Camden

Camden is one of Australia's most historic towns, enclosed on three sides by a sweeping bend in the Nepean River on land originally home to the first inhabitants, the Dharawal people. Camden and its surrounds were originally known as The Cowpastures after missing cattle from the Sydney colony were eventually found in the area.

Agriculture was key to the prosperity of the district, with the Macarthur family establishing wool growing, dairying, wheat growing, vineyards and orchards on John Macarthur’s original 5,000 acre land grant, from 1806 onwards. The village of Camden was created following sales of land by the Macarthurs in 1841. The Macarthur family became synonymous with Camden, being responsible for the construction and establishment of landmarks such as Camden Park house, St John’s Church, Macarthur and Onslow Parks.

The Macarthur family’s agricultural enterprises also provided employment for immigrant workers, who came to the area under Governor Burke’s 1835 plan as tenant farmers. Many later obtained their own landholdings and established businesses in the area. Descendants of these families remain in Camden today.

Originally part of Nepean Shire, The Municipality of Camden was proclaimed in 1889. Camden township contains many historic buildings which were established during the 19th century to provide services such as the police, Court House, churches, schools, banks and School of Arts (now Library and Museum). The present day town reflects the layout of its earlier establishment in the 1840s, and some of the shopfronts and facades remain from the early decades of the 20th century.

Aside from agriculture, industries such as mining provided employment for the inhabitants. Mines situated in the outlying areas provided coal and silver ore, which was shipped by rail once the tramway was established in 1882. One of the locomotives, affectionately known as ‘Pansy’, travelled on the branch-line from Campbelltown, and in the 1940s had 24 weekday services which were a mixture of goods and passenger services. The line ceased operation in 1963 and was replaced by road transport when coal trucks were a familiar sight in Camden. Today there exists a mix of rural, retail, and light industrial activities in Camden, with many residents now employed outside the local area.

From a population of 242 in 1846 the Camden Local Government area has dramatically increased to include a population of 51,000 in 2006. This expansion follows the State Government’s Growth Centre Plan from the 1970’s and continues with current government plans for increased urbanisation and expansion. The geography of Camden township, with the surrounding flood plain, has allowed the township to retain much of its historic form, with development being concentrated in non-flood prone areas.
(Information provided by Camden Historical Society, Camden Council Library Service and Camden Council Community Profile)

Camden South

The area known as Camden South is established on land originally home to the Dharawal and Gundangarra people and acquired by the Macarthur family as part of their extensive land grant in the early 1800s. The area supported the farming of wheat, sheep and dairy cattle. An original house Murrandah is now known as Camden House Nursing Home.
The expansion in population in Camden in the 1960s and 1970s saw the establishment of two large housing areas to the east and west of the Hume Highway. These were known as Elizabeth Macarthur, honouring the contribution to the development of agriculture by Elizabeth, wife of John Macarthur, and Ponderosa. The new areas were originally collectively known as Benkennie but this later changed to Camden South.

The 3.4km Nepean Cycleway links Camden South to the township of Camden passing under the Camden bypass and along the Nepean River. The flat lands of Camden South are home to a number of sporting fields for local soccer and rugby clubs. Camden Valley Inn is a landmark on the old Hume Highway and a popular gathering place for local people.
(Information provided by Camden Historical Society, Camden Council Library Service and Camden Council Community Profile)

Oran Park

Oran Park is on the traditional land of the Dharawal people. The area has a rural character with open pastures and rolling hills. The area was originally made up of two principal land grants, one of 2,000 acres, Harrington Park, granted to William Campbell in 1815 and another to George Molle in 1817, Netherbyes, of 1600 acres. Oran Park appears on the pre-1827 map as part of Harrington Park. The Oran Park portion was sub-divided from the Harrrington Park estate in 1829 and acquired by Henry William Johnston in 1852. The Oran Park estate is representative of the layout of a country manor estate with views afforded to and from the manor over the landscape and to the important access points of the estate. The two-storey Georgian-style house was built in c.1857. The house was acquired by Thomas C Barker (of Maryland and Orielton), who sold it to Campbelltown grazier Edward Lomas Moore (of Badgally) in 1871. The property was later owned by Atwill George Kendrick and then the Moore family who sold the house and land to B Robbins and a Mr Smith operated a golf course with trotting facilities. It was sold in 1945 for £28,000, and in 1963, 361 acres was purchased by ER Smith and J Hyland, farmers. The homestead and stables were sold in 1969 by John and Peggy Cole and purchased by the Dawson-Damers, members of the English aristocracy. John ‘DD’ Dawson-Damer was an Old Etonian and car collector. He was a prominent motor racing identity and was killed in an accident in West Sussex in 2000. After her husband’s death his wife sold the house, with its historic gardens and 107 hectares of pasture, in 2006 for $19 million to Valad Property Group.

