|
| The wharf at Port
Macquarie |
Port Macquarie
Large and attractive holiday destination on the Mid North
Coast.
Port Macquarie must be one of the best tourist destinations
on the NSW coast. It has everything: a history which dates
back to convict times, superb nature reserves in the area,
some interesting historical buildings, lovely beaches with
good surfing and excellent fishing opportunities, a fine
museum, beautiful walking tracks around the headlands and
beaches, lots of amusements for the kids; even a koala
hospital. And, of course, it has every kind of accommodation
imaginable.
Port Macquarie is located 407 km north-east of Sydney and
17 metres above sea-level at the mouth of the Hastings
River. With over 65 000 residents it is a rapidly expanding
centre which serves as a regional capital to other resorts
of the south such as Camden Haven. Tourism is obviously
central to the local economy, although fishing, oyster
farming, manufacturing and mineral processing are also
important.
In historic terms, Port Macquarie is the most significant
town between
Newcastle and the Queensland border. Prior to European
settlement, the area is thought to have been occupied by the
Kattang Aborigines. Captain Cook sailed past this section of
the coast in 1770, as did Matthew Flinders in 1802. However,
the first to investigate the Hastings River Valley was John
Oxley who followed the river during an overland trek from
the Tamworth district in 1818. He named the river after the
governor-general of India and, when he arrived at its
estuary, he named the site Port Macquarie after the governor
of NSW, Lachlan Macquarie, who initiated the expedition.
Oxley noted that 'the port abounds with fish, the sharks
were larger and more numerous than I have ever before
observed. The forest hills and rising grounds abounded with
large kangaroos and the marshes afford shelter and support
to innumerable wild fowl. Independent of the Hastings River,
the area is generally well watered, there is a fine spring
at the very entrance to the Port'.
Macquarie sent Oxley back to survey the port and
surrounding countryside more closely in 1819, with a view to
establishing a penal settlement. At this time, pastoralists
were moving into the Hunter Valley so the government was
looking to close the penal settlement at
Newcastle and move it to another spot beyond the
expanding settlement. It was intended for the incarceration
of England's worst offenders and for transportees who had
compounded their original convictions with further crimes in
NSW.
Oxley reported favourably on the port's capacity to
receive coastal vessels, on the suitability of the area for
the penal settlement and on the richness of its soil and
natural resources. He was sent again in 1820 to choose a
townsite and he selected the area upon which the CBD is now
located.
Three ships set sail with 44 military personnel and 60
convicts who were chosen for their skills and good behaviour
and encouraged with the possibility of conditional pardons
or tickets-of-leave after 18 months. Thus was a penal
settlement established in 1821 under Captain Francis Allman
who landed on what is now the town green and hoisted the
British flag on the rise now known as Allman Hill (at the
top of Clarence St). It was indicative of future problems
with the shallow river bar that all three ships were wrecked
in entering the harbour.
The convicts were set to work clearing what is now the
CBD of thick bush (mostly tea-tree and banksia) and
substantial trees. They established a stockade for defence
against prospective Aboriginal attacks, within which they
erected quarters for officers and convicts, a cottage for
the Commandant and gardens for the cultivation of produce.
One of the first buildings - the garrison hospital - still
stands. Port Macquarie was then the most northerly
settlement in the colony.
Governor Macquarie visited the settlement in November
1821 and approved the site. He noted the abundance of
timber, the 'verdant hills' to the 'rear of the town which
afford excellent rich pasturage for cattle' and recorded
that the indigenous inhabitants had 'lately manifested a
very hostile spirit...by frequently throwing spears at the
men employed in procuring rosewood and cedar, a very useful
man was killed'.
Macquarie's idea was that the settlement would prove
self-sustaining and, by 1824, convicts were employed in
building, agriculture (mostly wheat, tobacco, cotton,
vegetables and maize), boatbuilding, blacksmithing,
teaching, baking and clerical duties etc. Poultry, pigs,
cows and horses were also slowly amassed. St Thomas'
Anglican Church was built between 1824 and 1828 and a Female
Factory, where the women made nails and other items, was
erected in 1825. As timber was being rapidly decimated in
the Newcastle area, the cedar and other timber near Port
Macquarie was of particular interest to administrators. In
1821 Captain Allman also instructed a black prisoner from
Antigua in the West Indies to commence the cultivation of
the first sugarcane in Australia. The first sugar mill was
established in 1824. However, the port was a little too
southerly and the industry was abandoned in the 1860s.
