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Trailflix: Appin - Trail Area History |
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Appin, closer to Campbelltown than Picton, is at the north eastern corner of the Wollondilly Region.
Appin (settlement 1810) is the oldest town in the Wollondilly, and one of the first villages in NSW.
Some of the first land grants here can still be seen in the names of the farms on the right hand side of the road from Campbelltown. This land has been farmed continually for almost 190 years - for wheat, barley, and vegetables for the Sydney market in the earliest days, and later dairying and fodder for horses.
Luckily the land at Appin was suitable for agriculture, as grants were conditional on farmers making a success of their enterprises. By 1825 the population had increased to 562, and Appin was the staging post for many journeys of exploration and settlement inland when the interior of the continent was opened up
In fact one of Australia's most famous explorers -Hamilton Hume - spent his boyhood here, and an obelisk stands near his former home on Appin Road at the place where he set off with Captain Hovell on their voyage of discovery to the inland and Port Phillip Bay in Victoria.
Throughout the nineteenth century Appin remained mostly a farming community, civic life being centred on nearby Campbelltown, which explains the lack of the village square common in Georgian towns. Similarly there are few early buildings still standing.
Of note are the Catholic and Anglican churches (both c.1841). The stone building (1868, since added to) at the front of the Primary School was the first state school in NSW under Sir Henry Parkes' free public education act.
from http://www.stonequarry.com.au/towns/appin.html
Kings Falls Bridge - Construction & History
The Kings Falls Bridge has local historical and aesthetic significance. The bridge and its setting are articulate about the history of transport on this important route and demonstrate the evolution of various crossing types at the site, from ford through timber bridges to the existing bridge, with its later modifications. The bridge's construction is directly associated with the program of main road improvement in the State, funded federally and carried out by the Main Roads Board cum Department of Main Roads from the late 1920s. The robust design of the bridge reflects recognition of the heavy use of the crossing by industrial traffic associated with coal haulage. Subsequent modifications to the bridge reflect the increasing importance of coal in the local economy from the 1970s and the bridge's location on an important coal haulage route, adjacent to the Appin Colliery, has ensured that it continues as a vital component of the transport infrastructure in the area.
from RTA site |
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