Tag: Architecture

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Garden Palace, showing the wonders of the age

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Massive fire in Macquarie Street 1882

In 1882, there was a massive fire in Macquarie Street, Sydney. The Sydney Morning Herald reported:

The beautiful building known as the Garden Palace was totally destroyed by fire together with its valuable contents. The conflagration naturally provided an impressive spectacle and was watched with awe by tens of thousands of people who quickly gathered from all parts of the city. (SMH, 18 April 1931)

The Burning of the Garden Palace, seen from the North Shore, [1882] / J.C. Hoyte 1882 (SLNSW)

The newspaper report stated this apparent

calamity was in reality was a blessing in disguise, for it returned am area of open space to the citizens, of which they should never been deprived, and removed a source of danger that must have grown ever more dangerous with the passage of time. (SMH, 18 April 1931)

Litograph, “Burning of the Garden Palace, Sydney”, Gibbs Shallard and Company, Sydney, 1882. Jonathan Jones’s artwork barrangal dyara traces the building’s physical outline with 15,000 ash-white shields. Image credit: Kaldor Public Art Projects/Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, Sydney

The fire, a tragic event that filled the hearts of many with sorrow, resulted in the significant loss of irreplaceable records, artefacts, and other materials. Among the casualties were the records of the 1881 Census, railway surveys, and the Technological, Industrial and Sanitary Museum, which had been a treasure trove of knowledge since its founding in 1878 by the Australian Museum. This later became the Museum of Applied Arts and Science and the Powerhouse Museum. The fire also claimed the squatting occupation of NSW and around 1000 Aboriginal artefacts, a loss that can never be fully quantified.

Garden Palace ruin after fire 1882 (SRNSW/MoHNSW)

The origin of the fire, a puzzle that has intrigued historians and researchers for years, remains shrouded in mystery. Despite its best efforts, the official inquiry could not definitively determine the cause. Speculation, as diverse as the city itself, ranged from the disgruntled wealthy residents of Macquarie Street to the destruction of convict records containing potentially damaging information. (SLNSW)

Sydney International Exhibition 1879-1880

The Garden Palace was originally commissioned in 1878 by the NSW colonial government to house the Sydney International Exhibition. The exhibition’s aim was to contribute to the progress and development of the colony of NSW. The exhibition benefited Sydney, boosted the economy, and improved services in the city. A steam-powered tram was installed in the city to assist movement around the town centre, and after the exhibition, it was expanded and converted to electric traction in 1905.

Garden Palace Architectural Drawing 1870 (SLNSW)

 According to Shirley Fitzgerald in the Dictionary of Sydney

The fashion for holding exhibitions, where countries could show off their industrial and manufacturing might as well as their agricultural riches and artistic skills, began in 1851 with the London Exhibition. It was housed in the purpose-built Crystal Palace. Exhibitions followed in other European cities and in Philadelphia in the United States. Paris was particularly fond of holding them. Then Sydney, a place not noted for its advanced industrial sector, and very far away from other places that were, decided to have a go. (https://dictionaryofsydney.org/entry/garden_palace)

Royal Agricultural Society

Originally, the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW proposed a small international exhibition with a rural theme in 1877 using the society’s exhibition hall in Prince Alfred Park. As the idea gained momentum, the RAS backed out. In 1878, the colonial government set up the Royal Commission for an International Exhibition in Sydney, headed by politician and philanthropist Sir Patrick Jennings.

Like a large cathedral

Colonial Architect James Barnet designed the Garden Palace building. It was in a commanding position in the Inner Domain, with a ‘beautiful view of the harbour and its shores’ (ISN, 25 October 1882) at the southwestern end of the Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain.

Sydney Garden Palace 1879 (Antique Print Club)

The building was shaped like a crucifix, similar to a large cathedral or London’s Crystal Palace. It was like the later Melbourne Exhibition Centre (b.1879-1880). The Garden Place nave and transept were flanked by expansive aisles, stretched 800 feet from north to south and 500 feet from east to west with towers at each end. The northern tower contained Sydney’s first hydraulic lift.

Plan of exhibitors Garden Palace 1879 (SLNSW)

The nave and transept intersection were crowned by a dome, 100 feet in diameter and 90 feet from the floor, culminating in a lantern that soared 210 feet above the ground. The nave and transept ended in four entrance towers, each standing tall at heights ranging from 120 to 150 feet. The extensive aisles were bathed in natural light from vertical windows, strategically placed to avoid direct sunlight. The basement, too, was illuminated by lofty side windows. The total floor space of this architectural marvel was a staggering 8½ acres. (ISN, 25 October 1882)

View of the Garden Palace from Macquarie Street 1879 (SLNSW)

Beneath the dome was a fountain with a 25-foot statue of Queen Victoria on top. The dome had a 25-foot diameter skylight dotted with ‘golden stairs’. The galvanised iron roof was coloured light blue. The fronts of the galleries had the names of cities and towns on their panels. (ISN, 25 October 1882)

Garden Palace interior Queen Victoria under the dome at the International Exhibition 1879 (PHM/MAAS)

Construction

Construction took eight months to complete, and was opened on 17 September 1879 at a cost of £192,000 by the Governor of the colony of NSW, Lord Augustus Loftus. Work was carried out around the clock under electric lighting imported from England. Construction was completed by experienced builder John Young, who had worked on the Crystal Palace at The Great Exhibition of 1851 in London. The construction job employed around 3000 men and 650 carpenters, using 2.5m bricks, 243 tons of galvanised iron, and 1.4m of timber and glass. (SLNSW)

Garden Palace dome construction 1879 (SLNSW)

Official opening

The opening was attended by the governors of Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania, military and naval officers, foreign dignitaries, and 20,000 members of the general public. (ISN, 25 October 1882)

Garden Palace engraving 1879 Illustrated Australian News October 1879 (SLV)

Commissioner PA Jennings said:

Since the Exhibition of 1851 in London, held under the presidency of the illustrious Prince Contort, whose memory is nowhere more deeply revered than in this colony, universal Expositions, or ‘World’s Fairs have been held in Paris, in Loudon, in Vienna, and in Philadelphia, and the beneficial consequences of those “Festivals of Peace” become more apparent the more their effects are studied. It has remained for this city of Sydney, the metropolis of the parent colony of Australia, to sustain its position by inviting “all the flags of all the world” to range themselves in peaceful concord here to-day. (Sydney Morning Herald, Thursday 18 September 1879)

Mr Jennings then invited the governor to open the Sydney International Exhibition 1879.

Governor Loftus said:

In the name of New South Wales, the elder colony of the Australian group, the once despised, and – may I not say – the now honoured, I welcome the representatives of the old heroic nations welcome the representatives of the bright daughter-lands of England- I welcome all of human brotherhood, to our newly raised Temple of Industry and Peace in a new world. (Sydney Morning Herald, Thursday 18 September 1879)

The governor then opened the exhibition to the public.

Vase from the French Government to the City of Sydney International Exhibition 1879 (CofSydney)

Fine art annexe

The fine art commissioners at the exhibition were not satisfied that the Garden Palace was a suitable space to hang artworks and convinced the exhibition organisers to build a Fine Arts Annexe. Designed by church designer William Wardell and shaped like a crucifix, the annexe opened two months after the exhibition opened. After the exhibition closed, the colonial government gave the building to the NSW Academy of Art in 1880, and the refurbished building was named the National Art Gallery of NSW and retained that title until 1958. (https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/about-us/history/our-gallery-history/history-of-the-building/the-fine-arts-annexe-1880-84/)

Garden Palace Interior North Nave International Exhibition of 1879 (PHM/MAAS)

The exhibition

The exhibition closed on 20 April 1880 after being open for 185 days and attended by 1,117,536 people, producing a surplus of £41,432. (ISN, 25 October 1882) The remarkable achievement was when the population of NSW was around 650,000.

The cost of admission was 5/-, later dropped to 1/-, and a season pass was £3/3/-. Over 30 countries and colonies, with over 14,000 exhibits, participated in the exhibition. The exhibition provided opportunities for countries to express their national identity and display the latest technology. Exhibits included glass, tapestries, fine porcelain, ethnographic specimens (Aboriginal specimens), and heavy machinery. (SLNSW)

Garden Palace International Exhibition Tasmania 1879 (SRNSW/MoHNSW)

Commemorative sites

Commemorative gates were built on the former site of the Garden Palace in 1889 to commemorate the memory of the Garden Palace.

