Name: Hawkesbury Timber Slab Barns
Location: Hawkesbury local government area, New South Wales
The Hawkesbury River and its tributaries, and surrounding lands, have played an important role in food supply for the developing Greater Sydney Region since colonial settlement in 1794, eventually becoming known as the “food bowl” of Sydney.
With such a long and important history of European based farming practices, surviving physical evidence (such as barns) of the earliest phases of agricultural development in the area is highly prized by the local community for its historical significance, as well as its aesthetic significance, contributing to the historical landscape character that defines much of the Hawkesbury region.
However, such evidence is also under threat, due to population growth and the spread of urbanism throughout the former farming lands of the region, the changing practices of farming, the inherent adaptability of farm buildings themself, as well as the impacts of flooding, for which the Hawkesbury LGA is so well known.
Following on from two previous studies into surviving timber slab barns, LSJ undertook to revise and update these previous reports including providing a definitive list of the locations and condition of extent timber slab barns and provide heritage inventory sheets with recommendations for heritage listing (where appropriate).
A total of 132 separate properties were investigated, and 112 individual slab barns and 13 outbuildings were located across 86 separate properties, the majority of which were clustered around the earliest areas of colonial settlement along the Hawkesbury River.
The Hawkesbury Timber Slab Barns and Outbuildings Update Study would not have been possible without the involvement, knowledge and generosity of Graham Edds, Carol Edds and Dr. Terry Kass.
