloped for some years. In the 1828 census when Edward Riley, the younger was 22 years old and his brother George was 20 they are listed as living at Raby, the property of their uncle, Alexander.18 In the journal of William, the son of Alexander, reference was made in 1830 to the family's sheep and cattle station, near Riley's Flat but George later claimed that he was in 'sole possession'19 of the property from the time he moved to it, in 1829. Riley's Flat was located on part of the study area, situated between Retford Park house and Old South Road.20 [See Figure 5] In 1832 an agreement between the Riley heirs was reached as to the partition of the Riley Estate but not formally enacted, in reality George continued to occupy Broomfield.21 In February 1841 Robert Campbell and William Walker on behalf of Edward Riley, the younger (deceased), and George Riley represented by his lawyer George Robert Nichols brought a case before the Commissioners of Claims to determine ownership of Broomfield. It was alleged that the 1530 acres received in compensation for the Hobart land, surrendered c.1820, were the joint property of Edward Riley, the younger and George Riley. Edward Riley, the younger claimed the remaining 1500 acre portion as heir at law.22 An outcome of the case, which partitioned the Riley Estate between seven heirs, was the issuing of the Bloomfield grant in May 1841 to George's solicitor George Nichols, and for its management in accord with instructions in the wills of both Edward Riley, the elder and the younger. Evidence before a later case for partition of the property establishes that George continued to occupy the property. George originally built a house near the Wingecarribee River and cleared some 40 acres. This was situated further south of the study area and was on part of the portion subdivided from the estate in 1882 and indicated in Figures 5 and 6. For 20 years, up to seven tenants occupied small farms on the Riley's Flat area, clearing the land and then cultivating it.23 Advertisements over the decade indicate that in the 1830s George's stock included cattle and horses. For example, in July 1833 George Riley advertised a reward of £1 for information regarding the 18 Malcolm R. Sainty and Keith A Johnson (eds.), Census of New South Wales- November 1828, Library of Australian History, Sydney, 1985. 19 The Sydney Morning Herald, 30 July 1881, p.8. 20 William Riley, journal entry for 1830 cited in 'The Journals of William Edward Riley, JRAHS, Vol.32, Pt. iv, 1946, р.222. 21 The Sydney Herald, 28 June 1841, p.2. 22 The Sydney Gazette, 16 February 1841, p.4. Case No. 902. 23 SRNSW: Supreme Court, Equity Division, Walker v Riley, Case No. 2923 at 3/3867. Retford Park - September 2011 11 Sue Rosen & Associates, Heritage Assessment And History (HAAH) whereabouts of runaway contract stock keeper, James Holt, who had abandoned Riley's cattle and farm Broomfield, 'to the mercy of the world' .24 In January 1834 Riley offered £20 reward for the return of a dusty black gelding, stolen or strayed from Broomfield and in 1837 a number of horses were put up for auction. In May 1838, 50 cows with calves were offered for sale from Broomfield. Similar sales dot the press over the following decades. In addition to his pastoral activities, in the 1830s George also ran a store at Broomfield, supplying an '... extensive stock of Goods... with every description of Supplies ... Wines, Spirits, Tobacco, Groceries, &c.; an extensive assortment of Winter Clothing, worthy of the Immediate attention of Innkeepers. To whom a liberal allowance will be made. 25 In the Riley mercantile tradition he accepted produce in exchange and also purchased produce for sale. On 2nd January 1837 George had married Phillis Hanks at Bong Bong, and by October 1847 she had given birth to their 8th child. Their partnership lasted until her death at Broomfield in 1867.26 TO CONNOISSURS EN Hожави. E Public are respectfally informed that about the last weck in Jone, r. Grorge Riley of Broomleld, intends offering for Bale the follawing lot of Horses, vit1-A pair of bright bay Horses, stan fifteen hands and a half high, three years old; woel wortty the attention of any petson desirous of a yais of first-rate Carriage Hortes 2A Bgit Chestaut Hunter, tands fifteen hands and one ineh high, well proportiened, bigh bred, three years old, goud in harness, 8-A bright bay Cob, siands abeat üfteen hands, very powerful, got by Whicker, thte hands, very powerful, got by Whisker, shitee yeats old, good iir harness 4-A bright bay Gelding, standa about Aficen hamis and one imch, eut out for banting, fiva years old, got by Old Camerton, good in bat5A dark bay Mare, stands fifteen hands and one inch, very powerful, finur years old, highly hred, t to carry any weight. has the appear ance of a real Yurkshiro bunter. To stand at Livery at Sandwell's Hotel. Figure 3 'For the Connoisseurs of Horses' - an advertisement placed by George Riley of Broomfield in June 1837. [The Sydney Herald, 19 June 1837, p.1] 24 The Sydney Herald, 15 July 1833, p.1 25 The Sydney Herald, 19 June 1837, p.1. 