St Alban's Church of England, Muswellbrook

 

Muswellbrook
Interesting historic town in the Hunter Valley
Muswellbrook is a substantial and very attractive country town of historic buildings and tree-lined streets situated beside the Hunter River, 257 km north of Sydney, 26 km south of Scone and 144 metres above sea-level. It is an expanding centre due to the employment opportunities provided by the eight coalmines in the district, the presence of the Liddell and Bayswater Power Stations and a flourishing wine grape industry. Thus the population of the shire increased from less than 8000 in 1976 to around 16 000 by 1997 with 26 per cent of the workforce employed in the mining, electricity, gas and water sectors in 1991. Muswellbrook also continues to fulfill its role as a service centre to the dairying and agricultural activities of the countryside which still supports a large number of horse studs.

The area was once occupied by the Wanaruah Aboriginal people and possibly the Kamilaroi. Certainly the two tribes had trade and ceremonial links. The Wanaruah favoured goannas as a food source, covering larger animals in hot ashes and stuffing them with grass. They also adopted burning off practices as the new shoots which emerged after fire attracted kangaroos which they surrounded and killed with clubs and spears (du-rane) barbed with sharp stones. They also used stone axes (mogo) made of hard volcanic rock bound to a wooden handle.

The Kamilaroi tribe was subdivided into clans and classes which determined marital possibilities (girls being often betrothed in infancy and married by about 14). They wore opossum clothing and, for ceremonial or ornamental purposes, smeared themselves with red ochre and pipe clay, scarred their bodies and wore decorative headwear. Once one of the largest linguistic communities in Australia their last known formal communal ceremony was held in 1905.

European settlement followed in the wake of John Howe's expedition to the Singleton district in 1820 and Henry Dangar's pursuit of the Hunter further north in 1824. That year Dangar reserved a village site at the junction of the Hunter and the creek at the southern end of the present townsite which he named Muscle Brook due to the large numbers of mussel shells he found on its banks (at the time 'muscle' was an accepted alternative spelling of mussel).

The first Chief Justice of NSW, Francis Forbes, an important figure in early colonial judicial history, was granted the land which now constitutes South Muswellbrook in 1825. He named his estate 'Skellater' after the family's ancestral estate in Aberdeen in Scotland.

A township was laid out and gazetted in 1833 as Musclebrook with the first allotments sold the following year (the very first block is now occupied by the Royal Hotel). The first post office was established in 1837 and that year, when Edward Denny Day was made first police magistrate of the district, a mounted police force, police barracks and courthouse were established.

For nearly sixty years the town's name was spelled in every way imaginable. Musclebrook, Muscle Brook, Muswellbrook, Muswell Brook, Muscletown and Musswellbrook were all employed. Day appears to have been the first to change the spelling of the town from Muscle Brook to Muswell Brook. It was only at the end of the 1880s that 'Muswellbrook' was consistently employed although it was not officially gazetted as such until 1949.

By 1840 the population was 215. There were 41 houses as well as some inns and shops. A flour mill was built around 1841, reflecting the fact that wheat, along with wool, was the centrepiece of the local economy.

In 1842 the sons of Francis Forbes established the private village of Forbestown south of Muscle Creek but due to confusion with the town of Forbes it was changed to South Muswellbrook in 1848.

When the railway arrived in 1869 it boosted the local economy as the settlement became the northern railhead and the population climbed to about 1500. However, when this advantage passed on to Scone the town shrunk again.

 

Bayswater Power Station between Singleton and Muswellbrook

 

When Muswellbrook was declared a municipality in 1870 the population was 1445. Coalmining began in the 1890s although truly large-scale coal mining didn't get under way until more recently. There are now eight mines operating in the area (seven of them open-cut) with another six proposed.

After the First World War the larger properties were broken up into smaller farms with dairying supplanting wool and wheat.

Writer Donald Horne, author of The Lucky Country, was raised in Muswellbrook and wrote of his experiences in The Education of Young Donald (1967).

The town's Agricultural Show is held in April and the Spring Wine Festival in October. The Muswellbrook Cup is held on Melbourne Cup Day.

Things to see:  

Tourist Information
The town's newly opened Tourist Information Centre is located at 87 Hill St. To get there drive north along Bridge St (the highway) and turn left into Hill St. A heritage walk brochure is available along with general information about the area. Enquiries about visits to the many local horse studs should be directed here.

