Brownlow Hill Estate

When Governor Lachlan Macquarie toured the Cow Pastures in 1815 he traversed the area from the foot of Mount Hunter in a north-west direction toward Mount Hunter Creek (Rivulet) and then in a northern direction towards the Nepean River. At the close of the day he wrote that "it is my intention to form an establishment here for at least three separate herds of the Government horned cattle, at three distinct stations". The main farm and Government Cottage was established at Cawdor which Macquarie made his base on his return tour in 1822.[1]

On Friday 11 January 1815 Macquarie inspected another of the stations from Cawdor along Mount Hunter Creek to Brownlow. Originally called Lowe's Hill, Governor Macquarie renamed it to Brownlow Hill in 1820 at the request of Commissioner Bigge, in honour of his friend Lord Brownlow.[1][2]

Peter Murdock, who accompanied Macquarie, was later (in the mid-1820s)[3] granted 809 hectares (2,000 acres) to the north-west of Mount Hunter rivulet in the parish of Werombi. A small cottage now referred to as "the roundhouse" is situated on this grant, which was known locally as Glendaruel (Glendaurel), and it is believed that this cottage may have been associated with the Government station established by Macquarie. Although it is similar in form to the former gatehouse at Winbourne, Mulgoa and a residence at Molong (late 1830s), both of these are now demolished.[4][1]

The 607 hectares (1,500 acres), later surveyed as 673 hectares (1,663 acres), of land to its north, Brownlow Hill, the former Government stock farm was a grant by purchase to Colonial Secretary Alexander Macleay in May 1827.[3] Macleay purchased Murdock's adjacent grant, known as Glenderual (or Glendaruel, Glendaurel) in November 1828 for A£3,000. The amalgamated Brownlow Hill and Glenderual estates were managed by Macleay's sons George (1805-1891) and James Robert (1811-1892) from 1828 and by George following James Macleay's departure for England in 1837.[3][1]

Once stocked, the property was left in the care of an overseer.[1]

In May 1828 Alexander's son, George Macleay, who had arrived in November 1827, was managing the farm at Brownlow Hill, where he had erected a cottage by early 1829. Farming duties were to be shared with his brother James.[4][1]

In February 1828 Fanny Macleay described Brownlow Hill, a description that is also relevant to Glenderual:[1]

' I will only say that I was quite delighted with the place, I thought it was very beautiful in its wild garb for wild it is at present. It is situated in the Cowpastures about 40 miles hence on one side watered by the Nepean and on two other sides its possesses Hunter's Creek [Mount Hunter Rivulet] and some other [sic] prettily named Creek (I forget what they called it) [Wattle Creek] ... the land is charmingly undulating, hill and dale, sloping in a graceful manner on all sides. The Soil particularly rich, they say ... covered it is with fine long grass... and sufficiently covered and ornamented with that beautiful species of the Eucalyptus genus, commonly known here by the name of the Apple Tree (probably Angophora floribunda). This is the only pretty Tree the country possesses its foliage is really green, its stem very pictoresque [sic], and it is only to be found in good fat ground.'

On 21 November 1829 Fanny Macleay reported on her brother George's departure on Sturt's expedition along the Murray and Darling Rivers (a blazed tree near the Round House commemorates the starting point for this expedition), adding:[1]

'Poor James is the farmer now at the Cowpastures and a more busy time he could not have had ...He is now engaged with sheep sheering ... then Hay making and harvest immediately follows ... But to what use is all of this but to chain my Father's pockets? since the wool fetches no price, and when we have any thing to sell we find its value has fallen 70 per cent since we purchased ...'

In November 1833 she wrote "farming affairs look very ill for there has been no rain for many a day" and on 12 December 1833:[1]

'George & James are both at Brownlow Hill busily engaged with their harvest, which promises to be better than was expected some little time ago. The men have lately given them a great deal of trouble; indeed generally over the country there reigns a bad spirit among the convicts, owing to the Govrs mistaken lenient measures.'

