Vaucluse House – Wentworth Road – Vaucluse – NSW
Begun as a colonial cottage (Henry Browne Hayes, early 1800s) · Expanded by W. C. Wentworth from 1827 · Standing — Museums of History NSW house museum
An Irish exile’s harbour cottage became the unfinished Gothic marine villa of William Charles and Sarah Wentworth — explorer, barrister, newspaper founder, constitution-maker — on grounds that once swallowed most of today’s suburb. Macquarie Street politics happened in town; family life and the famous 1831 anti-Darling fête happened here. From the 1910s the estate has been a public house museum — Australia’s first of its kind in MHNSW’s telling — still secluded above Vaucluse Bay.
At a glance
- Address: Wentworth Road, Vaucluse NSW 2030 (MHNSW; commonly 69a Wentworth Road in heritage listings)
- Built / evolved: Hayes cottage tradition c.1803–1805 (DoS 1805; Wikipedia range 1803–1839 for overall completion span); Wentworth purchase 1827; major Gothic expansions through 1830s–40s; estate works continue later
- Architect: Attributed in part to W. C. Wentworth’s direction (SHR / listings); not a single “star” architect commission like Verge
- Style: Georgian core evolving into Gothic Revival marine villa; significant outbuildings, stables, gardens, rill/ponds; moveable heritage collection
- Original colonial owners: Sir Henry Browne Hayes (cottage/estate naming after Fontaine-de-Vaucluse); then William Charles Wentworth (1790–1872) & Sarah Wentworth
- Estate: Grew to hundreds of acres (ADB ~500 acres after enlargement); suburb of Vaucluse takes its name from the house; mausoleum now physically separated but historically part of the property (DoS)
- Heritage: NSW SHR #00955 Vaucluse House and Setting (and moveable heritage) — DB 5045008; 2 Apr 1999 listing wave
- Fate / current use: Standing — Museums of History NSW house museum (Historic Houses Trust / Sydney Living Museums lineage); public parkland curtilage
Site & setting
Birrabirragal and Gadigal Country (MHNSW). Harbour slope to Vaucluse Bay; rill and ponds historically watered house and laundry; 1920s–30s stormwater and Depression-relief stone channel works (MHNSW conservation story). Beach paddock and foreshore still part of the managed historic site. Neighbouring public landscape includes Nielsen Park / Greycliffe precinct — once Wentworth estate subdivisions.
Timeline
- c.1803–05 – Henry Browne Hayes builds cottage; names estate Vaucluse after Fontaine-de-Vaucluse near Avignon (DoS).
- 1827 – W. C. Wentworth purchases; begins expansion (DoS / ADB).
- 1829 – Marries Sarah Cox (ADB).
- 1831 – Large public fête at Vaucluse celebrating Darling’s departure (ADB — thousands on the lawn).
- 1830s–50s – House remains incompletely resolved externally/internally while family grows; city house for public life (SHR significance themes).
- 1840 – Estate subdivision sales (e.g. Lyons mart plan — DoS media).
- 20 Mar 1872 – Wentworth dies in England; state funeral Sydney 6 May 1873; burial in Vaucluse vault / mausoleum (ADB / DoS mausoleum).
- 1910s – Public house museum / park era begins — MHNSW: 1915 first official house museum; other secondary sources cite opening/access from 1912.
- 1981 – Among early Historic Houses Trust properties (with Elizabeth Bay House — EBH draft tradition).
- 2 Apr 1999 – SHR entry.
- Today – MHNSW museum; restaurant; garden and outbuilding conservation programs ongoing (waterfall/ponds/rill; outbuildings c.1840).
Architecture & interiors
Large early harbour villa with Gothic Revival character over an older cottage core; incomplete exterior and unresolved layout read as evidence of spasmodic building for a growing family who socialised carefully within colonial society (SHR). Stables and service buildings. Interiors interpreted with family-provenanced collection — MHNSW museum practice, not speculative fancy dress.
People & anecdotes
William Charles Wentworth — Blue Mountains crossing 1813; Australian newspaper with Wardell; emancipist champion turned pastoral conservative; University of Sydney founder; Constitution architect (ADB). Sarah Wentworth — managed household and later mausoleum commission. Henry Browne Hayes — Irish knight transported after abduction conviction; exile cottage origin story (MHNSW / DoS).
Daughter Fanny married John Reeve — link to Greycliffe on Shark Beach / Nielsen Park (separate post).
Gallery
The horse stables - 1920
What stands today
Vaucluse House stands as a working MHNSW house museum.
- mhnsw.au/visit-us/vaucluse-house/.
- Walk gardens and foreshore paddock; respect photography rules on site.