Garden Palace Gates 1958 (CofSArchives)

In 1979, Sir Roden Cutler unveiled a commemorative plaque on the Garden Palace’s central dome site, celebrating the centenary of the first International Exhibition in Sydney in 1879.

Commemorate plaque International Exhibition Royal Botanic Gardens 1979 (MonAust)

The site of the former Garden Palace is now a rose garden within the Royal Botanic Gardens of Sydney.

Palace Rose Garden Pergola Royal Botanic Garden Sydney 2024 (RBG)

Legacies

  1. Powerhouse Museum, formerly the Museum of Applied Arts and Science, formerly Technological, Industrial and Sanitary Museum (1878)
  2. Art Gallery of New South Wales, formerly National Art Gallery of NSW (1880)
Art Gallery of New South Wales 2022 WikipediaCommons
20th century · Architecture · Burragorang Valley · Camden Cottage · Camden High School · Camden Modern · Camden Modernism · Camden Story · Coal mining · Community identity · Heritage · History · History of a house · House history · Housing · Housing styles · Local History · Lost Camden · Mid-century modernism · Modernism · Placemaking · Sense of place · Social History · Uncategorized · Urban development · Urban growth · Urban history · Urban Planning · urban sprawl · Urbanism · USA

Camden modern, the mid-century Camden cottage

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Mid-century modernism

Across the Camden district, many houses were built between the Second World War and the early 1970s.

The period is usually called mid-century modern, mid-century modernist or just mid-century. 

A mid-century brick ranch-style cottage in River Road Elderslie (I Willis 2024)

In Australia, the postwar period was a period with a housing shortage. The Homes to Love website states

While the 1950s was a time of great productivity and a time that saw a boom in the building industry, the war years had taken their toll resulting in a shortage of building materials, skills and equipment. This resulted in many people building smaller, more basic homes, often taking on the work themselves. (Homes to Love)

https://www.homestolove.com.au/1950s-houses-australia-21734

Rachel Griffiths writes in the Architectural Digest that

Influenced by the optimism of the post-World War II boom and by the exploration of a range of materials, including steel, concrete, and newly available insulated glass.

Architectural Digest

Scholars attribute the design style to American architects like Frank Lloyd Wright and designers like Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and LeCorbusier.

The term was coined in 1983 by Cara Greenberg for the title of her book Mid-Century Modern: Furniture of the 1950s (Random House)

Mid-century housing styles

Until 1952, timber houses were restricted to 111.48 m² (12 squares) and brick houses to 116.13 m². Lending institutions were very conservative, only advancing about 50% of the property value. (Lumby, p32)

Mid-century modernism influenced houses in the post-war suburbs of Australia’s large cities. Architects of the mid-century period include Harry Seidler, Hugh Buhrich (Sydney), David Chancellor and William Patrick, Robin Boyd, Sevitt & Petitt (Melbourne), Roy Grounds (Canberra), Robin Spencer (Brisbane) and others. 

Mid-century brick cottage with low-pitch roof in Luker Street Elderslie (I Willis 2024)

Features of the mid-century modern houses

The Australian Homes to Love website states

 Open-plan living was really embraced during the 1950s to encourage easy flow of people and conversation. Homes were often well-oriented and featured expansive windows, low-pitched gable roofs with corrugated iron or steel decking, vertical weatherboards, light coloured brick or cement sheet exterior walls. Minimalist design was embraced for its clean sleek lines and pastel, Scandinavian, and modern colour schemes utilised.

https://www.homestolove.com.au/1950s-houses-australia-21734

Mid-century modern is a period in the mid-20th century in which design that was characterised by

Sleek, cool, clean, sophisticated, functional, colourful, mod, and curvy—those are apt words to describe the mid-century modern design. This term encompasses the trends that influenced architecture and interior design in prosperous, post-war America.(Dengarden)

https://dengarden.com/interior-design/A-Pocket-Guide-to-Mid-Century-Modern-Style
Mid-century brick flats in Purcell Street Elderslie (I Willis 2024)

The mid-century Camden cottage

There are several recognisable residential housing styles in the Camden area across this period. These range from postwar fibro cottages of the 1940s (Edward Street) to the triple-fronted brick veneer cottages (Camden South) of the 1970s, and those in-between like 1950-1960s ranch style houses (Hennings House, Elderslie)

Many houses were a type of simple and low-cost housing to cope with material shortages and demand from buyers,especially in the post-war years. 

What does the mid-century Camden cottage represent?

The mid-century Camden cottage represents a number of changes in the Camden ocal area.

The most important influence in this period was the growth of the town and district from the economic boom generated by the Burragorang coalfields. Mining production increased progressively across this period and created many jobs.

Former Camden mayor Bruce Ferguson made the point at a conference in the Hunter Valley in 1977 that in 1949, a share farming family made around £1/15/- a week, while a miner was making £10 per week, a multiple of six times. (Ferguson)

In 1960, there were 150 mine workers in the Camden and Elderslie area. (Sankey, p29) By 1971, this had increased by 1800 people were employed in the mines, washeries, and the maintenance and administration of coal. (Sankey, p18) In contrast, dairy farmers fell from 109 in 1950 to 90 in 1974. (Sankey, p6A)

Camden’s population grew from 3934 in 1947 to 6377 in 1961, 8661 in 1966, and 11,155 in 1971. (Sankey, p10) A new high school opened in Camden in 1956.

Former Camden High School John Street Camden was established in 1956 (Peter Mylrea/Camden Images 2004)

The mining boom contributed to the end of the Camden the country town based on agricultural services. This challenged community identity and sense of place and contributed to the creation of Camden’s ‘country town idyll’ as Sydney’s urban fringe approached the town and heralded the end of modernism in the local area.

There was a shift from the designation of country town to the metropolitan urban fringe when the 1976-1977 NSW Local Government Grants Commission changed the classification of the Camden LGA from ‘non-metropolitan’ to ‘metropolitan’. (Sankey, p40)

The end of the mid-century period in the Camden area is is book-ended by the release of the 1973 New Cities of Campbelltown, Camden, Appin Structure Plan by the State Planning Authority of New South Wales.  

Examples of the mid-century Camden cottage

The Hennings House, built in 1960 on Macarthur Road, was part of the subdivision of the Bruchhauser vineyards of the Elderslie area. It was an excellent example of a house chosen by a local businessman from a pattern book supplied by a local builder. The house was ranch-style, of which there are a number in the Elderslie area with open-plan rooms to the interior. The house was demolished in 2011.

The Hennings House, built in 1960, was located at 64-66 Macarthur Road Elderslie. It was demolished in 2011. (I Willis, 2011)

  • 110 Lodges Road, Elderslie.

This house is a similar design to the Hennings House and has been approved for demolition.

A mid-century timber ranch-style cottage at 110 Lodges Road Elderslie has been approved for demolition. (CRE 2022)

  • Triple and double-fronted cottage

There are many examples of these styles of homes in the local area, particularly south of the town centre, Elderslie and Narellan.

A mid-century triple-fronted brick cottage in Harrington Street Elderslie (I Willis, 2024)

Jacqui Thompson writes on Domain that triple-fronted houses were

are simple buildings that feature a double or triple staggered façade, with a bedroom at the front that steps back to a lounge room and/or the front door. Brick veneer replaced double brick construction, and mass-produced building materials such as glass and cement tiles were embraced. There are wrought iron railings and fencing painted white and wire mesh screens on doors. There can be interconnecting rooms, lower ceilings, and cheaper materials, e.g., melamine benchtops, linoleum and rubber floors and mass-produced sheet materials on walls.  

https://www.domain.com.au/advice/post-war-double-and-triple-fronted-homes-in-australia/

  • Low-pitched roof style

There are a number of mid-century cottages in the Elderslie and Camden area with low-pitched roof styles. They are a mixture of brick and timber construction. In Elderslie, they were built for the coal mining company executives and were more expensive than other stripped-back designs. This design was influenced by West Coast USA styles of the mid-century period.

