Wilberforce, New South Wales
| Wilberforce New South Wales |
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| Population: | 3,004 (2006 Census) | ||||||||||||
| Postcode: | 2756 | ||||||||||||
| Location: | 62 km (39 mi) from Sydney CBD | ||||||||||||
| LGA: | City of Hawkesbury | ||||||||||||
| Federal Division: | Macquarie | ||||||||||||
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Wilberforce is a small town in New South Wales, Australia, in the local government area of the City of Hawkesbury. It is just beyond the outer suburbs of north-west Sydney and lies on the western bank of the Hawkesbury River.
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[edit] History
Wilberforce is one of the original settlements established as a township by Lachlan Macquarie, colonial governor of New South Wales 1810-21, and accordingly is locally known as a "Macquarie Town"[1], a title given to townships established by Governor Macquarie on 6th December 1810 [2]in and around the Sydney metropolitan area. It was named after William Wilberforce (1759–1833) who was a British politician, philanthropist and a leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade.
Wilberforce currently boasts Rose Cottage; the oldest timber slab cottage in Australia standing on its original site[3].
The historic St John's Anglican Church was designed by Edmund Thomas Blacket[4] and built by J. Atkinson of Windsor. Construction was started in 1856 and the building was not completed until 1859 at a cost of £1500. The grounds of the church and contains the Old School House building (Built 1819), which was used as a school, a church, and a residence of the school master until the church was completed. The school house was replaced in 1880 by a Public School[5]. The original church building is still used for the church's 8am service with the modern education centre used for later services.
[edit] Notable residents
Wilberforce is the birthplace of bushranger Captain Thunderbolt.
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/macquarie/governor/towns.html
- ^ http://www.hawkesburyhistory.org.au/articles/macquarie_town.html
- ^ http://www.rosefamilysociety.org.au/cottage.asp
- ^ http://www.wilberforce.anglican.asn.au/html/st_johns.html
- ^ Baker, Helen. Historic Buildings. Windsor and Richmond (1st ed.). The State Planning Authority of New South Wales.
[edit] External links
- Wilberforce, New South Wales is at coordinates 33°33′34″S 150°50′26″E / 33.55944°S 150.84055°ECoordinates: 33°33′34″S 150°50′26″E / 33.55944°S 150.84055°E
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