As settlement continued to radiate outwards from Sydney,
a decision was made to begin dismantling the penal
settlement in 1830 and open it to free settlers. The more
hardened criminals were removed to Moreton Bay and Norfolk
Island. However, the phase-out was gradual and the last
prisoners were nor removed until 1847. The remaining
convicts were either 'cripples, invalids and lunatics'
ending their days, or labourers and tradesmen who completed
their sentences by working for the settlers or the
government. In the 1830s and 1840s they built roads, a
substantial gaol, a dam and a bridge over Kooloonbung Creek.
One 1840s convict, James Tucker, is alleged to have
written three literary works while at Port Macquarie, the
most notable being Ralph Rashleigh. Novelist James Hardy
Vaux wrote of his life on the road gangs of the late 1830s
in The Life and Experiences of an Ex-Convict in Port
Macquarie.
The arrival of free settlers initiated a period of rapid
growth as they took up land, established properties and
businesses (including the first public house in 1830) and
built their homes. Cattle and timber were a major focus,
horses were bred for the supply of the Indian army and
viniculture was established in the latter half of the 1830s.
Dairy farms also emerged at a later date. The provision of
cheap unfree labour was central to the success of these
endeavours.
A road was built from New England in 1840 and the port
thus became an important outlet for the wool and other
produce of the tablelands. The first Presbyterian Church was
built in 1842, the first Methodist Church in 1846 and the
Church of England school became a state school in 1848.
Surveyor Clement Hodgkinson passed through the area in
1840 and left some impressions of 'the town, built on a
gentle rise, which shows to advantage its pretty little
cottages with pointed roofs, its broad straight
streets...and its tall square church tower...A grove of
magnificent trees encircles Port Macquarie'.
However, like most of the colony, Port Macquarie was hit
hard by the depression of the 1840s. Activity at the port
declined and free settlers suffered from the combined effect
of the economic downturn and the loss of cheap labour with
the final closure of the penal settlement in 1847.
Consequently the town declined in importance. Indicatively,
the town's first bank opened in 1840 but closed in 1844.
Many families left the area in the ensuing years with the
golds finds of the 1850s offering more exciting
possibilities.
Agriculture began to supplement pastoralism with the
arrival of the first free selectors in the 1860s and the
river and harbour traffic began to pick up in the 1870s,
although the shallow bar prevented Port Macquarie from ever
emerging as a crucial port. Moreover, the railway began to
wind its way through the Hunter Valley and up into the
tablelands from the 1860s to the 1880s, offering a more
reliable transportation alternative to farmers and
pastoralists of the west. Nonetheless timbergetting remained
a major activity in the Hastings Valley and a number of
sawmills opened in the area which meant that the harbour at
Port Macquarie saw some action. Signs of a slight quickening
are apparent in the construction of a Catholic Church
(1878), the first bank in 35 years (1880), the first
newspaper (1882) and the establishment of local government
(1887).
In 1886 The Picturesque Atlas of Australasia described
Port Macquarie as 'simply the business centre of the
agricultural district and the pastoral background....maize,
barley, oats, potatoes; the cultivation of the vine is also
an important industry'.
In the late 1890s, Louis Becke wrote of Port Macquarie
that it was an 'old-time town...a quaint, sleepy little
place of six hundred inhabitants, who spend their days in
fishing and waiting for better times. There are two or three
fairly good hotels, very pretty scenery along the coast and
up the river, and a stranger can pass a month without
suffering from ennui - that is, of course, if he is fond of
fishing and shooting; if he is not, he should avoid going
there, for it is the dullest coast town in New South Wales'.
The construction of the North Coast Railway in the 1910s
spelt the virtual end of the harbour and, by the 1960s, Port
Macquarie was essentially a quiet fishing town. Development
since that time has been rapid due to the improvement of
roads and cars, population pressures, and the prosperity of
the postwar boom which fuelled marginal incomes for both
holiday purposes and retirement. Thus the population of Port
Macquarie more than doubled between 1966 and 1981, at which
time it was the state's second-fastest growing centre.
Things to see:
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Tourist Information
The Port Macquarie Visitors' Centre is located at the corner
of Clarence St and Hay St, tel: (02) 6581 8000.
You can contact them for details relating to scuba
diving, yachting, boat hire, fishing charters, local fishing
locations, sailboarding, windsurfing, houseboats, jet-skis,
canoe safaris, scenic and charter aeroplane flights, river
cruises, parasailing and skydiving, 4WD and motorcycle
tours, hang-gliding, horseriding, golf and eco-tours.