Within George Macleay's period of residency (1828-1859) until recent times Brownlow Hill was to be tenant farmed with the Glenderual river flats designated Farm no. 4.[3][1]

Sidman's account of the history of the area, written in the 1930s, claims that the first home was on the flat above Mt Hunter Creek and that a stone quarry was opened on the estate, although this is not corroborated by other authors. Despite a lack of detail, there are references to her brothers` improvements on the farm in letters sent by Fanny Macleay to William, another brother in Cuba, and when Baron von Hugel who visited the "charming house" in 1834 as it was nearing completion. Von Hugel considered the farm (Glendaurel), two miles away from the new house, as having no equal of any he had seen in NSW for its 'cleanliness and orderliness`, and differing considerably from others such as Regentville, possessed paddocks cleared of stumps. A large garden and a small pond with many platypus adjoined the farm which von Hugel commented 'would certainly be better located near the homestead, when this is completed".[1][5]

The Round House is popularly believed to have been one of the government herdsmen's' huts built by Macquarie in the 1810s. However, the Picturesque taste evident in its design (and also the design of Brownlow Hill and its landscape) suggests the hand of the Macleay family. Its octagonal form is unusual in Australia although similar designs (typically for gate lodges) were adapted for the gate lodge at the Cox property, Winbourne, Mulgoa (sketched by Hardy Wilson in 1916 for his Old Colonial Architecture in New South Wales and Tasmania (the lodge has since been demolished), the Betts property, the Round House, Vale Head, Molong (demolished) and an 1830s house associated with St Patrick's Church, Singleton. A comparable and contemporary house is Chief Justice Francis Forbes' Edinglassie, Emu Plains (c. 1826, demolished). James Broadbent, in "The Australian Colonial House" writes that 'Edinglassie was a simplified, antipodean version of the rustic cottage ornes popularised by Papworth in Ackermann's Repository of Arts, Literature, Fashions & c., or his own Rural Residences [1818]'.[1]

About 100 metres (330 ft) south of the Round House is a quarry in the Flaggy Creek bed, a tributary of the Mount Hunter Rivulet. The quarry was a source of Wiannamatta stone (advertised in the press of the 1820s - '30s as Cowpastures stone), a highly-figured mudstone used for paving (i.e. flagstones) at Brownlow Hill (the console table base, veranda and entrance hall flagging) and Elizabeth Bay House (the entrance hall and flagging, saloon stair and upper floor chimneypieces). The Camden Park portico columns are reputedly from this quarry. The quarry provides a rare instance of a surviving connection between early houses and the source of their materials and is an important archaeological site.[3][1]

Records held by the Botanic Gardens indicate that G. Macleay Esquire was sent a number of plants during this period. In June 1832 he was sent 12 olive Plants and 6 ornamental shrubs and in July 1834: 50 vine cuttings, 1 Evergreen Oak, 2 White Broom and 12 ornamental shrubs. As one of the Colony's prominent farmers, George Macleay received two sets of cuttings, 40 from Mr Busby's vines, one set being for Captain Dumaresq in June 1836.[1]

Conrad Martens drew Brownlow Hill homestead in 1836 showing that it was sited on a flattened hill which was not completely cleared of its native vegetation. Adjacent land to the west was added to the property through a grant to George Macleay. In 1836 George Macleay wrote to his sister requesting Loudon's Encyclopaedia of Gardening. Macleay's ornamental additions of a sundial bearing the inscription "George Macleay 1836" and a Maldon sandstone vase on a pedestal situated in the centre of flower beds cut in the lawn are clear indications of the sophistication with which the garden was planned and developed. Other additions such as the aviary in the flower garden appear to have been inspired by Thomas Shepherd's lectures and modelled on illustrations and ideas, especially Mrs Lawrence's garden Drayton Green, from Loudon's Gardener's Magazine, many illustrations and articles from which appeared in his 1838 publication" The Suburban Gardener and Villa Companion". Although not substantiated, it is likely that George Macleay had assistance in implementing ideas gleaned from his reading. The 1865 obituary in the Horticultural Magazine and Gardeners' and Amateurs' Calendar, for Robert Henderson, the gardener at Alexander Macleay's Elizabeth Bay at the time of von Hugel's Sydney visit, stated that he "had severally superintended the laying out of the gardens appertaining to the late residence of George Macleay, Esq ".[1]

More plants were sent from the Botanic Gardens to George Macleay in 1844 - the most unusual inclusion for the time was Eucalypts and Melaleuca - trees not usually planted by the colonists, especially in the country. By February L'Avergne was "very busy with grapes", preparing enough for 30 gallons of wine. Journal entries in March mention figs, a new white grape named 'Cornoshant" and walnuts growing in the garden. Both the von Hugel and Boswell accounts indicate clear connections between William Macarthur at Camden Park and the Macleays at Brownlow Hill. Sales of plants noted in William Macarthur's notebooks indicate that during the early 1850s a number of significant additions were made to the garden, some of which are a feature of the property today.[1]