A mid-century cottage with a low-pitched roof on Sunset Ave. There are a number of cottages of this style in the Elderslie area. (I Willis 2024)

  • Cottage with gable

There are cottages that have a gable design.

A mid-century gabled cottage in River Road Elderslie (I Willis 2024)

The fibro cottage was seen as a modern and affordable housing style. There are many examples in the local area south of the Camden town centre, Elderslie and Narellan, that were built in the postwar years.

Mid-century fibro cottages in Purcell Street Elderslie (I Willis 2024)

References

Robyn Sankey, Camden and the Coal Industry. MA(Hons) Thesis, University of Sydney, 1984.

Bruce Ferguson, ‘The Coal Mining Industry in Camden’. Paper presented at Coal and A Country Town Seminar, Singleton, 1977 published in proceedings, JE Collins (ed), Singleton Shire Council.

Roy Lumby, ‘Modern Movement Architecture In NSW’, in The Modern Movement In New South Wales A Thematic Study And Survey Of Places. HeriCon Consulting (eds), NSW and the Office of Environment and Heritage, Sydney, 2013.

Jacqui Thompson, ‘Post-war double and triple fronted homes in Australia’. Domain, 15 June 2025. Online @ https://www.domain.com.au/advice/post-war-double-and-triple-fronted-homes-in-australia/

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Camden Material and Colour Guide, a heritage building guide

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Camden Material and Colour Guide

In 2023, Camden Council published the Camden Material and Colour Guide.

The guide was the initiative of the Camden Council Heritage Advisory Committee.

The aim of the guide

The Material and Colour Guide aims to provide a handy guide for owners of heritage buildings with practical tips on working with specific materials and colour schemes traditionally used in the local area. (CC, Press release, 21 August 2023)

Specifically, the guide advises heritage property owners on colours and materials for specific residential housing styles, particularly in the Camden Heritage Conservation Area. (CC, Press release, 21 August 2023)

The guide is welcome

It is pleasing to see the council publish the guide after I first raised this issue in 2017 when I wrote a blog post that Camden needed a residential style guide.

On the launch of the guide, I wrote complementing the council on their initiative, stating:

The guide provides valuable information that is reliable and relevant to specific architectural periods and domestic housing styles. I commend the council on its interest in assisting local property owners in retaining and enhancing the town and LGA’s historic fabric and built heritage. The guide assists in building community identity and the area’s sense of place. Both assist the local tourist industry and job creation.

(Letter to Mayor, 29 June 2023)

Camden Mayor Ashleigh Cagney said,

‘I know from conversations with homeowners that when someone owns a heritage building in the Camden area, they are incredibly passionate about preserving its character.’

‘I hope the Camden Material and Colour Guide makes it a little bit simpler for those people to be able to identify what kinds of works would best suit their properties, allowing them to retain their charm.’

(CC, Press release, 21 August 2023)

Kerime Danis, Director at City Plan Heritage, ICOMOS Advisory Committee, and Past President of Australia ICOMOS, posted that she was ‘proud to share’ the guide on Linkedin. Her post attracted Likes from various heritage and industry professionals across Australia, including architects, planners, archaeologists, project managers, historians, heritage conservationists and academics.

Camden Council commissioned City Plan Heritage to prepare the guide.

Camden Material and Colour Guide

The guide is a full-colour 42-page A4 landscape easily downloaded pdf file.

The guide is divided into different housing styles, and within each style, there is a style description and colour schemes for building exterior, interior and landscaping.

In addition, there are paint tips, a colour matrix and a material guide for brick, render, floor and paving, metal, roofing, stone and timber, and windows.

There is specific advice for property owners in the Argyle and John Streets heritage precincts.

There is also an illustrated guide to architectural terms.

Each page has clear, concise explanatory text supported by colour plates drawn from the local area.

Camden housing styles

The guide has identified eight Camden housing styles:

  1. Victorian Filigree c.1840-1890
  2. Federation Queen Anne c.1890-1915
  3. Federation Weatherboard c.1890-1915
  4. Federation Arts and Crafts c.1890-1915
  5. Federation Bungalow c.1890-1915
  6. California Bungalow c.1915-1940
  7. Interwar Art Deco c.1915-1940
  8. Interwar Weatherboard c.1915-1940

Any future revision to the guide Camden Council should consider including,

  • Mid-Century Moderne 1940-1960.
  • Late Twentieth Century c. 1960 – c. 2000
  • Twenty–First Century c. 2000 – present.

I have written

The housing style of a particular location in the Camden or Narellan area gives the place a definite character and charm. It makes a place special and gives it a sense of its identity (Inter-war period along Menangle Road). The housing style will give the place its special qualities. The houses reflect the times in which they were built.

The housing style may be complemented by a garden and landscaping that reflects the tastes and lifestyles of the occupants of the building. Even gardens go through fashion trends (English-style gardens or native gardens).

https://camdenhistorynotes.com/2017/02/11/camden-needs-a-residential-heritage-style-guide/

Residential housing styles partly determine community identity and a sense of place.

The Camden Cottage

I have written about a generic Camden housing style on this blog a number of times. I have called the style the Camden Cottage.

The housing style incorporates blog posts on the Federation Weatherboard Cottage, the Edwardian Cottage and the Camden Fibro Cottage.

These residential housing styles add to the Camden story and the layers of history within the narrative.

Other heritage guides

Camden Council is not alone in providing this type of advice. Toowoomba Regional Council provides similar advice, as do a number of heritage authorities across the country, including New South Wales and Victoria.

The Guide and the Camden Heritage Conservation Area

The council has done a good job commissioning the Camden Material and Colour Guide.

Local property owners within the Camden Heritage Conservation Area should do themselves a favour and use it to their advantage.

The Camden Heritage Conservation Area is responsible for many tourist day-trippers who visit the Camden Town Centre.

Cultural and heritage tourism, of which architectural styles are part, generates many jobs within the Camden LGA.

The Camden Material and Colour Guide contributes to the conservation and preservation of tangible built heritage and intangible heritage within the Camden town area.

Adaptive Re-use · Architecture · Art · Belonging · Built heritag · Camden · Camden Historical Society · Camden Library · Camden Museum · Camden Story · Cultural Heritage · Local Studies · Placemaking · Public art · School of Arts · Sculpture · Uncategorized

Camden Library and Museum public art

camdenhistorynotes

Collaborative efforts

The 2007 Camden Library and Camden Museum redevelopment project resulted in a community collaboration to create a mix of public artworks.

The collaboration process was led by Camden Council Cultural Development Coordinator Angela Pasqua. Participants included school children, TAFE students, artists and sculptors.

The artworks were commissioned by Camden Council..

The efforts have been documented in a pamphlet called ‘The Walls Have Words’ originally published by Camden Council.

Public artworks at the Camden Library and Museum on the old fire station and original temperance hall forecourt. Created by sculptor Benjamin Gilbert and titled Chaise Lounge Ensemble, they were aimed at introducing a ‘feminine touch’ in a previously male-dominated domain. (I Willis, 2023)

Public artworks on the forecourt of the Camden Library and Museum at 40 John Street Camden. The sculptures are called the Chaise Lounge Ensemble. (I Willis, 2023)

The Camden Library and Museum John Street frontage. The Chaise Lounge Ensemble is shown on the forecourt of the former fire station. (I Willis 2023)

Redevelopment of Camden Library and Camden Museum

The aim of the 2007 redevelopment project was to integrate three former historical buildings, fire station, school of arts and council offices, into a contemporary functional space for the use of the Camden community using the adaptation principles outlined by the Burra Charter (2013). The former school of arts was occupied by Camden Library, while the Camden Museum was located in the former Camden Council offices.

The state government and Camden Council spent around $2.5 million to bring Camden Library up to contemporary library floor space requirements. This was achieved by enclosing a laneway between the former fire station and school of arts (library) buildings.

The works enclosed the laneway using a glass roof to create a galleria that has been used for a variety of public events for the library and museum.

The galleria space was created by the enclosure of the former laneway between the former fire station and library buildings. (CHS 2022)
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Narellan Heritage Walking Tour

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Narellan Heritage Walking Tour

In 2010, local photographers Kylie and Peter Lyons put together a walking tour of the Narellan area.