- Pair with Greycliffe / Nielsen Park and Elizabeth Bay House.
- Wentworth Mausoleum: related but separately sited — check access.
VAUCLUSE House commenced as a small stone cottage built in 1803 for an Irish Knight, Sir Henry Browne Hayes (1762–1832). In 1827 the property was bought by William Charles Wentworth, a gifted but restless lawyer & politician, was one of the most influential Australian Born Colonists. His achievements included the first European Crossing of the Blue Mountains west of Sydney, in 1813; campaigning for civil rights (such as trial by jury) & co-publishing the Colony's first independent newspaper, "The Australian" in 1824; the formation of Australia's first University (The University Of Sydney) in 1852; & had agitation for Representative Government, achieved in 1856.
His wife, Sarah (Nee Cox, 1805 - 1880), the daughter of Ex Convicts, worked as A Milliner before her marriage in 1829. Letters show her to have been an astute manager of the house & estate at VAUCLUSE.
Wentworth, who proposed an hereditary Upper House for the New South Wales Parliament, dreamt of building a family Mansion In The Gothic Revival style of Sydney's Government House to suggest his ancient family lineage. Despite this, Sarah Wentworth suffered social isolation for having borne two of their children before their marriage. Wentworth's attacks on the "Exclusives" In Colonial Politics put him at odds with leading colonial families. In addition to this, his own legitimacy, convict mother & Father's near conviction for highway robbery were also known. VAUCLUSE House is very Unresolved in terms of its internal layout, owing to its construction. Over many years for a growing family that was forced to socialise outside of Colonial society.
VAUCLUSE House was purchased by the State Government In 1911 to provide Public access to the Sydney Harbour Foreshores. By 1912 the ground floor was open to the public. The adjacent Tea rooms were built In the 1920's when VAUCLUSE house became a popular tourist destination. Today 9 hectares (23 acres) of the original 208 hectares(515 acres) estate survives & VAUCLUSE house is one of Australia's most important intact homesteads with stables, carriage drives, pleasure garden, kitchen garden and service yards. The restoration of gravelled paths, iron fences & planting compliment the house interiors, which are furnished to reflect the Wentworth's Family occupancy from 1827 - 1861
As Vaucluse House is an historic site, care should be take. With floor surfaces, stairways and the low lighting levels. The only exit for the house is the entry point. Exit from the upper floor is from The Main Stairs.
GROUND FLOOR
1. KITCHEN - The kitchen is at the centre of the large two storey service wing, constructed I. 1829. As In most Colonial houses, the service wing was a separate building to distance the risk of fire from the main house. Here the cook & her staff prepared all the meals for the family, guests and servants. The dresser, food safe & cast Iron cooking range are original
2. SCULLERY - The Scullery Is Where The Washing Up Was Done. Dirty Water Was Emptied Into The Slop Drain.
3. DAIRY AND LARDER - The Dairy (For Milk, Butter And Cheese Preparation) And Larder (For Food Storage) Reflect The Operation Of Vaucluse House As A Self Sufficient Colonial Estate.
4. CELLARS - The Two Roomed Cellars Were Used a For The Cool Storage Of Good Food & Wine. The Inner Room Retains It's Arched Brick Bins For Bottled Wine While Hooks For Hanging Salted And Cured Meats Survive On The Original Lath & Plaster Ceilings.
5. HOUSEKEEPERS ROOM - The Housekeeper's Room Was The Centre Of Domestic Operations. The Housekeeper Was Responsible For Linen & The Supervision Of Female Domestic Servants
6. BUTLER'S PANTRY - The Pantry Was An Office Strategically Located For The Head Of The Household Staff To Oversee Activities In The House & Arrivals At The Property. Here Lamps Were Cleaned, Re Fuelled & Wicks Trimmed; & China, Glass & Silverware Cleaned, Polished &Stored.
FAMILY HISTORY ROOM - In 1900 This Room Was Used As A Library. Today It Houses An Exhibition Of The Wentworth's Family History.
8. BREAKFAST ROOM - The Breakfast Room Is The Part Of The House Built From 1837 To 1840. Most Large Colonial Houses Had A Second Dining Room For The Informal Family Use. The Decorative Paint Scheme By The Firm Lyon, Cottier & Co Dates From The 1880's While The Carved Oak Furniture Was Purchased By Fitzwilliam Wentworth In England Around 1872.