Samuel Mossman and Thomas Banister visited Brownlow Hill at this time, approaching the estate from Vanderville, the property of John Wild(e), which encompassed the village now known as The Oaks. They passed over a range of hills, likely the area now known as Glenmore.[1]

On an 1848 visit George Macleay's niece (daughter of his sister Margaret) Annabella Boswell commented:[1][6]

"I am much interested in the botanical books in the library here, and wish I knew something of botany. It is however, a great pleasure for me to look at the drawings of flowers and fruit, the former more various than I had imagined to exist. We recognised in these books many of our own flowers, growing both at Capita and Port Macquarie (Lake Innes), but I must own that they are excelled in beauty and variety of colouring by the Cape (of Good Hope, i.e. South African) bulbs, many of which we have seen growing at the Lake (Innes)... On Monday 9th October, we had a most enchanting ride to the Nymph's Grotto, which is at the other side of the farm (otherwise Glendarnel). We left our horses at a cottage near the rocks and walked to them...I must confess (comparing the site with her favourite mountain creek at Glen Alice, Capita), we had no place equal to the Nymph's Grotto...To these rocks I hope we shall often go. It will take many visits to discover all their beauties. It is said that many years ago a gang of bushrangers used to retreat to these rocks, where they found safety and shelter..."

Sidman's account of Brownlow Hill states that in the 1850s 'the property was leased for pig raising - when much damage was done to the beautiful growth surrounding.[1]

When George and Barbara Macleay returned to England in 1859, the property was leased by Jeremiah Downes. Brownlow Hill was sold to Severin K Salting in 1862 and again leased to Downes who purchased the property from Salting in 1875. In the intervening period it was managed as a series of tenant farms, a practice also adopted by the Macarthur family on the part of their nearby Camden Park Estate known as Cawdor Farms. Martens sketched "the well-established garden at Brownlow Hill in 1871 and species depicted then are still clearly recognisable in the garden. The Martens sketch also shows, some 30 odd years after his initial rendition of the place, the relationship between the homestead with the river flats below and the juxtaposition of the gardened hill top with the lightly vegetated distant hills.[1]

The property, which was inherited by Jeremiah's son Frederick Downes in 1887, and also sketched by architect, writer and promoter of colonial heritage, William Hardy Wilson, is still owned by the Downes family and managed as a dairy.[1]

The Round House was known as Monk's Cottage by c.1900, having been home to one or two generations of tenant dairy farmers, who also gave their name to Monks Lane, which runs north from Burragorang Road, Mount Hunter.[1]

Hardy Wilson sketched the Round House and overshadowed by a large Angophora tree for the plate "Great Apple-Oak at Cobbitty" for his book, "The Cowpasture Road" (1920). In the text he noted that the angophora had recently fallen. Its stump was evident to c.1960.[3][1]

Glendon, another 19th century dwelling, is situated at the north of the property. When John Fairfax wrote his account of the early properties around Sydney, he remarked that Brownlow Hill was "as beautiful now as it was then" and that J.B. Martin (fl.1831 -1908) reminisced that Mr Macleay was the `best man in the district for mixed farming and dairying and Brownlow Hill was used as a 'receiving place for the wool and fat stock from the large Murrumbidgee stations.'[1]

Trevor Allen, James Broadbent and Howard Tanner mapped the garden c.1969 as part of their joint architectural thesis at the University of Sydney. This thesis was on colonial gardens.[1]

There are four dairies on the property. Aerial photography from 1947 and 1969 clearly indicates a pattern of farming on the property which is almost identical today - the western portion of the property used for grazing only and the alluvial flats for cropping. It is likely that the agricultural use of the land has remained relatively unchanged since the 19th century. One change from the 1960s has been the establishment of a quarry on the western extremity on the property, although this has had little impact on the working farm.[1][7]

The Round House was known as Monk's Cottage by c. 1900, having been home to one or two generations of tenant dairy farmers, who also gave their name to Monks Lane, north of Burragorang Road, Mount Hunter. Diana Wilson (nee Downes) was born on Brownlow Hill at Glendon, married and left the farm before returning to Monk's Cottage in 1960. When her familoy originally came there, the house was in ruinous condition, having been flooded on numerous occasions. The collapsed central chimney (the surviving roof battens indicate it was octagonal) and dividing wall was taken out to make its original two small rooms into a sitting room. A room was added to connect the Round House and a separate block of c.1900 and both buildings re-roofed, re-sashed and the verandah largely built by Diana's husband, Mackellar Wilson, using windows and doors made by Reg Vincent Windows, Parramatta. Limewash was stripped off the brick external walls.[8] Diana Wilson's husband Mackellar Wilson was the nephew of architect/artist, William Hardy Wilson.[3][1]