The Lyons operated The Old St Thomas Chapel as a venue for weddings, christenings and other family events.

Narellan was one of the original five villages that pre-date the foundation of the township of Camden in 1840 in The Cowpastures.

The Narellan Heritage Walking Tour is an interesting and informative way to observe and learn about the history and heritage of this Cowpastures village.

What follows is the original walking tour of Narellan with historic notes of Narellan’s built heritage.

Narellan Built Heritage

Heritage Walking Tour

  1. The Old St Thomas Chapel Hall
  2. The Old St Thomas Chapel
  3. Camden Country Milk Depot
  4. Cake Biz
  5. Narellan Hotel
  6. Ben Linden
  7. Former Burton Arms Inn
  8. Narellan Public School
  9. Narellan Anglican Cemetery

Other Narellan Built Heritage

  1. Camelot
  2. Kirkham Stables
  3. Wivenhoe
  4. Denbigh
  5. Orielton
  6. Harrington Park Homestead
  7. Stuggletown
  8. Sharman’s Slab Cottage

What now?

Get out and about and have a look at the wonderful and exciting history of the Narellan area that dates from the earliest days of European settlement.

20th century · Aesthetics · Architecture · Attachment to place · Belonging · Biography · Built heritag · Camden Cottage · Camden Story · Campbelltown Art Centre · Collective Memory · Community identity · Cultural Heritage · Cultural icon · Domestic Architecture · Family history · History · History of a house · Hope and loss · House history · Housing · Lifestyle · Living History · Local History · Local Studies · Macarthur · Macarthur region · Memory · Mid-century modernism · Modernism · Peri-urban region · Placemaking · rural-urban fringe · Social History · Stereotypes · Storytelling · Symbolism

‘Fibro Majestic’, a new exhibition at the Campbelltown Arts Centre, a review

camdenhistorynotes

A simple, cheap housing style

Post-war housing domestic architecture in Camden is typified by a simple, cheap utilitarian building called the Camden fibro cottage.

This style of domestic architecture, the fibro cottage, can be found all over Australia and has provided a basic form of housing for thousands of families.

Modern fibro cottages in Burrawong Crescent Elderslie were built around the 1960s. (I Willis, 2005)

Yet it has been derided, rubbished, and scoffed at for decades after initially being heralded as the height of modernism in the early 20th century.

Fibro Majestic exhibition

The simple fibro house is celebrated in a new exciting exhibition at the Campbelltown Arts Centre called Fibro Majestic by renowned Australian artist and sculptor Catherine O’Donnell.

The exhibition by artist Catharine O’Donnell runs from 8 July to 13 August 2023 with free entry.

Promotional flyer for Fibro Majestic at the Campbelltown Arts Centre, Campbelltown (CAC 2023)

Initially conceived for the artist’s survey exhibition ‘Beyond the Shadow’ at the Orange Regional Gallery in partnership with Grafton Regional Gallery, curated by art historian Lucy Stanger in 2022.

At the centre of the exhibition is the imposing spectacle of a 75%-scale replica of a fibro house.

The exhibition promotion states:

‘Catherine O’Donnell: Fibro Majestic’ presents a body of work by O’Donnell that considers the historical and social context of fibro and social housing in Western Sydney and across Australia. O’Donnell grew up in a fibro home in Green Valley, Western Sydney, which at the time was the largest public housing estate in Sydney. The shape and form of the fibro house has long since informed her practice as she explores architecture, social history and the notions of home and memory.    

Cover for the Fibro Majestic Exhibition Catalogue at the Campbelltown Arts Centre, Campbelltown (CAC, 2023)

Exhibition notes state that O’Donnell has taken the floor plans from the New South Wales Housing Commission around the mid-century. They are a type of modernism that has fallen out of favour with the government, the public and the building industry.

A small-scale model of a fibro cottage.
Catherine O’Donnell, ‘Gold leafed house 1’, 2022. Stereolithographic model and gold leaf 13x26x30cm. Campbelltown Arts Centre, Campbelltown. (I Willis, 2023)

Complementing the main sculptural installation is a range of small housing models and intimate drawings that evoke memories of living in a fibro house.

Catherine O’Donnell, ‘Beyond the curtain beats a loving heart’, 2020. Charcoal on paper diptych, 107×50 framed.
Campbelltown Arts Centre Fibro Majestic Exhibition 2023. (I Willis, 2023)

The fibro houses were more than just buildings. They sheltered people’s lives, provided a safe haven, and were a site of family celebrations, birthdays, marriages, anniversaries, and rituals. The curtains also hid many dark secrets, from domestic violence to poverty and unemployment. While there were many dysfunctional families and disrupted lives, there were many happy families with children who grew up and led successful lives.

One of the happy stories with many fond memories is the story of Fiona, who grew up in the Airds Housing Commission Estate in South Campbelltown. with its many fibro homes.

Fiona recalls:

Living in Airds during the late 70s and early 80s, friendships were built, and people stuck together. It was the freedom of riding bikes with friends until the street lights came on, building makeshift cubbies and performing concerts for the neighbours.

I still remember the excitement of walking to the local shops with my sisters to buy a few groceries for Mum. The constant search for ‘bargains’ in the hope there would be twenty cents left over to buy some mixed lollies.

Ugly Australia

According to O’Donnell, fibro cottages ‘were compact, mass-produced, box-like structures’ built across Sydney’s western suburbs.

The simple fibro cottage has characterised Western Sydney and its lifestyle.  The simplicity of the fibro cottage was its attraction and part of its downfall.

Typical of the urban fringe, the simple fibro cottage has been derided and ridiculed by those who are snobbish about Sydney’s outer suburbs.

The fibro cottage is typical of suburbia on the edge. The edge can be marginalised people, the urban fringe, or the perception that it is a type of housing that is unacceptable to some.

The fibro cottage represents a type of Otherness, an ugly Australia. These images have been reinforced by the Sydney press, which labelled Campbelltown an ‘ugly houso wasteland’ in 1975.

According to historian Ian Willis

The humble fibro cottage in Camden in the 1950s and 1960s has been integral to the town’s 20th-century history. The fibro house represents the baby-boomer era, when drive-ins, Holdens, Chiko rolls, black & white TV, rock & roll, and vinyl LPs were the norm. Fibro is evocative of long summer holidays by the beach, with adolescent love, boogie boards, zinc cream and paddle pops.  

This is the essence of Fibro Majestic, a metaphor for mid-century Australia.

Optimism and hope in a compact box

The fibro cottage came to the rescue in the post-war years, when Sydney experienced a housing shortage due to the ‘baby boom’ and increased immigration.

The postwar years were a period of optimism and hope for a better lifestyle. These cottages were cheap and utilitarian and could be erected quickly.

Fibro, as a building materialz, was invented at the beginning of the 20th century and imported into Australia before the First World War. Wartime restrictions resulted in the product being manufactured in Australia by the war’s end.

This is an image of a Camden fibro cottage built in 1920. Chesham Cottage is at 49 Broughton Street, Camden, built by the Camden Voluntary Workers Association following the First World War. (Camden Images)

Leaked heat like a sieve

The fibro cottages of the 1950s leaked heat like a sieve and failed by today’s energy-efficient efficiency standards for housing. According to Lloyd Nicols from the Illawarra Flame retrofit project, these cottages can be made energy efficient to make them sustainable, affordable, and attractive. The project, a joint venture between the University of Wollongong and Wollongong TAFE College, aims for kits to be able to retrofit existing fibro cottages to increase their thermal performance.

Nostalgia and memory

Nostalgia and memory are a big part of the exhibition. Artist Catherine O’Donnell states that the fibro cottage is the architecture of my childhood and an ‘everywhere-everyman example of mid-century developments across Australia’.

The simple fibro shacks littered along the Australian coastline are part of this nostalgia. Wendy Shaw and Lindsay Menday argue

The old beach shacks that dominated seaside fishing villages or isolated holiday surfing spots provided low-cost accommodation for holidaymakers in often remote and low-populated settings with few services. Some of these holiday houses were owner-occupied but remained vacant outside holiday times. Most were available for short-term holiday rental. All were relatively basic.

These fibro cottages straddled the class divide and were easily accessible by the motor car by mid-century. These were egalitarian holiday experiences for Australians.