9. DINING ROOM - The Dining Room Is Hung With Family Portraits In Keeping With The Early 19th Century Practice. The Oak Furniture Belonged To The Wentworth Family. The Fine Gothic Revival Side Drawers & Cupboards Date From 1845, While The Dining Table & Chairs (With Their Embossed Spanish Leather Upholstery) May Have Been Part Of A Consignment Of Furniture Sent From Europe In 1859. The Floor Of Mid 19th Century Italian Glazed Tiles Is Unusual & Possibly A Concession To The Australian Climate. The Chimney Piece Is Of Marble From Marulan In Southern New South Wales.
10. LITTLE TEA ROOM - The Little Tea Room's Joinery Suggests That It Was One Of Wentworth's First Additions To The House After 1828. It Had Been Furnished To Reflect Its Use As A Small Informal Sitting Room To Keep Cool In Summer, In Winter The Rooms Small Size Ensured It Was Easily Heated.
11. THE DRAWING ROOM - The Drawing Room Was Formed Partly Within The Walls If Sir Henry Browne Hayes Original Stone Cottage & Was Completed In1847. The Floral Wallpaper Border Plaster Cornice, Italian Marble Surround & Cast Iron Grated Are All Original. The Drawing Room Was Intended As A Setting For Potential Suitors To Meet The Wentworth Daughters, Owing To Sarah Wentworth's Social Isolation. By 1853 When The Original Contents Were Sold Before The Wentworth Family's Departure For Europe, The Room Contained Brazilian Rosewood With Crimson Damask Upholstery. Today The Room Contains A Collection Of Copies Of Old Master Paintings Acquired By The Wentworth Family In Italy, Including Copies Of Flora & The Titan, A Penitent Magdalene After Guido Reni And A Madonna & Child After Murillo.
FIRST FLOOR
12. SECOND ROOM - The Second Room, As It Was Called In 1853, Was A Private Family Sitting Room. The Fireplace & Grate Are Original. Furniture Has Been Acquired Based In An 1853 Inventory Of The House.
13. PRINCIPAL BEDROOM - In 1853 The Principal Bedroom Contained A Winged Wardrobe, Chest Of Drawers & Marble Wash Stand. The Four Post Bed Has Been Hung With A Reproduction Of A Glazed Chintz 1860 Known To Have Been Used In Another Gothic Revival House, GreenOaks At Darling Point. The Bed Has The Typical Arrangement Of Three Mattresses Filled With Straw, HorseHair & Feathers. (Bottom To Top)
14. FITZWILLIAM'S ROOM IN THE HALL - Vaucluse House Was Left Incomplete In The Mid 1840's &The Large Open Upper Hall Was Partitioned By Cupboards To Create A Bedroom For Wentworth's Second Son, Fitzwilliam.
SECOND FLOOR
15. CHILDREN'S ROOM - The Nursery Was Probably Used For The Four Youngest Wentworth Children Aged Between Five & Twelve In 1853. The Room Is Furnished As A Typical Children's Room In The Mid 19th Century With Children's Furniture & Toys the Metal Beds Are Hung With Gauze & Mosquito Nets.
16. MISS WENTWORTH'S ROOM - Miss Wentworth's Room Was Named After The Eldest Unmarried Wentworth Daughter. In 1853 It Was Shared By Sarah Eleanor & Eliza Sophia Wentworth.
1803 - Original Cottage Built On The Site By Sir Henry Browne Hayes
1827 - Wentworth Buys The Cottage And Estate. Buys A Further 7 Acres
1853 - Wentworth and Family Leave For Europe
1861 - Family Returns To Renovate House
1873 - Wentworth Dies
1910 - State Government Purchases Property
1915 - Vaucluse House Opens As A Public Museum
1981 - Bought By The Historic Houses Trust
1. It has convict roots. Former convict Sir Henry Browne Hayes acquired two land grants in 1803 - the Laycock & Cardell grants - & built a house he named "VAUCLUSE" after a locality in Provence
2. William Charles Wentworth was one it's famous sons. The house VAUCLUSE was acquired by Wentworth, who subdivided the estate in 1838. He retained the are punt Parsley Bay, which was dominated by rock (near today's Memorial Church), from which he admired the view
3. VAUCLUSE house and grounds was acquired by the State Government in 1910. It is now administered by The Historic Houses Trust.
4. Macquarie Lighthouse is the site of the longest continuously operating navigational beacon in the country. Built in 1818, it was the first light house in Australia.
5. Set on 5 hectare with 180 degree view, Strickland house is regularly used as a film set.
Sir Henry Kissed -
Sir Henry Kissed -
Sir Henry Kissed The Quaker
And What If He Did?
You Ugly Thing
I’m Sure He Did Not Ate Her
So Sang The Wags Of Sydney,
He Was A Naughty Knight, Formally Sheriff Of Cork, Transported For Abducting A Quaker Heiress, But Did Not Behave Like A Convict.