To the north was an orchard on a square plan (only a persimmon tree survives) bounded by funeral cypresses (Cupressus funebris), a species associated with Sir William Macarthur's nearby Camden Park nursery and the settings of Camden Park, St John's Church, Camden and Harrington Park. The garden surrounding the Round House contains old pepper trees (Schinus molle (estimated to date from the 1850s),[9] sky flower (Duranta plumieri), wisteria and honey locusts (Gleditsia triacanthos). Diana Wilson re-established the garden with Cumberland Plain staples such as white cedars (Melia azederach var.australasica), oleanders (Nerium oleander) propagated by Mackellar Wilson), pomegranate (Punica granatum), citrus, mulberry (Morus sp.), orchid tree (Bauhinia x variegata), Chinese elms (Ulmus parvifolia), crepe myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica), jacaranda and roses.[3] Diana and Mackellar planted a jacaranda (J.mimosifolia), given to Aunt Row as a fifth birthday present.[9][1]

Diana Wilson died in 2009. Her granddaughter Amy and her husband Wes moved into Monk's Cottage. Amy recalls her grandmother and husband installed an internal bathroom, verandah and concrete floor to the Round House, building a beautiful shed. Amy's father recalls bathing in the adjoining creek prior to the bathroom.[10][1]

John Downes (1916-2008) was born in Glendon, on the Brownlow Hill property, to Edgar & Isabel Downes. He was the fourth generation of Downes family to live on Brownlow Hill since Jeremiah Downes came to manage it in 1858. Schooled at the King's School in Parramatta, he loved horses and first competed in the under-eight riding event at the Camden Show. Eventually he joined the Cobbitty Polo Club and his ability led to him being on that winning team in Manila. He joined the 1st Australian Tank Battalion in World War 1 and met his future wife, Joan Whitton, at a dance for officers in Melbourne (they married in 1952). Sent to New Guinea he served under Samuel Hordern, whose outstanding leadership, both in wartime and in peace, had a profound effect.[11][1]

From that time, Downes devoted much of his life to community service. A member of the Camden Show Society since 1938, he worked for the Society for 48 years, following the family's interest in cattle and horses. Downes joined the council of the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW in 1952 and became vice-president in 1969. He worked on eight committees and introduced the animal nursery to the Royal Easter Show. He was a member of Wollondilly Shire Council from 1959–71, including terms as deputy president. Passionate about the need to record and study long-term rainfall patterns, he continued the family tradition of collecting rainfall measurements for the Bureau of Meteorology. The family has not missed filling out a monthly report since May 1882. John is survived by Joan, daughter Eleanor, son Edgar and six grandchildren.[11][1]

Diana Wilson of the Round House/Monk's Cottage, died in 2009 and her granddaughter and family are undertaking minor works to modify the cottage for them to live in (pers.comm., Edgar Downes, 1/2010). A kitchen was installed (Diana still used an old wood stove, a sink and a dresser). Some electrical work, a new water tank, a new slow-combustion wood fire, repairs to the chook run and painting inside the house were undertaken. A family wedding was a major motivation for improving the house and property. Amy's sister asked to be married on the property, so these works were done, the timber verandah was improved, the very old shed in the garden was re-stumped to make it stand up straight again. A wedding marquee was placed in what was a dirt pony paddock, fences being removed and the paddock turfed. The driveway was also improved, along with much gardening work.[9][1]

A recent book on Caroline Thomas notes her daughter married into the Downes family and moved from Wivenhoe, Cobbitty to Brownlow Hill.[12][1]

As at 6 August 2001, the site has high archaeological potential. Much of the colonial landscape and garden is still evident. Sub-surface remnants of previous agricultural structures and/or associated artefacts may still be within the boundaries of the original allotments.[1]

Flaggy Creek Quarry site

About 100 metres south of the Round House is a quarry in the Flaggy Creek bed, a tributary of the Mount Hunter Rivulet. The quarry was a source of Wiannamatta stone (advertised in the press of the 1820s - '30s as Cowpastures stone), a highly-figured mudstone used for paving (i.e. flagstones) at Brownlow Hill (the console table base, veranda and entrance hall flagging) and Elizabeth Bay House (the entrance hall and flagging, saloon stair and upper floor chimneypieces). The Camden Park portico columns are reputedly from this quarry. The quarry provides a rare instance of a surviving connection between early houses and the source of their materials and is an important archaeological site.[3][1]