The Fibro Majestic sculptural installation attracts an audience at the Campbelltown Arts Centre, Campbelltown (I Willis 2023)

Shaw and Menday maintain that

In northern New South Wales, tropes of nature, community, and heritage [around fibro cottages] have been incorporated into a new beachside ‘town’ identity.

These fantasies of bygone days play out in the Fibro Majestic exhibition, which conjures up memories of beach holidays with long lazy days lounging in the sun in a mystical past. All viewed through rose-coloured glasses misty with nostalgia.

O’Donnell maintains that these memories are ‘synonymous with Australian identity’.

Flawed Plans, a commission

In addition to the main exhibition, The Campbelltown Arts Centre has commissioned a site-specific art installation on the stairs and front wall of the gallery amphitheatre called ‘Flawed Plans’.

The Flawed Plans art installation in the forecourt of Campbelltown Arts Centre.
‘Flawed Plans’, 2023. (Campbelltown Arts Centre Amphitheatre). Vinyl, dimensions variable. Commissioned by the CAC. (I Willis, 2023)

The artwork highlights the many layers to the story of the fibro cottage and how perceptions shift and twist.

Where once the fibro house was seen as a saviour as a cheap and effective form of housing, it has become a to be seen as an urban disaster by many.

The artist maintains that as the viewer climbs around the installation, their perception shifts and skews ‘as the viewer climbs, descends or orbits the work’.

Fibro Majestic, a reflection

Fibro Majestic reminds us all how perceptions and memories change over time. Fibro houses were once the height of modernism, yet in later decades, they were derided and rubbished.

The sculptural installation at the Fibro Majestic exhibition at the Campbelltown Arts Centre, Campbelltown.
‘Fibro Majestic’, 2022. Mixed media, common household construction materials, 587x587x220cm. (I Willis, 2023)

The exhibition evokes the fibro heritage of affordable accommodation for the working man and his family in the postwar years when there was a housing shortage for ordinary people.

Fibro was a practical building material that, despite its dangers, could provide a model for the current housing crisis. The fibro cottage was a simple effective housing solution that could be reborn again.

The exhibition Fibro Majestic has captured the essence of nostalgia around this housing style. Baby boomer memories are full of fibro houses and other mid-century Australian lifestyle icons.

The art installation encapsulates the essential elements of the architectural style and is evocative of the lives of those who lived in this utilitarian style of domestic architecture.

More reading

Shaw, W. S., & Menday, L. (2013). Fibro Dreaming: Greenwashed Beach-house Development on Australia’s Coasts. Urban Studies, 50(14), 2940–2958. https://doi.org/10.1177/0042098013482507

Jenna Reed Burns 2015, ‘Shacking Up’, Green Magazine, Issue 43, May. https://greenmagazine.com.au/article/shacking-up/

20th century · Attachment to place · Built heritag · Campbelltown · Collective Memory · Community identity · Community organisations · Community work · Cultural Heritage · Cultural icon · First World War · Frances Day · Local History · Macarthur region · Menangle · Military history · Patriotism · Place making · Red Cross · School of Arts · Sense of place · Storytelling · Uncategorized · Urban growth · Urban Planning · Volunteering · Volunteerism · War at home · Wartime

Menangle School of Arts hall, the heart of a village, under redevelopment

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In 2022 the Wollondilly Shire Local Planning Panel approved the demolition and reconstruction of the Menangle Community Hall.

The Menangle Community Association originally lodged the Development Application with Wollondilly Shire Council in July 2021.

The Menangle Community Association originally is managing the Menangle School of Arts project.

In 2023 there is a vacant lot in central Menangle with a security fence. The reconstructed hall is proposed to open in 2024.

The vacant lot at 4 Station Street Menangle. The former Menangle School of Arts site was demolished after the Menangle Community Association received permission to demolish the building in 2022. (I Willis, 2023)

On the security fence is an information sign with the hall’s history, what is happening, funding and building timeline.

The information signage about the redevelopment of the former Menangle School of Arts building at 4 Station Street Menangle (I Willis, 2023)

What is happening

The information signage on the site security fence states:

The existing hall is unusable due to significant structural damage and will be deconstructed and materials reused where possible within the new building.

The hall will comfortably accommodate 132-150 guests, incorporating 242m2 of fully enclosed area including  a stage and storage area, spacious hall, kitchenette, box office and entry foyer.

As well as 63m2 of unenclosed covered areas: verandas, covered entry way, courtyard and ramp.

The hall will be fully accessible with suitable access ramps and accessible toilets.

The hall will also be fit out to ensure it is acoustically sound inside and out.

The hall will respect to the existing hall while ensuring it will be fit for purpose into the future.

The Menangle Community Hall project will construct a new state-of-the-art modern building.

Source: Signage, 4 Station Street, Menangle. 2023

The Australian, New South Wales government, South32, and South32 Community Partnership Program fund the hall.

The key milestones in the construction are listed as

  1. January 2023 -Deconstruction and preservation of materials and elements
  2. Feb 2023 – Foundations and construction
  3. Mid 2024 – Opening

The history of the hall

The information signage on the site security fence states:

The Menangle School of Arts hall was constructed c1890 by the Macarthur Onslow family for the use by the local village.

The building was used for funding raising for the Menangle Roman Catholic Church and the Australian Land Army used the hall during World War 11.

The hall was also used for functions, dances, plays and musicals.

It had many modifications over the years including in 1908, 1960 and a major refurbishment in 1984 that saw the flooring, roof, kitchens and bathrooms replaced.

In 1984 the hall was transferred to Wollondilly Council control who commissioned a number of reports in the late 2000s into its structural integrity.

The hall was later closed due to safety concerns.

In 2010, after petitioning the Council, the hall was transferred to the Menangle Community Association to rebuild the hall.

More history on the Menangle School of Arts can be found at Menangle.com.au

Source: Signage, 4 Station Street, Menangle. 2023

Wartime Red Cross fundraisers

Red Cross wartime fundraisers were held in the School of Arts hall during the First World War.

One notable 1917 Red Cross fundraiser was the ‘The Gilbulla Gad-Abouts’ concert. Described in the Camden press as ‘highly successful’ to ‘large audience’ present, which used ‘every inch of seating space’.  (Camden News, 7 June 1917)

In 1917 18-year-old Helen Macarthur Onslow, daughter of Enid Macarthur Onslow, held a Red Cross fundraising concert to smooth over local controversies following the 1916 conscription campaign.

According to historian Ian Willis:

The show attracted a huge crowd of over 400 who ‘travelled long distances’ from all over the district. While the night raised a modest £30, it was a much-needed boost for Red Cross morale. The show included several distinguished performers, including Lady Doris Blackwood, aged 22 years and the niece of Lady Helen Munro Ferguson, the founder of the Australian Red Cross. Doris Blackwood was Lady Helen’s companion when she came out to Australia in 1914 with her husband, Sir Ronald Munro Ferguson, who took up the post of Governor-General. Helen Macarthur Onslow and Doris Blackwood had formed a friendship on one of Helen’s regular trips to the Camden area. Other members of the concert party included Enid’s other daughter Elizabeth, aged 14 years, and Ethelwyn Downes, aged 25 years, the only daughter of FWA Downes MLA, politician and Camden conservative, from Brownlow Hill at Cobbitty, who had campaigned for the ‘Yes’ vote in the 1916 conscription referendum. The concert was topped off when a necklace, donated by Helen Macarthur Onslow, was won by Mrs McDonald, the wife of Sergeant McDonald, from the Menangle Light Horse Camp.