Marina
Port Marina, off Park St, has a boat ramp (one of many in
town), a restaurant, a fishing wharf, bicycle hire and a
boat-hire service, as well as the usual berths, moorings,
slipway, bait, tackle and fuel.
Beaches
The beaches in the area are quite superb. To the north of
town and across the Hastings River is 16-km North Beach. Off
Stewarts St, in the CBD, is Town Beach, situated at the
mouth of the Hastings River. The southern part of the beach
is sheltered by the rocks beneath Flagstaff Hill and so it
offers safe swimming. The northern end is good for surfing.
Seven other beaches extend southwards from Town Beach.
The first five can be accessed from Pacific Drive which
follows the coastline southwards. The first, on the other
side of Flagstaff Hill, is Oxley's Beach with a grassy verge
ideal for picnics. To its south is a headland known as
Windmill Hill which features a lookout and gardens. It was
named for a windmill erected in the mid-19th century to
grind wheat and corn for government contracts. On the other
side is Rocky Beach which, as its name suggests, is not a
great spot for a swim. At its southern end is Flynn's Point,
beyond which lies Flynn's Beach - the area's prime surfing
and generally most popular beach with a surf lifesaving club
and a grassy area with barbecue facilities.
Another small headland separates Flynn's from Nobby's
Beach and south of Nobby's Hill is Shelly Beach. There is a
protected swimming area and boat ramp at the foot of Shelly
Beach Rd. You can, if you wish, climb up to Harry's Lookout.
Another headland separates Shelly Beach from Miners Beach to
the south.
|
| Looking from Tacking
Point across to some of the new housing at Port
Macquarie |
Tacking Point Lighthouse
As Pacific Drive veers westwards, Lighthouse Rd heads off to
the left, running parallel with the coast and out to Tacking
Point Lighthouse. Walking trails to Miners Beach depart from
Lighthouse Rd.
Tacking Point was named by Matthew Flinders in July 1802.
He was presumably tacking up the coastline at the time. The
lighthouse is the third-oldest in the country. It was built
in 1879 to warn ships of the rocks near the shore and was
converted to automatic operation in 1919. Apart from the
interest of the lighthouse itself, Tacking Point, with its
elevation above the surrounding coastline, offers superb
views to both the north and the south.
Lighthouse Beach Camels
South of Tacking Point is Lighthouse Beach. The main access
road is Matthew Flinders Drive which branches off Lighthouse
Rd. You can go for a camel ride on the beach one kilometre
south of the surf club, tel: (02) 6583 7650.
Walks
There are seven scenic walks outlined on a map available
from the visitors' centre. They explore the waterfront from
the marina area south to Lighthouse Beach, taking in the
breakwall, some fine lookouts, spectacular scenery,
beautiful beaches, rainforest areas and Tacking Point
Lighthouse.
Gaol Point Lookout
Just off Stewart St (near the Lord St corner) is Gaol Point
Lookout from whence there are pleasant views over the river
mouth, the harbour and Town Beach. It is located on the
northern edge of the site whereupon a brick gaol was built
by convict labour between 1837 and 1840. Three men and a
woman were hung there in 1844 and an Aboriginal man was hung
outside the gaol walls in 1848. It was demolished in 1920.
The Lions Club have created a very interesting historic
map for the site which conveys what the settlement looked
like in the early nineteenth century.
Opposite, at the corner of Stewart and Lord Sts, is the
Historic Well Motel which contains one of the two wells
built to service the gaol. It is located near the motel's
laundry.
Port Macquarie Observatory
The Observatory is located a little further along Lord St,
on the other side of the road. There is a planetarium and
telescope. It is open on Wednesday and Sunday evenings from
7.30 p.m. to 9.30 p.m. When daylight savings are in
operation, the hours are 8.15 p.m. to 10.00 p.m.
|
| Historic graves on the
headland |
The Historic Graves and Allman Hill
Walk westwards along Stewart St then turn right into
Clarence St. In the sward, adjacent the road, are a few
headstones which mark the site of the settlement's first
cemetery (1821-24). One tells of a young soldier killed by a
convict during an escape attempt and another of a child who
died within three weeks of birth. Dr Fattorini's tombstone
features a crown which attests to the doctor's belief that
he was a relation of Napoleon.
