| Wilberforce New South Wales |
|||||||||||||
| Population: | 3,004 (2006 Census) | ||||||||||||
| Postcode: | 2756 | ||||||||||||
| Location: | 62 km (39 mi) from Sydney CBD | ||||||||||||
| LGA: | City of Hawkesbury | ||||||||||||
| Federal Division: | Macquarie | ||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
Wilberforce is a small town in New South Wales, Australia, in the local government area of the City of Hawkesbury. It is just beyond the outer suburbs of north-west Sydney and lies on the western bank of the Hawkesbury River.
Contents |
Wilberforce is one of the original settlements established as a township by Lachlan Macquarie, colonial governor of New South Wales 1810-21, and accordingly is locally known as a "Macquarie Town"[1], a title given to townships established by Governor Macquarie on 6th December 1810 [2]in and around the Sydney metropolitan area. It was named after William Wilberforce (1759–1833) who was a British politician, philanthropist and a leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade.
Wilberforce currently boasts Rose Cottage; the oldest timber slab cottage in Australia standing on its original site[3].
The historic St John's Anglican Church was designed by Edmund Thomas Blacket[4] and built by J. Atkinson of Windsor. Construction was started in 1856 and the building was not completed until 1859 at a cost of £1500. The grounds of the church and contains the Old School House building (Built 1819), which was used as a school, a church, and a residence of the school master until the church was completed. The school house was replaced in 1880 by a Public School[5]. The original church building is still used for the church's 8am service with the modern education centre used for later services.
Wilberforce is the birthplace of bushranger Captain Thunderbolt.