Source: Ian Willis, Ministering Angels, The Camden District Red Cross 1914-1945 CHS, Camden, 2014, pp.45-46.
One of the members of the 1917 concert party was Lady Doris Blackwood [2nd from left], who is shown in this group photograph with her patron, the wife of the Australian Governor-General, Sir Ronald Munro Ferguson [3rd from left], Lady Helen Munro Ferguson [4th from left]. Lady Helen was president and founder of the Australian branch of the British Red Cross in 1914.
(Personal Papers of Prime Minister Cook, NAA M3614, 3)

Another concert was held in August 1917 for the Red Triangle and Frances Day patriotic appeals, which raised £50. Press reports stated it was standing room only at the ‘highly successful’ show. There were instrumental and vocal solos, recitations, a children’s choir, and tableaux. During intermission, donated vegetables, cakes and ‘fancy work’ were auctioned off by Campbelltown Mayor Moore. At the end of the proceedings, a number of raffles and guessing competitions were drawn. (Camden News, 16 August 1917)

Renovations in 2013

The front view of the Menangle School of Arts at 4 Station Street Menangle in 2012. (I Willis)

The interior of the Menangle School of Arts, 4 Station Street, Menangle, during renovations in 2013 (I Willis)

A commemorative plaque to Menangle identity FV Veness was located on the decorative gates at the entry to the Menangle School of Arts, 4 Station Street, Menangle (I Willis, 2013)

A front view of the Menangle School of Arts, 4 Station Street, Menangle (I Willis, 2013)

20th century · Architecture · Art · Attachment to place · Australian Botanic Gardens Mount Annan · Belonging · Built heritag · Camden Story · Colonialism · Cultural Heritage · Design · Garden history · Gardening · Herbarium of NSW ABG · Heritage · History · Landscape · Lifestyle · Living History · Local History · Local Studies · Mount Annan · Place making · Placemaking · Plant Nursery · Plants · Public art · Sculpture · Sense of place · Storytelling · Uncategorized · Urban growth · Urban history

Botanic gardens herbarium at Mount Annan wins top architecture award

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2023 Australian Institute of Landscape Architects Award

One of the newest facilities at the Australian Botanic Gardens Mount Annan, the National Herbarium of New South Wales, has won a top architecture award.

The AILA has awarded the design of the National Herbarium of NSW the  AILA 2023 NSW Australian Institute of Landscape Architects Awards in the category of Health & Education.

Designed by Australian architects and design studio Architectus the building was inspired by the seed pod of the waratah, the floral symbol of NSW.

The National Herbarium of New South Wales at the Australian Botanic Gardens Mount Annan. (2023, I Willis)

The citation for the award states:

The landscape design expresses a unique perspective of the nature of an herbarium: this place is not only dedicated to researching the science of plants and their ecosystems, but also making this knowledge accessible to the community. In a fluid and bespoke language, the design makes use of the site’s microclimates and topography to imbue ecosystems diversity and experiential richness with an holistic clarity. It beautifully dissembles the institution’s scientific remit to encourage visitor awareness of plants, ecology, and landscape.

https://aila.awardsplatform.com/gallery/nbaZWrEE/YqRZlowG?search=8a05d209e52fb180-20
The front profile of the National Herbarium of New South Wales at the Australian Botanic Gardens Mount Annan. The shape of the roofline was influenced by the seed pod of the waratah. (2023, Desmond Chan & Levi Pajarin)

Opening in 2022,  the AILA website states:

The National Herbarium of NSW houses more than 1.1 million plant specimens. Lacking the requisite environmental controls to maintain the collection and outgrowing its historic location, the Herbarium relocated to the Australian Botanic Gardens Mount Annan. With deep insulated walls protecting and preserving valuable plant specimens for future generations. Complementing the building’s aspirations, a bespoke landscape showcases significant and meaningful plants from the collection in living form. Reinforcing connection to Country, this offers a place for reconciliation and gathering and a celebration and living showcase of the collection’s diversity.

https://aila.awardsplatform.com/gallery/nbaZWrEE/YqRZlowG?search=8a05d209e52fb180-20

Problems at the herbarium at Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney

Before relocating the National Herbarium to the ABG Mount Annan, the plant collection was located in the Robert Brown building at the Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney. The collection faced several issues, including pest control.

The Robert Brown Building at the Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney that housed the herbarium collection had several problems that endangered the plant collection. The plant collection was moved to the new herbarium building at Australia Botanic Gardens Mount Annan in 2022. (RBG Sydney, 2020)

The National Herbarium website states that the existing Robert Brown Building at the RBG Sydney was constructed in 1982.

The website continues:

the Herbarium’s storage capacity in the Robert Brown Building will also be exhausted by 2022. It is time critical that we create a new facility to fix these deficiencies and ensure our collection can grow and be utilised by other Herbaria around the world.

https://www.australianbotanicgarden.com.au/about-us/major-projects/building-a-new-herbarium-1

Relocation of herbarium to the Australian Botanic Gardens Mount Annan

In 2013 the garden trustees (RBG&DT) engaged RP Infrastructure to consult and develop a business case for a new facility and proceed as project managers. In 2015 Sydney architects Sam Crawford was hired to conduct a feasibility study on the relocation from RBG Sydney to ABG Mount Annan.

The state government supported the movement of move from the Sydney site to Mount Annan. The website states:

To safeguard the growing collection, which also includes a significant amount of historical plant specimens collected in 1770, the State Government supported the construction of the new state-of-the-art Herbarium facility with a $60 million investment in 2018.

https://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/stories/2022/world-class-herbarium-unveiled
The public entry to the foyer display area of to the National Herbarium of New South Wales at the ABG Mount Annan (I Willis, 2023)

New building

The herbarium building has six protective vaults that are environmentally controlled and provides new labs, equipment, and quarantine facilities.

The collection was moved to the ABG Mount Annan in 2021 and digitised as part of the project. The collection can be accessed online.

The exterior forecourt of the National Herbarium of New South Wales at the ABG Mount Annan and the location of the art installation Life Blood (I Willis, 2023)

History of herbarium plant collection

The collections of the National Herbarium of New South Wales date from 1770, made by botanists Sir Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander on Captain James Cook’s first voyage to the Pacific. By 1900, the Herbarium contained 15,000 named species – almost all the species then known in NSW.

A small herbarium and botanical museum was first established in 1853 when botanist Sir Charles Moore was the director of the RBG Sydney (1848-1896).

The number of botanical specimens grew significantly under the next director of the RBG Sydney, Joseph Maiden.

The first dedicated herbarium building was opened in 1901. By 1970 the herbarium held over 1 million specimens spread across five buildings.

The herbarium collection has grown to incorporate several other institutional collections, and they have included,

Collections from the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences (now the Powerhouse Museum), Hawkesbury Agricultural College, the University of New South Wales moss collection, the NSW Forestry wood collection, and more recently collections from the John Macarthur Agricultural Institute.

James 2018
An aerial view of the National Herbarium of New South Wales at ABG Mount Annan. The PlantBank is on the RHS rear of the Herbarium, and the nursery greenhouses are on the left rear of the image. This view clearly shows the herbarium roof line and the influence of the shape of the waratah seedpod (2023, Desmond Chan & Levi Pajarin)

‘Jewel in the crown’

The herbarium collection is currently,

 valued at $280 million…More than 8000 new plant specimens [are] being added to the Herbarium every year. The world-renowned collection underpins vital scientific research and is essential for informing decisions about the conservation of our natural environment.

https://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/science/national-herbarium-of-new-south-wales

In 2020 the Herbarium became part of the Australian Institute of Botanical Science that

consists of the physical and virtual scientific collections, research, services and facilities, and our staff at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney, Australian Botanic Garden Mount Annan and the Blue Mountains Botanic Garden Mount Tomah.

Summerell 2020

The Herbarium is the site of the placement of Life Blood, an art installation.

A jewel in the crown of the Macarthur region the National Herbarium at the Australian Botanic Gardens at Mount Annan is a valuable addition to the scientific international status of the gardens.

References

Shelley A James 2018, ‘National Herbarium of NSW: This is Your Life!’ The Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney, Sydney, 25 June. https://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/stories/2018/national-herbarium-of-nsw-this-is-your-life!

Charles Moore (botanist). (2022, April 8). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Moore_(botanist)

Brett Summerell 2020, ‘The Australian Institute of Botanical Science’. The Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney, Sydney, 24 August. https://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/stories/2020/the-australian-institute-of-botanical-science

Updated on 24 June 2023. Originally posted on 23 June 2023 as ‘National Herbarium at ABG wins architecture gong’

Aesthetics · Architecture · Attachment to place · Belonging · Built heritag · Camden · Camden Council · Camden Museum · Camden Story · Church History · Colonial Camden · Community identity · Country town · Cowpastures · Cowpastures Gentry · Cultural and Heritage Tourism · Cultural Heritage · Cultural icon · Engineering Heritage · Heritage · History · Landscape · Landscape aesthetics · Living History · Local History · Local newspapers · Memory · Place making · Settler Society · St John's Church Camden · Storytelling · Tourism · Uncategorized · Urban development · Urban history

Cultural and heritage tourism adds $6.4 million a year to the local economy  

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Camden Museum and Alan Baker Art Gallery add over $1.7 million annually

New research shows that cultural and heritage tourism is worth around $6.4 million per year to the Camden LGA.