 

HERITAGE WALK
Loxton House
The tourist information centre is located behind Loxton House which was built in the mid-1840s as a shop for Thomas Kerr. Later it became a residential site. During this period a Mr Hutchinson hanged himself in the cellars. The building is now used for offices and shops with a restaurant at the rear where there are modern additions.

 

Bridge St - North
Head north along Bridge St. The two-storey stone and brick building at the St Vincent's centre was erected in the 1850s for an ex-convict employee of the St Heliers Estate named John Maddy. Carl Brecht, a German settler who planted the first vineyard of the Upper Hunter in 1864 on his Rosemount Estate (see entry on Denman), established stone wine cellars to the rear of the building in 1882, setting himself up as a spirit and wine merchant. Subsequently a cordial factory and bakery, the building has undergone many changes.

Just past it is Eatons Hotel, a lovely old two-storey building with roundheaded French windows and an enormous verandah featuring fluted cast-iron columns and decorative lacework supported at ground level by squared timber posts. The White Hart Hotel, licensed by Ann Ward, was built on this spot in 1839. It was replaced by the present building in 1873. A tribute to its antiquity is the opening beside the main entrance which was designed to allow access to the stables at the rear. Additions were made in 1866 and 1929. Forbes Flats is a nice old sandstock rubble building on the Wilkins St corner, also dating from the 1850s.

Further north by the corner of Bridge and Wilkins Sts is 'The Old Tea House', a cafe and craft shop. This building was erected as a residence by local stonemason J.H. Wilkins in the 1870s. It was later named 'Kildonan' after the vessel which returned the Wilkins brothers from World War I. Additions were made in the 1910s and in 1940.

 

Hill St (Presbyterian Complex)
Return southwards along Bridge Cross turning left into Hill St. To the left is St John's Presbyterian Church, designed by W.L. Pender and erected 1913-15, with an arched lancet doorway , a fine cedar door, an impressive spire and a beautiful interior, especially the roof, organ and pulpit. The headstones of early Presbyterian settlers John and Janet Ferguson, who died in 1843 and 1851 respectively, are built into a nook on the western side of the church.

The next building on the left is an earlier St John's, erected in 1843. The Reverend John Dunmore Lang, a significant figure in colonial church history, preached here in 1850. It is now a Sunday School Hall.

Further up the hill, at the corner with Sowerby St, is the former Presbyterian manse, designed by John Pender and built of brick and iron with gables in 1876-77. The verandah has French doors and some attractive decoration around the columns. It is now a private residence.

On the other side of Sowerby St, with a sandstone rubble fence, is the former hospital, a very fine building erected in 1864 with 1880s additions attributed to J. Horbury Hunt.

 

 

St James Catholic Church, Muswellbrook

 

Catholic Precinct
Turn south down Sowerby St and take the first right into Brook St where you will find the Catholic precinct. The first Catholic church was erected on this site in 1861. The present St James, with its attractive belltower, dates from 1911. Parts of the school date back to the 1880s and the presbytery to 1896.

 

Bridge St - South
Continue down Brook St to the intersection with Bridge St. The south-eastern corner is known as Campbell's Corner. This was the base of James Campbell's operations in the Hunter Valley where he owned a chain of stores. Now Franklin's and Matthew's Jewellers the first section of this building was opened in 1870 with later additions. The clock tower was added in 1911.

Turn left heading south along Bridge St. To the left are the post office (1885) which stands in front of the old telegraph office (1861). Next door is the old School of Arts (1871, extended 1913). It is now the town hall building. On the first floor is the Muswellbrook Regional Gallery which features a large mural by a local artist, open Tuesdays to Fridays from 10.00 a.m. - 5.00 p.m. or by appointment, tel: (02) 6543 3984.

Over the road, occupying the first town allotment ever sold (in 1834) is the Royal Hotel (1893). There have been licensed premises on the site since 1835.

 

William Street
Turn left into William St past the piazza. To the left is the single-storey brick police station (c.1868) with stone sills and a well-preserved interior.

 

Market Street
Return back along William St taking the left into Market St before reaching Bridge St. The park to the right is Simpson Park, established in 1874 and featuring trees supplied by the Royal Botanical Gardens of Sydney in 1876.

Further down Market St is the small brick railway station, regarded as typical of its day. Built in 1869 it was opened by the Earl of Belmore. The arrival of the train line was a boon to the local economy as Muswellbrook became, for a time, the northern railhead. A coach service connected the station with a coach service which headed through Denman, Merriwa and Cassilis.

Opposite is the Railway Hotel (c.1882) which became a cordial factory later in the 19th century.

 

 

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Muswellbrook