26 The Sydney Herald, 15 July 1833, p.1; 9 January 1834, p.2; 19 June 1837, p.1; The Sydney Gazette, 5 May 1838, p.3; The Sydney Herald, 15 June 1837, p.4 The Sydney Morning Herald, 26 September 1867, p.7; 20 October 1847, p.3. Retford Park - September 2011 12 Sue Rosen & Associates, Heritage Assessment And History (HAAH) NOTICE T the requrst of many Graziere and Bettlers, Mr. George kiley has been indured to add a large vatiery of Articles to Bi Btores, and takes this opportanity of apprising those up country Revidvats who will take the trouble of viewing his extensive stock of Goode, that thay on mest with evory deseription of Sup- plien at bis Eetablislment at ressomablo terms, the ohjret of the Proprietor being only to reи errate himsell for all road disasters attendant on the tedious trips to Sydney Wines, Spirits Tobses, Groorries, &a. an exionoiva amortment of Winter Clothing, worthy ofthe Iinmediate attention of Inskeepers, to whom a liheral allowancs will be made. The Proprietor, with a vlew of affording every aceommodathn, bega to lntimats that Cr ders will he Cashed. All kinds of Colonial Produre bought or takan In exchange. Bullooks Hidas, dc. Broun Aild, vear Houy Bang Ailh oar Figure 4 Advertisement for Riley's Broomfield store in June 1837. [The Sydney Herald, 15 June 1837, p.4] Retford Park - September 2011 13 Sue Rosen & Associates, Heritage Assessment And History (HAAH) Debts accumulated in the drought of 1875/76 saw both George and his son Joseph Riley became heavily mortgaged and in January 1877 Joseph was before the insolvency court with liabilities of £297 and assets of £12. His estate was surrendered.27 In the extended fallout of the financial disaster, George placed a public notice, in 1880 stating that Joseph was no longer his agent or manager in any capacity whatsoever.28 In 1881, disaster also hit George when a suit for the partition of Bloomfield, Riley vs Walker, was brought before the Supreme Court, Equity Division, which saw the breakup of the estate that he had developed over more than 50 years. This suit was a consequence of the 1832 agreement between Riley heirs and the 1840 proceedings which saw the Bloomfield grant in trust to Nichols referred to previously.29 In Walker v Riley, George Riley testified that he had lived on the property since 1829, but had known it since 1825 and had been given permission to occupy the land in August 1827. I originally resided in a house built by myself near the Wingecarribee River and cleared and cultivated about 40 acres of the adjoining land ... I removed from that dwelling to this side of the estate in 1839 and to my present residence about sixteen years ago [1849]. When I first knew this estate the flat in front of my present house known as "Riley's Flats" was a swamp and quite impassible. I caused a drain to be dug which is now represented by the deep creek which runs through this land, thus draining the swamp and enabling the land to be cultivated. This flat was occupied by tenants for 5 or 7 years who cultivated the land. With few exceptions the whole of this estate consists of good land ... the north eastern part of this estate is watered by springs, there are three small wells which were used by the tenants, these wells are from 10 to 12 feet deep...30 The Sydney Morning Herald, 31 January 1877, p.8; 3 April 1877,p.3; SRNSW: Primary Application 6276 at 6/10097. 28 The Sydney Morning Herald, 1 September 1880, p.11. 29 The Sydney Morning Herald, 30 July 1881, p.8. 30 SRNSW: Supreme Court, Equity Division, Walker v Riley, Case No. 2923 at 3/3867. Retford Park - September 2011 14 Sue Rosen & Associates, Heritage Assessment And History (HAAH) Figure 5 This survey dated January 1882 shows the partition of Riley's Bloomfield/Broomfield Eatate. George Riley's original house is located in the south-west portion near the figure "A" in an area of about 40 acres which George cleared and cultivated. He lived there for about 10 years. Riley's Flats which were tenanted by small farmers for some 20 years are in the area where a racecourse and grandstand are indicated - these features are partly encompassed within the current Retford Park boundaries. George's second residence is not indicated, but his principle residence with a number of outbuildings is shown near the figure "3". [SRNSW: Supreme Court, Equity Division, Walker v Riley, Case No. 2923 at 3/3867.]