The story of the Camden-Campbelltown train, the locomotive affectionately known as Pansy, generates a considerable amount of nostalgia amongst day-trippers and other visitors to the Camden LGA. The railway engineering heritage still visible across the former train route includes this bridge, railway cuttings and other engineering works. This image shows the train approaching crossing the Nepean River railway bridge in 1910. (SLNSW)

This figure is drawn from data sourced from Destination NSW (2018), which states that the average daily spend of a day tripper was $140 per day. The proportion of day-trippers that constitute cultural and heritage visitors is 9% of all day-tripper visitors.

According to .idCommunity (2023) demographic resources, in 2020-2021, there were 509,000 day-trippers to the Camden LGA per year. Cultural and heritage visitors comprise around 45,000 day-trippers of the total number of day-tripper visitors annually. These day-trippers are worth $6.4 million to the Camden economy.

Within these figures, the volunteer-run Camden Museum is one of the most prominent destinations with around 6000 day-tripper visitors per year, worth around $840,000 to the local economy each year. The Alan Baker Art Gallery has about 6500 day-tripper visitors annually, worth around $910,000 to the local economy annually.

The Alan Baker Art Gallery is located in the former gentleman’s townhouse of Macaria, which is a valuable part of the built heritage of the Camden Heritage Conservation Area. This gallery and the building form part of the John Street heritage precinct, which includes the former police barracks, courthouse and Sarah Tiffan’s cottage and the former CBC Bank. (ABAG, 2023)

What is cultural and heritage tourism?

 Destination NSW (2019) defines cultural and heritage tourism as:

Ted Silberberg explains cultural and heritage tourism as ‘a tool of economic development that achieves economic growth through attracting visitors from outside a host community, who are motivated wholly or in part by interest in the historical, artistic, scientific or lifestyle/heritage offerings of a community, region, group or institution’

Source: Cultural Tourism and Business Opportunities for Museums and Heritage sites, Tourism Management, Ted Silberberg, 1995.
St John’s Church and Cemetery is one of the most important cultural and heritage sites in the Camden LGA. Dating from the 1840s and funded by the Macarthur family of Camden Park, the church dominates the town and the Nepean River floodplain from its ridge-top location. The church is visible from many points around the area. The vistas from Camden Park House and Garden are an integral part of the Cowpastures story and the gentry estates that dominated the area until the town was settled in the 1840s. The church is critical in the area’s sense of place and community identity. (I Willis, 2021)

How important is cultural and heritage tourism?

Destination NSW (2019) quotes research from Tourism Australia that

 ‘rich history and heritage’ was the 4th most important factor for the Domestic market when choosing a holiday destination, and 6th most important for the International market.  

Source: Consumer Demand Project, Tourism Australia, 2018

According to the National Trust of Australia (2018):

Globally, heritage tourism has become one of the largest and fastest growing tourism sectors, with the United Nations World Tourism Organisation estimating that more than 50%[1] of tourists worldwide are now motivated by a desire to experience a country’s culture and heritage[2]

Of all international visitors to Australia in 2017, 43% participated in a cultural activity and 33.9% in a heritage activity. Cultural and heritage segments have grown at 7.5% and 11.2% respectively over the past four years.

Source: 1. Tourism Research Australia, IVS YE September 2017. 2. United Nations World Trade Organisation, 2016 Annual Report

Cultural and Heritage Tourism in Camden

The Camden township is a site rich in heritage and history and a visitor destination with huge potential.

The Camden LGA is an active participant in cultural and heritage tourism with a host of visitor attractions in the and is outlined in the Macarthur Visitors Guide (MVG 2020). The guide is complemented by the Camden Heritage Walking Tour guide (CHWT 2023), the Camden Scenic Drive (CSD 2020) and the Visit Camden Official Visitor Guide (CVIC 2022).

Camden Council is responsible for the most critical cultural and heritage tourism planning instrument. The Camden Heritage Conservation Area, Argyle Street, and John Street precincts are within it. (DCP 2019) The DCP (2019) outlines the conservation area’s character elements, objectives and controls.

Camden Council (2023) provides valuable information on its Heritage Planning webpage and lists all the local heritage items on the local and state heritage inventory (CC 2020).

Storytelling

Within cultural and heritage tourism, storytelling is an essential feature of the visitor experience.

Oliver Serrat (2008) defines storytelling as

The vivid description of ideas, beliefs, personal experiences, and life-lessons through stories or narratives that evoke powerful emotions and insights.

https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/27637/storytelling.pdf

The National Trust of Australia (2018) maintains that storytelling is a new global trend and

found that what encourages a visitor to a certain destination is its ability to engage in unforgettable and truly inspiring experiences that touch visitors in an emotional way and connects them with special places, people and cultures.

Source:  Tropical Tablelands Tourism, Hero Experiences Guidebook (2015)

Camden storyteller Ian Willis (2023a) has written extensively about the local history of the Camden area, with an outstanding example being the Camden History Notes blog. He has published many other articles and stories in newspapers, newsletters, journals and books (2023b).

The outstanding storytelling organisation in the Camden LGA is the Camden Historical Society (CHS 2023a). The society’s activities include the biannual journal Camden History (CHS 2023b), monthly public lectures, and numerous book publications. (CHS 2023c). The Camden Museum archives provide much raw material for local storytelling. (CHS 2023d)

The Camden Museum Library building is one of the many cultural and heritage tourism sites in the Camden LGA. The archives of the Camden Museum provide much of the raw material for Camden storytelling. The museum holds many artefacts that add to local stories and provide a rich experience for museum visitors. The Camden Library occupies the building in John Street Camden and has a rich collection of local interviews and stories on its website. The building is home to the Camden Area Family History Society and its archives. The Camden Museum Library building is part of the rich built heritage of the John Street precinct and is an example of adaptive reuse. (I Willis, 2008)

The Camden Area Family History Society (CAFHS 2023) is a crucial storytelling organisation which draws on raw material from extensive archives and keen volunteer members.

The Back Then feature of The District Reporter provides the most popular storytelling platforms. Here local storytellers include Ian Willis (2023c), John Wrigley, Julie Wrigley and others who tell interesting and exciting local stories about the past in each issue.

The Back Then section of The District Reporter 18 November 2022.

References

CAFHS 2023, Camden Area Family History Society. CAFHS. https://www.cafhs.org.au/

CC 2019, Camden Development Control Plan 2019. Camden Council. https://dcp.camden.nsw.gov.au/

CC 2020, Local and State Heritage Items listed under: State Environment Planning Policy (Sydney Regions Growth Centres)2006, & Camden Local Environment Plan 2010. Camden Council. https://www.camden.nsw.gov.au/assets/pdfs/Planning/Heritage-Conservation/Heritage-Items-List-September-2020-v1.pdf

CC 2023, Heritage Planning. Camden Council. https://www.camden.nsw.gov.au/strategic-planning/heritage-planning/

CHS 2023a, Camden History. Camden Historical Society. http://www.camdenhistory.org.au/index.html

CHS 2023b, Camden History, the journal of the Camden Historical Society. Camden Historical Society. http://www.camdenhistory.org.au/chsjournal.html

CHS 2023c, Publications For Sale At The Camden Museum. Camden Historical Society. http://www.camdenhistory.org.au/Publications%20for%20Sale%20%2022.5.2018.pdf

CHS 2023d, Camden Museum Archive Catalogue by Category. Camden Historical Society. http://www.camdenhistory.org.au/LibraryJune2008.pdf

CHWT 2023, Camden Heritage Walking Tour. Pamphlet. Camden Council. https://www.camden.nsw.gov.au/assets/Uploads/Camden-Heritage-Walking-Tour-2023.pdf

