The Dairy

A cool insight into history. Grabbed a strawberry from the garden there...yummy

Very peaceful place

Smell the history ...

History in the park......

Great little piece of hidden treasure in Parramatta Park. Would have liked to see it open on a Sunday though!!

This property is open to roam around during daylight hours. A sign says that there are monthly tours that go inside the two buildings - but, you need to make an appointment. Former convict George Salter moved to here in 1796. 30 acres of land was granted to Salter, allowing him to ‘reside and cultivate the land.’ Salter had been convicted of smuggling in England and given a sentence of transportation for 7 years, arriving in Sydney Cove on the Second Fleet in 1789. By 1800, he had successfully transformed Salter’s Farm, and was producing large crops of wheat and maize. In 1802 Salter moved to Sydney. He kept his farm in Parramatta until 1813, when it was bought by Governor Macquarie, who planned to repurpose the farm for Government use, for 30 head of cattle. Macquarie at that time also appointed the industrious Salter to the responsible Government position of Superintendent of Government Stock in Van Diemen’s Land. Salter’s Farm became part of the ‘Domain’, a private park and farm used by Macquarie to cultivate Government Stores. Macquarie also transformed some of the area into a Gentleman’s Park. In 1816 Salter’s, ‘old farm house’ was renovated into a dairy. A sunken milk room was constructed on the southern side by 1823. The milk room was described at the time as “19 feet by 14 feet, sunk to a depth of five feet with fixtures and steps, a circular sewer and cesspool. The dairy was covered by one of the open-sided pavilions flanking either side of the cottage. Small additional rooms were also added to the original farm cottage, which became the main residence of the dairy. Products such as milk, butter and cream were brought up to Government House using a road that still exists today. The dairy played an important part in the life of the colony. For example, in the period June- December 1823 lists show that it supplied 1608 gallons of skimmed milk to the Female Factory for 107 pounds, 16 shillings and 2/3 pence. This amount increased in 1824 and in 1825. One of the first dairy maids employed at the new Governor’s Dairy was Elizabeth Eccles, a convict, who remained there until her death in 1835. She also occasionally worked as housekeeper for Governors King and Bourke in Government House. It was thought that she was 105 years old when she died, though this has since been disputed and her convict records indicated that she would have been about 93 at her time of death.

Tour on Australia Day 2018. Gold coin donation.

Excellent Tour Guide. Very informative.