This site is named Allman Hill after Francis Allman, the
commandant of the original penal settlement, who hoisted the
British flag on this site after stepping ashore in 1821.
Port Macquarie Museum and Courthouse
Head down Clarence St. Between Murray St and Hay St is the
Port Macquarie Museum which is housed in a convict-built
store erected c.1836 (there were extensions in the 1880s and
in 1968 when it became a museum). It contains numerous
historical documents and artefacts. In the courtyard are
recreations of 19th-century shopfronts. Other features are a
Victorian parlour, colonial farm equipment and sugar mill
crushing machinery from the mid-19th-century. It is open
Monday to Saturday from 9.30 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. and Sundays
from 1.00 p.m. to 4.30 p.m., tel: (02) 6583 1108.
Across the road is the simple but dignified courthouse
(1869), designed by James Barnet and flanked by Norfolk
pines.
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| St Thomas Church
|
St Thomas's Anglican Church
Turn left into Hay St and proceed south for one block to the
William St intersection where you will see St Thomas's
Anglican Church. Australia's third-oldest remaining church,
it is a Georgian structure built by convict labour between
1824 and 1828. The walls are of hand-made brick, one metre
thick, and glued with mortar produced by burning oyster
shells from Limeburners Creek. The square nails and spikes
were forged by female convicts.
Highlights are the 1857 barrel organ which plays 33 hymns
(it is the only one of its type in Australia), a crenellated
bell-tower from whence there are fine views and the
draught-proof, box-type cedar pews (originally reserved for
the military). Free settlers were allowed to hire pews at
the rate of five pounds per annum (the average wage being
three pounds per annum).
In her memoirs, Eliza Walters left some interesting
observations of the Sunday church ritual which provide some
insight into the initial penal colony: 'The interior of the
building was then plastered and lime-washed as white as
snow. There was no flooring and no gallery...a reading desk,
but no pulpit...and there were more prisoners than free
people present.
'How well I can remember the grand old bass-toned bell,
ringing out on a Sunday morning....As we walked up the
green, grassy hill, we were joined by the Officers, their
wives and families and other free people...
'At each door stood a guard of two red-coats. As soon as
the bell rang at 10 a.m., the guards, with fixed bayonets,
assumed command of the Church and marching into the building
took up a position in the South-east corner. Opposite, in
the North-east corner, stood the musicians [violin and
flute]...
'There were four rows of wooden seats, or benches in the
body of the Church, and on the North side sat the Iron gang,
while on the South side sat the invalids from the Barracks.
In front of the rows of rough seats were the Commandant's
Pew...near to where the musicians were stationed, and as
soon as he and his family entered it, a screen was drawn
across, and they were shut off from observation by the rest
of the congregation.
'At the West end of the Church stood the Military Guards
who had conducted the prisoners to the Service. The
Commandant and all the free people were seated in their
places before the prisoners were marched in.'
Interestingly, Captain Rolland, the Commandant in 1824,
is buried under the front row of pews. It is said he was
murdered during an escape attempt. At any rate his body was
apparently buried here as the ground had been consecrated in
preparation for the laying of the foundation stone, as it
was believed that the convicts would be less likely to
desecrate his grave if it were on sacred ground.
The present chapel was built in 1821 as a dispensary for
the garrison hospital which was located across the road
where St Agnes' Catholic Church now stands. The building was
extended and renovated in 1937 but the original portion
retains its initial form.
Kooloonbung Creek Nature Park
Head west along William St for one block, turn left into
Horton St and proceed south to the Gordon St intersection.
On the southern side of the roundabout there are rows of
weathered tombstones bearing the names of convicts and free
settlers The earliest interment dates from 1824. Here now
are flower beds, expansive lawns and shady trees which form
a part of Kooloonbung Creek Nature Park - a 50-ha site
redeveloped to present an area of natural bushland. There
are 3 km of walking trails and several bird-watching
platforms (the reserve contains some 130 species). The
reserve also contains some koalas. Maps are available at
most entry points and from the visitors' centre.
|
| The Rota Building, once
the home of John Flynn, now the headquarters of the
National Parks and Wildlife Service for the area
|
Roto House
Roto Place runs off Lord St, just south of the Hill St
intersection. It leads to Roto House, an historic ten-room
country house built of red mahogany in 1890 for surveyor
John Flynn. Restored and supplied with period furnishings,
it is open for inspections from 9.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. on
weekdays, tel: (02) 6584 2203.
