Friday, 30 November 2012

Bradbury Park House

In 1816, Governor Macquarie gave a grant of 140 acres to Joseph Phelps who sold it to William Bradbury the following year. Bradbury Park House was built on this land in 1822. That year Macquarie and his party were touring Airds and the Illawarra and they had breakfast at Bradbury's. Macquarie noted that Bradbury was then building a good two-storey brick inn on a "very pretty eminence immediately adjoining Campbelltown". He also wrote that he named it Bradbury Park. It would have been one of the first substantial private buildings in the town vicinity.

Bradbury Park House had a quadrangle of kitchen, servants' quarters, wooden stables, granary and barn behind. Elaborate flower and kitchen gardens lay to the south of the house. These gardens are featured prominently on an 1844 map of Bradbury Park Estate below.



When Bradbury died in 1836, his estate was inherited by his daughter, Mary Shiel. Bradbury Park Estate was subdivided in 1844.

The house was located about 140 metres opposite where the town hall is located in Queen Street. Today's Asher Place off Bradbury Avenue is the location of the house. The two storey house still standing at the corner of  Moore-Oxley Bypass and Lithgow Street is said to look very similar to what Bradbury Park House looked.

Unfortunately, Bradbury Park House was demolished in 1954. Interestingly, two nails from the building are held at the Powerhouse Museum at Ultimo.


                           Bradbury Park House around 1918. (Claude Haydon Collection)

Source:

Demolished Heritage Buildings of Campbelltown, 2005

Camden News 18 December 1941


Written by Andrew Allen
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10 comments:

  1. Aaron Bowden20 January 2014 at 19:40

    William Bradbury is my 6th Great Grandfather

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  2. Andrew Allen23 January 2014 at 09:48

    Thanks for your feedback Aaron. William Bradbury certainly had an interesting life. What a pity his grand two-storey homestead was demolished in the name of progress.:-(

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  3. Gloria14 August 2014 at 20:25

    Also a descendant.

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  4. Meagen Rush29 August 2020 at 10:46

    William Bradbury is also my 6th great-grandfather and his daughter mary is my 5th great-grandmother

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  5. Andrew Allen8 September 2020 at 08:46

    Nice to hear from you Meagan. The descendants of William are spread far and wide.

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  6. D Baker18 September 2020 at 17:22

    I wonder if this is the place where Thomas Chippindall died in 1879

    CHIPPENDALE.-November 27. at his late residence, Bradbery Park, Campbelltown, Thomas Chippendale, aged 66 years.Australian Town and Country Journal (Sydney, NSW : 1870 - 1907), Saturday 6 December 1879, page 41

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  7. Unknown12 November 2020 at 17:12

    William is my 4th Great Grandfather, I actually come down from his son-in-law Denis William Sheil. Came across your blog as I have a copy of a letter discussing his connection to the family . It mentions he built a two storey inn in 1822. I can only assume this is the same building. Family story (according to the letter) states Gov Macquarie stayed at the Inn and named it Bradbury Park. Also that it was pulled down in 1958 to make way for an "outbreak of fibro cottages"

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    Replies
    1. Andrew Allen17 December 2020 at 12:57

      We would love to see a copy of that letter! There is some curiosity about where Macquarie breakfasted with Bradbury, as according to Macquarie's diary "Mr. Bradbury is now building a very good two story Brick-House on his own Farm".
      regards, Claire

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  8. Unknown8 February 2022 at 18:32

    An interesting aside. In 1905 a great granddaughter of William Bradbury, Frances Catherine Sheil married James Robert Quilty.In 1908 James Quilty bought Bradbury Park.Frances still owned Bradbury Park until her death in 1950.

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