During World War II Narellan Army Camp was based at Oran Park. Part of the original estate is the location of the Oran Park Motor Racing Circuit. The main grand prix circuit is 2.6 km long with a mixture of slow, technical and fast sweeping corners as well as changes in elevation around the track. Apart from the main racing circuit there area has had a number of subsidiary activities including a two dirt circuits, two four wheel training venues, a skid pan and a go-kart circuit. The racing circuit has been used for a variety of motorsport including club motorkhanas, touring cars, sports sedans, production cars, open-wheelers, motocross and truck racing The track will close in 2010 to become a housing estate developed by
Leppington Pastoral Company (owned by the Perich family) in a joint-venture with Landcom with an estimated 11,500 dwellings and 33,00 people in Oran Park and Turner Road. Proposed suburbs include Raceway Hill and Gregory Hills. Oran Park is part of the South West Growth Centre Area which is eventually planned to accommodate 295,000 people by 2031.
(Information provided by Camden Historical Society, Camden Council Library Service and Camden Council Community Profile)

Leppington

The name Leppington comes from the property granted to William Cordeaux in 1821. Leppington Park House was a huge two storey home with its own private ballroom built by convict labour. It was destroyed by fire in the 1940s.The bricks at the base of the outdoor stage at Leppington School came from this building.
In 1914 an area of Leppington was subdivided as the Raby Estate, named after the property Raby some 3269 acres granted to Alexander Riley in 1810. The 1914. The subdivision was developed by Arthur Rickard & Co. People interested in buying a lot would be met by a sulky either at Ingleburn or at the Coach crossing at the Water Canal Bringelly Road. Rickard Road in the estate was named after the developer.

The school on the estate was opened as Raby School in 1923. The first teacher was Mr Cox and he taught about 40 pupils between the ages of 6 and 15. It remained a one-teacher school until 1951. In 1955 the name was changed to Leppington Public School. The Post office, also on the Raby Estate was established in 1930 and remained on its original site until 1981. The Riley estate south of the Raby Estate was subdivided in 1956.The area has supported small farms and vegetable and flower market gardens. The area is subject to planned development as part of South West Sydney Growth Area. A corridor of land is being resumed by NSW State Government for an extension to the Liverpool rail line however recent budget decisions have resulted in the South West Rail Link being postponed indefinitely.
(Information provided by Camden Historical Society, Camden Council Library Service and Camden Council Community Profile)

Rossmore

The area was originally called Cabramatta an aboriginal word for place of the cobra grub. It was later named Rossmore, a Scottish name refering to high ground by John Dickson a Scottish engineer who was granted 3,000 acres of land here by Governor Macquarie. A number of other settlers received land grants in the area including Barker, Riley, Moore and Bell.

The area was initially used for wheat and sheep farming and later for dairying, poultry farming and orchards. The bushranger Jack Donahoe was shot by an ex soldier, Mugglestone on Robert Lowe's property just south of Bringelly Rd in 1830.

After World War 1 Ashley McCann bought 1,400 acres at Rossmore for dairy farming and named the property Allenby after General Allenby the hero of the 4th Light Horse.

From 1950s the area was settled by immigrants from Europe who established small farms and market gardens providing food for Sydney markets. The area continues to perform this function although large scale development is planned as part of the South West Sydney Growth Area.

(Information provided by Camden Historical Society, Camden Council Library Service and Camden Council Community Profile)

Mount Annan

The suburb is on the traditional lands of the Dharawal and Gundungurra people. Mount Annan is the name given to a high point in the western part of the locality and is 190 metres above sea level. It only appears on published maps after 1834. This point was part of Glenlee which was owned by William Howe, who built a fine Georgian house (1824) on the property. Glenlee was acquired by James Fitzpatrick in the 1850s and his descendants ran it as a dairy farm until 1978 with associated cropping and grazing.
The first land release for housing at Mount Annan was in late 1980s for first home buyers and low income families. Later land releases such as Garden Gates were aimed at second and third home buyers. The population growth encouraged the establishment of new shopping facilities, a leisure centre and schools.
The Mount Annan Botanic Garden is the highlight of the suburb. It is a native plant botanic garden and arboretum in an attractive garden and parkland setting and is managed by the Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust.
On the eastern side of the Mount Annan Botanic Gardens is a little piece of history which was constructed in 1880. It is a water canal (aqueduct) which is partly made of sandstone blocks thought to be quarried from Mount Annan. It is part of the Upper Nepean Scheme which supplies water by gravity from the dams on upper Nepean River to Prospect Reservoir along a course of 62 km. Until Warragamba Dam was finished in 1960 this canal supplied most of Sydney’s water.
In 2001 Mount Annan had a population of 6,761, and which was an 85 per cent increase from 1996. The demographic profile of Mount Annan is predominantly young families, with 35 per cent of the population under 18 years of age.
(Information provided by Camden Historical Society, Camden Council Library Service and Camden Council Community Profile)

Smeaton Grange

Before white settlement this was the land of the Tharawal and Gundungurra peoples. The property later known as Smeaton Grange was originally called Naralling Grange and was a land grant of 283 hectares (700 acres) by Governor Macquarie in 1816 to Captain William Hovell.
Smeeton was also an adjoining land grant to Charles Throsby who was an early settler and town leader in Campbelltown. Both of these landholdings were purchased by James Fitzpatrick who had come to Australia as a convict in 1822 and who worked as a servant of Hamilton Hume. Fitzpatrick accompanied Hume and Hovell on their famous 1824 expedition to Port Phillip Bay. He later became a prosperous farmer. The property first grew wheat, and when rust developed, moved into sheep production and later dairy farming.
During World War Two the house was used as a residence for army officers. The Catholic Church acquired the property in the early 1960s and the Patrician Brothers Order used it as a religious house, retreat centre and novitiate till it was developed as part of Magdalene High School in 2000. In the early 1990s the area of land north of the house was zoned industrial. The new industrial estate has been able to attract a wide range of business both large and small and continues to grow as an industrial centre for the area.
(Information provided by Camden Historical Society, Camden Council Library Service and Camden Council Community Profile)