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To settle the partition dispute George wrote to John Campbell, who was party to the case, offering the following proposal: Now I will give you up possession of 1500 acres granted to my father also 765 acres half of the 1530 acres provided you will give me my 765 acres and the surplus viz 353 acres which is not mentioned in the grant, to me (give me this surplus land which I hold) if this proposition meets your approbation all law will be at an end or else I fear the lawyers will have the estate - I am quite indifferent which way it terminates - my wife has been dead now ten years. My boys have got homes except two of them, my two daughters that have been living with me ever since the death are about to be married to men I cannot have any intercourse with, therefore they have left me to follow out their own wishes. I merely state the above lest you might be led to believe I am leading a reckless life, I am as I have all along been a miserable man. 31 George had cleared, fenced and cultivated the land since his occupation in 1829 and expended some £3,000. At least £2,000 was spent on the construction of his residence with offices and outbuildings and their ongoing maintenance.32 It was ordered that the 'Commission of Partition' should divide the entire property in the same proportion as the 3030 were to be divided and that the portion allowed George Riley should surround the house he had built. That division of the 3030 acre property had been: 1500 to the trustees of the will of Edward Riley; 765 acres to the trustees of the will of Edward Riley, the younger; and the other 765 acres to George Riley. 33 George was also to be compensated for any lasting improvements he had made to the other portions of the property. The share allocated to the trustees of Edward Riley senior was to be sold and costs were to be reserved. 34 31 32 SRNSW: Affidavit of George Riley in Supreme Court, Equity Division, Walker v Riley, Case No. 2923 at 3/3868. SRNSW: Affidavit of George Riley in Supreme Court, Equity Division, Walker v Riley, Case No. 2923 at 3/3868. 33 The Sydney Morning Herald, 30 July 1881, p.8. 34 The Sydney Morning Herald, 30 July 1881, p.8. Retford Park - September 2011 17 Sue Rosen & Associates, Heritage Assessment And History (HAAH) The following year the property began to be sold off by the Riley family. In October 1882, an advertisement was placed in The Sydney Morning Herald notifying the auction of 857 acres of 'magnificent property, comprising the homestead portion of the celebrated Bloomfield Estate, consisting of the richest and most elevated part, with springs of pure water', on instructions from Joseph Riley.35 This was the portion allocated to George. It remained on the market intermittently advertised across the next year. In November 1883 the Sheriff's Office announced that the property would be sold on the verandah of the Supreme Court on the 24th of that month for cash, as resolution of a case Goode V Riley, unless the writs of Fieri Facias were satisfied.36 On the 21st November the property was conveyed to Robert Snowden, averting the auction, yet this was not the end of the matter, in March 1888, the estate of Joseph Riley, queried whether the conveyance from George Riley37 to Snowden was intended merely as a security rather than an absolute conveyance. 38 It was ultimately purchased by Samuel Horden.39 a In late 1882 a portion comprising 1710 acres of the southern portion of Broomfield was subdivided into smaller allotments and is adjacent to the study area. This area roughly corresponds to the portion to be allocated to the Trustees of the estate of Edward Riley senior. Auction notices from December 1882, as 1689 acres divided into blocks from 5 to 40 acres. The auction was ultimately held at Riley's Royal Hotel Bowral on Saturday 31st March 1883.40 It encompassed the area where George's original homestead had been constructed in 1829. 35 The Sydney Morning Herald, 7 October 1882, p.16. 36 The Sydney Morning Herald, 17 November 1883, p.17 37 Reference to George here is confusing as the Supreme Court auction notice refers to it as the property of Joseph Riley. There is no doubt that George was the owner - See РА No.6276. 38 The Sydney Morning Herald, 7 March 1888, p.13 39 LTO: DP 1416 40 The Sydney Morning Herald, 2 April 1882, p.17; LTO: CT Vol 730 Fol 226; The Sydney Morning Herald, 2 December 1882, p.17; The Sydney Morning Herald, 3 March 1883, p.17; Retford Park - September 2011 18 Sue Rosen & Associates, Heritage Assessment And History (HAAH) 110 ac Figure 6 This plan shows that part of Bloomfield that was subdivided from the original holding in 1882. This appears to be the share allocated to the trustees of the estate Edward Riley senior. It was on this portion the George constructed his first house in 1829 and where he lived for the next 10 years and from presumably from where he ran his store.[LTO: CT Vol 730 Fol 226.]
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