Brownlow Hill has remained relatively unchanged since the 19th century, considering the constant pattern of farming, the scenic landscape setting and most of the Brownlow Hill estate and contents has remained largely intact.[1]

House Modification

The house at Brownlow Hill was originally built as two small separate wings of brick at right angles to one another, with a separate kitchen at the rear making up the third side of the Courtyard. By 1834 alterations were made transforming the house which was "now pronounced the best in the Colony." The two small wings were joined, forming an L shaped building. The original roof endings are still to be seen beneath the present roof. Within the angles another section was then added to the east wing, On the right of the north elevation is a wing which was added by Jeremiah Downes, who bought the property In 1875. At that time the front door was replaced and a small portico built before it. A cellar is approached from the rear. In the 1890s a portico-ed entry way to the front door, and new Victorian front door, was added, along with a new wing to the west of the original house. John & Joan Downes made significant modifications in c.1961, installing two internal bathrooms in the eastern wing, a corridor connecting the entry hall with the eastern wing rooms leading to a relocated entry door, moved to be centrally placed on the eastern wing. An internal kitchen was also provided within the central wing of the house, including the removal of an internal wall between a former bedroom and scullery.[1]

A suite of works was undertaken to the main homestead in 2016-17.[1]

Round House/Monk's House

• 1960+ modifications (see history)
• 2009+ modifications (see history).[1]

Landscape Modifications

• In the 1850s the property was leased for pig raising when much damage was done to the surrounding growth. In 1859, the property was leased by Jeremiah Downes. Brownlow Hill was sold to Severin K Salting and in 1862 was again leased to Downes who purchased the property from Salting in 1875. In the intervening period it was managed as a series of tenant farms[1]
• In the 1960s, a quarry was established on the western extremity on the property with minimal impact on the working farm.[1]

The general layout is well maintained but individual items and some overgrown areas need attention. The aviary is in urgent need of restoration. The outer garden, lane/ Loop Road and hedgerows are in need of some weed management, to retain significant views and vistas, and control spread, particularly of African olives and privet. The olives in particular are invasive as scrub elsewhere on the farm, although this is under management. The pond/dam wall is in need of repair and some reconstruction, to prevent further cracking and slumping.[1]

• Black Mountain Projects; Kabaila, Peter (2008). Conservation Management Strategy - Brownlow Hill Station, Camden.
• Boswell, Annabella (1992). Annabella Boswell's Other Journal 1848 - 185., Further Recollections of My Early Days in Australia.
• Boswell, Annabella (1992). Further Recollections of my early days in Australia - Annabella Boswell's Other Diary 1848-1851.
• Cairncross, Lynne, in 'The Sydney Morning Herald' (2008). Pillar of polo and the community (0bituary for John Downes, 1916-2008).{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• Carlin, Scott (2008). The Round House, Brownlow Hill.
• Clarke, Dymphna (1994). Baron Charles von Hugel, New Holland Journal November 1833 - October 1834.
• Downes, Edgar (2013). Heritage Impact Statement (Homestead alterations & additions).
• Everett, David, ed. (2017). "'Brownlow Hill - Monk's Cottage'".
• J.R.C. Planning Services (1993). Wollondilly Heritage Study.
• Kayandal Archaeological Services (2008). Aboriginal Heritage Assessment for proposed landuse change at 185 Monks Lane, Mount Hunter.
• Kingston, Daphne (1990). Early Colonial Homes of the Sydney Region 1788-1838.
• Lucas, C. L.; National Trust of Australia (NSW) (1995). Brownlow Hill and Curtilage / Classification Sheet.
• Morris, C.; Britton, G.; NSW National Trust; Heritage Council of NSW) (2000). Colonial Landscapes of the Cumberland Plain and Camden, NSW.
• Morris, C.; Britton, G.; NSW National Trust; Heritage Council of NSW) (2000). Colonial Landscapes of the Cumberland Plain and Camden, NSW.
• Morris, C.; Britton, G.; NSW National Trust; Heritage Council of NSW) (2000). Colonial Landscapes of the Cumberland Plain and Camden, NSW.
• National Trust of Australia (NSW) (1981). Survey of Gardens in New South Wales.
• Philp, Anne (2015). 'Caroline's diary: a woman's world in colonial Australia'.
• Sidman. G. V. (1995). The Town of Camden.

This Wikipedia article was originally based on Brownlow Hill Estate, entry number 01489 in the New South Wales State Heritage Register published by the State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) 2018 under CC-BY 4.0 licence, accessed on 2 June 2018.