CSD 2020, Camden Scenic Drive. Pamphlet. Camden Council. https://www.camden.nsw.gov.au/assets/Tourism/Camden-Scenic-Drive.pdf

DCP 2019, 2.16.4 Camden Heritage Conservation Area. Camden Council. https://dcp.camden.nsw.gov.au/general-land-use-controls/environmental-heritage/camden-heritage-conservation-area/

Destination NSW 2019, Cultural and Heritage Tourism in NSW, Year Ended December 2018. NSW Government, Sydney. https://www.destinationnsw.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/cultural-and-heritage-tourism-to-nsw-snapshot-ye-de-2018.pdf

Ian Willis 2023a, Camden History Notes, Some Stories of Place. Camden History Notes. https://camdenhistorynotes.com/

Ian Willis 2023b, Ian Willis Historian. Author. https://ianwillis.wordpress.com/

Ian Willis 2023c, Newspaper Articles. Academia.com.  https://independent.academia.edu/IanWillis/Newspaper-Articles

idCommunity 2023, Camden Council area, Tourism visitor summary. Camden Council. https://economy.id.com.au/camden/tourism-visitor-summary

MVG 2020, Macarthur Visitors Guide, Camden & Campbelltown. Camden Council & Campbelltown City Council. https://www.camden.nsw.gov.au/assets/Tourism/Macarthur-Visitors-Guide-2020.pdf

NTA 2018, Next Steps: Australian Heritage Tourism Directions Paper. National Trust, June. https://www.nationaltrust.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Australian-Heritage-Tourism-Directions-paper-.pdf

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Blue Plaque recognises Camden Red Cross sewing circle in wartime

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Camden Red Cross sewing circles during the First and Second World Wars

The wartime efforts of Camden women have been officially recognised for the first time by the successful nomination for a New South Wales Blue Plaque with Heritage NSW. Camden Red Cross women volunteers thousands of hours of their time and skill to provide requisites for military hospitals for wounded Australian soldiers.

The announcement appeared in the Sydney press with 17 other successful nominations for a Blue Plaque across the state. They include notable people and events in their local area.

The Blue Plaque on the front of the former Camden Town Hall. The plaque celebrates and remembers the service of the Camden Red Cross sewing circles women who donated thousands of hours of their effort and skills to supply hospital requisites for the soldiers and military hospitals in the First and Second World Wars. (I Willis, 2023)

What is being recognised?

The Blue Plaque officially recognised for the first time the Camden Red Cross patriotic wartime sewing circles at the Camden School of Arts (later the Camden Town Hall, now the Camden Library) – 1914-1918, 1940-1946. This is the only recognition of this type of Red Cross wartime activity anywhere in Australia.

The Sidman women volunteer their time and effort during the First World War for the Camden Red Cross. Patriotic fundraising supporting the war at home was significant, raising thousands of pounds. This type of effort was quite in all communities across Australia and the rest of the British Empire. (Camden Images and Camden Museum)

The story of the Camden Red Cross sewing circles

The Camden Red Cross sewing circles were one of Camden women’s most important voluntary patriotic activities during World War One and World War Two. The sewing circles started at the Camden School of Arts in 1914 and, due to lack of space, moved to the Foresters’ Hall on Argyle Street in 1918. At the outbreak of the Second World War, sewing circles reconvened in 1940 at the Camden Town Hall on John Street (the old School of Arts building – the same site as the First World War)

These sewing circles were workshops where Camden women volunteered and manufactured supplies for Australian military hospitals, field hospitals and casualty clearing stations. They were held weekly on Tuesdays, sale days in the Camden district.

Sewing circles were ‘quasi-industrial production lines’ where Camden women implemented their domestic skills to aid the war at home. Camden women cut out, assembled, and sewed together hospital supplies, including flannel shirts, bed shirts, pyjamas, slippers, underpants, feather pillows, bed linen, handkerchiefs, and kit bags. The workshops were lent several sewing machines in both wars.

The sewing circles also coordinated knitting and spinning for bed socks, stump socks, mufflers, balaclava caps, mittens, and cholera belts (body binders). The women also made ‘hussifs’ or sewing kits for the soldiers.  The sewing circles attracted 80-100 women weekly during the First World War. The list of items was strikingly consistent for hospital supplies for both wars, with the only significant addition during the Second World War being the knitted pullovers and cardigans.

The production output of the Camden women was prodigious. Between 1914 and 1918, Camden Red Cross sewing circle women made over 20,300 articles tallied to over 40,000 volunteer hours.  Between 1940 and 1946, during World War Two, women made over 25,000 articles, totalling over 45,000 voluntary hours.

The operation of the sewing circles was fully funded through the fundraising of Camden Red Cross and community donations.  In 1917 alone, over 95% of branch fundraising was dedicated to these activities.

In World War One, other Red Cross sewing circles in the Camden district were at The Oaks, Camden Park, Theresa Park, and Middle Burragorang. During World War Two, other centres across the local area included Bringelly-Rossmore, Menangle, Narellan, and The Oaks. Each group independently funded its activities.

These patriotic voluntary activities by Camden women were part of the war at home and have received little recognition at a local, state or national level. Wartime sewing and knitting have been kept in the shadows for too long. There needs to be a public acknowledgement of the patriotic effort of these women.

The placement of the plaque

The Blue Plaque was installed on the front of the Camden Library building in 2022 at 40 John Street Camden. This building was formerly the Camden Town Hall and the Camden School of Arts. The women of the Camden Red Cross used the town hall as the centre of their sewing effort in the First and Second World Wars to supply hospital requisites for soldiers and military hospitals. (I Willis, 2023)

The Blue Plaque was placed on the front of the former Camden School of Arts – later called the Camden Town Hall (1939-1945),then converted to offices in 1964 and now the Camden Library.

Camden School of Arts from 1866 to 1963 (PReeves/Camden Images)

Camden Museum Library building in John Street Camden, where the Blue Plaque will be located, recognising the efforts of the Camden Red Cross sewing circles in both World War One and World War Two. (I Willis, 2008)

Official recognition is long overdue

The official recognition of the wartime effort and skills of Camden women using their domestic arts and crafts in the patriotic service of Australia has taken over 75 years. This small acknowledgement of the wartime service of the Camden Red tells the story of ordinary women in extraordinary circumstances and has been long overdue.

Acknowledgement by the Member for Camden Peter Sidgreaves MP

This is an article from the newsletter from Peter Sidgreaves MP Member for Camden, where he has given official acknowledgement of the wartime patriotic service of Camden Red Cross women (Newsletter November 2022, Issue 14)

What is a Blue Plaque?

The Heritage NSW website states:

The Blue Plaques program aims to capture public interest and fascination in people, events and places that are important to the stories of NSW.

The Blue Plaques program celebrates NSW heritage by recognising noteworthy people and events from our state’s history.

The aim of the program is to encourage people to explore their neighbourhood and other parts of NSW and connect with people of the past, historical moments and rich stories that matter to communities and have shaped our state.

The program is inspired by the famous London Blue Plaques program run by English Heritage which originally started in 1866, and similar programs around the world.

“Behind every plaque, there is a story.”

The essence of the Blue Plaques program is the storytelling. A digital story will be linked to each plaque.

The Blue Plaques should tell stories that are interesting, fun, quirky along with more sombre stories that should be not be forgotten as part of our history.

English Heritage and Blue Plaques in the United Kingdom

The New South Wales Blue Plaques were based on the English model, and the English Heritage website states:

London’s blue plaques scheme, run by English Heritage, celebrates the links between notable figures of the past and the buildings in which they lived and worked. Founded in 1866, it has inspired many similar schemes in the UK and around the world.

Camden Red Cross Blue Plaque installation

Dr Ian Willis organised the paperwork through the office of the local Member for Camden Peter Sidgreaves MP, for the installation of the Blue Plaque. The competitive process meant only around 17 sites were chosen for plaques from around 70 applications across New South Wales for this round. The installation occurred on 14 October 2022. (I Willis, 2022)

Reference

Ian Willis, Ministering Angels, The Camden District Red Cross 1914-1945. Camden Historical Society, Camden, 2014.

Updated 24 April 2023. Originally posted 18 April 2022.