In 1803 He Created What Was Called a “Rustic Little Paradise” On About 100 Acres Of Crown Land Near Watson’s Bay, Naming His Estate Vaucluse
Serpents in his garden. Vaucluse was snake country in those days.
According to the legend, Sir Henry, trusting in Saint Patrick’s power over snakes, had turf brought out from Ireland and laid in a trench around his house to keep the snakes away. Curiously, the story goes, it seemed to work.
After Sir Henry left for Ireland in 1812, Captain John Piper rented the estate for a year in 1814, and he acquired it in 1822.
In August 1827 William Charles Wentworth bought the estate from Piper (the heritage listing gives the date as both 7 and 27 August 1827, while the Australian Dictionary of Biography says 1829).
Wentworth built on Sir Henry’s beginnings, wrapping the little stone cottage inside his much bigger Gothic house. Parts of the cottage survive inside it today.
In 1910 the NSW Government bought Vaucluse House, and it became a public museum and park.
Inside, the hall floor is laid with Pompeii tiles.
Transcription (Printed poem, newspaper or magazine page; paper and date not shown in the clipping (the image file name says 1865))
## ODE
## TO
## Major Lee.
(By H——y K——ll.)Is it dusk with you, MAJOR LEE?
Dusk with you, old fellow,
Where you sit by your hut on the sands of Vaucluse,
With a face that betrays you've been out on the loose,
It's so terribly mellow.Where you sit with a pipe in your fist,
By the moody surges,
With tired legs, as if you had miss'd
Your way through the verges?Do you fear there's a hole in your net?
Do you listen, and wonder
How the cunning fish slip through the trap that you set,
And make their way back to their home in the wet,
While you stand on the beach in a terrible pet,
Quite ashamed of your blunder?Do you weep for the Rum in the Keg?
The Rum is a sneak
That drives a poor man from his home to beg,
And wander about on a tottering leg
Week after week!
GROUND FLOOR
FIRST FLOOR
SECOND FLOOR
1873 - Wentworth Dies
Sir Henry Kissed -
Sir Henry Kissed -
Sir Henry Kissed The Quaker
And What If He Did?
You Ugly Thing
Henry can Captain John Piper, controllers customs, but his tenancy dispute.
On 27th I’ll talk to you then it’s land to build on Charles went worth.
Building on his beginnings, which she described as a very uncomfortable residence, Wentworth
Building on hazels beginnings, which she described as a very uncomfortable residence, oceans of his dignity.
1910 Hawkins has passed and went with descendants of the kind state Museum,.
Rangehood, including the floor tiles in 40 from Pompeii and the Saltair left there from his electric dining room suite which came from the garage is palace in Venice.
Transcription (Printed poem, newspaper or magazine page; paper and date not shown in the clipping (the image file name says 1865))
## ODE
## TO
## Major Lee.
(By H——y K——ll.)Is it dusk with you, MAJOR LEE?
Dusk with you, old fellow,
Where you sit by your hut on the sands of Vaucluse,
With a face that betrays you've been out on the loose,
It's so terribly mellow.Where you sit with a pipe in your fist,
By the moody surges,
With tired legs, as if you had miss'd
Your way through the verges?Do you fear there's a hole in your net?
Do you listen, and wonder
How the cunning fish slip through the trap that you set,
And make their way back to their home in the wet,
While you stand on the beach in a terrible pet,
Quite ashamed of your blunder?Do you weep for the Rum in the Keg?
The Rum is a sneak
That drives a poor man from his home to beg,
And wander about on a tottering leg
Week after week!
Sources & further reading
- NSW SHR — Vaucluse House and Setting (SHR 00955): https://apps.environment.nsw.gov.au/dpcheritageapp/ViewHeritageItemDetails.aspx?ID=5045008
- Museums of History NSW — Vaucluse House: https://mhnsw.au/visit-us/vaucluse-house/
- Dictionary of Sydney — Vaucluse House: https://dictionaryofsydney.org/building/vaucluse_house
- ADB — Michael Persse, “Wentworth, William Charles (1790–1872)”: https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/wentworth-william-charles-2782
- Dictionary of Sydney — Wentworth Mausoleum: https://dictionaryofsydney.org/structure/wentworth_mausoleum
- MHNSW — Waterfall, ponds and rill conservation: https://mhnsw.au/stories/conservation/conservation-in-action-vaucluse-house-waterfall-ponds-rill/
- Trove — “Vaucluse House” / Wentworth funeral 1873
Related on this blog
- Greycliffe – Mona Road – Vaucluse
- Elizabeth Bay House
- South Head / Macquarie Lighthouse posts