Koala Hospital and Port Macquarie Nature Reserve
Roto House is surrounded by Port Macquarie Nature Reserve -
a 12-ha section of wet sclerophyll forest which is
essentially a treatment and relocation centre for koalas
displaced by urban expansion. The focal point is the Koala
Hospital which is a short distance from Roto House. The
public are not allowed into the hospital itself but when the
animals have been treated they are initially placed in the
yard where there are two permanent marsupial residents along
with other sundry visitors. A good time to visit is during
feeding which takes place publicly from 8.00 a.m. to 8.30
a.m. and from 3.00 p.m. to 3.3.0 p.m. daily. There is also
an associated shop, tel: (02) 6584 1522.
Flagstaff Maritime Museum
The Maritime Museum focuses on local maritime history and is
open from 11.00 a.m. to 3.00 p.m. every day but Sunday. It
is located at 6 William St which is appropriately by
Flagstaff Hill, named after the signal station and beacon
established there in 1821, tel: (02) 6583 1866.
Sea Acres Rainforest Centre
A little further south is the Sea Acres sanctuary. A NSW
Tourism Award Winner, this National Parks and Wildlife
Service venture preserves 72 hectares of rare coastal
lowland rainforest adjacent Shelly Beach and Miners Beach.
There are 1.3 kilometres of elevated boardwalk, guided
tours, an enviro theatre and ecology display, a rainforest
cafe and gift shop. Access is off Pacific Drive. It is open
daily from 9.00 a.m. to 4.30 p.m., tel: (02) 6582 3355.
Lake Cathie
About 12 km south of Tacking Point is Lake Cathie which
provides safe swimming in scenic surroundings.
Kingfisher Park
Koalas can be seen in the natural bushland and landscaped
gardens of Kingfisher Park. There are also farmyard pets,
kangaroos, wallabies and Australian birds. It is open daily
from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m., tel: (02) 6581 0783. To get
there head out of town along the Oxley Highway and turn left
into Kingfisher Rd about 5 km south-west of the city centre.
Innes Lake Vineyards
This winery is located on The Ruins Way which heads south
off the Oxley Highway about 6 km south-west of the city
centre. They are open daily for tastings and sales, tel:
(02) 6581 1332.
Cassegrain Winery
Cassegrain Winery, established in 1980, is situated on the
Hastings River, slightly to the west of Port Macquarie.
Noted for its red and fortified wines, it boasts a
restaurant, a playground, and picnic-barbecue areas, all set
amidst 2000 roses. The winery is open daily from 9.00 a.m.
to 5.00 p.m. To get there, follow Hastings River Drive
westwards from the town centre to the Pacific Highway. Turn
left, following the highway south for about 3 km and turn
left again into Fernbank Creek Road. For the winery ring
(02) 6583 7777 and for the restaurant ring (02) 6584 2237.
Billabong Koala and Aussie Wildlife Park
Billabong Koala and Aussie Wildlife Park (the home of the
'Big Swaggie') has native fauna in landscaped gardens linked
by billabongs and level walkways. There are rainforest
aviaries, spacious animal compounds and free-roaming
wildlife, as well as a restaurant, outdoor picnic areas and
a gift shop, tel: (02) 6585 1060. From the intersection of
the Pacific and Oxley Highways, head west along the latter,
towards Wauchope. You will soon come to a turnoff on the
right into Billabong Drive.
Limeburners Creek Nature Reserve
Limeburners Creek Nature Reserve consists of 9123 hectares
of coastal heathlands characterised by banksias, blackbutt
wetlands and small patches of rainforest. The area is ideal
for birdwatching, swimming, surfing, canoeing, bushwalking
and fishing. The main access route is via Crescent Head but
there is a very rough road from Port Macquarie which is
strictly for those with a 4WD.
To access this road, catch the vehicular ferry across the
Hastings River from Settlement Point then follow North Shore
Drive for a short distance to the coastline where you must
turn left into Point Plomer Road which will take you
straight up the coast. For detailed information about the
reserve, see the entry on Crescent Head or contact the Port Macquarie District
National Parks and Wildlife Service Office on (02) 6584
2203.
Sundry Activities
Hydro Golf is available at the Hibbard Sports Club in
Boundary St, tel: (02) 6583 3200. Mini-golf is offered at
Supa-Putt in Gordon St, opposite the Olympic Pool, tel: (02)
6583 4677. Port City Bowl is located in Hastings River
Drive, tel: (02) 6583 2238.
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Port Macquarie
