|
Coolangatta : A Convict History
The history of Coolangatta Estate stretches back to the early 19th Century.
It was in 1822, that partners Alexander Berry and Edward Wollstonecraft settled on the foothills of a mountain named Coolangatta, after obtaining a grant of 10,000 acres and 100 convicts from the NSW Government. The date 23 June 1822 has since been recognized as the first European settlement on the South Coast of NSW. Alexander Berry wrote:
“For my headquarters I fixed on the north side of the river at the foot of a hill called by the natives ‘Collungatta'. I located the 10,000 acres grant in this locality”
‘Collungatta' was the Aboriginal word for fine view , a description that Berry found difficult to dispute.
On 1 July 1822, Alexander Berry climbed Mt. Coolangatta to view his vast estate. He spent the night atop this ancient mountain, pondering the future of his settlement and possible uses of its fertile land.
|
|
Coolangatta quickly developed into a self-supporting village boasting mills, workshops, tradesmen and artisans. Within years Coolangatta was exporting thoroughbred horses to India, Cedar to Europe and cattle, tobacco, cheese and wheat to Sydney.
In order to provide boat access, Alexander Berry had Hamilton Hume and a party of convict labourers cut a 209-yard canal linking the Shoalhaven River to the Crookhaven River. Completed in twelve days it was the first canal constructed in Australia. After its construction, Berry set up shipbuilding facilities, completing his first vessel as early as 1824. In fact, the town of Coolangatta in Queensland is named after Berry's vessels ‘the Coolangatta' which was wrecked off Point Danger (QLD) in August, 1846.
Five years after arriving at Coolangatta, Berry married Wollstonecraft's sister Elizabeth (cousin of Mary Godwin- author of 'Frankenstein') and in 1836, Berry's three brothers John, William and David and two sisters arrived from Scotland to live at the Settlement.
Alexander died on 17 September 1873 and was buried with wife Elizabeth, in the vault at St. Thomas's cemetery at North Sydney. The estate passed to David Berry and later to the Hay family (cousins of the Berry's) where it remained until the late 1940's. During this time, Coolangatta Estate had fallen into a state neglect and disrepair and centuries of history looked certain to be lost.
|
|
